Are any of you ladies experiencing hives with endometriosis?

[montana09]

I was only getting them on my forearms, neck and chest while ovulating. Now, I also have them on my thighs. And its all month! Does anyone know what causes them and/or how to prevent them?

[Impatient]

You need to see your GP if it doesn't clear up in a day or two. It is an allerigic reaction to something and you can take steroids to calm things down- but they are on prescription.

histamine causes it- anti-histamine calms it down for most cases- but if it is persistent, then GP's stronger treatment is required. Any hayfever anti-histamine tablets sold at the supermarket or pharmacy should be the 1st thing to take - but if that isn't enough to clear it up then speak to your GP for some steroid tablets.

Endo wrecks the immune system and ladies with endo are very prone to developing all manner of allergies and indeed can really struggle to fight off common infections too- when their bodies are constanly over worked with having to heal the endo wounds each month.

A lot of us have compromised immune systems - either caused by endo or perhaps which has caused endo to take hold in us- where as in healthy ladies their bodies might be better able to prevent endo from nesting on other tissues. So if we do have allergies or catch bugs it can take us a lot longer to battle though them.

[Bez76]

I constantly have hives, every day. Can't remember a time that I didn't have them. I get them on my face, my back, all over my chest. It really upsets me and makes me very self conscious. I saw a dermatologist once and he prescribed with me with some stronger antihistamines, which worked for a while, but then my body got used to them and they no longer worked. Since being diagnosed with endo last year, I have read that it is quite common for women with endo due to the weakened immune system.

I really hope yours start to get better, but I do recommend seeing a specialist as the stronger tablets may well work better for you as everybody is different.

[ap2014 in reply to Bez76]

Hi Bez, how are your hives at the moment? Have you ever done any special diets or anything like that? I have always thought there was a link between endo and chronic urticaria but until today never looked into it online. Hope you're doing ok. As if one chronic condition isn't enough to bring us to our knees : /

[montana09]

Thanks so much for the advice!

[ap2014]

Yes! Since I was 17 I have had about 5 bouts of chronic ideopathic urticaria (CIU) (ie they don't know what causes it) lasting from around 9 months to a year. My last bout was in 2009 and hives started appearing again about 5 weeks ago (3 weeks after I had a laparotomy for endo). They are definitely affected by my hormone levels as they are worse before and during my period. Stress is also a big factor I think. Some of the times when I've had hives I have had allergies to specific things and avoiding those has helped a bit, but my experience seems to be of generally being very sensitive to pretty much everything. Antihistamines don't make them go away, but help a bit, sometimes. I wouldn't ever take oral steroids, because I've read on urticaria boards people saying they make the hives go but then they come back worse afterwards, but I do use a steroid cream sparingly on the worst ones (which leave bruises and broken blood vessels). Chronic ideopathic urticaria is an autoimmune condition and some people think endometriosis is as well, so that might explain any link. Of course, your hives could also very likely be an allergic reaction to something you can avoid, and hopefully haven't lasted more than 6 weeks so wouldn't be considered chronic.

If you can get allergy tests, do. It might not cure you but if you do have allergies to anything avoiding those things can hopefully reduce the severity of the hives. My GP won't even bother as because I have a history of CIU he said it's like looking for a needle in a haystack. I might look into getting some done privately. There are also elimination diets for allergies you can do - I have done the low salicylate diet a few times which helped a bit. Tea tree oil lotion is really good for cooling down the skin and helping me to get some sleep at night.

I wish you all the best and hope your hives are a distant memory by now!

[ap2014]

I've had chronic ideopathic urticaria (CIU) (ie hives that last for more than 6 weeks (usually 9 months to a year for me) and the cause is never identified) five times since I was 17. My latest bout started 3 weeks after my last surgery. They're definitely worse around my period. CIU can be an autoimmune condition, and some people think endometriosis is too, so it makes sense that they can be linked. I'd caution against using steroids, though my GP has offered them to me too, as in the copious reading I've done about CIU over the last 28 years I've read accounts from people with CIU who say steroids help while you're taking them but the hives come back worse than ever afterwards. And steroids have pretty bad side effects. Still, living with this is pretty rough too so I can understand people taking them.