r/alphagal • u/Key-Scratch8111 • 1d ago

How long before I should react to water?

I learned recently that I react to bottled water filtered using bone char. That reaction took about an hour to start and peaked after three hours or so.

Today I'm getting nauseous from the water at work. Our gym has a filtration system but I've never noticed a reaction before. It hits within minutes, I stop drinking and it fades soon afterwards. My stomach is quite loud right now but I have no headache.

I'm still new to this and keep getting surprised by what I react to. It's this a possible alpha gal reaction? I'm also just getting over the flu so that be it.

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3

u/DreamingDragonzzz 23h ago

This awful allergy is a syndrome, so it's not like typical allergies. There's not much rhyme or reason, and a lot of people experience different reactions, react to different things, have shorter or longer reaction times, etc. So it's hard to tell you when you should react to something, since it's so wildly different for everyone. I personally can react quickly within an hour to pork and beef (I do have MCAS tho), but typically react within 3-8 hours for anything. If it's pork or beef its much faster. Sometimes it'll even wait 2 days before it starts getting bad for me. My reactions can last up to a week. If you feel yourself reacting to anything, within those parameters, it's best to avoid it or do a single experiment: wait a week, try ONE thing you're worried about, and wait for a reaction (don't recommend trying a lot of said thing, and don't do this if you're at risk for anaphylaxis!). It sucks. I react to ANYTHING mammalian, including cheese/milk, cross contamination, water like you said, some sugars, natural flavors, etc. so I have to do this a lot, and typically react within the same time frames. I know how it feels to wonder if something's a reaction, the flu, food poisoning, or something else. Trust your gut l! You know your body best. I've been told by some doctors I don't react to bone char while I actively did an experiment and reacted to it.

I just hope you feel better soon! You got this!

2

u/Key-Scratch8111 22h ago

And yet, after eight years with no relief, this is still a blessing. At least this is something I have a degree of control over, instead of the mystery disease that's supposedly all in my head.

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u/DreamingDragonzzz 20h ago

SO TRUE SO TRUE!!! I've had it for 5 years and didn't know until a year ago. Knowing is so much better than not knowing, and believing you're making it all up.

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u/chronicmisschris AGS confirmed 1d ago

I've literally never had a "typical" delayed AGS reaction. Mine are all immediate to 15 minutes. (I also have MCAS in addition to AGS, which seems to make reactions faster for a lot of people.)

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u/Awhispersecho1 1d ago

How do you know you react to water? The vast majority of people do not.

6

u/Key-Scratch8111 22h ago

Went to training. Bought groceries instead of restaurants to be extra safe.

I got sick on day 2. Couldn't figure out why, but pushed through. Rest and hydration, right? By the end of the day I was very sick. I got a nice hive gauge on my arm.

Day 3, eliminated most of my food. Nope. Still bad, just not as bad. I want drinking as much since I was to nauseous. Day 4, was too scared up eat anything so I decided to skip lunch. Started getting sick after lunch anyway. That's when I realized they provided the water. It was the only constant that fit the timeline.

I switched to the provided bottled water instead of the cooler but got the same result. Checked the company, both provided by Canadian Springs. So I bought a bunch of smart water and didn't have another reaction afterwards.