Scared and Freaked Out

[kahleen]

Over the past few years I have notices a chronic runny nose and headache. Over the past three months it has gotten to the point where I get shooting pains through my ears and my eyes keep going blurry. My doctor just told me that I have an allergy to milk. Is it possible to have an allergy your entire life and not know it? Can it suddenly get so bad you can hardly function? Any chance it is just developing? Finally.. they told me my white count was 15.1 showing I had a bacterial infection of some kind but can not find anything.. could it be related to the allergy?

[kahleen]

Thank you for your answer. I have had ever test done on my sinus and taken antibiotics for two months. MY ENT told me the CT showed my sinus were perfect that is why I had the allergy testing done. Had my blood work repeated and this time the white count was normal. seeing an Allergist today.  The reaction to the dairy is getting worse. Tightness in mt chest and cough , of course the runny nose and headache and blurry eyes when I eat or drink anything I am not supposed to. When I remove the dairy of any kind I am perfect though... ahhh very frustrating but at least now I know I am not crazy.

[sickgirl007]

sounds like you have an allergy that also turned into sinus inf.I hope they gave you antibiotics

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

Your symptoms could be due to sinusitis. They are triggered by allergens. We can develop allergies to different things throughout our lifetimes as the allergy develops in response to a repeated stimulus.  If you haven't undergone formal allergy testing, that might be beneficial.

The high WBC counts could be due to the sinus infection. Chronic sinus infection, typically need antibiotic treatment for 4-6 weeks.  A nasal steroid spray is also beneficial as well as oral steroids.  Nasal saline irrigations over the counter like NeilMed or Neti pot are very effective.  The best diagnosis for this problem is a CT of the sinuses. Surgery is recommended to patients that fail maximal medical treatment.

Hope this helped and do keep us posted.

[allmymarbles]

You can develop an allergy at any time. You can become allergic to something you were never allergic to before. I can't answer for your infection, but a high ingestion of sugar can encourage the overgrowth of yeasts and fungi which give rise to allergies. If you are on a high sugar/starch diet, try cutting back and see if that helps.

[Caryopteris]

I think you might have an abscessed tooth or a sinus infection.  It's most likely a dental thing.  Milk allergy is very common, and certainly stopping it is logical.  If it is your sinuses that are the cause of your problem, then stopping dairy will bring you relief.  There are many good alternatives now.  If you are not allergic to nuts, you might try almond milk or the new one that is a mix of almond and coconut milk.  If you have any doubts about getting used to a substitute, try chocolate first, then vanilla.