Quote:
Originally Posted by SquarePegGuy
Our insurance doesn't cover acupuncture, either. But my wife's naturopathic doctor administers it as part of an office visit.
One of your posts mentions that pain medication is a possible cause of Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria. I wonder if that's the case with my wife, although she has itchy skin ulcers, not hives.
Her pain management doctor suggested a turmeric supplement. And our local grocery stores are offering whole, fresh turmeric, so we've been adding it to soups and stir fry dishes. Turmeric is supposed to be a powerful anti-inflammatory food. Fresh cracked black pepper is supposed to help with absorption. It's hard to tell if it helps, though.
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I’m glad your wife has a naturopathic doctor. We have several functional health doctors, but they do not accept health insurance.
RE: Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria
I initially experienced swelling from infancy through high school and spent a lot of time hospitalized and without answers.
Nothing changed after high school except that I moved out of state. Thirteen years later, I had surgery, and everything went wrong. I returned to my birth state, and the other shoe dropped. Lol. I began experiencing chronic urticaria, formally called autoimmune urticaria, around 2018 after moving back to my place of birth.
I went through a lot of ups and downs trying to figure out the correct diagnosis. I began keeping a journal of everything I ate, any medications I took, changes in weather, etc. I eventually created a symptom tracker chart to make things more efficient. I was experiencing what I now know is Hereditary Angioedema (HAE), which is a rare disease.
Things turned around for me after my immunologist hired a nurse practitioner. She happened to be on call during a flare I experienced early one morning. I was scared and crying emotionally. One of my eyes was swollen shut, and I had a huge knot under that eye. It turns out the NP also has HAE. I immediately had the necessary labs, and my symptom tracker charts (6-7 months of charting) were accepted as evidence. I also had lots of photos and emergency room visits.
I have an official diagnosis of Hereditary Angioedema with normal C-1. Last fall, my experience with chronic urticaria changed. When I experience a chronic urticaria flare, within 1-2 hours, I immediately have a HAE attack. HAE attacks can become severe and cause anaphylaxis.
There are more medications on the market for HAE compared to 20 years ago. All the HAE specialty medications require injections, some intravenous and others subcutaneous. I administer my preventative every other week subcutaneously. My emergency medication and abortive must be administered intravenously.
I still avoid pain medications and prefer medicinals. It's funny you mentioned turmeric. Our weather is changing to cool temperatures and rain. I sliced fresh lemon peels and fresh turmeric (sometimes fresh ginger), then added them to the water and boiled them. I pour the boiled water into my tea infuser. I make a cup of herbal tea and add raw honey. I have a nice collection of herbal teas. I have also heard good things about cracked black pepper.
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