Face Blew Up
August 4, 2010 5:14 AM Subscribe
What the heck happened to my face last week? (possibly gross)
Two weekends ago, the girlfriend and I went berry picking at a pick-your-own farm. About two hours in, she noticed that the skin around my mouth (upper lip and "soul patch" area) had gotten very red and swollen, and I noticed my mouth was a little itchy. Later in the evening, large fluid-filled blisters had formed around my mouth and had started to leak. All in all, it took about three days for the whole thing to clear up.
I have never had a reaction like this before, and I'm not allergic to anything (as far as I know), so it took me a bit by surprise. I was also confused about the confined the locality of the reaction - if it were an oral allergy of some sort, I figured it would have presented itself along with a swollen/irritated mouth and throat.
A rundown of everything I touched and used that day:
-I shaved in the morning, so my skin may have been overly sensitive. However, nothing was irritated on my cheeks, chin, or neck.
-We sprayed each other with Deep Woods Off before going out in the berry patches. I did not spray this on my face.
-It was very, very buggy, and we both got bit a number of times (mostly greenhead flies, I think).
-A farm employee gave a second kind of bug spray, unsure of the brand (came in a pump-action bottle), which I sprayed on to my hands and rubbed on my face.
-While we were picking, I ate exactly 1 raspberry, 1 blackberry, and 2 blueberries in that order, over the course of about 2.5 hours.
-It was hot and sunny, and we didn't have anything to drink the entire time we were picking.
My skin is completely cleared up at this point, and I've eaten all of the berries that we picked (washed and unwashed) without any further effect. Anyone have any idea what could have happened?
Two weekends ago, the girlfriend and I went berry picking at a pick-your-own farm. About two hours in, she noticed that the skin around my mouth (upper lip and "soul patch" area) had gotten very red and swollen, and I noticed my mouth was a little itchy. Later in the evening, large fluid-filled blisters had formed around my mouth and had started to leak. All in all, it took about three days for the whole thing to clear up.
I have never had a reaction like this before, and I'm not allergic to anything (as far as I know), so it took me a bit by surprise. I was also confused about the confined the locality of the reaction - if it were an oral allergy of some sort, I figured it would have presented itself along with a swollen/irritated mouth and throat.
A rundown of everything I touched and used that day:
-I shaved in the morning, so my skin may have been overly sensitive. However, nothing was irritated on my cheeks, chin, or neck.
-We sprayed each other with Deep Woods Off before going out in the berry patches. I did not spray this on my face.
-It was very, very buggy, and we both got bit a number of times (mostly greenhead flies, I think).
-A farm employee gave a second kind of bug spray, unsure of the brand (came in a pump-action bottle), which I sprayed on to my hands and rubbed on my face.
-While we were picking, I ate exactly 1 raspberry, 1 blackberry, and 2 blueberries in that order, over the course of about 2.5 hours.
-It was hot and sunny, and we didn't have anything to drink the entire time we were picking.
My skin is completely cleared up at this point, and I've eaten all of the berries that we picked (washed and unwashed) without any further effect. Anyone have any idea what could have happened?
Yeah, this sounds like an allergic reaction, possibly to something you ate or that got near your mouth. You were in contact with enough chemicals both natural and artificial, including bug spit.
Wow, I'm just like Dr House. I would've made a brilliant diagnostician, except for how I never actually studied medicine.
posted by tel3path at 5:45 AM on August 4, 2010
Wow, I'm just like Dr House. I would've made a brilliant diagnostician, except for how I never actually studied medicine.
posted by tel3path at 5:45 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: Just a random allergic reaction. I got a puffed-up lip once from...who knows what. I'm not allergic to anything that I know of and I hadn't been eating anything different or been out anywhere new or outside (it was the dead of winter). With most allergic reactions -- a crazy high percentage, like 90% (but don't quote me on that) -- you'll never know what caused it.
posted by pised at 5:50 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by pised at 5:50 AM on August 4, 2010
Allergic reaction sounds likely. My (very, very severe) shrimp allergy always manifests initially as itchy mouth + swollen and blistered lips for a period of several hours after I eat something with trace amounts of shrimp in it.
I'd try to see an allergist about this. Even if they can't nail down exactly what was going on, you might want to have an EpiPen on hand just in case.
posted by pjaust at 5:58 AM on August 4, 2010
I'd try to see an allergist about this. Even if they can't nail down exactly what was going on, you might want to have an EpiPen on hand just in case.
posted by pjaust at 5:58 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: Definitely sounds like an allergic reaction. This is very very anecdotal, but I had the exact same (weeping blisters etc) experience years ago after using a face wash... it had been my everyday wash for months, then I skipped a week on vacation, and when I came back I had apparently developed a massive sensitivity to it.
So what I'm saying is: allergies are mysterious and capricious and you may never really figure this out. In the future, I'd probably advise against rubbing mystery chemicals on your face.
posted by telegraph at 6:28 AM on August 4, 2010
So what I'm saying is: allergies are mysterious and capricious and you may never really figure this out. In the future, I'd probably advise against rubbing mystery chemicals on your face.
posted by telegraph at 6:28 AM on August 4, 2010
"-A farm employee gave a second kind of bug spray, unsure of the brand (came in a pump-action bottle), which I sprayed on to my hands and rubbed on my face."
I'm guessing this.
posted by KogeLiz at 6:47 AM on August 4, 2010
I'm guessing this.
posted by KogeLiz at 6:47 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: You rubbed unknown bug spray on your hands and face, then ate berries with your hands that still had that bug spray on them. Since you ate the rest of the berries (later, I assume, after you'd washed), I would guess that it was the bug spray.
I want to agree that allergies can pop up anytime. It might be worth going to an allergist, but it might not. I got a bizarre allergic reaction in June and I have no idea what I reacted to, and unless I get it again, there's no way to tell. I have had full allergy workups a number of times, but allergies are bizarre and can pop up with no warning, even after you've been told that you're clear on something.
Maybe call the berry picking farm and ask what kind of bug spray it was, since they probably still have the bottle around. Find out the brand and type and get the list of ingredients to keep on hand in case of a future reaction, so you can track down exactly what is causing the reaction. That's about all the allergist would be able to do anyway.
posted by aabbbiee at 7:11 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
I want to agree that allergies can pop up anytime. It might be worth going to an allergist, but it might not. I got a bizarre allergic reaction in June and I have no idea what I reacted to, and unless I get it again, there's no way to tell. I have had full allergy workups a number of times, but allergies are bizarre and can pop up with no warning, even after you've been told that you're clear on something.
Maybe call the berry picking farm and ask what kind of bug spray it was, since they probably still have the bottle around. Find out the brand and type and get the list of ingredients to keep on hand in case of a future reaction, so you can track down exactly what is causing the reaction. That's about all the allergist would be able to do anyway.
posted by aabbbiee at 7:11 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I am going to nth some sort of allergic reaction to the bug spray or pesticide on the fruit. I sometimes get very red blotchy patches on my face - hot to the touch and swollen bright patches on my cheeks, chin, neck - when I eat certain kinds of fruit that either hasn't been washed well or peeled. Peaches, berries and some kinds of apples do this to me, especially if I eat a lot of them (and I dare you not to eat enough peaches to get sick when you pick them yourself while they're in season). I don't get it when I cook the fruit or peel it, so my doc thinks its some sort of reaction to the material on the skin. It goes away when I take an antihistamine.
As aabbbiee mentions, sometimes it's just a one time thing too or a combination of factors that won't be repeated. I once had a nasty set of blotches break out on my face after using Aveeno face cream for the first time while away, in combination with the soap at the hotel. Hasn't happened since.
posted by Cyrie at 8:30 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
As aabbbiee mentions, sometimes it's just a one time thing too or a combination of factors that won't be repeated. I once had a nasty set of blotches break out on my face after using Aveeno face cream for the first time while away, in combination with the soap at the hotel. Hasn't happened since.
posted by Cyrie at 8:30 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
allergic reaction to that second bug spray maybe that you put on your face.
posted by majortom1981 at 9:42 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by majortom1981 at 9:42 AM on August 4, 2010
Have you had any anti biotics lately. I didnt find out i was allergic to omnicef till about a week into taking them.
posted by majortom1981 at 9:43 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by majortom1981 at 9:43 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: A similar thing happened to me last month, except around one of my eyes. It took almost a day to clear up. My skin was extremely puffy, swollen and white and I couldn't see out of that eye. The inside of my mouth and my inner ears also itched terribly and my cheek looked blotchy.
It happened almost immediately after walking through a little cloud of some very small flying insects. I live in MA and was by the coast - it could have been some kind of sand fly, but I'm not absolutely sure. It wasn't gnats.
posted by Cygnet at 10:19 AM on August 4, 2010
It happened almost immediately after walking through a little cloud of some very small flying insects. I live in MA and was by the coast - it could have been some kind of sand fly, but I'm not absolutely sure. It wasn't gnats.
posted by Cygnet at 10:19 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: Allergies do indeed come and go, and DON'T always happen the way you'd think. I wasn't allergic to anything until I got exposed to some mold spores, got dog-sick for two weeks, and BAM, allergy to ... dust. Go fig.
I also discovered a new allergy this year to some lightweight sunscreen I've been using for years (JUST that particular stuff, not SPF in general). The crazy thing is I used the stuff on my head, and started getting mini blisters on my feet that eventually migrated to my fingers. My head was completely untouched.
Nthing the mystery bug spray -- bad, bad bad. It could've been ANYTHING in that spray bottle. Since you didn't have a reaction to the rest I'm going to say you're not allergic to the berries. If you want to go to a dermo/allergist I won't stop you, but unless it pops up again under similar circumstances I wouldn't fuss too much on it.
posted by Heretical at 10:34 AM on August 4, 2010
I also discovered a new allergy this year to some lightweight sunscreen I've been using for years (JUST that particular stuff, not SPF in general). The crazy thing is I used the stuff on my head, and started getting mini blisters on my feet that eventually migrated to my fingers. My head was completely untouched.
Nthing the mystery bug spray -- bad, bad bad. It could've been ANYTHING in that spray bottle. Since you didn't have a reaction to the rest I'm going to say you're not allergic to the berries. If you want to go to a dermo/allergist I won't stop you, but unless it pops up again under similar circumstances I wouldn't fuss too much on it.
posted by Heretical at 10:34 AM on August 4, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks all. I want to point the finger at the mystery bug spray, too, but I'm not sure I'll ever be able to track it down - I don't remember it being similar-looking to any of the sprays they had for sale at the pick-your-own stand. I am a little concerned about reusing my own bug spray, since I'm going to be outdoors a lot next week while on vacation.
Sounds like it's just "one of those things" and human bodies are strange and mysterious things.
posted by backseatpilot at 10:47 AM on August 4, 2010
Sounds like it's just "one of those things" and human bodies are strange and mysterious things.
posted by backseatpilot at 10:47 AM on August 4, 2010
A few years ago I developed a bizarre rash on both of my hands--streaks of redness with painful weeping blisters around and between the fingers. It was freaky... not a good time. I had no history of allergies or weird skin issues. After a few shockingly expensive trips to different hospitals to figure out what was wrong, a dermatologist hit on something when he asked me if I had had contact with citrus juice and sunshine. I remembered that yeah, right before this showed up I had squeezed a bunch of limes, rinsed my hands (but not too thoroughly), and then spent a couple hours in bright sun. Something about the lime juice and sun exposure just destroyed the skin on my hands.
He prescribed some topical cream but I don't think it did much (it was already healing, and the rate of healing increased only a little if at all); the rash basically went away on its own over several weeks.
I had never heard of anything like that before. I am not a doctor, but I thought I'd contribute a data point that says that fruit + sun can lead to surprisingly intense skin issues.
The whole thing still seems weird to me, though. I don't know what the missing variable was that made it an issue in this case but not before--maybe just much more sun exposure than normal? It was a very sunny day and we were out for a few hours. I know that it was not the first time I had, for example, eaten an orange in mild sunlight.
posted by kprincehouse at 12:42 PM on August 4, 2010
He prescribed some topical cream but I don't think it did much (it was already healing, and the rate of healing increased only a little if at all); the rash basically went away on its own over several weeks.
I had never heard of anything like that before. I am not a doctor, but I thought I'd contribute a data point that says that fruit + sun can lead to surprisingly intense skin issues.
The whole thing still seems weird to me, though. I don't know what the missing variable was that made it an issue in this case but not before--maybe just much more sun exposure than normal? It was a very sunny day and we were out for a few hours. I know that it was not the first time I had, for example, eaten an orange in mild sunlight.
posted by kprincehouse at 12:42 PM on August 4, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
No, not the case. My husband has an allergy to particular foods and he will get blistering (although not weeping blisters, lucky you!) on his lips and around his mouth when he has a reaction.
This could be anything including some weird form of sun stoke but my guess is that you were indeed having an allergic reaction to something on the farm - you can be allergic to a plant's leaves but not its berries, for example. Or pesticides, or goats, or...
posted by DarlingBri at 5:27 AM on August 4, 2010