To wonder if dd is allergic to water?

[havanagilahava]

A few months ago, I noticed that my dd (aged 8) had quite a few large red blotches on her stomach, back and arms after getting out of the shower. Like a rash, only it faded after about half an hour.

I assumed she was setting the temperature of the shower too hot, and was getting herself too hot, but it's happening even when she has colder showers, and it happened over the weekend when she swam in a friend's unheated outside pool.

She is also increasingly complaining of her skin being really itchy after she gets wet. In the last few days, I've noticed that when she scratches her skin after getting out the shower, a lot of skin seems to rub away under her fingernails.

Does anyone have any experience of anything like this? Is water allergy a thing?

No eczema for my dd. It only happens after showing. She does react badly in the sun though with prickly heat. It must be something to do with temperature changes.

From my experience of DS having lots of allergies, the water aggravates what is already there.
So if he’s had a reaction to pollen, food he’s eaten, a soap I’ve used, then has a bath it makes the reaction much worse.

I think you probably need to investigate all things that come into contact with her skin first (starting with stuff that’s changed recently) and go from there because is a lot more likely to be that than water itself.

@Angharad07 please educate yourself and don’t just guess. It’s very much possible to be allergic to water.

My son is allergic to his own sweat and that’s in his body as well.

Meet a woman who owned a scuba diving company of all things who was allergic to water (her husband did the diving part of the business). She found keeping water on her skin for as brief a time as possible. So never bathed or swam. Never showered but would wash herself all over with a flannel and dry her skin immediately.

@Angharad07 an allergic reaction to water on the skin is very much possible and a real thing.

A quick google could have told you that....

I used to get hives/raised blotches from hard water for a few years (in adulthood), and they would clear up after about half an hour. I get the odd one now but given it clears up I can only assume it's something in the water.

I actually read last night funnily enough that most people who think they're allergic to water are actually allergic to sodium laureth sulfate (SLS) so might be worth finding shampoos/ shower gels without this in? I get very blotchy and red so am going to try SLS free products.

Sounds like hives, my boyfriend has this. He uses Aveeno daily moisturising lotion after every shower which really helps. They also do an intensive cream which is good when it gets especially bad.

Forgot to say try getting her to take an antihistamine, that can help too.

my son get red blotches after a shower but not from a bath funnily enough

If you live in a very hard water area, investing in a water softener would be a great idea. Pricey though!

could try adding a couple of scoops of bicarbonate of soda to the bath water it acts as a softner,ask gp for dermol. its a bugger to clean off the bath tho so i usually put it into a spray dispenser and skoosh/rub while skin still wet. AVOID soaps or use sanex or similar. x

My eldest has this very blotchy after a shower but never a bath it does go away but it is very odd , I was speaking to somebody and they said their grandchild gets it after a shower.no advice just wanted to add that it is a thing

I get a bit of a reaction to hard water (currently living in a hard water area and bloody itchy!)

When we lived abroad, my son was allergic to the high level of metal in the water. Poor lad, it was awful. He had constant weeping sores. In the end wet dressing with green Aveeno and bottled water helped get it under control.

I have this exact issue and it was diagnosed as dermatitis, mine is definitely worse in hard water areas and if you live in a hard water area a filter in your shower should help the problem! Hope your DD is okay, it's very itchy and annoying but at least it passes after a short while like mine!

Very unlikely to be allergic to water. More likely something in the water, that could be
Chlorine
Calcium carbonate
Magnesium carbonate
Copper