This blog has been so helpful in my cholinergic urticaria adventure. I have never been officially diagnosed with “CU”, but it matches up with just about everything I have read on the internet. I started getting itchy all over and developing little red welps all over my body about 6 weeks ago.
Ever since that day, any time I would overheat, wear tight clothing, get angry, or laugh the welps would return, accompanied with the feeling of being bitten by thousands of fire ants. It is a terrible feeling. The past few days have been much better.
I have tried everything under the sun to keep the hives at bay. I have been popping antihistamines (Benadryl and Zyrtec) like candy. I washed my bedding in Arm&Hammer detergent meant for sensitive skin, changed shampoos, moisturized daily with Dove soap and Vaseline lotion, drank countless bottles of water, and tried to cut back on junk food.
These things helped a little, but about 4 days ago, I began taking NatureMade Super B-Complex and Omega-3 Fish oil capsules *one a day*. I also quit using deodorant all together. I was using Old Spice Pure Sport deodorant (which has a terrible reputation for harming skin on ConsumerReports). I have noticed that I do not sweat much at all, which is likely the root of the entire problem.
I think cutting back on the deodorant has been the biggest breakthrough yet. I have felt normal the past couple days for the first time in almost 2 months. I encourage you guys to try going a few days without deodorant and to use the pills I listed above. I don’t know if I am all the way out of the woods yet, but I am going to continue doing the things I’ve been doing in an effort to kick this stuff to the curb. It is a horrible thing to deal with when nobody else knows what you are going through. Hope this information helps someone!
Thanks,
BJ
Hivesguy says
Thanks for taking the time to share your experience, BJ. I hope your hives continue to do well. Keep us updated!
God Bless,
Hivesguy
Anonymous says
Here is what I have found as a possible link to this problem. Have any of you been under a major stress change for a while when this started? A change of life or hormones or toxic damage? We may be under Adrenal fatigue which damages the liver which then damages the thyroid. I do not believe it has anything to do with soaps or bedding or other products, although some of these aren’t good anyway. It is an autoimmune problem. The reason your fish oil helped is because you need an elusive vitamin called F which helps your body utilize Vit D and calcium from sun exposure. Omega 3 in balance with 6 is important. The digestive system and gall bladder are also out of whack. Ben is right to lose that poisonous inflammatory belly fat as well BUT all of these bull crap anti-cholesterol low fat campaigns are lies as you need cholesterol to get Vit D etc. into the tissue! We need fat for proper metabolism. We need healthy non GMO plants and healthy raised meat products. The deodorant may be good to avoid at first since it prevents sweating to a degree.
Anonymous says
YES. A big life change. I recently graduated college and as you may already know, finding a job right out of college can be easier said than done. I had a couple interviews in which I didn’t end up getting the job and the stress of being unemployed was beginning to wear on me. The phone wasn’t ringing, and I was stressing myself out thinking about where the money would be coming from. Things have picked up and I have 2 big interviews coming in the next week that I feel really good about. I am still having the itchy feeling here and there, mainly when I do something embarrassing or when I sleep, but it isn’t nearly as bad as it has been in the past. I have been continuing to take the pills and refraining from using deodorant, and I feel that things are continuing to move in the right direction slowly but surely.
-BJ
Anonymous says
Thanks for responding! I do believe I am into something with this stress life change culprit and peoples GI immune system attack since the immune response starts in the digestive tract. Keep paying attention to triggers. Giving birth and hormone changes also could upset things.