I was diagnosed with DRESS on August 22, 2018. My initial symptoms included swollen lymph nodes, severe headaches, edema, prolonged fever (104), rash, nausea and skin sloughing.
I was in and out of the doctors office and immediate care facilities with hives and extreme pain in my cervical lymph nodes. The hives would go away during the day and come back at night, but the pain in my neck was brutal.
I live in South Africa and was diagnosed with DRESS in 2015. It took 8 months of treatment in and out of the hospital, and three years of healing to finally get whereI am today.
I was prescribed Lamotrigine for bipolar disorder. For five weeks, I took the medication daily and had no symptoms or problems. However, on week six I started getting itchy rash on my back and arms.
I started taking sulfasialazine for joint pain. My rheumatologist really had no answer as to why I was having the pain...I had a fever and a pinpoint rash on my abdomen and thighs. The next day it had spread over most of my body.
February 2015, Linda was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and began a program of prednisone and sulfasalazine. On March 26, 2015, she began experiencing glossy eyes and extreme itching on her chest.
I was on vancomycin for approximately two weeks. I felt flu-like symptoms after taking it, but chalked it up to that it is a strong drug. But then I had what looked like hives break out on my right arm.
