Body, you suck. I'm going to trade you in.

[thistlechaser]

I didn't post yesterday because I didn't want to post an all down, depressed post. I spent most of the day hungry, which both sucks and is sad (that's not supposed to happen, dammit). I figured I'd just ignore the day and hope today was better.

Today was worse. Much worse.

The full body rash I have has only been getting worse. And when I say full body I mean it. From my scalp to the tops of my feet. My toes are the only thing not covered with bright red, ultra itchy rash. My surgeon said it was likely because of the morphine I got on the first day in the hospital, and prescribed me an anti-itch pill. Not only did it not really help much, the rash kept getting worse. So today I went to the allergist.

The rash is an allergic reaction. To protein shakes. The only thing I can eat.

I bought some unflavored whey protein powder. We don't know if it's whey or some other ingredient in the shakes, but if it's whey itself, then I have no idea what I'll do. There's another kind of powdered protein, but it's junk.

I had been intending to use these shakes the rest of my life. Two meals of shakes, one "normal" (new normal) meal.

I won't know if its the whey or not for more than five days. I'm on prednisone (steroid) for five days to try to get the rash under control, so we shouldn't see any new rashes until after that.

I don't know how the lack of hunger is supposed to work. Right now, I'm eating just over 300 calories per day (two shakes, 160 calories each, and then less than a quarter cup of some broth-based soup). I know that's not enough, but that's what we have to do for two weeks post-surgery.

Know the fun part of that? I still haven't even lost a single damned pound yet. I know it will happen, but I would like at least something for having to go through all this. Something besides feeling like I'd happily claw my skin off to stop the itching.

Comments

[pax_athena]

Ugh :( I am so sorry. And I have quite a rage at the doctors for not having tested you for allergies before the op D:

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I've been googling, and I guess this isn't too common. I'm more annoyed that the surgeon dismissed it. Wish I could have started trying to treat it before it was covering my whole body...

[gonzostar.livejournal.com]

Oh no. That's horrible. You know what though? I got grossed out by a bad batch of protein shakes and I don't drink them anymore. I use protein bars and then make sure to eat meat, eggs, etc. But until you can have solid food I know this is a much bigger issue. Big hugs.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Thanks. It's still getting worse, so now we're thinking it's all whey protein? I don't even know. I'm going to try today with no protein at all and see if it stops the rash's progress.

At least, other than that, the surgery went perfect. The rash is annoying as hell, but it could be worse.

[mayanas.livejournal.com]

Oh no! What a thing to happen! I hope it's not the whey!!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

It's looking like it might be. I can survive by eating air, right? :/

[ashmedai.livejournal.com]

Oh holy hell! I don't know what to say, other than to send you hugs and good vibes, Thistle. Please keep us updated, OK?

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I'll take all the hugs and good vibes I can get! And will do, for sure.

[hamsterwoman]

Oh no! :( I hope the itch/rash abates quickly, and I hope that the allergy turns out to be not to whey but to something much more easily avoided.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately the rash is getting worse, which makes it look more and more like the whey. :/ Oh well, I'd give up eating if it would stop this horrible rash!

[manue7a.livejournal.com]

That's awful! It will get better, it just has to.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I don't dare say 'It can't get worse' because it could get in my eyes and such, but hopefully not! Hopefully the medicine will start working soon.

[teaandfailure.livejournal.com]

Oh GOD, please let it be like, the soy lecithin you were allergic to and not the whey itself. Or the dye. There are tons of wheys without those insane colors. I never even considered a whey allergy, usually if you're fine with dairy you're fine with whey! D:

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I'm not a big milk drinker, but I love cheese, so I should be fine with milk. However, I used just the straight whey powder (nothing else added to it), and my rash is worse today, so I don't know. It looks bad, but who knows.

Blah.

[voidmagus.livejournal.com]

Whey is a byproduct of cheese-making (separating Curds from Whey), so being able to have cheese doesn't exclude a whey allergy.

There are other options - Casein (another dairy based protein - this is the majority of my protein shakes because casein takes longer to break down than whey - technically I'm supposed to drink whey before a workout, casein after & before bed. But ugh. That's a lot of protein gas.). Or if any dairy protein turns out to be the issue, there's also Egg Protein. I've heard those aren't bad either.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the info! I still have no idea what's going on. The oldest rash is fading, yet the rash is still spreading to new areas. It's been 48 hours since I last had a shake, you'd think I'd have it out of my system by now...

[elfy.livejournal.com]

Oh no, I also hope it's not the whey :(
Is the hunger a bodily thing or maybe a mental thing? I hope it's not stupid to ask, I really don't know much about these things.
I know I have days where I eat all day long, but it can't be "real" (bodily) hunger that makes me eat.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Not stupid at all! Head/body hunger are two very different things and it's important post-surgery (and otherwise, I guess) to know the difference.

Thanks for the comment! :)

[fbhjr.livejournal.com]

So sorry to hear about the reaction! That sounds awful!

I hope you're able to find a viable substitute!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

If nothing else, I could try living on air and sunlight. Plants do fine with those! I just need someone to water me now and then...

[fbhjr.livejournal.com]

Not to discourage this, but I just found one of my plants had died...

You might want just a bit more than the sunlight, air and water.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Haha! Okay, sounds fair. :)

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

Ugh, you poor thing!*hugs gently*
They really should have tested you for those allergies before the surgery.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Would have been nice if they had tested, wouldn't it? And thanks for the hugs. :)

[donnaimmaculata.livejournal.com]

Oh no, it was all going so well! I'm so sorry to hear that, that does sound awful. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's not the whey and that the medicine starts working soon.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Thanks! The medicine might be sloooowly working, so that's a big something. Now, if there were only something I could eat...

[kriatyrr.livejournal.com]

Ooof. I'm so sorry you have to deal with that and I hope you will improve soon and quickly.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I hope so, too. Thanks!

[gconnor.livejournal.com]

Good luck and get well soon.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Will try, thanks.

[diello.livejournal.com]

Unnnng that blows!!!! It's probably the whey. I know a few people who are pretty allergic to whey. Have you tried soy protein drink? I know it's not as tasty, but maybe you could drip a little fruit or even dark chocolate syrup in it before mixing it up??

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I'm going to have to try that, my rash is still spreading. I have very little non-rash skin left!

[spike7451.livejournal.com]

Oh good heavens, an allergy to the shakes is the last thing you needed!!!

Hugs you very gently.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

So very true.

Thanks! *hugs back*