Suddenly exhausted - are allergies to blame?

July 16, 2024 9:00 PM

I’m suddenly exhausted for two evenings in a row. Are allergies / meals to blame?

I’m normally well energized. Last night I felt punched in the face with exhaustion after eating tarts. I felt way too warm and a touch queasy. I had to go to bed at 9pm. Today I was ok till the afternoon; I managed to muscle through 130pm exhaustion with a 10min cat nap to function but after dinner I just couldn’t lift a finger.

Mid 40s female. Drinking same amount of coffee as usual.

Yesterday I made red huckleberry tarts from wild huckleberries in the forest by our house. 110% sure these are red huckleberries and edible. Ate about 50-80 berries, washed berries and baked till bubbling. I’ve never eaten huckleberries before this. Family including kids ate 2-3 tarts each and were fine. I ate two and then just couldn’t function and had to lie down. I also have oral allergy syndrome / allergic to honeydew and I think figs. (Last week I basically ate a Costco bag of dried figs before I realized that’s where my sore throat was coming from). Could my body be coming down from my previous allergy and then freaked about the huckleberries? Is huckleberry allergy a thing? Is exhaustion an oral allergy syndrome symptom? Normally I just get a scratchy throat.

I have not eaten any more tarts since the initial tarts so I’m surprised to be so tired today. Dinner was meat and potatoes literally. No unusual fruit.

Sorry this isn’t organized in presentation. Any ideas what is going on? I don’t really have a fever or other symptoms. Kinda warm but we’re in the 30s Celsius here.

Thanks Metafilter you’re usually great with uncommon symptoms and stuff.

posted by St. Peepsburg to Health & Fitness (6 answers total)

Could be coming down with something - cold, flu, maybe even Covid I suppose. But something along those lines that is contagious and episodic.

When I'm feeling like that, I often have the realization about the root cause of the problem 2-3 days later when the more typical cold & flu symptoms really hit.

Also, sometimes it can mean your immune system is using a lot of energy working to fight something off. Maybe you never come down with a full blown case of whatever, because your immune friends fought it off.

Not saying this is the only possible explanation. But is one I have experienced a few times.
posted by flug at 9:03 PM on July 16 [5 favorites]

I bet it is the huckleberries, and since they come from near your house, I’d be a lot more confident about my answer if you’ve been stung by a bee anytime during the last few seasons.
posted by jamjam at 10:01 PM on July 16

I have oral allergy syndrome and my symptoms are pretty clear: hives/itching in mouth and throat and a systemic reaction that’s mostly flushing/turning red, sometimes progressing to hives elsewhere on my body. Exhaustion on its own would strike me as the early stages of a virus, possibly related to a my pollen allergies, or the phase of my menstrual cycle. That doesn’t rule out the huckleberries, but especially since they were cooked, it’s a lot less likely that you would still be reacting to the proteins.

I hope you feel better today!
posted by chocotaco at 3:00 AM on July 17

I don't know where you are but here we've been flailing between oppressive heat, violent thunderstorms, and tornadoes for a few days. Whatever the air pressure and humidity is whipping up out there it makes me feel like ass. Can't speak to your tart consumption but it could just be one component of several, since you do say it's hot.
posted by phunniemee at 4:45 AM on July 17 [2 favorites]

Remote but high-consequence possibility: Are you in an area where Lyme-carrying ticks are present? It could be the early stages of a Lyme infection if you happened to be bitten by a tick while out in the woods picking berries (you would not necessarily know that you'd been bitten).

Lyme is highly treatable with a course of antibiotics if treated early. Keep an eye out for additional symptoms and see your doctor promptly if they develop.
posted by heatherlogan at 5:20 AM on July 17 [1 favorite]

Take a covid test. I'm on my third bout of covid and the only way I've known to take a test each time is the completely baffling fatigue.
posted by pazazygeek at 9:28 AM on July 17