6 ms·
This is something that I've been thinking about lately. Last ~May, I spontaneously developed rashes exactly in the middle of the back of my hands at the same t
by andrewzah 6y ago
This is something that I've been thinking about lately.
Last ~May, I spontaneously developed rashes exactly in the middle of the back of my hands at the same time. This lead to skin sensitivity and ultimately skin rashes across my body.
At this point I've visited my dermatologist what, 20 times? In addition to my general physician, bloodwork, etc. Biopsies and bloodwork and other tests don't show anything abnormal, asides from excessively high IgE - 600 and now about 1,000. I recently started on Dupixent but it's too early to tell if it's helping or not.
There doesn't seem to be any clear indicator, so I'm wondering if I ate something + stress, which affected my gut microbiome. My family has no history of this sort of issue and it seriously started about overnight.
- tnayrb 6y agoI'm no expert, but something similar happened to me a few years back. The conclusion was an allergic reaction to the sun...
- andrewzah 6y agoDid it go away on its own?
- aedocw 6y agoI can't confirm today because it's very overcast, but as of a few days ago the sun had still not gone away.
- andrewzah 6y agoI know you're joking, but this is a horrible condition. While researching I've seen some anecdotal stories about the condition just... clearing up after a while for some people, so hence my question.
- joshspankit 6y agoI’m suspicious that your reply may also have a joke embedded in it...
- joshspankit 6y agoAddendum: the downvote is totally fair
- airstrike 6y agoFor what it's worth (very little, since it's a medical anecdote shared online), my wife had a nasty case of hives for the first time in her life after trying a sarecycline treatment. Took us quite a while to connect the dots, though, and to this day we don't know if it was really what caused it (or stress, or the fact that she took 3 different vaccines on the same day, or everything combined) All of that is to suggest that you think about what you have changed about your diet, medication or anything else either in May or shortly before that
- andrewzah 6y ago> what you have changed about your diet, medication or anything else either in May or shortly before that Well, there are only 2 things I can think of. Firstly, due to covid I had been working at home from March to May. Before covid I would still go out a lot to cafes/social workspaces and get sunlight. And around mid-march I started running. By May I was running about 5k-7k daily throughout my neighborhood. So we initially thought it was a bug related thing, but everything came back clean. We tried eliminating food, but nothing really seemed to have an effect after a week or two. I spoke to my immunologist and he believes it's not food related as I already have food related allergies (peanuts), so eating something else should give me quick reactions like peanuts do. Also, he said it's rare for adults to spontaneously develop something like that. Bloodwork has been inconclusive because my IgE is so high that it's causing false positives. I did a diff of my allergy bloodwork from and back in October, and multiple values did increase. I have tried basically everything- getting more sunlight, using sensitive detergent (3 different brands), cutting out coffee/gluten etc. Hell, we even replaced the carpet in my parents house with hardwood, and once I moved into my house we cut out the carpet as well.
- rriepe 6y agoCheck out Dr. John Sarno's works. It's mostly about back pain but he covers other manifestations of the condition he calls TMS. He talks about a personality type which you seem to fit.
- michael1999 6y agoTick borne disease?
- nerdponx 6y agoThere's almost never harm in trying an elimination diet. Cycle out one major food at a time (eg wheat, eggs, milk, meat, nightshades, seafood), for a couple weeks at a time. Maybe start gradually introducing fermented "live" foods as a matter of routine. Worst that happens is you eat more veggies and try out a different diet. And if you find something that helps, all the better. It's pretty well known now that skin conditions can be related to gut conditions.
- andrewzah 6y agoSo I have done this for major things like coffee, milk, wheat. For about a week or so at a time. I guess I can try each again for 2+ weeks... However I'm not convinced the current issue (itching) is related. The symptoms only really present themself at night when going to bed, as I guess I have no other stimuli to focus on. During the day it's basically not an issue. I plan on trying longer fasts (3days, 5days), maybe 7days as well.
- joshspankit 6y agoThere are a whole host of possible insensitivities (many people are surprised by nightshades for example: potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplant. They all share a plant family). Pay attention also to any products you’re directly applying to your skin as there might be ingredients in there that are being absorbed.
- nerdponx 6y agoOn the flip side of what I posted, if it doesn't help then go enjoy your damn food. But good luck figuring it out all the same.
- ews 6y agoThis could be ringworm. Have you see any particular patterns on your spots ?
- andrewzah 6y agoThe initial tests looked for fungal infections, and I took anti-fungal pills for about a month as well. After the biopsy at the dermatologist, they told me it was atopic dermatitis / eczema.
- rusabd 6y agoAre you losing weight? I had some rash appeared spontaneously after start losing weight and it took almost a year to clear out
- andrewzah 6y agoYes, actually. In that period I was doing intermittent fasting in addition to running 5k daily. I started at ~210/215 lbs and dropped down to around ~190 or so. Once I started taking meds and winter hit I stopped running so I'm back to around 210.
- rusabd 6y agoMy only theory is bro science tier idea that fat accumulate some toxins and then it released during weight loss.
- joshspankit 6y agoAnecdotal evidence says this is a valid theory. I personally caused a shingles infection when I was breaking up intramuscular tissues with a lacrosse ball. As well, most massage therapists will have stories about “toxins coming to the surface” for clients after being worked on (especially in first-time clients) (Source: I’ve talked to about a dozen massage therapists about this).
- bmm6o 6y agoThey may say that, but it's unsupported by science. The red flag is that nobody says anything more specific than "toxin".
- joshspankit 6y agoPersonally I feel that “toxin” is appropriate language in the massage industry: the actual individual effects can be widely varied, clients understand it, and it prepares them for potential symptoms without planting any negative biases that would affect their actual experience through placebo effect.
- ArkanExplorer 6y agoTry cold showering - hot showers strip the natural oils from your skin and leave it dry. Ensure you're changing your bedsheets every 5 days, and wash them with 70degree+ water.
- andrewzah 6y agoAll of my showers since last ~April have been coldish/lukewarm. Bedsheets, blankets and pillowcases get changed/washed almost daily. In addition to switching to gentle detergents.
- clumsysmurf 6y agoI'm going through something similar, but I haven't visited a doctor ... yet. But its getting out of control. I was reading that itching from eczema drives people to suicide, just like dry eyes ... things one would only assume as minor discomforts, until you realize you can't sleep any more, causing a downward spiral. Just recently, I found this in medicalXpress https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-01-acute-eczema-patients-linked-environmental.html https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-01-acute-eczema-patients... Which you may want to check out because of IgE. It goes into how typical antihistamines don't work because the itch signal is from a different pathway, etc. Also this week I found out about this book https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/588965/clean-by-james-hamblin/ https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/588965/clean-by-jam... from this article https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/what-happens-if-you-stop-using-soap-and-shampoo https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/what-happens-if-you-stop... "James Hamblin, physician, staff writer for The Atlantic and author of Clean: The New Science of Skin; and Jack Gilbert, a renowned microbial ecology professor at the University of California, San Diego and co-author of Dirt Is Good: The Advantage of Germs for Your Child’s Developing Immune System." One of them recommends using soap only for "pits and bits" :) But as runners both, thats hard to do when covered in sweat and salt.
- JackMorgan 6y agoI'm a daily runner/rucker who gets completely covered in sweat and grime every day, I've had success only wiping myself off with my hands in the shower followed by washing my hands. Unless I've specifically gotten muddy or poopy, I don't think there's much benefit to soaping up the whole body all the time. I also stopped using shampoo years ago, and a daily rinse keeps it fairly clean. When I can't shower for several days, like hiking, I do use soap everywhere, because I'm dirty enough that a rinse isn't sufficient.
- andrewzah 6y ago"One of them recommends using soap only for "pits and bits" :) But as runners both, that's hard to do when covered in sweat and salt." I switched to natural soap bars a while ago, as I like those anyways more than typical body washes one gets from e.g. cvs or walmart. For hair, shampoo every time is simply not necessary. I use that 1x a week, but some people don't use it at all- check out nopoo. I don't have issues with my scalp but my dermatologist did mention that Head and Shoulders can make eczema issues worse because it's abrasive. I will check that book out. "But its getting out of control. I was reading that itching from eczema drives people to suicide, just like dry eyes" While I don't have those thoughts, I completely understand it. I'm not sure if people who've never had this kinda of eczema before can understand it. But the constant itching (which is both physical and mental) and the mess afterwards from scratching is brutal after a while. Scratching at 3am (after sitting in bed and trying to concentrate on anything other than the immense signal to scratch) brings a brief bout of euphoric relief, then regret and depending on the size of the scab, blood/sticky fluid. I basically had to wash my sheets and blanket daily because there would be residue all over. For a while, the backs of my thumbs both kept on weeping. So imagine sticky fluid getting on your keyboard, guitar, etc and constantly having to wipe it. The same happened to the entire back of my right hand as it had gotten a bit infected, so I had to go to the ER and get a corticosteroid (dexamethasone) shot to calm the situation enough that it could get back to "normal"- scabs and immense itching urges. "Which you may want to check out because of IgE. It goes into how typical antihistamines don't work because the itch signal is from a different pathway, etc." This is something that I have been noticing too. I took benydryl occasionally and it seemed to have no real effect other than maybe placebo. Same with hydroxyzine- I've taken at max 100mg (4 25mg tablets) about 30 mins before bed, and the only thing it did was make me real sluggish the next morning / sleep through alarms.