Introducing Jess
Jess is a 28 year old Senior Account Director from London. She currently does not suffer from urticaria but has been through 2 episodes of urticaria in her youth which have taught her the value of a strong patient-doctor relationship.
Me and my doctor versus urticaria
I consider myself lucky that I've only had 2 episodes of active urticaria, once when I was 10 and again when I was 20 - both of which lasted about a year with unexplained onset. The first time it took a long time to get a diagnosis, with lots of blood tests and allergy screening. The doctors kept trying to find a cause and when it eventually cleared up, the doctors said perhaps I had 'outgrown' an allergy and it probably wouldn't come back.
In my second year at university the familiar rash appeared and straight away I knew it was back. As you can imagine, I was pretty upset. I went to my GP, showed him the rash and said I thought it was urticaria. By chance the GP I saw had a special interest in dermatology, and straight away he agreed it was probably urticaria.
We talked about my experience the last time it happened and the drugs I had been prescribed and he explained that some forms of urticaria are 'idiopathic', meaning there is no known cause. He suggested that I undergo some of the basic allergy and blood tests, but he said with my history and no obvious change of behaviour or environment, it would make sense if this is what I had. I guess for most people it could be frustrating or depressing to hear that doctors don't understand what has caused your disease, but in a strange way it was a relief. I had been dreading the endless tests and referrals and special diets that I had gone through the first time around. Like many people with urticaria, I often felt like I shouldn't complain.
Me and my doctor versus urticaria
Me and my doctor versus urticaria
I consider myself lucky that I've only had 2 episodes of active urticaria, once when I was 10 and again when I was 20 - both of which lasted about a year with unexplained onset. The first time it took a long time to get a diagnosis, with lots of blood tests and allergy screening. The doctors kept trying to find a cause and when it eventually cleared up, the doctors said perhaps I had 'outgrown' an allergy and it probably wouldn't come back.
In my second year at university the familiar rash appeared and straight away I knew it was back. As you can imagine, I was pretty upset. I went to my GP, showed him the rash and said I thought it was urticaria. By chance the GP I saw had a special interest in dermatology, and straight away he agreed it was probably urticaria.
We talked about my experience the last time it happened and the drugs I had been prescribed and he explained that some forms of urticaria are 'idiopathic', meaning there is no known cause. He suggested that I undergo some of the basic allergy and blood tests, but he said with my history and no obvious change of behaviour or environment, it would make sense if this is what I had. I guess for most people it could be frustrating or depressing to hear that doctors don't understand what has caused your disease, but in a strange way it was a relief. I had been dreading the endless tests and referrals and special diets that I had gone through the first time around. Like many people with urticaria, I often felt like I shouldn't complain.
After all it's 'just' a rash. Whilst it could be incredibly uncomfortable if it was on my feet or hands and sometimes it would itch until I cried with frustration, in reality I wasn't in pain and I didn't feel unwell. I was struggling to force myself to leave the house when my urticaria was anywhere that it couldn't be covered, and at times I felt very low. Despite this, I didn't want to tell people how I felt, because I thought they would be thinking 'what are you complaining about? It's just a rash.'
"I guess for most people it could be frustrating or depressing to hear that doctors don't understand what has caused your disease"
My GP made me feel that I was right to be asking for help - this was a condition that should be taken seriously. He was very sympathetic to the impact it could have on me and took time to ask about the symptoms in detail every time I saw him. It was also a relief to see that he was as frustrated as I was each time we tried a new drug and it didn't work. Eventually we found a solution that just about kept my urticaria manageable and I generally felt a bit more in control.
At the time, my relationship with my GP was really important for me. It really felt like he was on my side. At the time there was far less information available online about urticaria, so he was my only reliable source of knowledge about my condition and what could treat it. It reassures me to know that if it comes back again, at least urticaria is better understood now.
For me, urticaria made me retreat into myself - both physically when I wanted to cover up all my skin and not leave the house - but also mentally. I was living away from home for the first time and I didn't want to cry down the phone to my parents or to confide in my boyfriend or other friends for fear they might think I was being a drama queen. My GP became the person I could be honest with about my condition and was really supportive throughout. Having said that, looking back I probably should have told him more about how it was affecting my studies, my social life and my happiness.
I hope that if my urticaria becomes active again I will find another doctor who would take the same time to understand and support me, but also that I would be more honest with my friends and family about what effect it has. I know they would want to support me, but how can they unless you talk about it?
My GP made me feel that I was right to be asking for help - this was a condition that should be taken seriously. He was very sympathetic to the impact it could have on me and took time to ask about the symptoms in detail every time I saw him. It was also a relief to see that he was as frustrated as I was each time we tried a new drug and it didn't work. Eventually we found a solution that just about kept my urticaria manageable and I generally felt a bit more in control.
At the time, my relationship with my GP was really important for me. It really felt like he was on my side. At the time there was far less information available online about urticaria, so he was my only reliable source of knowledge about my condition and what could treat it. It reassures me to know that if it comes back again, at least urticaria is better understood now.
For me, urticaria made me retreat into myself - both physically when I wanted to cover up all my skin and not leave the house - but also mentally. I was living away from home for the first time and I didn't want to cry down the phone to my parents or to confide in my boyfriend or other friends for fear they might think I was being a drama queen. My GP became the person I could be honest with about my condition and was really supportive throughout. Having said that, looking back I probably should have told him more about how it was affecting my studies, my social life and my happiness.
I hope that if my urticaria becomes active again I will find another doctor who would take the same time to understand and support me, but also that I would be more honest with my friends and family about what effect it has. I know they would want to support me, but how can they unless you talk about it?
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