Itch, Itch, Scratch, Scratch, Itch.....

Kelsey woke up with a horrible rash all over her body. Very, very itchy. It turned out that it was hives, caused by her amoxicillin, that she had just finished taking last night. She'd taken it a couple of times before, with no problems, but now it appears that she is allergic to penicillin.

The poor thing wanted to go to school this morning, because she had two tests. But the dr. said no school until the rash is gone, since it means that her body is still reacting to it and there is the possibility that she can develop breathing problems. So, we have to keep a close eye on her.

The poor thing has been miserable. Every time she is getting better, new ones crop up.

Has anyone ever experienced anything like this before? The dr. says that the rash should go away soon. I hope so!

Is there an outbreak of hives lately or what? Sarah has been dealing with them, then Savannah's nephew, and now Kelsey. From what my doctor told me, they could have more outbreaks for up to two weeks after the initial breakout. We are using Benedryl and that seems to cure the problem.

Good luck.

Cheryl

Yes, Benadryl is what my dr. recommended as well. It seems to help for awhile, but then she gets all itchy again soon after. She soaked in the tub for awhile and that seemed to give her some relief. I guess these hives are a bit different from your run-of-the mill hives. I guess there's something called a 'drug rash' that you get from taking a medication that you are allergic to. My dr. knew right what it was just by looking at it.

I hope Sarah's clears up soon too. Yeah, it does seem like there has been a 'rash' of them. Sorry, I couldn't resist!

Thanks, Cheryl. :)

I don't have any ideas, but I'm sorry she's not feeling well! The only good part about being sick is getting to watch LHOTP with a good reason! lol

I will pray for her, poor thing. Benadryl worked on me once I have a rush and I couldn't know exactly why. But otherwise, I can't help you. Allergic troubles are so difficult to treat...

Vanesa.

Rhonda wrote:

When Josh were little, he used to get ear infections all the time. He was at the daycare with me from 6 weeks on and he couldn't stay well. I was always taking him to the doctor and they were always putting him on amoxicillin till his system got immuned to it and it didn't work anymore, so they switched him to Ceclor. Well, both the boys got sick and knowing amoxicillin wouldn't work on Josh, I just asked for a large dose of Ceclor for the two of them to take. Josh was doing fine on it, but Jake had been taking it for 24 hours and on Sunday morning he got up and could not walk.....he came crawling into my room and I told him to get up, he was a big boy (I figured he was crawling around like Josh did) and he told me he couldn't stand. I lifted him up and when I went to put him down, his legs folded under him. I took him to the walk-in clinic and the doctor was going to do all kinds of tests on him. I asled him if it could be an allergic reaction to the Ceclor. He told me an allergic reaction would be a red rash and burning feeling. I told him he was just fine until he started taking the Ceclor and if he would give me some amoxicillin for the duration of his illness, I would be on my way. He wanted me to take him to the hospital the next morning for further tests. 24 hours after being OFF the Ceclor, he was up and walking again. He couldn't bring his heals all the way down, but he was walking. People don't always react to medicines the way other people do, and this doctor wouldn't even listen to me that the Ceclor was the possible cause...... It was quite scary!

Hang in there Pam, and keep Kelsey as comfortable as you can.....

That would have really scared me, Rhonda. It sounds very logical that the Ceclor did cause some kind of adverse reaction. I'm glad to hear that it didn't last long. I couldn't even imagine that.

Thanks for the well wishes, everyone. We're just keeping her on Benadryl and hoping that she is better soon. She woke up with her eyelid all swollen this morning because she has a couple of fresh hives on her eyelid. Putting a cool cloth seems to provide some relief for her and her eye is already looking better.

I called her school this morning to let them know that she wouldn't be at school again today. The woman who answered the phone said her daughter had the same reaction when she was 4. She was told that the rash could last up to a month. I pray that it doesn't last that long. She is really looking forward to her school Christmas party next Thursday. Plus she is already worried about 2 tests she missed this week. So, I am hoping for a speedy recovery for her.

awwww, poor guy. hope he gets well soon.....

{{{Pam & Kelsey}}}

Pam, poor Kelsey! And poor you! The doctor had told us to make sure that Caleb had Benadryl around the clock, because the hives would/could come right back again. He also gave us a form of steroids for him to have for 48 hours. I can't remember which steroid it was, though, because my head is so stuffed up! A baking soda bath might help with Kelsey's itching.

I'll be praying that her hives quickly go away.

Oh, I feel so sorry for her! I hope she gets well soon! I agree about the Benadryl, and tub soaks are good...try the Aveno oatmeal soap too. We've always used that for my boys when they have hives or Chicken Pox or anything itchy.

You take care too, Pam! I know it's no fun watching your sick child itch!

Thank your so much, everyone. I wanted to update that Kelsey is doing better today. Her hands had gotten so swollen, that she could hardly bend them. She was going around yesterday with her hands all wrapped up in wet rags.

This morning, the swelling in her hands and her eyelid went down considerably. She still has the rash, but it has faded quite a bit. I still gave her the Benadryl, since she is still itchy, but it didn't look like she had gotten any new ones. *knock on wood*

Savannah, her dr. mentioned steriods, but he didn't give them to her. I kind of wish he had, because I wonder if it would have helped with the swelling that she had. But then again, she didn't have that when she saw him.

So, I am hoping that she is on the road to recovery, but you never know with these things. Is Caleb doing better now?

How about Sarah, Cheryl? I was wondering if any more crept back.

Thanks again, everyone!!

Old recipes are always good! Oatmeal is a medicine than Physicians recommended for eczema in the XIX Century and even the beggining of XX Century!

Vanesa.

I'm afraid to post that she seems to be doing just fine now. After the update I posted yesterday, her feet were so swollen and sore, that she couldn't even stand on them. I had to either carry her, or she had to crawl around the house.

Today, the rash is just about gone, barely even noticeable. And her swelling went down. Thankfully, she isn't itchy anymore.

At least she has tomorrow off of school (even if it's because of the dreadful snow), so that she has one more day to recover and for us to see if she develops any more problems.

This is not fun!!

I'm very relieved to heard this, Pam. Poor little thing. When a little one suffers, I can't help but suffer with her or him. :alright:

Vanesa.

I know, Vanessa, I feel exactly the same way when I hear of a child suffering.

Today is day 2 of no new symptoms! I'm hoping we're out of the woods!

Thanks for helping me get through this and listening to me, everyone. It sure makes it easier!

That's great that she is doing better.