When even your belly-button itches, you know it's not good.
So...remember how I raved about berry-picking and how idyllic it is and how much I love berries?
Well, it turns out I came away from berry-picking with a lovely souvenir: a red, itchy bump on my wrist, and a couple on my stomach. I thought they were bug bites, or scratches from the raspberry bush that had gotten irritated somehow. Except they kept getting bigger. And spreading. And itching. and spreading.
I went to the doctor yesterday, who stared at it and rattled off a few things it could be, and then brought in another doctor, who stared it and talked about a few other things, and after awhile they concluded that neither of them knew what it was. They said it's not poison oak (not weepy enough) and not eczema and not bug bites. The best they could do was "contact dermatitis," which means somehow I came into contact with something (a plant? a substance like latex or nickel that gives some people an allergic reaction? We don't know! It's a fun guessing game.) They gave me a prescription for some cortisone cream and said, "Hope it gets better. Come back if it doesn't."
So, here I sit in the 80-degree heat with my mystery rash, sweating and scratching, with red bumps from my legs to my fingertips to my chin. Good thing I have lots of really yummy raspberries to eat.
Well, it turns out I came away from berry-picking with a lovely souvenir: a red, itchy bump on my wrist, and a couple on my stomach. I thought they were bug bites, or scratches from the raspberry bush that had gotten irritated somehow. Except they kept getting bigger. And spreading. And itching. and spreading.
I went to the doctor yesterday, who stared at it and rattled off a few things it could be, and then brought in another doctor, who stared it and talked about a few other things, and after awhile they concluded that neither of them knew what it was. They said it's not poison oak (not weepy enough) and not eczema and not bug bites. The best they could do was "contact dermatitis," which means somehow I came into contact with something (a plant? a substance like latex or nickel that gives some people an allergic reaction? We don't know! It's a fun guessing game.) They gave me a prescription for some cortisone cream and said, "Hope it gets better. Come back if it doesn't."
So, here I sit in the 80-degree heat with my mystery rash, sweating and scratching, with red bumps from my legs to my fingertips to my chin. Good thing I have lots of really yummy raspberries to eat.
6 comments:
So sorry to hear it! Doesn't sound like fun... I did have to chuckle at your 80 degree heat though... :) I came home from swimming at a friend's pool this afternoon to find that the inside of my apartment is 80 degrees... and it feels REALLY cool compared to outside! :) hope your itching subsides soon (and that your girls don't get it!)
I don't presume to know better than you doc, but it sounds like hives. I had a reaction to eating too much capsicum (peppers) of all colours a few years ago, and it started on my wrists....looked like flea bites. Ended up on my tummy, and eventually my butt and back and hips and arms. Itch as anything. If you're still suffering try taking an antihistamine. Hope you get better soon.
Any chance you could have developed an allergy to raspberries? A friend of mine gets a similar reaction to foods to which she is allergic.
Here's hoping that rash heals up fast!
I'm so sorry! Rashes are the worst. I have to suggestion something though. Have you changed any products you use? I once changed my soap and got a rash just like that. Same thing when I changed body lotions. Could that be it? I don't want to sound like a know-it-all, but I felt if that might be it then I should say something so you can change back.
Get better soon!
Good news: the cream does seem to be helping the rash. Still itchy, still red, but less so. And no spreading today.
Rachy: I have not changed any products; I've been using the same soap, lotion and shampoo for several months. A good thought, though.
Goslyn and Embejo: I haven't eaten anything unusual--no mounds of peppers for me, thank you. I certainly hope I haven't developed an allergy to my beloved raspberries! If this doesn't go away I might have to go on some kind of food-elimination diet to try and figure out what it is.
Sorry to hear about the mystery rash Jen, that cannot ne fun but gla the cream is working! Can you also take some Benadryl for the itching? I was chuckling at the "80 degree heat comment...our pool is 80 degrees here! Hang in there...
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