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Has anyone had a similar experience?  How do you treat hives effectively?

I was diagnosed in Nov. ' 91 after a fifty pound weight loss and long lasting
diarrhea and vomiting.  Before diagnosis that summer I had several bouts of
intense hives.  I would break out in the middle of the night, take benadryl
to alleviate the itching during the night, then they would subside mostly
during the day and come back at night for a week or longer.  Since being on a
GF diet, the only times I have gotten the hives are when I have accidentally
ingested gluten.  Is it logical that once you are GF for a long time, the
immune response to gluten is more drastic?  A few days before the hives
began, I had several intense stomach cramps...so severe that I was sort of
paralyzed until they subsided.  Then the hives began.  This incidence of
hives is VERY severe.  My eyes, face  and lips are swollen and red.  My body
is covered with hives from the bottoms of my feet to my face.  I am taking
benadryl to tolerate the itching, but it only keeps the hives just below the
surface until it wears off and they start itching again.

When I heard a talk by Dr. Joseph Murray a while back, he spoke of hives as a
result of "leaky gut" syndrome.  Can anyone explain that phenomenon to me?
 Does anyone know if there is something, prescription or otc, that wuold be
better for treating the hives?  I would appreciate any information or similar
experience from anyone.

Thanks.
Patti Horst
Atlanta, GA