Hives update #2

So, I’m continuing on this pregnancy hives journey. It’s progressively getting worse. I saw a dermatologist this morning. She is going to do lab work with my OB to check my thyroid, liver, and a few other things to rule out any issues (but she thinks they are unlikely).

Her best guess as to what is going on is that my body is having a reaction to the increase in progesterone that peaks around the end of the first trimester. She talked with my OB, and they agreed that’s most likely the case. So, there’s no cure (which I already knew), and I just have to manage the symptoms with an antihistamine (Zyrtec) every day for awhile to keep the outbreaks at bay. She prescribed a higher dose hydrocortisone cream to help too. She said my skin is also more sensitive to touch right now. I forget what she called it. But when she lightly scratched my leg, I puffed up a bit along that line, which is an exaggerated response to the touch. My eosinophils are probably elevated for some reason, she said. We are just crossing our fingers that all of this doesn’t last my entire pregnancy. 🙄

So, if I find out more, which I probably won’t, I’ll post another update just in case this is happening to anyone else. But it’s interesting to know that our bodies can basically have an allergic type reaction to our own hormones. pregnancy is fun. 🤦🏻‍♀️🙃