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When I visited my daughter in Spain last month, I packed headache medicine and diarrhea medicine (just in case). But I didn't even consider what-if-I-wake-up-with-hives medicine. And guess what happened.
The morning after my arrival, I woke up scratching my neck, which is never a good sign, and feeling swollen. I looked in the mirror and couldn't believe the overnight transformation. My eyelids were twice their normal size, and my face was a blotchy red mess. Thankfully, my tongue was not swollen as well.
It could have been something in the paella I ate the night before, but I suspected the wool blanket on the hotel bed. In any case, I made a trip down the street to the pharmacia and tried to explain (in my best Spanish accent possible) to the man in the white coat that I wanted some Ben-a-dryl. He was sympathetic, but explained that he had never heard of it. If I had only remembered the generic equivalent—diphenhydramine!
So I pointed to my face and asked if he had any medicine that could help—antihistamine, perhaps? He came up with a box of Claritin (loratadine), which is a non-drowsy allergy medicine. I bought it, but it didn't help much.
I ended up just living with the swollen face for the next few days. I kept the blanket far away at the foot of the bed for the rest of the trip. Lessons learned? Maybe look into getting a hypoallergenic hotel room next time. And certainly pack the diphenhydramine.
—Sue Byrne
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