I feel so disconnected.

oolceeoo · Newbie User Joined: Aug 24, 2007 Posts: 42

I've had hand and foot hh for as long as I can remember, I'm 25. I don't even feel alive anymore. I know people say that you shouldn't let it get to you, but its just a constant in your face reality that we can't escape.

I've tried everything, botox, medication, iontophoresis(several times), topical solutions, crazy herbal remedies, nothing works. I don't think I could do the surgery because it doesn't seem like it cures anything, just switches where you'll sweat.

I just feel so alone, people think that I hate them and don't want to be around them but that is so not true. This condition just wears you down day after day, it just beats you down constantly. I can't do anything. Everything in life that people do involve the hands. I almost feel like a ghost sometimes, just wandering with no end in sight.

Sometimes I feel like I wasn't meant for this world, I go for walks alone sometimes and see people laughing and smiling and having fun with others and being social, without a care in the world. I often wonder "why can't I enjoy life? Why can't I be with friends and have fun? Why am I always alone?"

Sometimes I take drugs or drink myself into oblivion alone just to escape for a short period of time. Sure, it isn't a cure, but its relief. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be able to interact with people normally. The worst part is no one can help.

I just had to get that off my chest.

sadday · Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2008 11:25 pm Post subject:

I know exactly how you feel. I suffer with HH in multiple places and it is horrible. I also have many other medical conditions that just makes life so hard to live. I don't drink because I'd probably become an alcoholic and that would only make things worse. I just keep the pain on the inside and cry alot. I cry myself to sleep most nights. I try really hard to think positive but the negative thoughts always creep in. You are not alone.

I'm curious as to what medications you have tried?

oolceeoo · Newbie User Joined: Aug 24, 2007 Posts: 42

I've tried robinul and oxybutinin, they both just made my mouth and eyes really dry and made me dizzy but my hands still sweat a lot.

ultrafrost · Newbie User Joined: Feb 02, 2008 Posts: 19

Hi, oolceeoo
I'm sorry to hear that you feel alone.
What I want to say is that DON'T let it get you down. You just sweat more than other people, and that's not your fault!!
In my country, as I know, there are two famous popstar who have HH as well. They shake hands with their fans, there's nothing they feel uncomfotable, and they always smile!!
Yes, HH makesus unsocial, but it doesn't matter, you also could become a genuine person and have a lot of friends.
As for iontophoresis, I also didn't see any good results when I did treatments in this winter, but I think I will restart my therapy soon.
I think that iontophoresis could work for most people, all you need to do is to be patient, don't give up.
good luck!
best wishes!

Pinker · Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:54 pm Post subject:

I know, same here. My hand sweating has stopped me doing so many things, and even when I do i'm so uncomfortable. Sometimes touching things is like nails on a chalkboard.. it goes through me. That's why i'm always so hot and uncomfortable. I have had success with ionto mainly on my palms, but it doesn't cure my whole hand (and foot but im not so bothered..). It doesn't always work too well on my hands either. Basically i'd say it gives me a 50/60% increase in quality of living as far as my hands are concerned, but of course my sweating is still uncomfortable enough for my to complain on here every day Smile

As I grow older I grow more and more frustrated because I know I need to be taking more chances in life and I can't mess around now.. but HH is still there. I've considered ETS over and over trust me (now there's a 'new' electro one), but i'm always biding my time for something better to come along, but there doesn't seem to be anything in the pipeline. I DO NOT blame anyone for having ETS, aside from for underarms, there's not really any other final solutions. Doctors/researchers annoy me so much. They will not put any money into this (they refused to continue the botox/ionto research for one)

Theo55 · Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 10:51 pm Post subject:

Mate, I know exactly how you feel , I have the conditon as well, but mine is prob i worst , as even the back of my fingers sweat . Dont be dishearted , l know that it can feel abit lonely as , but if you talk to people about the condition , they will understand and support you. This condition have caused me my dream career but it didnt bother me , because I know noone is perfect , sometimes you win and sometimes you lose .

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scruffpot · Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2008 9:30 pm Post subject:

Dude you ain't alone, we are all here.
We all have/had problems exactly like you we are all working our way through it as well.
I have/had Hh for a long long time mine was all over the shop sweating a lot, i didn't go out in the summer, only in the winter, if i did i covered up even if it was blazing hot.
Hated myself, my body, got angry, got agrophbic, my personal life suffered and i had no idea why i'ld feel like this but it turned out to be my thyroid. i also had a few other problems as well i grew up with epilepsy as well but that dissapeared when i was 18 (thankfully Epilim did the trick)
HH was my biggest problem as I stayed away from jobs, only ones where I never wore a shirt just a polo short, school i hid away in my jumpers over the years. Went to the docs eventually they found out my thyroid was kerput so ended up on tablets for that and that sorted out a lot of head problems for me,brain fog as I was completely under active, i felt so confused agitative and angry about everything then once i started on my tablets for that i felt a lot better but sometimes i go up and down.
I discovered certain topical chemicals that sort of worked for my HH, then had enough then went for surgery, so far I would say i have improved 80%
there are other types of surgery there is ETS there is the version which i had what is Pulse radio frequency sympathectomy, that hasn't switched my sweating it has stopped a lot of it, ok behind my knees i get a bit sweaty but it does depend on the person.

In other words help is out there and we is here as well, we are all going have gone through crap, to be honest there are a lot of people out there with even more messed up problems then us here in SPW.

we are always floating around on SPW if you wanna chat

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beckiboo · Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 3:13 pm Post subject:

Please dont feel so down, I know how hard this condition is socially and in everyday life but youve really got to be persistant, dont give up because youve tried something and it didnt work, I went to hospital for iontophoresis and it didnt really do much at all, then I made my own machine at home (because im so poor!) and im finally getting some good results with it, keep at it!
and as for your friends thinking you hate them because youre avoiding them, I know exactly how you feel, in the end I decided to tell them all, the reaction was better than I could ever have expected and now they realise why I do the things I do and theyre supporting me so much! I went down the pub couple of weeks back and got introduced to a few people-this was a nightmare but my friend could see my discomfort and knew it was because of my HH and was straight there supporting me through the embarrasment! most of them said they never even noticed I had sweaty hands and were shocked id kept it secret for so long! so really, dont let HH controll you like this, dont let it ruin your friendships as most people will help you rather than think youre odd... Very Happy

Pinker · Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 4:49 pm Post subject:

Yeah my dad is always telling me not to let it hold me back from doing things, but it does almost physically stop me sometimes. I play tennis but at the time when my sweating is at its worst I can't play. The grip feels like slime (eww) and I can't grip the handle. I got invited onto the full team but I don't want to get into a difficult situation. I've never followed along with girls because I would be afraid to touch them, both because of their reaction and how uncomfortable I imagine it would be for both of us. I'd never be able to have a part time job on a counter or till.

Phoenix_Elite · Newbie User Joined: Jul 22, 2008 Posts: 31

As the rest of the guys have said, you're not alone mate. The worst part is, I think, that very few people seem to fully understand the repercussions that hyperhidrosis can have on one's life. They think it's just having your hands a bit wet all the time, but it's much, much more than that. Feeling things when my hands are sweating is horrible, and I know it greatly limits my possibilities. I'm trying iontophoresis and it's sort of working for me, but there are many people that can't even find temporary relief. We know the condition best, and we know it can be horrid. I'd even go so far as to say that it prevents you from doing a lot of stuff concerning everything, not just social life. Some people seem to think that the worst of the condition is that you're embarassed to shake hands, but that's barely it. And frankly, if it's bothering you as much as you say it is, I would definitely recommend ETS. If you've tried pretty much everything with no results, go for it. Because I think everyone in this board would agree that excessive sweating say, in the back, is much better than palmar hyperhidrosis. Consider it, it's a last resort, but then again nothing is working for you. It very probably will give way to a better life for you. In any case, hang in there. I'm not going to tell you to try to deal with it, because I know it practically can't be done (if one doesn't have hyperhidrosis, one cannot understand it, so I hate the fact that doctors love to give this useless advice). Instead, keep looking for solutions. If nothing else works, go for ETS. Take a chance; it's better than living irremediably with this condition for the rest of your life. Wink

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