This Allergic Reaction Surprised Even Me

Warning: This post contains pictures of hives!

When I wrote this post on Monday, it was inspired by having eaten with my husband the night before. He felt like eating tacos, and instead of making myself something completely different, in a completely different pan, I decided to “join” him, and eat some taco meat (that I had prepared myself) on a bed of lettuce, while he ate tacos in shells with all the fixings. Because eating “together” is fun.

But I didn’t feel very good the next day. It was a reminder to me that my stomach generally prefers no surprises.

The Old El Paso Mild Taco Spice packet looked reasonably “safe”:

“Corn Starch, Salt, Spices (including chili pepper), Maltodextrin, Onion Powder, Sugar, Vegetable Oil (canola/soybean), Silicon Dioxide, and Natural Flavor.”

Apparently, for me, maybe it was not safe?

What happened next…I almost do not believe it myself.

Exactly 6 weeks ago, on December 9th and 10th, I wore a 24-hour heart monitor.

Of course, once I pulled off the 5 sticky patches, I had a rash under each spot. I treated the rash for a few days with my eczema cream, and it went away.

Fast forward to Sunday, January 18. I ate 139 grams of taco meat (yes, I weighed it) on lettuce, with a few grape tomatoes (which I literally eat every single day with my pickles, at lunchtime) and some cheddar cheese I grated myself and sour cream, (both of which which I eat often and without issue).

Monday, January 19, I did not feel all that well, and I was very gassy, (slow protein digestion). And I had a sore lymph node under my arm. I thought, well, that’s unsettling, (no one likes to feel a sore lymph node=alarm bell), I will have to keep an eye on that. I decided, just as long as the lymph node shrinks in a few days, it will have been nothing. I decided to blog about my upcoming dinner out for valentine’s, because with my upset stomach, it was reminding me I dislike eating out, but I must remember to think positively.

Tuesday morning, January 20, I tell my husband, wow, this lymph node under my arm is still sore. Then he says, what’s that red spot on your ribs? I go look in the mirror…

EVERY single one of the 5 spots (4 out of 5 are visible in the picture, but trust me, it’s all 5 of them, and no where else) that had become a rash after pealing up that adhesive in December…is once again flared up into a rash…but this is 6 weeks later!!

Could it have really just been the taco meat?? That is the only thing I can think that it could have been.

Anyhow, this helps:

But last night, 8 hours after taking a 12 hour dose, it wore off and these 2 in particular felt EXACTLY like I had been stung by a wasp !

Thankfully, after about an hour, the Allegra worked again, and I have vowed to take it every 6 to 7 hours (stay ahead of it) until these hives disappear.

I guess I want to document this MCAS reaction because I have experienced a certain amount of skepticism when I declare, even to my doctor recently about my hormone therapy, “Oh, I don’t think I could tolerate a subcutaneous patch, my skin is really sensitive.” Yes, I seem dramatic, but it is because this reaction was…dramatic, and a bit traumatic too. It was painful, like wasp stings, and right now my skin feels itchy and bruised, (and the spots are still red and inflamed, even though they are no longer burning like a sting). And the tendons in my ankles have stiffened up (inflammation in a “weak” spot where I have had previous/reoccurring issues). Generally, I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck. 😦

Update: I did go see my family doctor (PCP), and then talked with Chat GTP, “Although uncommon, delayed reactivation of prior adhesive-induced dermatitis is a recognized immune phenomenon. The precise reappearance at identical circular sites strongly supports immune memory–driven recall dermatitis, likely amplified by mast cell activation from a systemic trigger.” Just another interesting thing to add to my hEDS/MCAS/POTS list. My doctor checked my swollen lymph node, noted my file accordingly, and prescribed a strong steroid cream for the burning and itching. 👍

Food is Love

I get it, this is a cute cartoon and something that is very normalized in society today. Pleasurable time with other people can involve food. I know my husband absolutely includes food with any date night or daytime outing. For him in particular, food is love.

The way I currently live around food can look like dieting/calorie counting trying to keep my excess weight off. And yes, that is a part of it. There is also the Celiac factor, since 2011, which means navigating all foods for me to be gluten-free. Then add in the benefit I found (personally, for my body) in navigating all foods for me to be grain-free, which reduces my joint (inflammation) pain. Then add in the benefit I found (personally, for my body) in pretty much avoiding all ultra-processed multi-ingredient foods, including commercially available any food with colors and/or fillers, even natural ones. Anything with emulsifiers even things like carrageenan in dairy cream. And commercially available items with chemicals and preservatives, especially those in salad dressings=light my tongue up on fire. This is explained by my hEDS that gives me a lot of “issues with my tissues,” especially with my skin (eczema) and my digestive track, (nausea, bloating, constipation). That just leaves me meat, fish, eggs, dairy, fruits, and vegetables, (which is still a lot), and I simply have to cook almost everything myself from scratch.

After an otherwise wonderful holiday to Hawaii in 2017, I realized I had spent too much time feeling sorry for myself in restaurants, as I struggled to find foods that I did not react to.

After the trip, I reflected on what I could change, (namely, my attitude), and came up with my own personal motto, #notaboutthefoodthistime. I did not want to ever again waste time feeling sorry for myself in any restaurant. I decided from then on, it was not about the food, but ONLY about the company and the experience.

Except, when in a restaurant, well, it’s always about the food, isn’t it?? How can it not be??

When I see posts that show how “fun” it is to share food and good times, I remind myself, that for me, valentine’s dinner out with my husband will be about getting dressed up, and being happy he can enjoy a decadent meal out, instead of my homemade and somewhat leaner offerings at home. I will enjoy the experience, and who cares if the food I choose to eat is somewhat minimal, in comparison. Once again, I will remember my personal motto, #notaboutthefoodthistime.

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome Steps into the Spotlight

I recently watched this series Run Away on Netflix. I usually multitask a bit while a series plays in the background, so I miss little bits here and there while I am still “listening” to it, but not watching it. But at one point, I did think, “Hey, I didn’t notice before that the daughter was in a wheelchair, oh well, whatever.”

But then this article about it came up on my Facebook feed:

“It looked like a mistake at first. A detail that slipped through editing. But the truth behind it is far more human than viewers expected….

…Anya is played by Ellie Henry, who lives with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. It is a genetic condition that affects collagen, making joints unstable and movement exhausting. Some days, a wheelchair is necessary. Some days, it is not.

That reality was carried directly into the character….

…By not turning Anya’s condition into a storyline, Harlan Coben’s adaptation shows something simple and honest. Disability is not always visible. It is not always permanent. And it does not need a spotlight to exist.”

Frankly, 6 months ago I had never heard of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. That was until I was told I had it too, (hypermobility-type), and it explained why my heart mitral valve has torn, why I am struggling with small vessel constriction and circulation in my hands, why I have significant osteoporosis at only 54-years old, why I have sluggish digestion, why I now have bilateral inguinal hernias while simply working at a desk job, why my knee caps slip all over the place, why my shoulder dislocated so easily, (and was then also easily reduced, multiple times in one day, but not without tearing things and taking months to heal), etc.

I never realized with all the walking I do, it involves “muscle guarding” of my joints, especially my knees, which adds to my overall daily fatigue. But I need those lean legs muscles to keep going, so I don’t lose mobility! I notice almost right away, if I stop regular walking, how fast I de-condition. Faster than average, for sure. And my heart mitral valve leaflets did not tear because of some strain I put on my heart. Instead, my heart has strain on it because the valve leaflets are torn. So I need the cardiovascular exercise to keep my heart muscle strong, so it can handle the strain of the back flow of blood (regurgitation) caused by the torn valve leaflets.

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is a group of disorders, and has a spectrum, just like so many other things. Previously, I have not been high enough on the spectrum of resulting issues to have ever needed a wheelchair, for example, which is one of the reasons I went undiagnosed for so much of my life. My mother remembers taking me to the doctor at about 18 months old because I “walked funny,” my gait was very strange. She said it was almost as though I was swinging my hips to push my legs forward. In hindsight, it seems so obvious…but I totally understand how hard it would have been to realistically diagnose a loose joint/connective tissue issue at that age. Needless to say, after constant verbal correction, I eventually figured out how to hold my legs in a more steady way, and to walk straight. I also remember constant verbal correction to “stand up straight,” stop walking “knock-kneed,” don’t sit like that, etc. (Of course, extra flexibility alone, which kids naturally have their fair of, does NOT mean you have hEDS, but when you start adding up all the other issues… “If you are having trouble connecting the issues, think connective tissues”).

Anyhow, I just think that it is wild to hear that an actress hired to play a roll on a Netflix series has this same condition. And when cast for the job, Netflix just filmed her either standing and walking, or in a wheelchair, simply depending on her physical needs for the day. I think that is wonderful.

Where I Am Now

This is a really good reminder for me today, because have been struggling lately with a bit of extra fatigue. And it’s funny, because it was almost on a subliminal level, and then I finally realized that feeling tired like this was making me feel “out of shape.” And I want to be uninfluenced by these kind of subtle feelings that can hover under my radar, steering me towards bad decisions, like giving into sugar cravings. Instead, I want to pay attention to signals from my body, even when they are subtle, and be eyes wide open with my decisions.

So firstly, dieting 101: sugar cravings for energy = eat fruit, for example, eat an apple. That actually worked for me yesterday and today. I ate an apple, and I felt better. An apple is a much better option than giving in and eating some kind of pure sugar junk food (chocolate)!

Secondly, I am NOT out of shape, as in being in a state of poor physical condition. I walk regularly, yesterday I went ice skating for an hour, and I had an excellent stress test result in December, with my cardiologist very impressed with my exercise tolerance. So, even if I have been feeling some extra fatigue lately, I cannot let that signal to me that somehow I am “out of shape,” and therefore, what’s the point in continuing my routines, as though they are somehow not working. I know for a fact they do work! I just need to push past this extra tiredness, which is probably just temporary. It could be caused by many things, lack of sunlight (it’s January), maybe I am fighting off a virus, or maybe my blood sugar is fluctuating a bit, who knows. All I know is nothing about my life will be improved if I let myself slack off now. 😊

Motivation Comes Afterward

I have experienced this very thing! I do not have any motivation to speak of, but then I force myself (out of pure habit and routine) to do the daily walk I did not feel like doing, (did not feel like doing it partly because of the extra work to gear up and walk outside in winter weather). And then I felt very motivated afterwards.

I need to remember that. I always feel better afterward. 😊

Diet Obsession and Getting a Smart Scale

I know I do not have to justify my decisions about this, but it helps me to articulate outside my own head why I just ordered the Lepulse Smart Scale for myself (with a gift certificate I got for Christmas). This is not an ad for the scale, lol, this is just for me, to organize my own thoughts and set my intention.

But…Is it diet obsession?

Or is it:

Passion
Commitment
Enthusiasm
Devotion
Engagement
Discipline

What does it really take for me to maintain this 70 pound weight loss? For the rest of my life?

I suppose it is all of these things: Passion, Commitment, Enthusiasm, Devotion, Engagement, Discipline, and yes, some diet obsession too.

I would be lying to myself if it did not admit that yes, I spend time (a fair amount of time) every single day logging what I weigh on an app, logging what I eat for total calories on an app, looking at how many macros (and grams of protein) I had for the day based upon what I logged in the app, what my average protein grams were for the week, logging my daily walk on an app, (taking a walk just so I can log it), looking at how many kilometers I have totaled up for the month (or recently, for the year), checking once a month how much body fat percentage my scale estimates I have, (and compare it to the previous month’s reading), checking my waist and hip measurement about once a month too, and so on, and so on…

Am I obsessed? Or just committed? Do I need to continue to be this enthusiastic to keep prioritizing my health like this…for the rest of my life?

Honestly, I think yes, I do have to spend part of my day, every day, paying attention to all these things. In the past, if I did NOT spend time paying attention to making my overall health a daily priority in this way, I did NOT maintain my weight, nor the level of fitness I had previously accomplished. I don’t just mean a previous weight loss. There was a time (2004-2006) when I belong to a gym, Workout Express, and I went there after work 3 or 4 times a week for a 30-minute circuit workout. I even did the 1-hour workouts a few times. And then I just stopped going. There was a time (2017-2021) when I worked out with a friend (treadmill and elliptical) at the gym in her building. And then we just stopped doing it one day, even before we both moved in 2022 to different towns.

And there was a time I stop tracking my walks on Runkeeper (in the first 4 months of 2013), and then it didn’t seem to matter if I took a walk or not. But it did matter, so I started tracking my walks again. Sometimes knowing I am going to track a walk, wanting to track it, is the ONLY thing that gets me out the door in the rain, for example. I find tracking highly motivating, simple as that.

Recently, I was very disturbed by my eating on Christmas Day. It was a true return to my old behavior. I know part of that eating was prompted by feeling terrible (physically), and thinking I could maybe find something to eat that would soothe how my stomach felt. First, I went to liquids, ginger ale, my favorite teas. Then I went to solid food, to soak up the liquid. However I was justifying it to myself at the time, I ended up over-consuming on a large scale, something I had not done in a very long time. I flirted with that behavior in October, over-consuming and indulging in “what’s the point in trying to be healthy” thoughts during Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend. But I was able to quickly stop that thinking, and stop that overeating. I still felt depressed, but thankfully, I stopped wanting to overeat. (I didn’t even really want to eat at all, I felt so down. But I blogged through it, and started to feel better).

But this last week since Christmas, boy, I cannot stop thinking about food. Excess food, sweets, and lots of it. The comfort of stuffing myself with food that day was intoxicating…it created physical discomfort, which somehow eased, or rather distracted, from emotional discomfort.

I think I need to pull out the big guns to get myself through this. So I ordered the smart scale.

Pulling out the big guns=diet obsession. But I find tracking so motivating, and a smart scale will give me new metrics to track. New metrics to obsess over? Maybe. But avoiding the obsession does not cure me of it either. I need to manage it, not hide from it. And if it keeps me going on a healthier path, instead of back to lack of regular activity (because it’s raining/snowing) and weight gain? Then I am choosing obsession.

Far be it from me to tell anyone else how they need to lose weight or maintain weight that has been lost. All I know is for me, counting things, tracking things, seeing small incremental improvements even, (more kilometers walked this month than last, or a faster pace, etc.), is motivating. Even when the numbers do not improve, knowing the numbers helps me to try again the next month, and to keep trying. Bone mass, muscle mass, protein grams, that is what I want to track, even more than a once a year Dexa scan.

Some people may be able to accomplish their goal intuitively, without tracking a thing. That is great. But I know I want to count and track, and I don’t resent having to do it daily. Some people reach a point where they think there is just no way they can keep tracking (whatever it is they are tracking) for the rest of their lives?!? Whereas for me, I am happy to think I can have my whole life sorted, organized, counted, and tracked, every single day, and sure, for the rest of my life, why not.

Even knowing my new scale is supposed to be delivered this afternoon encourages me to get all my winter gear on (which is actually a lot of gear these days) and go for a walk. And to stick only to the food that I plan to eat today, (instead of overeating unplanned leftover sweets), while prioritizing protein.

Whatever it takes to get me out the door each day for cardiovascular exercise, or gets me to do my yoga routine a few times per week, well, it’s worth it. If this scale influences me, I have decided that it will do so in a way that I will use as a super power. I am going to be passionate, committed, enthusiastic, devoted, engaged, and disciplined, and this scale is going to help me track it all.

Great Advice for a New Chapter

I cannot avoid my old story. I need to embrace all of my story, because my story is what makes me who I am, and who I can be, so that I can move forward and write my next new chapter.

1.Consistency over intensity. Consistent action. The long term will beat short bursts, any day.

2.Structure over willpower. If it relies on willpower, it won’t last. Sticking to a plan (structure) means the decision is already made for me, regardless of how I feel at any given moment.

3.Honesty over performance. I know my truth. I show up for myself, not for anyone else.

4.Depth over metrics (numbers). If I am showing up every day, doing my best, then any metrics I track are just proof I am giving it my deepest intent, regardless of any numbers. If I am giving it my best, then any daily metrics I track are still better than they would be if I was just sitting on the couch every day.

3 Days to Go

We have reached the last 3 days of the year 2025. Although I am committed to working on my health daily, because it is my job, (I am dedicated to honoring my commitment to it as I would to any other job), that does not mean I am perfect.

Progress not perfection.

1)I went off my plan on Sunday, December 21.

On short notice, my husband and I took a short trip to visit our grandson. Even though he lives within a decent driving distance (only 2 hours away), to have a really good visit which involves playing with him and driving there and back, is a really long day for us “old folks.” (Of course, we are lucky enough to be grandparents only in our fifties, but we still get tired trying to pull off a day like that). We planned the visit to include a trip to the fancy community swimming pool with a wave pool, lazy river, and water slides, then off to a kid’s movie, and time for playing legos before bed. So, instead of trying to do all that with a big drive there and back, we instead booked a hotel for 2 nights with our Airmiles points, packed up our dog and cat, (which was a lot of packing, even just for the 2 days), and headed out Monday morning.

We had never been in a hotel with our dog and cat before, (because we have only travelled with them in our travel trailer), and we had certainly never left our cat alone for hours on end in a hotel room while we went swimming.

So, that Sunday night, the night before we left, I started to worry and ruminate about all the things I had to remember to pack in the morning. And would our cat be okay if we left her alone in the room when we went to the swimming pool. And would we be good responsible grandparents to a 7 year old for a whole day, would he be happy and have fun, etc.

I worried. And snacked. And ruminated. And snacked some more.

But then Monday morning, I went right back to planning what I eat, and eating what I planned (including some special deli treats I worked into my plan) for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Eating disaster/Christmas fail averted.

2)But then Christmas Day, December 25, came along.

I don’t think the deli meat agreed with me. Driving home on the 24th, more than 2 hours in the truck, (factoring in stops for fuel, bathroom break, etc.), I could feel my food just sitting there in my stomach like a ton of bricks. I woke up the next morning bloated and uncomfortable. Ginger ale did not help. Tea did not help. So, I started snacking, and then snacked some more. Then I decided I might as well eat a lot of all the things I had been resisting during the entire holiday season! I even threw in a few chocolates (that I didn’t even really like) just for good measure. Definitely none of that eating was planned. I suppose I thought if I put enough new food in, it would push the old food out. I ended up passing out in bed for almost 3 hours between 4:00pm and 7:00pm, and missed Christmas dinner over at my sister’s.

But it worked, (sort of). I woke up Boxing Day, and successfully moved—things that needed to be moved—and felt quite a bit better. We had our own small turkey dinner at home on Boxing Day, I ate carefully, and on the 27th I definitely felt almost back to normal.

But I saw a significant increase on the bathroom scale Boxing Day. Ouch.

What I did NOT do was throw in the towel, with the typical “dieter” mentality that I have had in the past. The one where I think that I might as well keep eating all the things I was previously resisting, thanks to the punishing reading on the scale, which are just all the “extras,” the high calorie desserts and treats. I am not talking here about the tasty healthy main meal foods that I normally eat. It’s pretty much only high calorie extras and desserts that cause me to gain weight. Avoid those, and I get to stay the same weight while still loving the food I do eat. Go “off my plan” and the weight jumps on. Fast.

The moral of the story is getting right back on track after both those days of going off plan has been really important for me. Weight maintenance means no one more “1 tire is flat, might as well flatten the other 3 tires” mentality. One day, even two different days is not the end of my discipline and consistency (even though it feels that way). It is just a brief moment in time that can be forgiven and corrected.

I know it’s a slippery slope. Certain old behaviors are always waiting to take a hold again. But only if I let them. If I am determined to not to let them, those behaviors will go back into the closet where I left them more than 2 years ago.

It also helped for me to remember that on January 1, 2026, I am going to be able to celebrate 2 years of actual weight maintenance, for the first time in my life!

The scale is slowly coming back down (isn’t it funny how it takes 24 hours to rise up, and probably 5 to 7 days to come back down??). 3 more days to go until the new year. I have made a plan and I am going to stick to it.

In a Long History of Dieting: My Worst Christmas Fail

On holidays, Drumheller, Alberta, June, 2013.

It was in 2013. I had lost 62.3 pounds in 2012, after I found out I had Celiac Disease and I went gluten-free. At first, I didn’t even try all that hard to lose weight, it just happened organically because I could no longer overeat my favorites, like bread, cookies, and crackers. (Back then the gluten-free alternatives didn’t taste very good). I just went without those items, and the pounds started coming off. And I got my first iPhone and started tracking all my walks on the RunKeeper app. I found it very motivating to track, and still do.

Then in 2013, I struggled to maintain the loss, (gluten-free was getting trendy and popular, and the gluten-free alternatives were getting better tasting). Each month consisted of about two weeks of overeating, which brought my weight up, followed by two weeks of restricting, to bring it back down again.

I yo-yo’d all year long, and by December of 2013 I was exhausted with “white-knuckling” it. Following my typical pattern of overeating the last 2 weeks of November, I had been very restrictive the weeks leading up to that Christmas. And just before Christmas, I found myself only up 8 pounds from the very lowest my weight had been in all of 2012. So, despite the yo-yo’ing, I felt like only 8 pounds up meant I had pretty much “maintained” for a whole year. (Spoiler alert: yo-yo’ing up and down 10 pounds every single month is NOT maintaining, it’s a big red flag that you have a problem with how you eat, that you have NOT yet solved…)

On Christmas Eve, we were invited to an open house at a friend’s. All night, I resisted the egg nog and other gluten-free treats, (I had even made and brought gluten-free Rice Krispie squares myself, but did not eat any of them). I only ate carrots sticks and baby tomatoes off the veggie trays other people had brought.

Christmas morning I got up and weighed myself. The scale was up .2 of a pound.

Only .2 of a pound.

But I figured for all my restraint the previous evening, while everyone else indulged, I should have been “rewarded” with a loss. And I was some upset that I had instead been “punished” with a gain.

So, I did what many of us (dieters) have done, and I chucked it in the f#&*! it bucket, and started to eat all. the. things. (Gluten-free, of course).

By January 2, I had gained 12 pounds.

By July of 2014, I had gained back 40 pounds total, since my lowest in 2012.

Sigh.

Overeating treats, desserts, pick your poison, is a bad habit. It’s a habit I used to turn to when feeling emotional, or anxious, or frustrated.

The problem is, I truly have gotten tired of doctor’s appointments and tests, and then waiting for results. I currently feel emotional, anxious, and frustrated with the waiting.

Back in August, I felt abandoned by my doctor’s blasé attitude about my hEDS leading to moderate mitral valve regurgitation (I didn’t even get to start with mild—straight to moderate—I feel like I skipped a step!) and I asked to be referred to a specialist.

But then after the osteoporosis diagnosis (I didn’t even get to start with osteopenia—straight to osteoporosis—I feel like I skipped another step!) I just wanted to pull back and take a break from all things medical. I was struggling with feeling somewhat depressed, wanting to soothe with food, so please, no more appointments and tests=no more concerning news about my health. I had heard that the wait times for a specialist could be 10 months, so I was prepared to stop thinking about doctors and appointments, and instead just work on fitness in the new year, leading up to my Dexascan in 2026, that I wrote about here.

But then I got the call from the cardiologist, with the last minute opening, and all the tests started all over again. And now, I find myself on a weekend, with less than 2 weeks until Christmas, waiting for the results from the recent 24-hour heart monitor I wore. And I have one more (unexpected) appointment on Monday, AND I have one more (unexpected) blood test Thursday, and then I have to wait for the results of that blood test too.

The good news is it should be all done by Christmas.

The bad news is I want to eat all. the. things.

Sigh.

But, instead of eating, I came here and blogged instead. I don’t want to repeat the same mistakes I made in 2013.

Keep Walking!

“Yes, daily walking can help manage mitral regurgitation (MR) and potentially delay cardiomyopathy by strengthening your heart muscle, improving fitness, and managing symptoms, but it won’t fix the leaky valve itself; it helps your heart pump better overall.”

Nothing fancy. Just walking. Consistently.

What a huge impact my 127 week streak (about to be 128 weeks) of walking has been on my (what a surprise to me) heart valve issue! (And bonus, it is helping me maintain my weight loss—long term—for the first time in my history of dieting). 😊