The time I sniffed ammonia salts: OOTD flashback

I don't know if this is going to be a thing....but I was thinking today about "One of Those Days" that I had a long time ago....so I decided to share it in an OOTD flashback!

So I came home today for Thanksgiving break, and within an hour of being in my house my throat was sore and I was coughing and my eyes were itchy. And the reason is: I am allergic to all things, including cats (of which we have four) and dogs (of which we have one, but he sheds a TON). So this is the story of the discovery of my allergies. I promise it's better than it sounds.

I got an allergy test when I was about 10. It was one of those ordeals where you go lay on a doctor bed thing and they punch a bunch (RHYME) of little needles in your back to see what you're allergic to. It didn't really hurt that bad, and I was only slightly allergic to cats and grass.

Then in high school, I was sick, like, alllllll the damn time. The issue was that when I got sick, I would always lose my voice, and I was big into choir and theater, and so I kind of needed that. After exhausting all other kinds of tests, my dad was like, "Hey, you haven't had an allergy test in seven years. Let's try that." And it wasn't that bad the first time, so I thought it would fine.

(Life hint: NEVER BASE EXPECTATIONS ON HOW SOMETHING WAS THE FIRST TIME.)

So I get an appointment at the allergy clinic at UT and go in on some random school day. And when I get called into the office, a gruesome sight greets me: there are two trays of 60 something needles sitting next to the patient chair. And they are all for me. Yay.

This allergy test did not use the little punchy things. Rather, I received 65 individual actual shots. I am horribly afraid of needles and shots, so to say the least, things did not go well.

The nurse started on my left arm at the top, and when she reached the bottom of my upper arm (she somehow fit half the shots in that area), the entire thing was like one gigantic mosquito bite and it was red and itched like nothing I have ever experienced before in my liiiiife.

And she measured them all with this weird circle millimeter template, and got this look on her face like, "Damn." But she proceeded to my right arm. And as she started those shots, I started to feel really funny. And I finally said something about it, and she was like, OK sit back and try to breathe slowly. And then I passed the fuck out and the next thing I know they're shoving ammonia salts under my nose (had no idea those still existed).

And I had had such a severe allergic reaction that I had to leave and come back later in the week to finish the test cause it messed all my shit up. Obviously. I fainted. And if you just saw my arms you would think I was a swol football player.

And when I finally was able to endure the pain and itching to finish the test, my doctor comes in the room and says, "Well....I do have some good news. We figured out why you're sick all the time."

"We tested you for 65 things and...you are not allergic to 5."

So I was actually allergic to more than 90 percent of the things they tested me for. And I am severely allergic to cats, dogs, and most trees and grasses.

Hoo-RAY.

So then I got six shots a week for half a year, and now I'm FINALLY down to two shots every three weeks. And I don't lose my voice as much anymore. So that's good.

The downside is that because I'm so allergic to the shit they're putting into me, my shots usually hurt and itch like crazy, sometimes for two or three days. And a lot of times they end up looking like this:

And this one was the worst it ever was. It's not the part at my very upper arm that's red, but the giant white swollen thing that's outlined in red:

So...yeah. That was one of those days that turned into a series of one of those shots. Except those shots happened twice a week. And three in each arm. 

I take a lot of benadryl.