This is an edited version (personal communications removed) sent
recently from the mom.

It seems she only finding relief from weaning.
Sad, very, very sad.

K. Koncelik
Long Island

> Hi, 
> 
> Sorry, this was the first chance I got to sit at the computer and write today!!
> 
> I just wanted to give more detailed info since people are sending all sorts of responses, this way there is a better understanding...
> 
> The hives started in the hospital the day after I had the baby. For the first couple of weeks I thought it was basic post-partum hormones, then I thought it was the Motrin they were giving me around the clock, then i thought it was various foods  etc etc. It was not till I started tracking it carefully that i thought it could be related to breastfeeding and that is when I started looking online. I found many blogs of women having the same problems and none of them had answers too. Finally I saw one person who said that her allergist suggested that she was having some kind of allergic reaction to hormones related to breastfeeding. A couple of the other blogs showed that women who had this problem resolved the issue when weaning. After talking to my OB and ruling out PUPPS and other related problems, I got full blood workup from my internist including thyroid, auto immune antibodies and every other random thing you can think of. When nothing showed up i spoke to you Kathy and that is when you mentioned all the stuff you had been learning about hives and other reactions to the milk-letdown response etc. 
> 
> Finally, when I saw an allergist, who is supposed to be one of the best in NY, she said that there were other reported cases of this, although it is rare and two cases reported were VERY severe allergic reactions. The allergist said that I would be surprised how many people have allergies in relation to hormones whether it be breastfeeding, pregnancy, menstruation, or menopause etc. She said the allergic reactions varied. So basically, my hormones seem to put my body on high alert and make me hypersensitive to everything, therefore causing these hives and well as mood issues, hot flashes etc. She could not do an allergy scratch test because of my sensitivity but did a full allergy blood panel and nothing else showed up. I do have bad seasonal allergies like the person from your last e-mail and like her, the hives seen to flare up when those allergies are worse. they also flare up however from Motrin, various foods, alcohol, having clothes tight on my skin, heat, and various forms of contact like massage. This seems insane but I guess the allergist is saying that the hormones are making my body so allergic that all of these common allergic triggers that do NOT normally affect me, are affecting me.  ( the contact hives or dermatogaphia. as your last e-mail mentioned also happens when I am scratching the hives, therefore making them worse)
> 
> Since I saw the allergist I have been weaning the baby at her request. Let me say that this was NOT what I wanted to do but the hives at times were so severe that I was not very functional and in addition was getting breast infections and nipple vasospasms. ( which is why I saw the breastfeeding doc in addition to the allergist) The allergist wanted me to stop all nursing, but I told her that I was going to do it VERY slowly both for my son and for myself. I asked her if she thought less of the hormone would be helpful. She seemed to think that I had to completely stop breastfeeding and let myself drive up so the hormones would settle back to normal but said I could do whatever I felt comfortable with and to keep her posted and see if just some amount of weaning would help.
> 
> She had me avoid a lot of those allergic triggers. As I weaned him and avoided or limited all of the above mentioned things I did start to see improvement. Now it is hard to say whether it was because of less hormones or because I was avoiding the triggers or a combo. When the hurricane hit last week the hives flared up again a little. They have been a little worse since and as odd as this sounds, I think it is from all the pollen and other seasonal stuff that got kicked up in the air because I feel my regular allergies worse than normal. I still, however, am better than I was before. 
> 
> I have tried benadryl, which only works a little and Claratin. I already take meds for GERD as a person mentioned, and my allergist mentioned all these treatments as well. She wants to put me on allegra around the clock but cannot do so while I am nursing so that was another issue. She also wants to eventually do a skin allergy scratch test. 
> 
> Obviously there is no way to 100% see if this is from breastfeeding, except to stop breastfeeding. I am still slowly weaning in the hope that maybe if I even just do it once a day it may help. My son is a little over 3 months and would love to make it last as long as I can. That being said, I need to be a happy, healthy functioning mother to him, and I miss feeling like my old self. I am hoping that thse hives truly do cease when my son is fully weaned and my hormones adjust. I NEVER had them before this and although the allergist thinks they will most likely happen again with my next baby, I am praying they won't.  
> 
> As a couple of side notes, I had some smaller itchy rashes pop up at points in my pregnancy, again, they were not PUPPS but the OB said they were also a hormone type allergy. I also notice things like the hives getting worse right after my milk comes in...easier to tell that now since I am doing limited breastfeeding. After weeks of hoping this strange thing was not the case, it seems like it is, and a small part of me even hopes it is, because that means there will be an end to it. At the same time, I wanted to nurse my son for a year so this whole thing pisses me off and upsets me. 
> 
> I have attached a picture of my hives for you. ( they are not this bad anymore) They range from everything from little very itchy bumps that come and go, to red lines, blotches and then can get very bad and last for hours like in the photo. For the most part now, as I mentioned they are improving so even when they don't look great, they go away much faster. We will see what happens. 
> 
> I just wanted to write all this and that way I don't get a ton of people who don't know the whole picture and maybe this can help others who have this rare problem as well. 

             ***********************************************

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome