Some help? :) - LONG post!

[sweat-a-l0t]

Hi everyone!

I've only recently come to terms with the fact that I have hyperhidrosis, but I've been sweating excessively ever since I was 12 or so. As I'm getting older I'm finding that it's getting much, much worse. My feet are always sweaty, they don't drip or anything too drastic but my socks are always damp when I take them off. But that doesn't really bother me, the worse thing is under my arms. Unless I'm just sitting around at home, I'm constantly sweating under my arms. Every morning I get the bus to school, the bus picks me up right outside my house, most days I'm waiting (in the cold, I live in England - hardly a warm climate!) for a matter of minutes, by the time I sit down on the bus I notice that I'm wet already, and then it's non-stop 'till I get home. I have to wear a black jumper/pullover every single day to try and hide it, but as the weather is getting somewhat warmer it's not the most comfortable thing to wear. But it's not just at school, if I even have a conversation with a member of family somewhere in the house I get wet too. Maybe this is a psychological problem?

It's my dream to be a flight attendant, ever since I was young I have dreamed of wearing that amazing uniform walking down the aisles of aircraft, but only recently I've realised that my dream may not be the best thing for me. However, I'm determined not to let my 'problem' get in the way.

I've tried every 'normal' anti-persperant brand that there is. About a month ago I learnt about PersipreX, I tried not to get my hopes high about this because I really didn't think it would work but the online reviews sang nothing but praises about this product, but it didn't work for me. I tried it every single night for the first week, it reduced my sweating by about 50%. After the first week you're only meant to apply it a every 2-3 nights because it's apparently strong enough. But by the second day I might as well not even be wearing it because it just doesn't work.

Now I don't know what to do. I'd really like to tell my parents, but I just find it so awkward. We never really talk about anything, let alone our personal problems. One of my parents is a doctor (ex pharmacist) and the other a psychologist, you'd think this'd make it easier to tell them but I'm really not sure. I've thought about seeing another GP (there's a surgery by my school which I could go to during my lunch break) but I'm not too sure, because my parents could just find my medical records (I think, I'm not sure if they can but I'd imagine there is some system like this?) and read it all. I've read every single internet page about cures for HH, watched every single YouTube video and read every book I can find. I'd like to try botox, it's expensive but I think it'd be worth if it lasted 4-8 months. I know it'd hurt, but I really don't care. 20 minutes or so would definitely be worth several months of dry under arms. Has anyone had this done? How did you find it? Was it worth the money?

Another thing I've found is MiraDry. I'm not really too sure on how it works, as far as I know it heats up the sweat gland and effectively disables it permanently. It's only available in the US and Japan and costs about $2.5-3k. Has anyone heard much about this? It's a relatively new thing so not many people have had it yet, but it looks promising.

One last thing, I was wondering if there were any tablets you could take? I've not come across any, but if so I'd love to research them and maybe see what a GP would say about prescribing them to me.

If you've got this far, then thank you!! I know this is terribly long, but I'm sure many of you can appreciate how much HH is ruining my life right now and some answers or support would reaaaaally help me.

Thank you

 

[Boby]

OK,first of all welcome to SPW.

I think you are making a big mistake not telling your parents about it.
You need professional help not some stupid ads on the internet.Tell your parents about it and I'm sure they will help you,maybe they will find you a doctor who might help you.
This is the best advice you will get from anybody but it's only your choice to accept it.

 

[sweat-a-l0t]

OK,first of all welcome to SPW.

Thank you!

Hmm I think you're right. Do you know how the best way would be to tell them?

 

[Boby]

Thank you!

Hmm I think you're right. Do you know how the best way would be to tell them?

Just tell them,no need for a fancy way to tell them.Look my parents never show me directly that they love me,but I know that in their heart they do love me and I know they would even give up their life for me.So I don't think your parents are different from mine,just tell them about you problem,they will not laugh at you,or judge you especially because it's not you fault ,it's a medical problem.

 

[ukchick]

I reckon if your parents knew there was something really bothering you on a day to day basis they would do whatever they could to help you find something that helps. My daughter is 14 and suffers like you do, I also do so maybe I understand how badly it effects daily life. I really do think a visit to the doctors would be the next step ( after speaking with your parents), there are lots of things to try. Stay positive and good luck,this forum is just antastic for support and advice. Let us know how you get on x

 

[Soy Sauce]

I'd definitely suggest telling your parents. It may turn out that one of your parents has HH too, since it can be hereditary. My mother has HH, although not nearly as bad as mine and she says as shes gotten older, the severity has decreased.

Also, iontophoresis is something you should consider. I have palmar/plantar (hands/feet) HH, and it's been a life saver for me. I know most of the manufacturers offer attachments specifically for underarm HH. I'm not sure how effective it is for your type of HH, but in theory, it should work for you. It can be an expensive investment, but if it works, it'll be the best money you've ever spent.

As far as tablets/pills, Avert (glycopyrrolate) is something that I used to take, which definitely works, but has side effects. It's an antisecretory, so it prevents your body from secreting any fluids, not just sweat. So your body will stop producing saliva (dry mouth, makes it hard to swallow), mucus, snot, your eyes will dry out and you will get headaches. If you take the right dosage, which comes with trial and error, you won't sweat for about 6 hours and the side effects will be somewhat tolerable. It can definitely be helpful in situations where you know your going to be in a social situation and have to interact with people (like school), but I don't recommend taking it all the time. I don't have any evidence to support it, but I'm weary of the long-term effects glycopyrrolate can have on your body. I stopped taking it after a while because I was getting tired of the side effects. Because of the headaches, I wouldn't really recommend it for school, except for the odd day or days where you have to do presentations. It'll make it hard to focus. Also, the dry eyes will make it hard to focus, literally.

Keep your chin up. I didn't discover Avert or iontophoresis until I was around 22-23. I had to go through most of highschool not knowing what was wrong with me, and then after I was diagnosed with HH, I was told there was no cure or treatment (other then strong antiperspirants, which did nothing for me) by my family doctor.

 

[sweat-a-l0t]

Hi everyone!

Once again thank you all for your posts. It's a month later now and I thought I'd give you a quick update.

I still haven't told my parents, and at the moment I don't plan to either. After some independent research I came across Anhydrol Forte. One lunch time I went round to the chemist by my school and got some. It cost £4.45 for a 60ml bottle, much cheaper than the £7 I payed for a 25ml bottle of PerspireX that didn't even work.

I applied it at night, it didn't itch at all. I was getting preparing myself to be disappointed again as I'd read countless posts on the internet about how much it itches, but I didn't feel anything.

The next day I wasn't feeling too optimistic so I went to school with what I usually wear (white/black t-shirt underneath, shirt, jumper and a blazer - even in the summer). I sat down on the bus in the morning and discretely flapped my arms to feel how much sweat was dripping off me, but to my amazement, nothing. Okay, so maybe it'd work for the first few hours and by lunchtime I'd be wet? No, nothing. That night I put it on again, still no itching. I then enjoyed another two days without any damp patches.

During the day I sometimes get a very strange sensation, it feels damp but it isn't. It also feels quite warm around my armpit - although I'm not sure if this is how a 'normal' persons armpits are? It doesn't bother me too much, although because it feels damp (even though it isn't) I still wear white/black t-shirts underneath my school uniform just for the extra confidence.

Another thing that I've noticed is that instead of getting compensatory sweating somewhere else on my body (which I fully expected), I've been needing to go to the toilet more. I never ever drink anything in the morning or at school because we're not allowed to go to the loo at school, so I always drink when I get home. Before I used Anhydrol Forte I could comfortably get through the school day without needing to go to the toilet from 8AM when I leave home to 4PM when I come home, but now I'm finding that by lunchtime I'm bursting!

On the instructions it recommends that you apply two nights in a row, leave it for two nights in a row, apply for two nights in a row, leave it for two nights in a row and repeat - but adjust to suit your needs. So I've been experimenting over the past few weeks now, trying to come up with some sort of schedule. I had a few extremely painful nights where I ended up having to wash it off in the shower because the pain was just too much.

I've found that if you itch it, you'll just make the pain soooo much worse. So I'd much rather have the strange tingles than the dreadful pain and red raw skin. Although as I'm still trying to find when is best to apply it, I now apply baby powder/talcum powder as soon as it has dried. This helps so much!

To say that Anhydrol Forte has changed my life is a complete understatement. I feel like it's bought out a new me. I'm soooo much more confident now when having conversations with people. I feel like a completely different person emotionally and physically.

I turned 16 two weeks ago and I didn't want to have a party with all of my friends or go out for a meal or anything because I just wanted to enjoy myself without worrying about sweating - but I had forgot that I was on Anhydrol Forte so sweating is now a thing of the past. So instead I had a meal with my family at home, and I wore a shirt. Just a shirt on its own, no t-shirt underneath. No sweat. It was such an amazing feeling. Not once have I been able to wear a shirt on its own.

So the next day I celebrated and went straight into Manchester and bought lots of shirts and colourful t-shirts! It's so nice to be able to walk into a shop, see a t-shirt or something that you like and not have to think "what hoody/cardigan/jumper/coat will this go with to hide my patches?".

I've also just returned from a trip to Scotland. When I'm at the airport security and I hear the "please take off your jackets and coats" I stress and panic so much, but this time I eagerly took off the coat that I was wearing (it was a cold day, not for my sweat patches!) and marched through the metal detector with a proud smile on my face.

I have been extremely pleased with Anhydrol Forte and its results and I can definitely see myself using this way in to the future. Although I think I might enrol myself at a doctors surgery near the college that I'll start in September and see about trialing glycopyrrolate just so I can test all of the options out and see if it works. Also in the future if MiraDry comes to the UK then I'd love to try that out.

I'm still yet to see how I perform under really stressful situations such as job interviews etc, but I have some confidence that it'll work.

I know this is a complete essay and I'm sorry, but I really hope that it'll help someone in the future considering Anhydrol Forte. All I can say is go for it, you've got nothing to loose!

 

[Sprawling]

It's always a pleasure to hear success stories.

 

[margiehope]

Really glad you've found something that helps you. HH is a very individual thing. I take Avert, have for some years, and don't have severe side effects. But if something topical works for you, great.
I guess because I am a parent, I'd feel badly if my kid was suffering and not letting me know. Your business, but if you felt you did want them to know, you could let them see your posts.