Mum almost dies when temperature drops as she has severe allergic reaction to cold

dailystar.co.uk:

A mum who suffers a severe allergic reaction when she’s exposed to the cold says she’s in a “life or death” situation following the huge energy price hike that has left her needing a scarf and woolly hat indoors.Nyree Clark, 40, has severe idiopathic cold urticaria, a condition that leaves her with painful rashes and breathing difficulties when her skin gets too cold.

She said it feels "like I'm on fire."Cold stimulus causes the activation of mast cells and the subsequent release of histamine, meaning Nyree, an NHS worker from Chesterfield, Derbyshire, breaks out in hives and rashes.

The mother-of-two, who has suffered from the illness for ten years, needs to keep her home at 20c to prevent her from potentially going into anaphylactic shock.But since the price of gas and electric prices rose by 54 per cent, Nyree has been forced to drop her heating to a “dangerous” level to stay on top of her bills.Nyree feels other sufferers may pay for the energy price hike with their lives if the government fails to step in and offer extra financial support.She said: “For a lot of suffers, it’s going to become a life-or-death situation.“Because we are working class, we fall through the gaps, and there is no support.“We pay our national insurance and tax, but at the time when we need help, there is nothing for us.”Nyree said that she first found out she had the chronic illness in 2012, after going for a dip in the sea.Nyree said her current symptoms can cause her face and limbs to swell, leaving her in pain for hours at a time.She said: “The way I would describe it is like I am on fire.”“It’s extremely itchy and painful.