How to save yourself from acute urticaria?
Acute urticaria is characterized by the sudden onset of itchy, raised hives or welts on the skin, often caused by an allergic reaction or other triggers. In extreme cases, a patient might suffocate due to respiratory system swelling. This post aims to share my experience of fighting several acute urticaria reactions. I hope no one will suffer from it. But if you do, you know what to expect and what might help you to survive.
⚠️ Medical Disclaimer: THIS POST DOES NOT PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE
The information in this post is for informational purposes only. No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read in this post.Wrong Example
I will use my earliest experience as an example to show you the progression of the reaction and what it can do to your body if the wrong steps are taken.
+00min. I am sweaty after a full hour of fitness training, and my T-shirt is completely wet. I pack my things quickly and rush to the gym door to leave. The cold air from the gym’s AC and the wind gust from the ventilation above the automatic door hit my body like a wall. I feel like being thrown into an icy river and start to shiver.
+01min. My heart starts to race, and red dots appear rapidly on my forearms and thighs.
+02min. The red dots start to connect. My face feels a bit itchy and hurt. I start scratching my body, rubbing the inner corners of my eyes. It doesn’t help to release the itch; my eyes are stinging simultaneously.
+05min. The more I scratch, the itchier my body gets. The red spreads so fast. My blood is flushing under the skin of my chest, front and inner sides of both arms and thighs. Lumps with clear boundaries appear in the red area. Soon, those small islands link into big swelling. I am a standing carrot.
+06min. A gym staff notices me and offers to help. Luckily, a hospital is on the other side of the street. However, my respiratory tract starts to get tight. Less and less air is able to go through my mouse and nose. I am too tired to stand, not to mention walking.
+07min. The swelling affected my eyelid. Now I can barely see anything through the gap. Feeling helpless.
+10min. Someone drives her car over, and I am led in the back. We just need to cross the road. I am struggling to breathe.
+25min. I am on the bed in the emergency room. I can think clearly. But I am losing the sense of my body. Horror makes me shiver again.
+75min. I can feel there is a noodle on my left arm. My breath is catching up.
+145min. I am pushed out of the emergency room. Shadows are moving over. Sit up, feel a hug, and slowly walk out of the building following a holding hand.
+5days. All swellings are completely gone.
What I described above is the progression of my first acute urticaria reaction seven years ago. Since then, I have prevented three similar reactions from developing into serious stages (+3mins) until two weeks ago. I was doing my daily jogging in the early morning. Similarly, a sudden wind gust around the corner hit my sweaty body hard. Things happened fast, and my immune system reacted fast. The red area was all over my body. But I was still some distance away from my home and my medicine.
Instead of following my body’s cue to scratch, I calmed down and kept my hands around the torso to stay warm. Let the heartbeat drop to normal while maintaining a fast walking speed to reach home. Took the pill and covered myself with a warm blanket on the bed, trying to lower my heartbeat further. After two hours of mild fever, I am active again.
Things to Remember
Keep your sweaty body away from cold air. Prevention from the source.
Keep calm if the reaction starts. The higher your heartbeat, the faster the blood circulates the body and the quicker the swelling develops.
Don’t scratch or rub the itching part. Similarly, scratching will accelerate the swelling. And swelling around the eyes is very dangerous as you lose sight, making it difficult to seek help.
Keep your body warm. Cold air will continue to trigger the reaction and makes the condition worse.
Take the anti-allergy pill. Keep some common antihistamine pills around. If you are prone to develop allergy reactions, keep the pill within reach. For me, loratadine works perfectly.
Call for help. Get help before swelling blocks your breath. Rule of thumb, the first five minutes are critical as you might lose the self-help capability afterward.
If you want to know more about acute urticaria, book an appointment with your doctor. He/She will provide you with more professional advice and might also suggest a skin test.
Take care, and see you next week.