After round 3 of xolair

[Guest guest]

I am blowing a 500 on my flowmeter today--I have been unable to get

abover 375 in over a year and a half. 300 was my normal and when I was

really bad it was around 200. A week ago I could not walk around the

perimenter of my pool more than 10 times and my chest would tighten up

so much. It stayed so tight that I developed a stitch which was there

all the time. After my first two doses of xolair, I was worse. An

allergy nurse explained to me that xolair was breaking up the old

reactions first and would work on new ones later. During that time, I

had to sit outside a lot because any building made me worse. Well

after the 3rd dose, the pain is barely there. My doctor told me I

would start improving by New Years and he was right. I am so allergic

to cats and this house had a cat up until February. Replacing the duct

work and HVAC systems, cleaning the house thoroughly, and replacing the

upholstery did not help much. The doctor said cat dander just hangs

around. Like forever.

For a year I would not only tighten up when I walked but also itch. I

would vomit when I walked in my house. My doctor thought it was

exercise induced anaphlyxsis/asthma. It was scary. I finally paid to

have extensive immune tests done and the doctor ordered xolair on an

emergency basis. The insurance company had never seen an emergency

request for xolair. It still took over 100 calls but I was on my last

leg.

I am by no means totally well but this is better than I was even a week

ago. I am looking forward to regaining my strength, getting back out

into the world (perfume and room deodorizers seem to still set me off),

and just feeling happy instead of gasping and wheezing and pain. I look

as though I have been in a dance with the devil and barely lived to

tell it.

This drug is nothing short of a miracle. Leigh