Oct 9, 2013 4 min read

Allergies are what happen when your immune system has a permanent case of PMS.

They’re a complete and utter overreaction to something seemingly benign. The timing is mostly predictable, but may also come out of nowhere. Really, the only difference is whether or not you’re out of Ben & Jerry’s.

In all seriousness, allergies occur when your immune system responds to food, medication or something in the environment as it would a pathogen and attacks it. Usually, this reaction is what keeps us from getting sick; however, in these “hypersensitivity reactions,” the outcomes can range from annoying to life-threatening.

The signs and symptoms of true allergic reactions may not be what you think, but learning the difference could be hugely important to your health. Misrepresenting your allergies can lead to unnecessary changes in your medical plan of care or lifestyle, changes that could make all the difference.

Signs and symptoms of true allergies are those that are controlled by the immune system; symptoms like shortness of breath, difficulty swallowing, hives, itching, chest discomfort, swelling of the face/eyes/tongue, unconsciousness, etc.

Here are some big (and common) allergy reporting errors:

• “Feeling odd” is not an allergy, though it may be a sensitivity. Sensitivities are unpleasant, nonimmune reactions to certain triggers.

An easy way to tell the difference between sensitivities and allergies is the consistency in reaction: If you’re nauseous when you eat strawberries but feel great after a slice of strawberry-rhubarb pie, the issue is not an allergy.

• Be certain that your “allergy” or “sensitivity” isn’t a known side effect to the medication. For instance, morphine makes most people tired, not just you.

• Please don’t report medications as an allergy because you’d rather not receive them.

We’re at a place in health care where a “narrative” is encouraged and believed to lead to better documentation and patient care. Therefore, there is always somewhere for your doctor, nurse or medical assistant to note your medication preferences without you having to incorrectly identify them as an “allergy.”

Here’s why incorrectly reporting medication allergies matters: If you are ever admitted to the hospital, you want the medical staff acting on accurate information. Don’t risk receiving the second-best antibiotic, for instance, because you noted an allergy that, in fact, is not.

Reactions caused by the immune system are honest-to-goodness allergies and deserve all the vigilance they require to include the use of EpiPens and antihistamine medications, medical alert bracelets and the avoidance of triggers.

The allergy aisle at all our local drug stores may be the moderate-to-severe allergy sufferer’s worst enemy since it makes the reactions seem almost pedestrian. For some individuals, it’s all too easy to brush off the very real possibility of a life-threatening reaction simply because allergies seem common enough that a trip to the drug store can fix them.

The very scary and honest truth is this: Anaphylaxis, the life-threatening allergic reaction that affects many parts of the body at once, can set in after just a few minutes, making nearly-immediate intervention necessary.

A nonexpired, EpiPen of the correct dosage should be kept in the immediate vicinity of the allergy sufferer at all times. That means close to them, and not rattling around in their trunk, somewhere in their house or at the pharmacy waiting to be picked up. The use of an EpiPen must be followed with a trip to the emergency room due to the relatively short time epinephrine remains active in the body.

Danger exists on both sides of the allergic aisle, both for those who under- and overestimate the effects of their triggers. This danger, and many of the 500 to 1,000 American deaths due to anaphylaxis, are largely preventable with education, a good plan and a loving disregard for statements like, “I’ll be fine,” when evidence suggests otherwise.

Abigail Mackey is a registered nurse. For more quips and tips refer to her blog, “The Written Remedy” (thewrittenremedy.blogspot.com). Abby can be reached at amackrn23@gmail.com or on Twitter at @AbigailMackeyRN.