Woman’s skin burns and she gasps for breath – after severe booze allergy strikes overnight
It was only when Cass Bowman could barely speak due to breathlessness that she decided to ditch the booze
A FORMER party animal has swapped clubbing for cardio after discovering that she's allergic to BOOZE.
42-year-old Cass Bowman from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, has found that alcohol brings her out in a burning red rash.
In her youth, the mum-of-three loved nothing more than hitting the town for a few drinks with her mates.
But around eight years ago, that all changed after she suddenly started to suffer a mysterious reaction to booze that saw her skin become red and blotchy.
In 2011, she noticed that her upper body and legs would start to feel really hot after having a drink. She wasn't too worried until odd marks started to appear all over her body.
She said: “It was almost like a burn. It’d be hot to touch and feel sensitive for days afterwards.
“Putting cold water on it wouldn’t help, as it just heated up.
“When it would happen, people would really stare, which would make me feel embarrassed and put a dampener on the night.”
Over time, it became so severe that she says her skin felt as though it had been "scalded". Her breathing became affected too.
“It can spring up anywhere on my body, and my skin gets so hot I can’t even touch it," Cass said.
";Before all this, I was quite a party animal. I’d go out weekdays and weekends, downing pints and all sorts.”
On an average night out, Cass would down around 10 drinks - combining lager and cider with spirits.
She says that she's cut back and only has the odd vodka or gin these days.
"That seems to have done the trick for now, but if this comes back and makes my breathing worse, I’ll have no choice but to quit drinking altogether.
“As big a part of socialising as it is, I couldn’t live with knowing I was putting myself in danger.”
At first, Cass didn't put two and two together - assuming the reaction was simply down to skin products or washing powder.
After months of changing all of her products and finding that the reaction was still happening, she realised it was caused by her drinking.
“I went to the doctor in around 2012, and he agreed that it was something in alcohol causing an allergic reaction,” she said.
“He then said to me to stop drinking.
“I know it might sound silly, but it was such a big part of my life then – it was how I socialised with my friends. I worried I would lose all of that, so I tried to just press on and put up with it.
“I could never figure out a set trigger. If it was one particular type of alcohol, I’d have avoided that, but there was no pattern to it.”
It was only when she found herself so out of breath that she was unable to speak, that she decided to be proactive.
She has found a different doctor who prescribes her with antihistamines to take down the reaction whenever it comes up.
The NHS advises avoiding alcohol when taking antihistamines as it can make you sleepy, but Cass says that she takes non-drowsy tablets and has had no adverse effects.
She's also dramatically cut down on her alcohol intake and will now "only" enjoy five vodkas or gins on the odd weekend.
In the past year, Cass hasn't had any allergic reactions - which she puts down to both drinking less and exercising much more.
She began running almost by accident after she suffered an unrelated hip injury during a Zumba class in 2012, and the physiotherapist who treated her suggested running would help keep her strength up once she had recovered.
Cass now runs 10km at least three times a week, getting up at 5.30am to pound the streets.
She's run two half-marathons so far and has three more planned for 2019.
She is sharing her story to encourage others suffering painful reactions to seek medical help.
“My reactions were so unpredictable. I wouldn’t get them every time I drank, but they could come on out of nowhere – especially if I’d drank a couple of nights in a row," she said.
“Now, though, I’m feeling much healthier and really hope that’s the end of it.
"Of course, if I have another, and my breathing is still affected, I will have no choice but to give up alcohol completely.
"For now, though, I’m enjoying running, cutting back on drinking and feeling great.”
Abbas Kanani, a pharmacist at Chemist Click, said: “If you are experiencing symptoms such as wheezing, sneezing, coughing, itchy skin or feeling sick when you drink small amounts of alcohol, my advice would be to get an allergy test.
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“Explain your symptoms to your GP who can organise this for you.
In the meantime, it’s best to avoid alcoholic beverages altogether, as there is a possibility that they could cause a severe reaction which can be quite serious.
“If you do have a confirmed allergy to alcohol, it’s best to give up altogether. It seems quite tough, but I see an increased number of people wishing to give up alcohol for good these days, in search of a healthier lifestyle.”
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