During that year, if I ate meat nothing would happen right away. Then the itching would start, from my ankles and working its way up as my whole body broke out

During that year, if I ate meat nothing would happen right away. Then the itching would start, from my ankles and working its way up as my whole body broke out in hives. After the first attack, I took it crazy seriously (discovering I had this involved going to the ER at 2 AM not breathing!), so the most that happened during that year was that I got some hives and then slammed a double-dose of Benadryl, which knocked it back (and knocked me out). Fortunately once I knew I had it, I could mostly avoid it, so the only times I had reactions were when I missed something (e.g. get a burrito and they accidentally slip a piece of beef in with the chicken). I carried an epi-pen for emergencies and a sheet of Benadryl tablets; never had to use the epi-pen (thank goodness!). No medications to take in the meantime, just dietary changes. The protein that causes this is only produced by mammals, so chicken and fish were totally safe. Weirdly, primates don't produce it either, so my allergist joked that if I were into eating monkeys or cannibalism, I'd be totally fine! They still don't know why it clears up in some people and not others--in some, it goes away in a matter of weeks, some people it can take a year or multiple years, and in others it never disappears at all. And having had it, I'm apparently susceptible to getting it again, so if I get another tick bite it could come back again.