please help........Lupus, hives, vasculitis, hypothyroidism, etc.....

Hi I  am new to all this but have been suffering for the past 7 months with chronic hives and vasculitis  ..... along with that I was diagnosed with Lupus this past December and I have had a horrible history with my Thyroid and ovarian cysts..... so all the information I have read here has been a relief (that I am not the only one) and also sadness because all of you are suffering for so long.......Is there any hope in sight?  I have been on The almighty steroids for over 3 years and they don't help I am on doxepin (the side effect is supposed to stop mast-cell production -yeah ok) Zyrtec, Pepsid (all the goodies) but to no avail unless I get IV steroids (in a large dose 40mg or more) the hives come back each day. I recently tried the ELIMINATION DIET that did nothing and I ended up in the hospital with a UTI n yeast infection along with Thrush. So any suggestions? My nutritionist says that I REALLY should get off my Thyroid mediation because it could be the key to all my problems but I can't get a MD to work with me. All I wanna do is feel better (and stop itching..........)
Thanks for any info -i have already made a list from the info here that i am taking to my docs on Friday


As of today I am recovering from a UTI that put me in the hospital due to loss of consciousness 2 times, chronic hives, vasculitis, Lupus flare up fever which has now lead to a yeast infection and oral Thrush........ help help help

[carolanivey]

I'm so sorry you're having a hard time! I don't have lupus, but its cousin, RA. UTIs are the worst. I get about one a year but at several points in the past it got to where it seemed I'd just get over one then get another one. Steroids can contribute to getting these. For a couple years my doctor put me on a daily dose of floxin just to prevent them. A big contributor for me was (and is) sexual activity, so I have to follow a certain, er, protocol to keep from getting a UTI. I'm sure by now you know that whole song and dance, so I won't bore you with it unless you really want to know. :)

Antibiotic use very often leads to yeast infections/thrush. Whenever I take an antibiotic I take a handful of acidophilus capsules along with it to prevent the inevitable yeast infection.

These are tough to stay on top of b/c as you probably know, once our body chemistries get out of whack it's like a house of cards.

I'm wondering if you're allergic to certain antibiotics? Sulpha/sulfa drugs made me itch, which puts all types of sulfa based drugs off the menu for me, including the RA meds sulfasalazine and Celebrex.

I've had RA for over 45 years but only recently learned that auto-immune disorders and thyroid problems often go together. Have you been to an allergist? Look up your meds on drugs.com or rxlist.com to see if any of your meds are the culprit.

A couple good online resources for you might be arthritis.org and lupus.org.  Mayoclinic.com is also a great all-around site.

Hang in there!