Saturday, January 13, 2007

Swimmin' with da Shrimp!

Yummy, right?

It's been said I'm allergic to shrimp. I've actually tested that theory, only to find it to hold absolute truth.  These delicious, delectable, savory shrimp cause my skin to crawl - literally!  Normally I find myself suffering only a mildly irritating itch and slight rash that lasts about an hour.  The discomfort has not been bad enough to prevent me from diving in and devouring my favorite seafood!  Until last night.

Let me rewind a bit.  I underwent a thyroid biopsy two days ago.  The procedure itself was not painful in the least, thanks to the lidocaine injection.  The recovery and subsequent trauma has created unimaginable discomforts, the least of which is this horrible reaction to the shrimp I ate last night. Now, I realize that the thyroid is the Master Gland.  It controls pretty much all functions of the body, and tells all the other Slave Glands what to do and how to react.  But I think I really irked Master Thyroid by allowing my surgeon to stick a needle the size of Texas into a cyst with the casing of Fort Knox! I believe my friend, the thyroid gland, is rebelling to this trauma by causing my body to underestimate the amount of antihystamines to deliver to combat the invading shrimp allergens!  I have rashes all over my body, starting at the hairline of my forehead all the way down to the backs of my knees, and onto the bottom of my feet - and it's been more than 48 hours since I've eaten those little buggars!

So, here I sit, seeking symptathy, while my body waits for yet another dose of Benadryl to take effect.  When it does, I'll nod off to sleep, NOT itch, and hopefully wake up with softer, smoother, more comfortable skin.

If you have followed along this far, let me ask you this: Is there anything I can do to keep from getting these hives besides taking Benadryl -- or stop eating shrimp?  Cuz it ain't gonna happen.

Sigh....

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Ohh Shrimp is my very favorite thing in this whole world-I would hate it-no-die-if I couldn't have it.I have a low thyroid and take synthroid-man I hope mine never messes up and not allows me to eat it....I feel for you-I truly do!!!