Addendum to J's Results

Last we left Jeremy's test results, I was told that he had allergies to ragweed and that was that. Well, that wasn't entirely the case.

Phil was able to talk with the doctor (I only talked with the nurse on Monday), and he was informed in much detail about Jeremy's results. It turns out that yes, he does have allergies to ragweed, but he also has mild allergies to mold. Why is this important? Because it can explain his multitude of rashes he's experienced over the last several months. Certain days he'd wake up with squiggly lines on his body, other days he'd have hive-like bumps and still other days he'd just have raised irritated parts of skin that constantly itched.

Apparently when he scratches, he releases histamines that can bother his skin even more. So it's a constant cycle, unless he stops scratching. Luckily he's done better with the scratching; it's almost non-existent because I've been loading him up with lotion at bedtime. The doc did recommend purchasing some Aquaphor, which is basically like a thick lotion. She also said to keep Benadryl on hand in case he does break out. And to keep hydrocortizone cream around to help alleviate the itching.

Also, there are three foods that tend to bring about the different types of rashes when the pollen count is high: bananas, sunflower seeds and cantaloupe. How weird! So our guess is that he broke out in that rash when he had a banana the day before and the pollen count was high. The doc gave us the name of a Web site about pollen count that can help us determine if those foods might irritate J's skin.

So basically it's good news. We don't need to seek out a dermatologist and there's nothing we need to fear about regarding J's rash outbreaks. I'm glad we're more well informed. And I'm also glad that Phil finally convinced me to get J tested for allergies. I just feel bad that Jeremy is probably going to deal with this for the rest of his life. Let's just hope he doesn't suddenly become allergic to the cats!