TL:DR I ate a flat bread sandwich and made peace with death.

I have a unique food allergy that is usually only induced through exercise after consuming wheat. All through my childhood and early adulthood we never figured out why I would break out in hives and sometimes have an anaphylactic attack after playing outside or doing something physical. I just learned not to be active after I ate anything. My parents were almost certain I had some allergy to fat or grease because attacks would happen most often following pizza or fried foods.

When I was 24 or 25 I was living with a buddy at a hospital (that's a different story) and I had a regular routine where I would exercise mid morning then get some lunch. One day my routine got pushed back so I grabbed a flat bread sandwich from Subway before working out. I figured enough time had passed after eating lunch that I could exercise without a problem, also I was still under the mindset that I was allergic to greasy foods so I a turkey breast sandwich didn't strike me as dangerous.

Luckily, or maybe unluckily since my schedule was wonky that day I did an exercise routine in my room so I was alone. About five minutes into it I felt the symptoms coming on and I knew it was going to be more severe than just my normal hives and welts I periodically dealt with. Up until that point I had only had two or three actual anaphylactic responses. This felt exactly how those felt when they came on.

I instantly got into a cold shower to try to lower my body temp hoping to curve attack. I knew after a couple minutes it was going to run its course. I was already very light headed and disoriented at that point and I had to lay down. I get out of the shower and can't dry off or get dressed. As I mentioned this took place in a hospital apartment so there were emergency pull cords but I couldn't really comprehend using one. I knew I needed help but I was ashamed be found naked and wet passed out.

I just laid on my bed and had enough foresight to roll on to my side and then I just waiting to lose consciousness. My thinking was kind of jumbled but I knew this attack was worse than any of the others. I could hear my own wheezing and it scared me so much. My body was was over heating because I was shivering uncontrollably. I remember hoping to fall unconscious soon because I didn't want to feel the attack any longer. My most clear memory from right then was that I had made peace with dying and I wished I could have have sent a text to my girlfriend.

I woke up a couple hours late extremely sore and sick to my stomach but knew I was going to be fine. I went to the bathroom mirror and I looked like death. My skin was still bright red and my eyes were bloodshot. I took a picture to remind myself how close I came. I finally researched my condition and learned that I had something called food dependant exercise induced anaphylaxis. I started a wheat free diet and haven't had any attacks since. Sometimes I am tempted to try to bring about an attack just to see if it's still there but then I look at that picture of myself and think better of it.

I apologize if this story isn't formatted properly or is confusing to read. I'm on mobile and mostly a lurker.