Just thought I'd put this up; we dealt with some kind of reaction tonight, and I'm not sure what it was exactly but it reminded me a lot of how Brittany's reactions were back in the very sensitive stages. We had to do troubleshooting on a larger scale than we have in awhile, and made me think of addressing it here on the blog.
She's been getting sick for the past few days; seems to be more "crud" related than allergies, so she already wasn't feeling well. I spent quite a bit of time keeping peppermint tea going and doing essential oils, etc. to help with migraine pain. She has had trouble sleeping so was overtired, but wanted to stay awake as much as possible to prevent her sleep patterns from flipping since she wants to keep working her seasonal job. Saw some good progress with pain levels and then after dinner (I made homemade chicken vegetable & rice soup) she felt kind of bloaty and so I decided to apply some ginger essential oil to her abdomen. I'm not sure what went wrong, but within 5 minutes of doing that she got nausea, had her legs collapsing on her, was dizzy, had trouble talking, etc. I've never used ginger oil AND the oil I used is from a different company than the one I usually use, so I'm not sure if it's ginger itself or problems with the purity levels (I suspect the latter since we use ginger all the time in teas and cooking). If there was alcohol used at any point in processing the oil it's just about a guarantee that it is corn based, so I'm suspecting something like that was the problem. That bottle went straight into the trash, let me tell you.
So. . .here are some tips when dealing with a reaction, that help reduce reaction time and the severity:
1. Have compounded Benadryl on hand. This means that you cannot use the Benadryl you buy at the store. You need to have your doctor write out a prescription for it, and on the paper s/he needs to include, "To be compounded free of. . . ." and write down all of the things that you are allergic to. In Brittany's case it says, "To be compounded free of corn, wheat, dairy and soy." All of these things make their way into medications by way of derivatives. Be proactive with the compounding pharmacist and ask what kinds of capsules they use, what fillers are available, etc. We have Brittany's filled in clear gelatin capsules (there are some with a white stripe and that is not okay) and I bring our own tapioca flour for them to use as a filler. Using a filler makes it less time consuming and easier for them; we have also found that it's easier on her system than just having the straight active ingredient.
2. Have quercetin (a supplement) on hand. TwinLabs makes a Quercetin + C that is safe for corn allergies. Quercetin lessens the reaction and recovery time.
3. Bentonite clay is another wonderful thing that helps a lot. Living Clay is very pure and you can even ingest it. For a really severe reaction I mix about 2 tablespoons with 6-8 ounces of water and she drinks it. As it works through the system, the clay pulls toxins out of the body with it. You can also use it in a bath; the recommended amount is a cup, but since she is very sensitive I usually use less. Have the person soak in the bath for about 20 minutes. It helps, again, with pulling toxins out of the body and relaxing so you can sleep. It can leave you feeling "floppy," though, so I wouldn't do it too often. You also need to make sure to hydrate well because the clay dehydrates. Drink lots of water. If drinking the clay, also make sure to drink a lot of water and keep in mind that it can be constipating. Start with less clay when you are first trying it to see how your body does with it.
4. For Brittany, we have found coconut water to be really helpful for bringing down headaches and lessening reactions. Back when her body was having global reactions where her limbs went numb on exposure, drinking coconut water restored feeling in her limbs within about 30 minutes as opposed to a couple of hours. If you can tolerate coconut, this might be worth looking into. I would stay away from brands that come in a carton, since the packaging is usually waxy and therefore most likely corny. The brand that she likes best is C2O and it comes in a can. Coconut water is naturally high in potassium and electrolytes, so is great for hydrating. It has been used in the Pacific islands as IV fluid in cases of emergency.
5. Epi-pen. This is only to be used as a life-saving measure in case of anaphylaxis. You HAVE to go to the emergency room if you use it or the person can die. There is a lot to consider if you have a corn allergy with this because the hospital is a minefield of derivatives. IV bags use glucose unless you specify saline only, and that's just one aspect of what you have to contend with. So far we have been able to avoid using the epi and thus going to the ER by taking measures at home to bring reactions down.
Usually the first thing we do when getting an accidental exposure like something airborne at the store or something is pop a few quercetin. Usually two, sometimes more if it's really bad like heavy perfume or cigarette smoke. If it's something severe then we usually follow it with Benadryl (she prefers to avoid that if she can because of how drowsy it makes her). Typically a regular reaction that isn't too terrible will be quercetin and coconut water; when we are out we usually have a few cans in the car and I always have quercetin and benadryl in my purse (she has them in hers, as well). We don't usually use the clay unless it's a more severe reaction.
I hope these tips help. For your own information, read as much as you can on quercetin and bentonite clay to become familiar with why and how they work, and research anaphylaxis. Here is a good link: http://www.aaaai.org/conditions-and-treatments/allergies/anaphylaxis.aspx
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