My urticaria seems to have gone away? Caused by stress + apple cider vinegar?

The following post was submitted by a reader:

Hi,

If you’re reading this it’s because you’re on this website. And if you’re on this website, it’s because you suddenly started getting itchy for no reason when you felt warm, or you got stressed out at work, or you got anxious over something stupid. I’d like to share my story, because it’s all I can do.

I can’t take away your disease, but I pray that all of you will experience the relief I have. I’m here to say that my cholinergic urticaria seems to have gone away before it started.

What I had broken down:

1. Intense itchiness when:

• skin was dry
• I got stressed over anything
• I got anxious (I have social anxiety, so meeting someone new often set me on fire) you can imagine.
• I worked out, scratch that.. when I ran for even 10 seconds or lifted something heavy

2. A rash that felt like I was in a painful furnace when:

• exposed to sunlight (imagine being outside and suddenly the sun peaks out and I have to run to the closest bathroom because I feel I’m going to tear my skin having to scratch it)

I’m sure many of you experienced or are experiencing something similar or potentially way worse. And I am so sorry. But if you can take away any hope from I story, I want to tell you that I think my urticaria has gone away. I’m not trying to brag. In fact I’m desperately trying to convey the message that perhaps this is our bodies’ way of telling us that something has gone wrong inside.

Maybe a foreign substance triggered it. Maybe you’re way too stressed out and forget that we only have one life to live. Whatever the case, something happened that should not have happened. I’ll share with you my case. After having gone through all of the above symptoms which gradually appeared over about 3 months (meaning got worse), I decided to something about this.

I reduced my daily activities to only simple things that would let me keep track of what could be causing this. That includes what I ate, what I did (such as walking to class, studying at home, since I’m a university student) and at what time everything happened. I’d go days only eating vegetables and legumes like beans, dismissing any allergy to it and then adding more things to my plate, but keeping my diet as clean as possible.

I kept my stress to an absolute minimum; when I felt the itchiness start (and boy did it get me going), I tried my hardest hardest hardest to keep it from erupting.. I think of it like a volcano. And without scratching and ignoring the itchiness I had to relax and drop whatever I was doing no matter what. After some time doing this, with a good diet and almost no stress, I was feeling just a bit better; just a bit.

Now, there was only one thing that I was doing that I hadn’t eliminated (and that was drinking and using apple cider vinegar on my face for acne). I decided what the heck it’s not even working. I stopped using it for a week and my symptoms were going away (granted still continuing my no stress-drop everything and clean pallate policy).

Now I’m up to the point where I get itchiness maybe for like 5 mins total during the day and the sun is no longer gives me a burning rash; doesn’t even itch a little.

Don’t congratulate me or tell me that I’m lucky because this isn’t about me. It’s about you guys; the people still suffering. I now know what’s like to have your life maybe not totally ruined but feeling so different from everyone else and not being able to live because of this.

I want you guys to do everything you can to eliminate this, everything in your power. Even if you feel it may not work, try. Clean your diet (yes that means giving up that chipotle burrito or mcdonalds fries) and eat only tasteless things that are very very good for you which shall not be named.

Try your best to sweat and exercise and be a good detective of your life. Figure out when this happened, your stress levels ,leading up to that point, what you may have done differently or for the first time, etc. Get to the bottom of it.

My thoughts are always with you guys. Good luck, and I really hope you succeed.

-Jorge D.

The above post was submitted through the forum by a reader.