Jonathan Update Day 2

Today I called Jonathan's allergist, Dr. Quintero, right away when the office opened to see if there was an appointment available.  Luckily, there was a cancellation today so we had an appointment at 1:30 pm.  Before the appointment we ran some errands: picking up prescriptions, go to Huntsville and drop off library books, pick up my paycheck at church, and get retested to check that my infection was gone.

After running around for about 2 hours, we grabbed some quick lunch and went to his allergist.  Dr. Quintero asked a bunch of questions to really understand what happened.  He believes that Jonathan's reaction was not the fault of his allergy shot.  Jonathan got his routine allergy shot on that Wednesday morning at 8 am.  Since the reaction was over 8 hours after his shot Dr. Quintero was very sure that it was not the shot's fault (as I had predicted).  He believes that it is probably an environmental allergy.  Jonathan was tested for these allergy with skin testing a year ago.

The plan of action that Dr. Quintero put in place is to retest Jonathan for some more environmental allergies and add some more.  He is also going to include the extensive food allergy testing as well.  In total, he will be getting over 100 skin pricks in one afternoon.  We are going in for this testing on Tuesday; this means that he will have to be off of his antihistamines for 5 days (Friday-Tuesday).  He will be substituting his antihistamines for a tapered dose of Prednisone steroids.  He can't be on antihistamines because it will skew the results of the allergy testing.  He will then have a follow-up appointment the next day to review the results of the skin testing with Dr. Quintero to help find some answers.

Dr. Quintero advised us that even though we don't have answers now that we will hopefully get closer to answers after the skin testing.  He said that it's a puzzle that we are going to need a little bit of time to figure out.  I'm taking his advise and not getting frustrated or angry with the process; Jonathan and I both know that this will take some time to figure out.  We can't worry about what we don't know yet, that's our motto!

Overall today, Jonathan has felt better.  This afternoon he said he felt his heart really racing and lots of mucus going down his throat and into his lungs.  I told him it was probably because of all the antihistamines he was given in the hospital and that he took today, and the heart racing was probably related to the Prednisone steroid as it amps up the body's metabolism.  Other than that he hasn't had any breathing problems or throat issues.  He did call his boss and he is going to take off from work Friday because his body is just wiped from all the trauma and we both didn't sleep well last night.

Thank you to our families and friends that have been supporting us with love and prayers.  Prayers would still be appreciated over the next couple of days for no attacks since he will be off his normal meds for skin testing, and for patience with the process, and for our emotions....we have both had some scary moments these past two weeks which is a lot for the body to take.  But, we keep trusting in God which holds us together.

Look for another update Tuesday and Wednesday on testing and results....and hopefully ANSWERS!!

Jonathan in the Hospital....Again

I had received a phone call at 4:30 pm this afternoon from Jonathan's co-worker Simone saying that Jonathan was having another severe allergic reaction and that they were going to take him to the hospital.  They told me that he took his EpiPen and Benadryl.  I told Simone I would meet them at the hospital in The Woodlands.

I arrived at St. Luke's Hospital in The Woodlands before Jonathan did to tell the ER staff that my husband would be coming in and his symptoms.  They were the same symptoms he had on his last attack: wheezing, shortness of breath, and throat and tongue swelling.  Jonathan arrived a couple minutes after and they immediately took him back to the ER rooms.

Once they got him back it was a slew of activity.  The doctor was in, two nurses, and a registration lady.  They got him some meds: benadryl, pepcid, and steroids.  They kept him on an EKG, blood pressure, and pulse ox.  His pulse was pretty high (due to the EpiPen which is adrenaline) and his blood pressure was elevated but eventually came down a little bit.

We stayed for 4 hours where they kept him under observation.  They said that the reaction was due to getting his allergy shot that morning.  I am leery and questionable about this diagnosis.  He has never had any problems with his allergy shots.  It was not anything he ate; his lunch was the normal lunch he has packed for 2 years.  I did realized something today: on both days that he has had his allergic reactions there has been a strong wind blowing from the South....I still think it might be an air allergen.

We are going to call his allergist in the morning to set up a follow-up appointment because of his attack.  Hopefully we will be able to get in tomorrow.

Prayers would be certainly appreciated to help figure out this situation and find some answers.  Also, anybody who would like to contribute to the "Keep Jonathan out of the ER" fund or "Help pay Jonathan's medical bills" fund would be lovely!!

Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend Jonathan and I had some visitors for our Memorial Day weekend.  Jonathan's parents came down to visit from Saturday afternoon to Sunday afternoon.  They got here around 3 PM, chatted for a little bit then headed to McKenzie's BBQ for an early dinner.

After dinner we headed into Houston to go to a Houston Astros game.  We got front row seats in the season ticket holder section.  The game ended in a tragic loss, but the experience was well worth it. We got back into town around 10:30 that night and headed to DQ for an ice cream fix.  After a "scooby snack" we drove home and headed to bed.

In the morning I left for church and Jonathan brought his parents a little later during my rehearsal.  I met with them just before church started to make sure they got a good seat to see Jonathan and I in the choir.  After church we headed to Chili's for some lunch then back home.  His parents hit the road a little later that afternoon.  We watched a movie later that evening, "Stand Up Guys", with Al Pacino, Alan Arkin, and Christopher Walken.

On Monday, Jonathan got the day off so we enjoyed sleeping in and resting up.  We made Monkey Bread for breakfast then played Life and Clue on the Nintendo Wii.  We were going to play Monopoly but I got a splitting headache from taking my antibiotics so I took a nap instead.  We watched some of our latest episodes on Hulu that we missed watching on TV.  After that I made dinner, which consisted of Hamburgers, Corn on the Cob, and Mac n' Cheese.

Test Results

Today Jonathan and I got our test results from our doctors, so here is the news:

Jackie:

• My triglycerides are high, so they told me to watch my diet.  My mom suggested I take some Fish Oil, so I picked some up.
• I have a urinary infection from working out.  They called in some antibiotics for me to take, then get retested after I finish the antibiotics.
• My TSH (the thyroid hormone) was high, but they did not up my meds.  Hopefully when I see the endocrinologist next month they will.

Jonathan:

•  Well, apparently he is not allergic to Walnuts or Almonds.  The blood test came back and they were negative, so we are back to square one.  For now, we got a EpiPen refill and have put one by the bed, at his work, and he is starting to carry one on him all the time.  For now, we are doing preventative maintenance so that this doesn't happen again.

Prayers for answers and good outcomes to arrive soon!!

Jackie's Doctor Check-Up

On Monday I had my yearly check up with my local physician to get prescription refills and do a yearly physical.  I had talked about how my thyroid medicine might need to be adjusted because more of my symptoms have come back like major fatigue, hair loss, weight gain, etc.

We also talked about my constant weight gain.  Since I have been diagnosed with my thyroid disease I have consistently gained weight.  I use to weight 140 in my good old days about 7 years ago.  Once I started my anxiety medication that hasn't helped either.

He referred me to see an endocrinologist since I haven't seen one in a long while.  I made an appointment in June so hopefully they can help me get my thyroid and weight regulated.

I also did some routine blood work which wasn't too much fun.  I have two bruises on each arm because the lady couldn't find the vein.  I'll know the blood results in a couple days.

Since I'm on summer break I have started exercising again as I have more free time now.  I hope this will help with my weight as well.  I hope I can count on your encouragement!!

Jonathan's Reaction Day #2

Jonathan is feeling better today.  He says that his throat is sore from being swollen yesterday and is feeling weak.  He took the day off from work today so he could recuperate and get in to see his allergist.  I woke up about 5-6 times last night just to make sure that he was still breathing.

We saw his allergist today and discussed the possible allergies that could have caused his reaction.  He told the allergist what he ate yesterday and the doctor's face lit up really quick when Jonathan told him that the sandwich he ate yesterday included walnuts and almonds.  The allergist said that walnuts are highly allergic but he was not tested when he was skin tested last year.  The doctor gave him orders to get a blood test to test for walnuts and almonds.  Also, the doctor wants him to get a more extensive food allergy skin test this summer.  When they tested him last year they only 8 most prominent food allergies like peanuts.

We will know in about a week what the blood test says and will do skin testing after our Iowa trip in June.  For right now, Jonathan is to swear off walnuts and almonds, but he has assured me that he is swearing off all nuts!  He has to carry around his EpiPen and benadryl on a constant basis.  He got another prescription of his EpiPen so he can keep one in his desk at work.

Jonathan in Hospital

I had received a call from Jonathan today around 1:15 PM saying that he was not feeling well and wanted me to pick him up.  He was attending a safety training course on the outskirts of Houston.  He said that he was feeling shortness of breath, the feeling of passing out, and really jittery. I drove down to pick him up and proceeded to drive him to his allergist where he had made an appointment for later in the afternoon just as a precaution.

As we were driving down I-45 he told me to pull over and that something was not right.  I pulled off and immediately said that his throat and tongue were swelling up, the severe sign of an allergic reaction.  Luckilly before I left the house I had grabbed his EpiPen pack just in case.  I quickly called the allergist and spoke to the Nurse On Call; she told me to administer the EpiPen in his thigh then call 911.

I told Jonathan "are you ready"....he said "yeah".....then I stabbed him with his EpiPen.

I called 911 and they sent out an ambulance to our location.  A sheriff officer pulled up behind us as he saw we were pulled off on the highway to keep traffic away from us.  The ambulance came and picked up Jonathan and took him to Northwest Houston Medical Center.  In the ambulance they gave him some benadryl and a high dose of steroids to counteract the allergic reaction.  I followed him behind in my car to the hospital.

 

They got him checked in and in a room, but he was still feeling jittery and his throat was still swollen a bit.  The doctor came in and checked him out.  They gave him some Valium to calm his jitters and to relax him.  After they gave him that he started dozing off to sleep and stopped shaking.

After the Valium had a chance to work and the steroid/benadryl had a chance to tackle the reaction, he started feeling better pretty fast.  He regained the color in his face, his blood pressure and pulse came down, he was breathing better, and his throat was beginning to stop swelling.  They discharged him after about 2 hours in the ER.  We paid our copay then drove home.

He is resting now and feeling better.  I went and filled a prescription they gave us from the ER for Predinose (steroid) and picked up some more benadryl as the doctor said to keep giving him some until his symptoms are completely gone.  I made him an appointment to see his allergist tomorrow afternoon since he has never had an allergic reaction attack at all.  They said that they might need to up his medications since he reacted to something pretty severe (which we still can't figure out!).  He is not allergic to any food, just trees, pollen, grass, mold, and everything nature wise.  I think that it was the smog/smoke or some air pollen or element that caused the reaction.  Hopefully we will know more tomorrow.

More info and updates tomorrow once we visit the allergist.  I know that God had to be at work today because He made me think to grab Jonathan's EpiPen, and just be at the right place at the right time.  Keep Jonathan in your prayers and I will let you know more tomorrow!

Click here for more info on allergic reactions - WebMD - Allergic Reactions
Click here for more info on EpiPens - Wikipedia - EpiPen