I first encountered the term URTICARIA when my daughter had an allergic effect when she consumed dory fish for dinner. I have never in my life before that incident have seen anything like it. It was scary and alarming, but treatable. It was then that I did a deep dive on antihistamines. Growing up, I don’t remember experiencing anythig like it. So as a first time mother at that time – I became hyper aware of allergies and allergic reactions.
Now that my children are older, I’m able to manage allergic reactions – I know now what to avoid and how to navigate and manage the symptoms. I learned as we went along. I don’t panic anymore and instead have with me the right medicatons and creams needed for such. Life is better.
And I thought, that was it. That was until – the allergic reactions turned to ME! I am 46 and I started feeling all sorts of different symptoms when I turned 45. Last year 2025 was the year that I visited doctor’s clinics the MOST for consultations. 2025 was the year that all sorts of things manifested in my body. I did NOT realize that my body was already going through PERIMENOPAUSE. To be blunt – WHAT THE HELL IS PERIMENOPAUSE?! That word has been thrown around but there was no one clear explanation on it. So, here is ChatGPT’s version, I asked to make an infographic that is cutesy:
Lately, I have been experiencing bouts of hives and urticaria. I usually have it in the morning when I’ve settled down at home (brought the kids to school) sitting on the dining table having breakfast and catching up on emails and work (if any). I would suddenly feel my skin being warm and itchy. Then when I touch that warm parts – it would feel like a LOT of welts. Just a warning that the image below is an example of what I had just this morning:
Those are both on my legs. SCARY, right? Well, I had to control the urge to scratch it and man is it hard to control that. There are days that they would be on my thighs, while some days on my arms. Right now, the welts are gone – I took an antihistamine (ceterizine) to manage it today. Some days, I just apply caladryl on the small areas. On a side note, caladryl now spreads clear! Hehehe…
At first, I would think back if I had taken anything that resulted in that reaction. Was I allergic the detergent used? Did my skin come into contact with poison ivy or something? I would try my best to recall but – there was really none! When I googled it, it was then that I only learned that it was a result of fluctuating hormones. This made me sigh in frustration.
My body is not mine anymore. Everyday is a different symptom.
Anyone else experiencing something similar? Let’s talk!