'I'm afraid to open the fridge': how does a girl with cold allergies live
'06.12.2018'
Source: The Sun
21-year-old Arianna Kent from Alberta, Canada suffers from a rare dangerous disease, cold-induced urticaria. Simply put, this girl has a severe allergy to cold, which manifests itself as a profuse rash all over her body, itching and burning.
Despite this, Arianna lives in a country where in winter the temperature often drops to minus 40 degrees. Although moving to warm lands would hardly have helped her, because even an open refrigerator can be potentially dangerous for a Canadian. How a girl manages to cope with this disease, says Bigpicture with reference to The Sun.
Arianne Kent is often called the “girl with allergies to the winter,” although even in the summer, an Canadian resident may have anaphylactic shock. Ice with a glass of drink makes her fingers swell, an open refrigerator or freezer causes a rash over her body, even a whiff of wind and swimming in the pool can lead to an allergic reaction to Arianna.
Arianna says that in the cold season there can be no more than five minutes outside. Even a walk to the car promises trouble to the girl. That is why most of the time Arianna spends at home.
“I don’t leave the house if it’s too risky,” admits the Canadian. - I usually dress warmly and prepare in advance for temperature changes. If it drops sharply, I will have to warm up immediately, otherwise an allergic reaction may occur. ”
In the list of "enemies" Arianna - air conditioning and a refrigerator. A girl cannot be in a store where air conditioning is on, since almost immediately a rash appears on her skin.
When something cold gets Arianna in food, for example, ice is mistakenly put ice in her drink, a strong tension arises in the girl's throat. “It seems like I eat ice cream,” says the girl.
Arianna experienced her first bout of an allergic reaction when she was 14 years old. This happened when the schoolgirl cleared the snow. Then the girl felt difficulty breathing and told her parents about it.
Examination of the doctors did not bring the desired results - the first two years, everyone thought that Arianna was suffering from food allergies. Until now, not all employees of medical institutions believe that she has cold urticaria. Not to mention friends and colleagues ...
Arianna is in the hospital at least once a month, not counting the cases when she is hospitalized urgently. Before that, the Canadian had to visit doctors three times a month, but thanks to a special diet, the number of visits was reduced.
“I refused all foods that contain histamine,” says the student, “There are no more cheeses, pineapples, yogurt, pickles and sauerkraut in my diet.”
The disease creates many problems not only in terms of physical well-being. One day, because of him, Arianna almost lost her job. The fact is that the girl works in a restaurant, and one of her “duties” is to look attractive.
When the girl began to wear a lot of warm clothes, employers were surprised, and did not immediately believe in the existence of an allergy to cold. To dispel their doubts, Arianna opened the refrigerator and red spots immediately began to appear on her hands.
In Arianna’s purse, there is always an adrenaline autoinjector in case of anaphylactic shock. After all, even the simplest things, like drafts or ice in a glass, can have serious consequences for a girl.
