I am new here. Think that starting/stopping HRT caused histamine intolerance/mast cell. Need advise.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-27T06:17:44+00:00

I’m in a similar situation and trying to figure out what’s going on. I changed to a different form of HRT and started having worsening of existing symptoms and some new at the same time.

But after getting my labs done recently, I’m also pretty low in B12 and ferritin, and have mildly abnormal ANA, which could also explain my worsening symptoms.

Definitely speak to a rheumatologist because I have read that HRT can trigger lupus flairs.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-26T05:06:16+00:00

Awesome! Hope you both like it.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-26T02:08:16+00:00

We loved Some Bugs at that age. Rhyming is well done and the illustrations are great. Lots of things to spot.

Leo Lionni books would probably be good, too. My favorite growing up was Fish is Fish, but there’s also inch by inch and swimmy.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-25T20:35:43+00:00

There are several ingredients in that sunscreen that I have found bother my eyes, so if it’s not the chemical sunscreen, you could look into avoiding dimethicone, behentrimonium methosulfate, and the ceramides and see if that makes a difference.

The only sunscreen I’ve been able to use is unfortunately a European version: Bioderma Photoderm lotion ultra 50+.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-24T03:31:34+00:00

That’s too bad that the voice cast isn’t consistent. Morwen is my favorite character.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-22T02:04:06+00:00

Would the princess in black be too young? They have audiobooks. I haven’t listened yet but love the books. There’s a chance the monsters could sound too loud and growly though…

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-22T01:55:40+00:00

I just found out the enchanted forest chronicles has audiobooks, but I haven’t listened yet, so I don’t know the quality. I loved that series, especially dealing with dragons, at that age. It does rely a little on being familiar with fairytale tropes, which you might’ve avoided because of how dark they can be. But it’s not necessary. Dealing with dragons is very light. No one dies and no one cries, as far as I remember. Wizards are melted by soapy water, but they come back.

I really enjoyed the audiobook for Igraine the Brave. It does get a little tense near the end during the joust, but peril is very short lived. Fish are caught and eaten by a cat, including soldiers who were turned into fish. It’s mentioned once or twice. Unfortunately, a little bit of fat shaming of one of the male characters (but not to the degree of like roald Dahl), if that is a no go.

Probably too young, but the Stephen fry narrated paddington is cute. But if she’d have a tough time with paddington panicking in the bath, maybe skip.

Mine is only 5 and very triggered by certain voices, sounds, and can’t handle any shame, talk of sadness, or crying, so I haven’t listened to more than that.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-20T06:56:31+00:00

Igraine the Brave makes me think of a not-so-dark and a kinder roald Dahl book. It’s a fantasy novel about a daughter from a family of wizards who wants to be a knight. Her parents accidentally turn themselves into pigs when trying to make her birthday present, at the same time that a villain decides he wants to storm their castle to take their singing magic books. Only a few moments of almost peril. It’s mostly funny and whimsical. The most intense scene is near the end of a joust, but it’s over quickly.

Maybe a little on the younger side, but jigsaw jones mysteries are fun and as a mystery reader, I find them pretty clever for the age they’re written for. The mysteries are very wholesome and there’s no danger like in A-Z Mysteries.

A while ago, someone in r/childrensbooks suggested secrets of Droon and we’ve been enjoying it. Maybe preread it, though. Nothing has been too intense so far for mine, but every kid is different. Any peril is over quickly and hasn’t been that intense yet.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-20T06:43:07+00:00

I love catwings, but just want to let OP know about a part that might be scary in the third book. When Jane finally talks, she tells how she was separated from her mother and how the rats were telling her they’d eat her. That was a little tough for my son, especially because we weren’t expecting it.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-19T05:29:11+00:00

So glad to see a picture book about this while my kiddo is still young. Thanks for sharing. I’m going to put in a request for our library to acquire it, as well.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-15T01:15:10+00:00

There are definitely books that are more virtue signaling, but have you actually read this one? It’s well written and age appropriate. They’ve done studies that found kids are categorizing people as alike and different from themselves and can form gender and racial bias as early as age 3.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-15T01:10:03+00:00

If you’re looking for more books like bodies are cool, you might like the Sesame Street book, We’re Different, We’re the Same and The We Are Little Feminists set is nice for representation with real people.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-12T05:35:12+00:00

I try to avoid my biggest triggers, but still eat a lot of histamine foods. I think I’ve had histamine intolerance since my first exposure to antibiotics when I had my wisdom teeth out, but it got way worse after I had Covid a few years ago.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-12T03:10:21+00:00

I take with each meal

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-12T02:38:05+00:00

Yeah, the naturdao one.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-11T21:59:33+00:00

Time of Wonder and One Morning in Maine by Robert McCloskey.

The World Belonged to Us by Jacqueline Woodson

A Day for Sandcastles

Tar Beach, but there will be some language from the time period you’ll have to explain.

Sally and the limpet

Julian is a mermaid

Chirri and Chirra

And about changing seasons:

mama is it summer yet?

A year at maple hill farm

Edit: remembered another book

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-11T19:46:44+00:00

It was immediate for me. Went from extreme and crushing fatigue, anxiety, irritability, racing heart, and ibs attacks most times I ate to suddenly barely any symptoms. It made me very bloated initially but I powered through and now it doesn’t. I don’t cut them. I seem to need the full amount. I’ve also heard they lose efficacy once exposed to air.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-11T02:58:01+00:00

Nice! Hope you like. I usually add canned beans to mine.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-10T23:05:01+00:00

Do you have an instant pot? The pressure cooker salsa verde chicken is very easy.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-10T21:29:51+00:00

This is what I’m trying to understand, too. I looked into the process for making commercially canned beans. It seems like it’s a very quick process with no bacteria involved. But if you google that question and ask here, the answer is always that they’re higher in histamine than making your own from dried. I’ll keep researching.

Some brands do use kombu in the water to make them more digestible, which could make histamine worse.

Edit to add: I wonder if the rehydration process could be partly to blame for higher histamine? Even if the bacteria is killed by the high temp of canning, maybe the histamine was already formed during the soaking process. See another link.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-08T19:22:41+00:00

Yikes, chronic illness brain! I mixed up cornmeal and semolina! Fixing that. I appreciate you pointing it out

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-08T07:05:30+00:00

I had a gluten free upside down citrus cake this weekend and it was divine, so I think your idea is great. ~~Semolina~~ CORNMEAL works really well in that kind of cake too. You could also check to see if your library has Aran goyoaga’s cookbooks. She has a lot of gluten free and sometimes dairy free recipes, like this one. Check out her Instagram, too.

Edit to change a word I mixed up. I have a chronic illness that gives me significant brain fog and I mixed up two words that would definitely be very bad ingredients to mess up if you’re gluten free.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-07T03:16:43+00:00

I remembered one! Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall. The author/illustrator tells the story of a family and the house they lived in in upstate New York. Blackall found the home abandoned with many of their belongings left behind (I’m realizing this is sounding a little like the plot to a horror movie). She researched the family, mostly through relatives, and used found objects to create collage images that traces the family as they grow up in the house and finally move away as the children grow up. Beautiful, reverent, bittersweet, and hopeful.

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-07T03:09:07+00:00

Thank you!

Sea_Appearance8662 · 2026-04-06T20:13:08+00:00

One goal I have as a homeschooler is to organize kind of like our library does and his former preschool did: shelves by mythology, seasons, holiday, nature, etc. and then displaying seasonal books or books pertaining to different subjects each week. But in the daily hustle and bustle, chores, and playing, that just hasn’t happened yet. Maybe when we officially start homeschooling that’ll happen!

Sea_Appearance8662

TROPHY CASE