Hashi and allergies

[Rufty10]

Anyone with Hashi noticed they are becoming allergic to more things? I'm thinking about more than just food intolerances which seem common.

[crimple]

I have always been very allergic to insect bites and stings and when my thyroid antibodies went over range I began to suffer from hay fever. Since adding 6.25mcg tT3 to my 100mcg T4 my hay fever has almost gone and I don't react as badly to insect bites!! Anecdotal evidence of course. No tick box for it on the NHS system of symptoms! LOL

[Caroline888 in reply to crimple]

You were saying yesterday that you have always been very allergic to insect bites but now not so much.

We have a little terrier and I have always been the flea monitor. I don't like using flea pesticide medication on my dog and use natural deterrents and killers as far as possible. Until I get bitten!😕 Then out come the heavy guns!!

Today I find I've been bitten, but the bites are different - smaller and much less itchy. Does this describe your experience? I've been on levothyroxine since last October.

Intensely itchy insect bites of every description have always been the bane of my life. It would be wonderful if they were a thing of the past. Do you think thyroid medication changes our immune response to the bites?

Glad to hear your hayfever has improved so much!😊

Best wishes

Caroline

[crimple in reply to Caroline888]

Well since taking some T3 things have improved, but not just allergy type issues. No longer constipated, no longer overheating, dry skin not as bad.

I reduced my antibodies by going GF but that didn't stop the allergy issues.

[Caroline888 in reply to crimple]

You did say though that your response to insect bites was not so severe! How did this improvement manifest itself?

[crimple in reply to Caroline888]

not as itchy, skin not as red at bite site, itchiness only for a day ot wo

[Caroline888 in reply to crimple]

Thanks crimple, that's really helpful. I can scarcely credit that these little eruptions are actually flea bites!! It's difficult to believe the difference can be due to levothyroxine but what else can it be? I've suffered severe reactions to insect bites every summer since I was a child yet suddenly this year the reaction is so much less noticeable.

Just another thing to add to my growing list of improvements in health since I started levo😊.

Thank you so much for taking the trouble to reply.

best wishes

Caroline

[Caroline888]

Like crimple, I too have always reacted strongly to insect bites. This year I have also suffered much more severely with hayfever. Until this year I have not needed an antihistamine for my slight and intermittent hayfever, but since being diagnosed last autumn with hashimoto's and with thyroid antibodies of >1300, I have really reacted to tree pollen and needed a daily antihistamine; not that it helped a lot😢.

I think you're right. I think allergies are probably more prevalent with hashimoto's. Hopefully they will ease if we can reduce antibodies and get on the right dose of medication. Crimple offers us some hope in that respect!!😊

Of course the summer so far has been exceptional so that might also have something to do with worsening of hayfever. Who knows!!

Hope you are enjoying the warmer weather or, if not, at least managing to stay comfortable.

Best wishes

Caroline

[Tina_Maria]

Like crimple and Caroline I have always been allergic to insect bites, even before I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's. This year for the first time, I have been more sensitive to the high pollen that is around at the moment, more sneezing and occasionally a sore throat - not that bad to have to take medication though, but noticeable.

I think it is a reaction of the immune system being not in sync and not working properly and if you have an autoimmune disease such as Hashi's, you are probably more susceptible to other immune related conditions.

Just a theory....

[Caroline888 in reply to Tina_Maria]

Hi Tina_Maria,

I hope that, like crimple and me, you will find you suffer less with insect bites now that you're on medication for hashimoto's.

Your theory makes absolute sense!!! I can well believe that hashimoto's causes our immune systems to be constantly on red alert and thus easily triggered by foreign substances.

I hope your hayfever settles down soon. I am allergic to tree pollen which I thought would have been finished by now but I'm still driving everyone mad with constant sneezing!😢.

Loving the weather though, so can't complain😊

All the best

Caroline

[Cooper27]

It is possible - thyroid problems suggest a leaky gut, and your body will react to the food particles that escape from the gut. From the bits I've read, you could potentially reverse some of it by following a gut healing diet. You should also cut out the offending foods and also avoid sugar, preservatives and NSAIDs to help this along. Do this for about 1-3 months and take some good probiotics too. After that, you can try to reintroduce some of the foods you've been reacting to, to see if you can tollerate them, but hopefully at the very least you'll stop developing new intolerances.

[samaja]

A lot of people explain autoimmune diseases as the immune system becoming so super efficient that it actually reacts to the slightest provocation, eventually whatever the source, which would explain why with Hashimoto's you might become allergic to foods, chemicals etc.

On the other hand the whole process might actually start a lot earlier (e.g. being always sensitive/allergic to insect bites, hayfever etc.) as a reaction to a particular trigger or as a warning sign that the body is on the lookout for potential threats following, for example, an ACE (adverse childhood experience) when the nervous system becomes negatively biased and starts to work towards protecting us from what it perceives as a danger by being gradually more and more easily stimulated by any stressor.

It was certainly my case (insect bite reactions from early childhood!) which I now believe led me to Hashimoto's and my current hypersensitivity to smells, noises and even touch. I am currently working on calming down my nervous system and reprogramming the subconscious because that's where most of these exaggerated responses originate. As usual it's about the root causes not the symptoms but I believe that unless this work is done we will remain "canaries in a mine' reacting to whatever comes next.

Just to give you some food for thought

[Rufty10]

Thanks Samaja, that's very interesting. I had my first major reaction to an insect bite when I was about 12. My hand swelled so much I ended up with blood poisoning. Same thing happened with my foot about 10 years later. Since then I've become allergic to the anti-insect chemical I use, plus dust, cats, perfumes and other insects. Though sudden sharp or loud noises also get to me!! I'll look at reprogramming my responses.

[samaja in reply to Rufty10]

You are welcome Rufty. There are a few methods/techniques around to try out. I started with TRE exercises and they helped a lot. I am (or my TRE coach) now testing QEC and have seen some improvement as well. Still a few other I could try but let's wait and see for more results to come - small steps etc.

Good luck with your reprogramming work!