Weird Tesa reaction

axlbul

axlbul

New member
Joined
Aug 20, 2026
Messages
4
Reaction score
0
Location
Imported archive
Went to start my week 10 of Tesa. Prepped my last vial of the kit for use the night prior and stored it as usual in my secure drawer.

Took my shot at 5am like I normally do. Within moments my mouth went dry and itchy and my whole body started itching and getting hot. I grabbed my epi-pen just in case but everything calmed down in about 15 minutes and I didn't use my pen.

I think I'm just going to toss that vial, but now I'm nervous about my other kit of same lot. Should I titrate back down just to be sure I'm not having an allergic reaction to tesa suddenly.? Weeks 1 through 9 had no issues other than the sting.
 
axlbul said:


Went to start my week 10 of Tesa. Prepped my last vial of the kit for use the night prior and stored it as usual in my secure drawer.

Took my shot at 5am like I normally do. Within moments my mouth went dry and itchy and my whole body started itching and getting hot. I grabbed my epi-pen just in case but everything calmed down in about 15 minutes and I didn't use my pen.

I think I'm just going to toss that vial, but now I'm nervous about my other kit of same lot. Should I titrate back down just to be sure I'm not having an allergic reaction to tesa suddenly.? Weeks 1 through 9 had no issues other than the sting.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
It is known that over time the immune system can flag Tesa as a foreign body. Per the clinical trials this resulted in different forms of antibodies by weeks 26 and 52, but not really any reported severe allergic anaphylactic reactions (though about 25% experienced site reactions). Anecdotally though, there have been numerous reports of severe allergic/immune reactions to Tesa that can come out of nowhere or happen after taking a break and restarting. I would definitely go down to a very small dose and work your way back up. If anything happens remotely similar though while testing/titrating back up, unfortunately your body may be done with Tesa.

There is a possibility it's something else in that specific vial, an excipient used in the cake, that caused this reaction. Odd that it wasn't in the rest of the kit but we don't know how the Chinese actually fill and sort these things.
 
I can not predict what will happen the next time. Tesa is a strange and unpredictable beast from what I have heard. People reacting half way thru dosing is common.

All I know is that I would not use it without having the epi pen right there. Not nearby, right there.
 
faloppi said:


It is known that over time the immune system can flag Tesa as a foreign body. Per the clinical trials this resulted in different forms of antibodies by weeks 26 and 52, but not really any reported severe allergic anaphylactic reactions (though about 25% experienced site reactions). Anecdotally though, there have been numerous reports of severe allergic/immune reactions to Tesa that can come out of nowhere or happen after taking a break and restarting. I would definitely go down to a very small dose and work your way back up. If anything happens remotely similar though while testing/titrating back up, unfortunately your body may be done with Tesa.

There is a possibility it's something else in that specific vial, an excipient used in the cake, that caused this reaction. Odd that it wasn't in the rest of the kit but we don't know how the Chinese actually fill and sort these things.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Thank you for the information. I did not know this when I researched it. I did already toss the one vial. I'll give it a go with the next kit and start back slow. I prefer not to experience that again.
 
axlbul said:


Thank you for the information. I did not know this when I researched it. I did already toss the one vial. I'll give it a go with the next kit and start back slow. I prefer not to experience that again.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Be safe and keep us posted! One experience at a time helps others be more informed.
 
My brain is on slow mode apparently. If you decide to try again, One Benadryl 30 minutes beforehand might help.

In fact, I am thinking if I ever start Tesa, I will be the one who always takes a Benadryl, just as insurance.
 
I titrated up from 1mg to 2mg of Tesa and the 3rd week at 2mg, each shot gave me ridiculously itchy golf-ball sized welts under my skin. I'd pin it, get the typical tesa 'pulse' sensation, but then it'd just start swelling and itching. I am currently on a 2 week break and I'm going to re-introduce at super low dosages at first. Maybe not even go back up to 2mg.
 
What happened does not sound like a definite anaphylactic reaction, but it does sound like a milder generalised allergic reaction, not limited to just the skin. Given you have an epipen, you obviously do get anaphylactic reactions to something, which does make it more likely you might get one to something else. It does not sound like a vasovagal response to an injection.

My best guess is it is too risky to try again, even a percent or so risk of a severe reaction is not really a safe risk to take for a drug that is not absolutely needed, and there are alternatives. In general allergic reactions get worse rather than better after repeated exposures. Playing it safe rather than sorry is probably a good idea. Reactions to BAC or contaminants do happen, but most allergic reactions are to the peptides themselves.
 
lessthanhalf said:


What happened does not sound like a definite anaphylactic reaction, but it does sound like a milder generalised allergic reaction, not limited to just the skin. Given you have an epipen, you obviously do get anaphylactic reactions to something, which does make it more likely you might get one to something else. It does not sound like a vasovagal response to an injection.

My best guess is it is too risky to try again, even a percent or so risk of a severe reaction is not really a safe risk to take for a drug that is not absolutely needed, and there are alternatives. In general allergic reactions get worse rather than better after repeated exposures. Playing it safe rather than sorry is probably a good idea. Reactions to BAC or contaminants do happen, but most allergic reactions are to the peptides themselves.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
I have an allergy to Mollusks. Most other shellfish is fine but clams, oysters etc have sent me to the hospital. Allergy test reacted heavily to Mollusks.
 
Just A Cat said:


My brain is on slow mode apparently. If you decide to try again, One Benadryl 30 minutes beforehand might help.

In fact, I am thinking if I ever start Tesa, I will be the one who always takes a Benadryl, just as insurance.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Just an FYI Benadryl will not stop an anaphylactic reaction.
 
CandyCap said:


Just an FYI Benadryl will not stop an anaphylactic reaction.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Good point to cover before someone mis-reads that.

While benadryl is good to reduce allergic reactions, I would never trust it to stop an anaphylatic reaction. The pre-loading I was referring to was strictly to reduce the possibility of a minor reaction.

Asking one benadryl to stop anaphylaxis is the same as asking one 5 gallon bucket of water to put out a fully burning house on fire. The 5 gallons might put out the candle that just fell on the carpet, but it can not put out an entire building on fire.
 
axlbul said:


Went to start my week 10 of Tesa. Prepped my last vial of the kit for use the night prior and stored it as usual in my secure drawer.

Took my shot at 5am like I normally do. Within moments my mouth went dry and itchy and my whole body started itching and getting hot. I grabbed my epi-pen just in case but everything calmed down in about 15 minutes and I didn't use my pen.

I think I'm just going to toss that vial, but now I'm nervous about my other kit of same lot. Should I titrate back down just to be sure I'm not having an allergic reaction to tesa suddenly.? Weeks 1 through 9 had no issues other than the sting.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
This shit is what is concerning me about starting tesa. I really hope I can take it because I hate to think about not being able to use a kit that I paid all that money for. I'm at least going to take a benadryl beforehand in case I get hives.
 
This spicy pep is very moody. 🙃

Personally I can go weeks with 0 issues then boom , hives & itchy skin instantly.

or the alternative I will get a welt at the jab site & the other spots I've recently used other peps will flare to!

I do love the results of Tess though 😁
 
Had a little bit of time to look closer at this issue and wanted to explore it in a bit more detail.

Medical protocols say do NOT give Benadryl in this case. But Why?

Anaphylaxis to Tesa is driven by an anti-body reaction. Since Benadryl does not affect your immune response, Benadryl can not treat an anti-body anaphylactic reaction.

If you have a major reaction to Tesa, you will need that Epi-Pen.
 
axlbul said:


Went to start my week 10 of Tesa. Prepped my last vial of the kit for use the night prior and stored it as usual in my secure drawer.

Took my shot at 5am like I normally do. Within moments my mouth went dry and itchy and my whole body started itching and getting hot. I grabbed my epi-pen just in case but everything calmed down in about 15 minutes and I didn't use my pen.

I think I'm just going to toss that vial, but now I'm nervous about my other kit of same lot. Should I titrate back down just to be sure I'm not having an allergic reaction to tesa suddenly.? Weeks 1 through 9 had no issues other than the sting.

Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Please keep an epi pen on standby for up to 3 hours after your shot. Maybe try the thigh or upper arm area for your next shot.
 
So I have an update.

Titrated back down to .5mg. Did 1st shot in belly as usual. No initial reaction, but sting and lump. Did the next day in glute, again sting and lump. Noticed site of first injection was bigger lump and belly was itching quite often. same with Glute the next day but both were very red around injection site.

Did 1 more in belly, opposite side and same thing. Lots of redness and itching. Calling that run a wash at 10 weeks. Don't know if I'm willing to try again in a few months or just move on from Tesa.

Personally love having an epi-pen, don't love having to use it. So hopefully this information helps others.

It worked great and my belly shrank but the risk i think to me is not worth the reward.
 
Back
Top