Allergies and Tarantulas

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Think I need to weigh in as a pharmacist, might be a long post so be warned.

Allergies are things that can sometimes make 0 sense whatsoever. You can be allergic to anything, including water (Google Aquagenic urticaria), light, and almost any kind of dust.

Allergies can also remain the same throughout your life, they can escalate quickly or shortly, or they can even decrease in severity. They also vary widely in their response to therapy, predominantly exposure therapy, as it can help build tolerance or make your allergy much worse.

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/04/08/1168714814/pollen-allergies-exposure-therapy-slit-drops-under-the-tongue

It's also hard to tell what exactly makes you allergic. It's generally believed to be a combination of generic and environmental factors. Your genes can make you more predisposed to developing allergies, but I'm also a firm believer in the hygiene hypothesis. We make our immune systems naive and more likely to go haywire when we take avoidance too far, especially avoidance of things that don't cause allergic reactions in a specific person.

I've been told by a lot of people that more exposure to T hairs will make you react worse, not better. This is pretty much BS, the answer is you don't know until you try. But if you expose yourself to urticating hairs only occasionally you could end up reacting worse than someone who gets exposed more frequently.

In short allergies aren't predictable most of the time. You can try baby steps in exposure therapy but given what you describe it would be a far better idea to consult an allergy specialist.

there may another allergy op is suffering that is causing heightened reactions from urts. Like a compounding effect .

allergy specialist could help I don’t know much about them .

Thank you SO MUCH for your contribution. This is the kind of feedback i want. Diverse backgrounds and experience.

i agree with everything. I am not ready to say my tarantulas are cause just yet.

you, more then anyone, knows that certain meds can have ill effects when you get sun exposure. I am aging, and these meds i take, are accumilating in me as well.

it is still to soon to know what the cause is.

and your addition just confirms that it is very hard to pinpoint.

i spend so much time in my living room and experience nothing at all. Then i will go out, rub my clothing against my skin, and the SAME thing will happen.

at what point does clothing need to be washed to rid UrS?

i am not ready to give my tarantulas away. And i will take this as far as i can, medicaly possibly, to get answers. I will keep this thread alive, to keep as much news as possible.

allergies are vast. And so are their reactions. to much ambiguity in the UrS world. I will just go through the process if not, to learn. There are worse reasons to die from.

last time I had to wash a shirt twice to get the urts out but I was on fire all night trying to sleep until I realized the next day . I washed it with too big a load of clothes, instead of a Small load or just the shirt itself . Took 3 days to wear off. Haven’t had any issues since and that was like two months ago.
that was caused by the urts that somehow Got on the outside of the tank . That I mentioned before.
and there’s no ceiling fan in the basement to push the hairs up out of the cages. So I got no clue how it happens.

 

[TheraMygale]

there may another allergy op is suffering that is causing heightened reactions from urts. Like a compounding effect .

allergy specialist could help I don’t know much about them .
last time I had to wash a shirt twice to get the urts out but I was on fire all night trying to sleep until I realized the next day . I washed it with too big a load of clothes, instead of a Small load or just the shirt itself . Took 3 days to wear off. Haven’t had any issues since and that was like two months ago.
that was caused by the urts that somehow Got on the outside of the tank . That I mentioned before.
and there’s no ceiling fan in the basement to push the hairs up out of the cages. So I got no clue how it happens.

There are too many factors in my life to take into account. But i will push with my Dr to get to the bottom of this. We have a free healthcare system. I pay for that in my taxes. If you saw my before net… i would have acres of land.

I am going to get the tests i need and can get. And then i will get more.

then we will all know.

 

[spideyspinneret78]

I have mild allergies to superworms, mealworms, and crickets. They're dirty little critters especially if you have your own colonies! It's a relatively common issue believe it or not.

 

[TheraMygale]

I have mild allergies to superworms, mealworms, and crickets. They're dirty little critters especially if you have your own colonies! It's a relatively common issue believe it or not.

How do those allergies manifest, for you?

 

[spideyspinneret78]

How do those allergies manifest, for you?

Sometimes I'll get hives and eczema rashes on my hands, but it hasn't been as bad lately. For me though the worst part is that I have asthma and working with feeder insects causes me to start coughing and wheezing. My eyes will also itch if I touch my face after handling feeders. It's a huge annoyance but not extremely serious. I just keep my inhaler handy in case I need it.

 

[TheraMygale]

Sometimes I'll get hives and eczema rashes on my hands, but it hasn't been as bad lately. For me though the worst part is that I have asthma and working with feeder insects causes me to start coughing and wheezing. My eyes will also itch if I touch my face after handling feeders. It's a huge annoyance but not extremely serious. I just keep my inhaler handy in case I need it.

I have very low feeder numbers. I knowit is a known fact that people who work around crickets and mealworms can get allergies.

it is a good point to bring up for people who work around many.

i need more info on that. How it activates- after what kind of exporsures.

i don’t think my crickets are the cause at this moment.

tomorrow i am going to hospital to do a lung test.

today the outside of my ankles were itching more then acceptable. During the day, some parts, like knees and hands were itching.

did some maintenance and feeding later on: nothing happened more then usual.

got bit by mosquito: reaction was as the others. And did not stop being an annoyance after hours.

 

[spideyspinneret78]

I think my allergies developed gradually over time. I handled feeder insects daily when prepping animal diets and also regularly did maintenance on colonies. Years of regular exposure sensitized me, I believe.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Sometimes I'll get hives and eczema rashes on my hands, but it hasn't been as bad lately. For me though the worst part is that I have asthma and working with feeder insects causes me to start coughing and wheezing. My eyes will also itch if I touch my face after handling feeders. It's a huge annoyance but not extremely serious. I just keep my inhaler handy in case I need it.

Weird I’m sensitive to urts but feeders don’t bother me I could clean a roach bin no problem. Don’t even the gloves and dealing with the frass can handle roaches problem. I surely can’t clean a new world w/ urts tarantula cage without gloves.

 

[goofyGoober99]

Aw man that sucks. Allergies are a nightmare. I've been taking antihistamines for 10 years for bad allergies and sinus issues and although it helps with the hives and the dermatographia, and lets me breath out of my nose, I can't get off them cuz the withdrawal is too nasty. It's a lose lose situation

I really hope you can figure this out. It sucks not knowing what's going on and the stuff you're describing is rough. Especially the itchy hands and feet that drives me crazy.

 

[TheraMygale]

Aw man that sucks. Allergies are a nightmare. I've been taking antihistamines for 10 years for bad allergies and sinus issues and although it helps with the hives and the dermatographia, and lets me breath out of my nose, I can't get off them cuz the withdrawal is too nasty. It's a lose lose situation

I really hope you can figure this out. It sucks not knowing what's going on and the stuff you're describing is rough. Especially the itchy hands and feet that drives me crazy.

your participation in this thread is valuable. Describing your situation, creates precedents. It helps me see that perhaps it is something else then my tarantulas.

the reality is, perhaps i was experiencing this last year and just did not pay attention to it as much. Having tarantulas, it is easy to start questionning if their UrS are hurting more.

and of course, anyone with severe allergies does not want to create a life threatening situation. Especialy if it creates inflammation in the respiratory system.

i want to be sure i either rule out the tarantulas as my cause, or am sure they ARE the cause.

i am taking the allergy meds today because the dermatographia is making no sense at all. I will see how it progresses from there.

The first initial test results from lung testing showed normal test results. This should push my Dr to further allergy testing.

summer is a chaotic time for allergens. Everything out there is trying to kill me. That is when all this started to get bad: spring transition into summer.

had the tarantulas been the culprit, me being so sensitive, i can not help but think the reactions would have come sooner. Especialy since our heating system is “pushed air”.

More sherlocking to do. More sherlocking to come.

 

[TheraMygale]

So far, nothing has changed for the dermatographia.

it still happens. And is never when i am done working in enclosures. I even put it to the test. Did it with gloves and no gloves.

no reactions immediately after, nor during the day, that seemed out of the usual.

the hives seem worse after i come back from outside. Especialy exposure to flies ans mosquitos.

i went in my basement looking for books in storage. Tons of dust. I had about twelve books lined up against my forearm.

minutes after, hives broke out everywhere a book had pressed on the skin. And the itching was the same as I have been experiencing. It was pretty bad itchy.

i think this is helping me point fingers in the right direction.

i had more hives from the books, then chilling in the “spider room” all day for a few days.

the windows are open and we are getting some 40km winds.

more sherlocking to do.

tomorrow will be a full day of foraging in deep woods. It will be interesting to see what happens.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

So far, nothing has changed for the dermatographia.

it still happens. And is never when i am done working in enclosures. I even put it to the test. Did it with gloves and no gloves.

no reactions immediately after, nor during the day, that seemed out of the usual.

the hives seem worse after i come back from outside. Especialy exposure to flies ans mosquitos.

i went in my basement looking for books in storage. Tons of dust. I had about twelve books lined up against my forearm.

minutes after, hives broke out everywhere a book had pressed on the skin. And the itching was the same as I have been experiencing. It was pretty bad itchy.

i think this is helping me point fingers in the right direction.

i had more hives from the books, then chilling in the “spider room” all day for a few days.

the windows are open and we are getting some 40km winds.

more sherlocking to do.

tomorrow will be a full day of foraging in deep woods. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Funny I took an alergy test a while ago and I was allergic to dust. I’m pretty sure I don’t know where the results went though.

 

[TheraMygale]

Funny I took an alergy test a while ago and I was allergic to dust. I’m pretty sure I don’t know where the results went though.

I know i am allergic to dust. Just never payed attention to it so much. With tarantulas and UrS, i need to monitor. I don’t want small things to lead to big things if they are the cause.

I also learned mosquitos are very attracted to humans while they consume alcohol, and when they are hot. I noticed my hives can get outrageous after a little summer chilling outdoors.

 

[The Snark]

And on every medical report, NKA. Should add a footnote: YET
Worst I've encountered, a friend allergic to shellfish (VERY common. Chitin or a component in it can be a trigger). Somebody who had eaten shellfish within an hour or so entering their house triggered it. Had a huge battery of drugs and watch fors. Her hubby had me teach him rapid response airway management. Kept O2 mask wherever she went.

As @TechnoGeek mentioned, and keep in mind, there are no rules. The immune system constantly changes, adapting to present environments. ALWAYS get tested for the critical triggers and arm yourself before hand. Keep Epi pens on hand if required, and be vigilant. Know the early warning signs.

NKA, No Known Allergies. Help out emergency responders and find out what they are. Don't make us play the guessing game during an acute crisis.

@TheraMygalo Up at the very top of the paramedic list of Royal Pain In The Ass is fitting a trache tube into a conscious patient. -> Hold still while we ram this huge plastic thing down your throat. We don't want to have to cut your throat open.

 

[TheraMygale]

For those who have been following: update.

It has been about 7 days that the rashes have stopped. Even after an accidental brush up that scratched my leg, there was no dermatographia.

the only itching that happened yesterday: i forgot i had some scabbing (due to scratching) and after shower, i removed it while drying.

I have no explanations still. But i have been deep into maintenance on a daily basis. On of my B hamoriis is the hair kicker Lord and they were kicking away at their crickets.

i know allergies are still very mysterious and unpredictable. Yet, i can’t help but deduct that, at the moment, my tarantulas were never the cause.