Hi Shan,
Sensitive skin seems to go hand in hand with this allergy. My son has what I would term mild to medium eczema. His eczema flared up over the weekend, but the rest of the house had nasal allergy flare ups, so we assumed it was something in the air and this is how Matt is going to react. When his eczema flares up, he has a tough time sleeping at night. This seems to be when his itching is at its worse, so the whole house suffers from sleep deprivation when he has a flare up. It is an extremely hard thing to deal with. We give him Claritin and benadryl, but I don't see that either of these do the eczema a great deal of good. I have heard others mention Zyrtec for eczema - think I'll ask the allergist for this next time.
On a positive note, Connie who posts here on the boards says that her son's eczema became almost nonexistent after the age of 3 so I am hopeful that Matt's will get better also.
Stay Safe, Debbie

About the overnight eczema itch - I have this too and for the current flare up I have been prescribed a mild mixture of moisturizer and lidocaine (sp?) - a topical anasthetic. It is mild enough that I don't notice any effect other than that the itching stops.
Benadryl may or may not help me from day to day, but the anasthetic stops me from scratching myself bloody in my sleep.
For the eczema treatment you may also want to see a dermatologist as well as the allergist.
Just my 2cents worth
Liz
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Shan--It is very important for you to try to distinguish a skin sensativity from an allergic reaction. Hives have a very distinctive, "bulls-eye" look. There is usually a welt in the center surrounded by redness. Many young children, with or without allergies, have skin reactions to foods. My friend's daughter used to get some redness around her mouth after eating graham crackers. At first she thought it might be an allergy and she discussed this with the daycare center. The director told her that many of the young toddlers also had this very same reaction to graham crackers. They also had the same type of reaction to a ranch dressing that was used for a dip. None of the older kids had a problem, just the ones that were between 1-2 years of age. My son had the same reaction to the ranch dressing.
Debbie--regarding the eczema have you tried Elocon cream/ointment. My son has suffered with eczema since he was about 2 days old. For years we tried the OTC hydrocortisone creams, the Benadryl, the Atarax, and various other antihistamines. Finally, when he was 3 his pediatrician prescribed Elocon which is a very strong hydrocortisone cream. It is used very sparingly. This works like a charm. We eventually made an appointment with a pediatric dermatologist to make sure we were doing all that we could for his skin condition. The ped derm agreed that Elocon was the best approach. The antihistamines do not "fix" the itching with a single dose. You almost have to be on it constantly during flare ups to see any effect. During the "learning" years it is probably not best to be groggy or sluggish due to antihistamine use. I know I feel pretty bad when I'm on them. The Elocon cream works so well. Usually with a few seconds.
Christine

Debbie - I wanted to tell you, you are definitely not alone on this eczema thing. We have been to countless doctors to try and make it better but because of his age (22 mos) treatment options are limited. We do our best to keep Spencer comfortable with Benadryl and different creams but nothing seems to help. I am looking forward to his 2nd birthday because I believe that will open up options for treatment for him. 2 years old and then 6 years seem to be the magic ages for being able to receive different treatments.
Hang in there!
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Kelly M
Another Mom in Michigan

Thanks everyone for the great advice and sympathy about the eczema. This we site does wonders for the soul!
I'll definely be asking the allergist about the Elacon.
Thanks again, Debbie

Hi all....As I sit here and read your post, I am discussing our course of action with my husband. Sean's peanut/egg anaphylaxis and has previously gone unconscious. His reactions seem to be the same minus the unconsciousness (just first time). His eyes become red around the outside and swell, the blood vessels in the eyes swell and become watery, hives on his neck, and a coughing/cranky crying. For the first anaphylaxis reaction the emergency room administered epinephrin and benadryl (he kept reacting). Subsequent reactions, my husband and I give him Benadryl immediately. After about 30 minutes, he seems to clear up. We are aprehensive about using the Epi-pen (allergist said judge the reaction) but I ofter pray that I did the right thing and didn't waste precious time. So far I have been lucky. After reading these post and post on another board, we have decided that it may be best to administer Epi immediately. As I said on another board, I rather be "Safe than Sorry". Thanks to everyone for enlightening me. Lynda

Kristin,
After a visit to our allergist today I thought I would share some of what he has told me. The first is that hives are considered an anaphalatic reaction, something that surprised me. The other is that Benadryl has the fastest time before peeking, 20-30 minutes and the longest (in terms of over the counter) peek duration, 4-6 hours. My daughter's allergist is saving the Benadryl for the hives and immediate needs and is using Zyrtec syrup for the daay to day allergy reactions to non food items.
Good Luck and Stay Safe,
Mary Lynn

Hi Mary Lynn:
I want to second your doctor's advice. I asked my son's allergist a week ago about the Benadryl/Zyrtec/Claritin debate and he told me Benadryl is definitely the fastest acting of all and should be the antihistamine of choice during emergencies. Zyrtec and Claritin, he considers, maintenance drugs.
Noreen