Fear of Allergies/Anaphylaxis

I really need some help, I haven't been able to eat again. My theme has recently moved from fear of being drugged to fear of random severe allergic reactions and it's even worse because it CAN happen, so it isn't completely irrational. I've even read that it's common. I have food 0 allergies and never have, but I do have seasonal and sometimes dogs gives me hives only where contact was made and with certain dogs. I stopped eating pretty much everything, no dairy, no nuts, no fish, no wheat, no eggs... Nothing. I'm running out of things to eat and losing weight like crazy as well as working a hard job. I need some reassurance, I cannot let this take over and starve. My fears/questions are: - Can you really develope a severe allergy overnight with 0 signs, even after eating that food all your life? - If so, how rare is it?? Is the risk as great as getting in a car wreck or as great as getting struck by lightning. - If anaphylaxis is so common, how do people eat so much without any kind of fear or anxiety?? Let it also be known I am scared of medication, so it's not like I can just eat and pop a Benadryl. I really really need some help and reassurance. I don't mind staying away from nuts and seafood, I know they are both severe triggers... But milk, eggs, and wheat being a trigger is stopping me from eating pretty much everything. That's what a mostly need help with... I need more safe foods. Please. Right now how I'm eating is getting a bowl of food, taking a bite, waiting 20 minutes and checking for signs, and then if there's none... I keep eating. That would work, right? A small amount won't be enough to send me into full anaphylaxis but it would give me the signs I need? I know I could consult an allergist and get a test, but they don't book until months out... I can't go that long barely eating. Please.

Anna11

Date posted: Yesterday

You sound exactly like me. I’ve had this for almost a year now. My advice is take it slow. Try one new thing with a safe person and stick to your safe foods while slowly building out to more. The only allergy I have is pineapple and that is just tongue swelling. It is incredibly rare to develop an allergy overnight especially and anaphylactic reaction.

pinkmartini

Date posted: Yesterday

I had this EXACT problem all summer. First of all I’m so sorry you’re experiencing this I know how exhausting and debilitating this feels. I talked this over with my cousin who is an allergist and he was able to give me some peace of mind. I know it’s not impossible to develop a severe food allergy as an adult but it’s not very likely especially if you have no history of allergies or family history of them. I was about to do the same thing and get an allergy test but he was telling me about how especially with the common tests they do on your back or arm you can get false positives all the time which can cause people to never be able to enjoy their favorite foods ever again. He also was able to really explain how an anaphylactic reaction would feel- you would know. It took me a while to break this loop and I’m still working on it but stick to things you know and trust for a while and then start branching out back to your normal diet when you are in a safe space, whether around family, friends, etc. When I am still feeling uneasy or going out to eat say at a restaurant I’ve never tried before I have been bringing an epi pen just for peace of mind. Obviously I am not a doctor and I am not giving medical advice but I am someone who has lived with ocd almost my whole life and I promise you’re not alone in feeling like this. ❤️‍🩹

Kay_buni

Date posted: 11h

@pinkmartini I'm mostly struggling with milk and eggs and such, do you have any advice on knocking that down? Or any knowledge on exactly how common it is? That's kind of been the kicker, how everywhere says it's so common... But it doesn't make sense to me, if it's so common, how do people eat so confidently?

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