Cholinergic Urticaria (Chronic Heat Hives)-Cholinergic Urticaria.net I Get Itchy Heat Hives (Cholinergic Urticaria) When I Get Hot or Exercise

I have always noticed this very small hole at the front of my left ear that was present since my birth. I asked my mom about it a long time ago, and she said that she had asked the doctor when I was born & he said that it was probably just a genetic thing, and it was nothing to worry about.

It is very small, and hardly noticeable. It actually looks as if I had my ear pierced, but I assure you I did not. I have even been asked that a couple of times in the past by people who noticed it.

The strange thing is, sometimes whenever I press my finger below the hole, a small amount of fluid (about the quantity & consistency of pus from a pimple) comes out. I know, sounds gross. It usually never hurts or anything like that. I just press my finger, and a little bit of fluid comes out every once in a while.

So I usually clean it out every so often with hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol to keep it clean. I recently poured some alcohol in it, and it burned like crazy for like 5 minutes.

Recently, I was thinking, “What the heck is this small hole in front of my ear anyway?” So I hopped on Google & found out that is is actually called a “Preauricular Ear Pit.”

What is a Preauricular Ear Pit?

Apparently, it is a fairly common defect that occurs during fetal development. Lucky for me, it is a very minor & insignificant deformity (both cosmetically & health-wise). The skin actually didn’t close right there like it was supposed to at some point in fetal development.

Most ear pits also connect to the sinuses inside of the face. According to some medical articles, most ear pits tend to be only about 1 inch in depth. They are lined with skin cells, and are at risk for becoming infected if bacteria build up over time. I suppose since my ear pit does leak fluid, it may have a small infection. Although, it has done this for years, and has never been swollen or hurt, so I don’t know if it is technically “infected.”

Not only that, but to my surprise you can actually have ear pits surgically removed/excised (I know, weird). They actually cut out the entire thing & then suture up the skin. Hopefully, I will never have to do that, but it is recommended if you have multiple severe infections in them. A picture of what my ear pit looks like is below. It is a little red due to my just picking at it:

Picture of a Preauricular Ear Pit (Hole in Front of Ear):

Picture of Ear Pit Hole

What Is the Big Deal About Having Ear Pits, Ear Tags, Ear Cysts, etc?

Another thing that really shocked me is the fact that apparently people who have ear pits & other strange ear conditions are at a much higher risk for other anatomical congenital disorders.

The reason is the gene that malfunctioned is also responsible for the development of other things. So if you have an ear pit (or two), there is a possibility of another anatomical abnormality being present. This isn’t always the case and some people are perfectly healthy, but it is possible.

For example, one article showed a high correlation between renal abnormalities (kidneys), and ear pits. Some people who have ear pits are actually born without kidneys, just one kidney, or other renal abnormalities. Can you believe that stuff! Crazy.

Anyways, it kinda freaks me out now, but I don’t think there is anything else that is abnormal about me (at least I hope not). Hives & holes are about enough already!

Are Ear Pits Linked to Cholinergic Urticaria in Any Way?

I am always looking for a scapegoat for my hives condition. It is always possible that the ear pit could in some way be connected to the hives (such as a genetic disorder, or if I am missing some parts lol).

But I don’t think at this point it is causing the hives in any way. Unless, of course, any of you also have one of these, then I might suspect that there could be a connection.

There does seem to be a connection with Keratosis Pilaris & Cholinergic Urticaria. So if any of you happen to have an ear pit, an ear tag, an ear cyst, etc., by all means please let me/us know in the comments below or on the forum.

Updates on Hives, Probiotics, Vinegar, Neighbors, & More

As I said in the last post, I am ditching the vinegar treatment. It is over, and it didn’t help do anything but make me smell like a pickle. So enough of that stinky mess!

The probiotics are doing well with my stomach, although it did get a little upset the other day (I think it was from eating some sweet tarts). But I will continue to take them until they are gone. They appear to be doing nothing for the hives.

The hives have been normal lately, and I have only had very minor attacks that just start to prickle & itch. One thing I always hate about cholinergic urticaria is that even when I don’t have an attack,  my skin always feels “Icky.” It just always feels uncomfortable, and sometimes I get chills from uncomfortable fabrics, and in general it is very uncomfortable. I hate that feeling.

It was nice and sunny with temperatures in the mid 80′s there for a while, but for the past few days it has been cloudy & rainy. As I mentioned in my last post, it looks like it will be nearly impossible to get regular sun exposure at my apartment, and instead I will have to get it when I can.

I have new neighbors on one side now, and they apparently have some video game with drums attached to it (like guitar hero but with drums or congas). I have heard it all day long, and I am about to go crazy. Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap….bang, bang, bang, bang… It sounds like they are in the same room with me.

I joke with my wife about my fantasies to get a rocket launcher or bazooka & one day and just blow away both sides of the apartment when I lose control. Relax, I am just kidding about it. I am a peace lover.  But it is funny to imagine it for a second.

It always gives my wife a good laugh as I put up my arms as if holding a big bazooka, and then make sound effects that match it…pshhhew kapow, boom (hehe). Could you imagine what it would be like to suddenly have a huge missile burst through your walls with debris going everywhere. Then I would poke my head through the hole and kindly ask, “Could you please be quieter?”  LOL.

I especially do this when they have some kid over that cries non-stop all day. It reminds me of that movie “Dumb & Dumber” with Jim Carrey & Jeff Daniels. They are in a van driving, and Jim Carrey goes, “want to hear the most annoying sound in the world? Whaaaa, Whaaaa, Whaaaa.”  That sound should be played constantly to young teens who think it is fun to have unprotected sex. If that sound isn’t the best message for abstinence & birth control, I don’t know what is!

I swear–between the hives, hearing my neighbors sneeze, laugh, and beat drums all day, and everything else it is a miracle I still have my sanity, but I am still sane. How do I know I am still sane? Well because I think I am crazy. My wife said as long as I think I am crazy, I am in fact not crazy. Truly crazy people don’t know they are crazy, and since I suspect I am crazy, I am in fact sane. Does that make sense? That is your twisted dose of logic for today, hehe. So if any of you suspect you are sane, watch out! You might just be crazy after all.

Updates to the Blog/Website

I also just wanted to briefly mention a few changes I made to the blog. First of all, I changed the feed link, so for anyone who actually uses those feeds, you may want to update it to the new little link on the top of the right sidebar to make sure you get updates. I changed it to feedburner to get some stats of how many people use it, etc. I am not sure if the old feed will be updated or not from here on.

I also added a sitemap, and this breaks down all posts I have made & sorts them under the categories. It will be helpful to anyone wanting to browse through all of the posts I have made over the past year on the blog, and also to sort through future posts if necessary.

Well, that’s it for now! Stay cool & don’t scratch too hard.

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Watching the Incredible Hulk with Netflix

Today, my wife & I took the day off. We started the day watching a movie we rented from Netflix– The Incredible Hulk staring Edward Norton & Liv Tyler (2008). By the way, if no one has tried Netflix.com yet, it is AWESOME! It blows blockbuster or any other movie rental place to bits. We always watch movies online, and also rent them all the time and all it costs is a mere $9 & change each month and we get several DVD mail rentals & unlimited online movies.

Anyways, I liked the Incredible Hulk movie a lot. When I was younger I loved the one on television starring Lou Ferrigno (who makes a cameo in the new movie by the way). I have always been fascinated with heroes & people of great strength & big muscles.

One thing I found very early on in the movie is how much I relate to the character (David Banner). He is mutated by Gamma radiation & when he gets angry he turns into a big green monster.

During the whole movie he struggles to avoid having an “attack” of anger & transforming. The movie begins with him practicing “breathing techniques” to try & prevent his anger. He even wears a special watch that monitors his heart-rate throughout the most of the movie, so that when he starts to get angry, nervous, or excited he can monitor his heart rate & calm down before he gets an “attack.”

That just reminded me so much of myself & everyone else who has Cholinergic Urticaria. We have to constantly watch our body temperature, and if we get to hot, we transform into big itchy monsters. It really bothers him having this condition too, and he is constantly trying experiments to try & rid himself of it (which he constantly seems to fail in his experiments)…sounds familiar doesn’t it??

Then, in one scene he starts to get “intimate” with his female friend, and he has to slow down because his heart starts to beat too fast to prevent an “attack”. Again, I could somewhat relate there too. He is also running on several occasions, and has to stop & calm down to prevent an attack.

When the movie ends, the Hulk has to flee, and it shows the character (David Banner played by Ed Norton), sitting in a room and instead of trying to “breath” or “prevent” his attacks, he is working now on “completely controlling it & forcing attacks at will.” I thought that was pretty cool. Instead of only trying to prevent cholinergic urticaria, I think it is also important to try to condition our minds to effectively get through an outbreak. It is hard, but I think I myself could manage them better mentally if I worked on it.

This is very hard to do, though. When I start to get an attack I notice that I find it very hard to concentrate on anything other than the pain & itching. I can illustrate this point, in the fact that if I am in the middle of a conversation & have an attack, I cannot focus on what the person is saying, and I start to get really annoyed by the pain.

If someone asks me a question, I am usually a little snappy, and I am like “What did you say?” I can’t help it, and it is because I am getting stabbed by needles all over my body and I lose the ability to focus on what they are saying & it is hard to reply verbally & coherently as all I want to do is scratch myself to death. My wife always understands, and I try to apologize afterwards when I do it to her. But I would like to better manage attacks and somehow take better control of my body & mind.

Anyways, if you haven’t seen the 2008 Incredible Hulk movie, I would recommend it. It was a very good movie (I rated it 4 stars out of 5). When you watch it, think of it in terms of cholinergic urticaria & you will be able to easily relate with the character.

Update On Sweating & Getting Really Hot

Okay, after the movie we had some errands to run. Today it was like 85 degrees & beautiful outside, so I thought I would try & force some sweat in the car by avoiding the air conditioner. Be careful if you try something similar from risk of heat stroke.

Anyways, I got very hot, and had an attack on the way to Wal-mart. I tried to suffer through the pins & needles, and when we arrived I sat there, but still no sweat. My wife was thirsty (and she tends to get impatient when she needs to do something), so we went ahead & went inside Walmart.

To my surprise, it wasn’t’ much cooler in there! They must be trying to cut back on their cooling budget or something (that darn recession!). I actually got prickly a couple of times while shopping and tried to cool down as much as possible. I finally checked out, and felt the sense of relief I always feel after leaving a store (since I know the potential to have a public attack is over). Anyways, we got out, and we got back into the car and it was mega hot.

So on the way home, I rolled up the windows & suffered in the heat (and my wife suffered right with me…bless her little heart). I battled the pins & needles as much as I could, as they randomly popped up in different areas almost the entire ride home (my forehead, scalp, neck, chest, etc.).

Then, towards the end I could feel my palms, back, and arms were slightly damp. My wife felt my arms and could feel a light coat of perspiration. So I did sweat some. I definitely wish I could have sweat more, but I’ll take anything I can get at this point.

I really think that over the course of the summer I will be able to sweat quite a bit. I hope & pray I can go right into sweating eventually and forget about cholinergic urticaria (if even it is just for the summer…). I know the mugginess of summer usually allows me to go straight into sweating, and I look forward to those days. I also enjoy the nice cold air condition most stores have on (except for cheapskate Walmart today!). I can usually shop in confidence & comfort when an A/C is blasting in a store.

Update on Probiotics & Vinegar Treatment

Well the probiotics seem to be doing well. I have had a pretty regular digestion, and the only thing I can say is I have had a little gas, but nothing abnormal, and no cramps or bloating. So far it has done nothing for the hives, but I have only been taking them for a few days (I have a 30 day supply). So I will continue to update everyone on that.

As far as the vinegar goes, I plan on stopping that soon. It shows no signs of working, and in fact makes my skin very acidic, stinky, and uncomfortable feeling. So I will probably quit any day, but hey, it was worth a shot!

Update on Sun Exposure

I am also excited to be getting more sun exposure soon, and I have gotten some recently. I have been sitting on my front porch on occasions for a while (when my neighbors leave), but it has been much less than I was able to do a few weeks ago.

Okay get this— in my apartment complex I have neighbors who go & just sit outside all day & smoke and talk and sometimes even have company over with them. Of course no other people in the apartment complex do this, only the people beside of me (as my luck would have it…go figure!).

Now I am kind of an “anti-social” or “private” type of person, and I am not necessarily in the mood to say “hello” or strike up a conversation every single time I open my friggin door. But they are home almost all of the time, and it makes it really difficult to go outside without doing so. This always annoys me so badly, and I can’t stand not having privacy & being able to walk outside. It is like every time I walk out the door I either have to say hi or look rude like I am ignoring them (lately I am taking the “looking rude” option).

So my wife and I finally had a routine where we would take a blanket & go to the side of the apartments, and sit & read or talk for a while & get some rays. There is a small patch of grass there, and no windows or people on the side so it is somewhat private.

This was working really well for about 2-3 weeks. Then guess what happens (my great luck again…)?? The guy who owns my apartments has decided to build a big duplex right across from the place we were sitting (about 20 feet away)!! Man that is so frustrating. So now about 10 guys with their shirts off will be outside nearly every day for the rest of the summer. They have already cleared the land, and have the foundation laid & framing has started.

Oh, and I almost forgot…the person on the other side of me is moving out, and they have been there daily with a truck moving stuff out. This is annoying, because yet again someone will be moving in, and I tend to have very bad luck with neighbors! I am afraid to wonder who or what may move in now.

So now, if I want to go outside my options are this:

1. Go sit on my tiny area in front of my door (it isn’t even worth calling a “porch”) and risk having to talk to people the whole time I am out there on both sides of my door (which is terribly annoying for a private/shy guy who enjoys solitude to reflect on life).
2. Go to the side, where the construction workers can watch me the whole time, and I may possibly have to talk to the apartment owners (annoying again). I also get to hear the lovely sound of hammers & saws all day.
3. Or I can go drive 15 minutes to the nearest park, which isn’t the most convenient option either.

It is so annoying because not only do I enjoy my solitude & privacy, but it is pretty frustrating having attacks in front of people, which is almost certain to happen on these hot days. So I don’t want them to ask me something & then …poof hives. Plus, for some unknown reason, it is like I have a sign on my back that says, “Talk to me please.” Every where I go, people randomly single me out to ask a question out of a crowd. No joke!

Even while shopping recently, my wife was trying on a graduation dress in the dressing room, and some older lady comes up to me to ask if the cleats she had in her buggy were for golf or baseball (she said she was buying them for her son lol). I was like, “they are for baseball.” It completely caught me off guard and I was already a little itchy anyways and you know how you can get a sudden spike of adrenaline when put on the spot like that?? And sometimes when people ask me something I get shy & more itchy from that nervousness or adrenaline spike. So I swear it is like I have a sign on my back that says, “Reward: Strike up a conversation with me & win 1 million dollars.”

Anyways, back to the sun situation. I still plan on getting as much sun as possible, but it is not going to be as easy as I thought it may be. Luckily, I will at least be able to get some sun soon at my mom’s house, and plus my wife & I will go to Dollywood sometime within the next month (I hope I sweat that day for sure). The Dollywood trip should offer about 8 hours of direct sunlight exposure & heat. Pray that I sweat that day & I am not itchy the whole time.

Also, hopefully I will get a house before the end of summer and move out of this crappy place (please God…). Then I have high hopes of finally defeating cholinergic urticaria for good. My battle plan is simple: Remove all allergens, eat healthier, filter the water, and sweat daily.

That’s it for now! Just wanted to provide an update.

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Posted under general information, hives talk, managing hives