Annoying On-Going Hives.......?

i broke out in hives just over 2 weeks ago....along with swollen lips, hoarse voice occasionally and joint pains....the doctor has given me medication and asked to keep a diary for 2 wks....the day after i started the medication i was covered in hives worse than previous, the second and third day it was bad but bearable, i noticed that the hives broke out in the night and eased off during the day, only to break out again at night, so i brought a new bed, allergy cover,quilt pillows etc, yet still i seem to break out in the middle of the night, i thought it had started to clear up, but today i woke up covered and more itchy than ever, my face is also covered, this was the only part of me unaffected last week, but my poor face is throbbing today, ive literally spent all day itching and watching the wealts get bigger and spread, im going back to doctor tomorrow cos its driving me mad, he said the medicine should work!....ive been hardly eating and cutting food groups but nothing works?

the medication is a strong one so i dont know why its not working at all....ive figured out its not because of heat either, as i having been sleeping with a very thin blanket (anti-allergy) so i dont get too warm.

I had hives for over 10 years so know the kind of itchiness and pain that goes with it. Mine could be controlled with a combination of claritin and serevent or advair for the most part. Are the hives occurring on the parts of you that are pressed against the bed? That would mean that they are being induced by the pressure of you against the bed. Then you have the underlying problem of what caused the condition which is what the doctoc is trying to figure out with the diary.
I agree with the answer to try prednisone(my doctor used medrol) but same idea to knock the attack down and ease the itchiness. Maybe even a prednisone plan to really load you up and then taper you off to see if you can knock it out completely.
Mine didn't go away until I was diagnosed with celiac disease which is an intolerance to the gluten found in wheat, rye and barley. You can get tested for that with blood work and maybe a biopsy. You need to keep eating gluten till the testing so it is accurate. Or you can try a gluten free diet for a month and see if that helps the hives. Talk to the doctor although there isn't much info out about hives and gluten.

Good luck and if you have more questions or need a shoulder contact me through here.

when the hives strike try fexofenadine it is a 24 hr antihistamine and relieve the itching with calamine lotion the relief is blissful joseph Report It

You could try a different approach. First, the doc can prescribe a short course of prednisone to knock out the hives - this will provide nearly instant relief. Then, you can schedule an appointment an allergist a few weeks after the prednisone to have them identify the allergen. The allergy screening will identify likely food groups and any other likely allergens. When allergies happen mostly at night, the most likely culprits are something you are eating for dinner, dust mites, or bedbugs. An allergist can also desensitize you to certain allergies through a series of shots.


Have the doc double check that you actually have hives and not bedbug bites - most US doctors don't think of bedbugs. You could also have something going haywire with your autoimmune system, which means that antihistamines won't help.