Anaphylaxis: A personal account
A few milligrams of peanut protein could cause me to have an anaphylactic reaction; one peanut has ~200 milligrams.
Anaphylaxis is a severe and often sudden allergic reaction. It can occur when someone with allergies is exposed to something to which they are allergic.
Reactions usually begin within minutes and rapidly progress, but can occur up to three hours later. Anaphylaxis is potentially life-threatening and always requires an immediate emergency response.
Around 1/3 of the UK population (~20 million) will develop an allergy; ~1 million people suffer severe symptoms, according to Anaphylaxis UK.
I have had multiple severe reactions to peanuts and sesame—but it is possible to react to almost anything, not just food; some examples include medicine, cold, and even water.
The odds were stacked against me
I seemed to be destined to develop food allergies. I was born by caesarean section, which may negatively impact gut flora. I had an intense course of IV antibiotics at an early age which appears to increase the risk of developing food allergies later in life.
After the IV antibiotics, I developed an egg allergy (which I outgrew at 12 years old—it’s common to outgrow an egg allergy). I was advised to avoid peanuts. It’s become clear that this advice was not protective; the current clinical advice recognises the protective effect of introducing allergens early on.
I didn’t build up a tolerance to peanuts, therefore, it is unsurprising that my body’s immune response treated the harmless peanut protein as if it were a threat. Also, I had eczema as a child, which is known to increase the likelihood of developing food allergies.
My mum has asthma and allergies to certain animals, which increased the likelihood of me developing allergies.
The only thing that was in my favour was spending lots of time outside as a child, an absence is proposed to contribute to the allergy epidemic, often called the hygiene hypothesis.
Mental health and lack of support
Food allergies take a toll on mental health and there is insufficient supply to cope with the demand.
Panic attacks seem to be commonplace, whereas accessing specialised care is not.
Food allergy anxiety is hard to cope with, I believe it is not ‘curable’—it is a biological, ‘adaptive’ response (invisible particles are the equivalent of our modern-day sabre-toothed tiger).
Living with food allergies constitutes a unique stressor, which is chronic and acute—after decades of this and multiple severe allergic reactions, it can be hard to approach life the same way as before. My behaviour has altered, I am more risk-averse in an attempt to avoid reliving traumatic experiences.
High risk activities
Sharing and connection are innate drives. However, due to the danger, certain forms of sharing and connection can be neglected, we can become isolated and live in fear.
Sharing drinks, food, or a kiss can be seen as threats, rather than opportunities. We can end up battling against our innate drives in an attempt to feel safer.
Many things that people may take for granted, such as eating out, travelling, holidays, and intimate relationships, are inherently harder and more stressful for those of us living with food allergies. These activities can be viewed as high-risk, anxiety-provoking scenarios rather than fun, exciting, and relaxing as they tend to be perceived.
I have found that taking unnecessary risks caused me crippling anxiety, for example, I used to eat out without inquiring about whether the food was safe, I followed the same approach when kissing someone. I have learned saying no to certain things reduces my anxiety and makes life easier to deal with, although I’m unconvinced my quality of life has improved from following a more cautious approach.
I have finally become fully aware of the wisdom of my gut in keeping me safe, I trust it without fail (my most severe reaction came as a result of ignoring it).
Empathy, awareness, and education are the keys to improving the lives of those at risk of anaphylaxis. Â
The feature image was taken just before my speech at The Institute of Biomedical Science Congress 2019, representing Anaphylaxis UK. I summarised that speech into an article for The Biomedical Scientist; this is an updated version of that piece.