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Allergy Shots Put My Life Back on Track

Agreeing to being stabbed every week was one of the best things I ever did

Alicia M Prater, PhD
Maeflowers

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a haloed syringe on a dark background
Photo by Rapha Wilde on Unsplash

Four years ago, I wrote about a scary ER visit, which led to a very uncomfortable diagnostic skin prick test. This test showed that I have numerous environmental allergies. It was obvious that they were decreasing my quality of life. I was also eating a number of foods that were exacerbating my specific sensitivities (called oral allergy syndrome).

Three months after I wrote about that experience and the diagnosis, I started immune therapy in the form of allergy shots. I declined the sublingual (i.e., under the tongue) drops that I could do at home. I was afraid of a repeat of the ER visit or worse. Also, my health insurance covers most of the cost of the shots but not the drops.

So this meant I’d have to go into the allergy clinic at the hospital every week — or as often I could — until we were done.

I’m lucky in that the hospital I have to go to is 8 minutes from my house. Popping by weekly for 30–45 minutes was…

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