To be so upset with my body (picture attached)

[Irritatedbylife]

As per my username.

EVERYTHING is irritating me.

I NEVER used to have problems with any sort of sensitivities or reactions. I could use anything on my skin and eat or do anything I wanted. Within a very short space of time (around the age of 19) I developed all the related conditions like eczema, asthma, psoriasis, and sensitivities/allergies (thankfully not serious or anaphylaxis).

this started out of nowhere and each individual condition is gradually worsening and becoming more debilitating. I can’t use any sort of skin products at all now- I’ve tried everything you can buy OTC as well as a range of steroids. My psoriasis is barely under control and I have patches everywhere and my eczema is horrendous. I also can’t use any cleaning or beauty products at all now without having bad reactions to it on my skin. I’m under a dermatologist at the hospital. Tonight I used a soap once just to get a picture of what happens after one use- this photo is after using a baby friendly soap once which contains no chemicals, perfumes etc. And yet my hands are burnt from it. I haven’t used any products before this for 3 weeks so this is the reaction from using the soap once. I can wear gloves etc but that doesn’t help with the psoriasis, eczema and allergies on the rest of my skin

my asthma is awful- I was having multiple attacks during the night and thankfully now after some strong steroidal treatment it’s under control. But that developed so suddenly and worsened very quickly along with the other problems.

has anyone else experienced this? I never had any problems like this in childhood and it all started and worsened out of the blue. Please nobody say it’s definitely diet etc- it might be for some but it’s not for me. I’ve been under a dietician and tried every elimination diet- fodmap, diary free, gluten free, sugar free, vegan/vegetarian, chemical free, you name it we tried it and it was all to no avail. We’ve established it’s not from my diet.

im just feeling so miserable and fed up about it all

Poor you. I cannot imagine how tedious, painful, difficult (insert whichever adjective best fits) that must be to cope with. it must be so difficult to not know what the cause is.

I was going to suggest the AIP (Autoimmune Paleo) diet, which is less about identifying allergies than it is about reducing systemic inflammation. Dr Terry Wahls (M/S sufferer and researcher) is a huge proponent.

I’m so sorry you’re going through this. There’s little worse than a debilitating, life-impacting health condition without any answers.

How old as you now @Irritatedbylife? I ask because I had a similar situation when I was around the same age. It as awful for about 7 years and then everything suddenly improved for no discernible reason. I still do had eczema and psoriasis but tiny patches that are controlled easily and my asthma disappeared completely. My dermatologist said it could be a cyclical thing in increments of 7 years, I thought she was full of shit, but then in the last year or so, (so 21 years after my first bout and then 14 years after it ended) I’ve notice an increase in symptoms again.
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Hello, I suffer with asthma, eczema, hayfever, allergies to dust etc. I am taking Nasonex, a nasal spray that I can buy OTC. I am in Australia so not sure if available where you are. But that has sorted my allergies out.

I've been using Aveeno on my eczema.

Hi OP, I'm going through exactly the same thing as you now though not as severe. My asthma (I've always had it but it was never a problem as an adult until recently) worsening and awful skin irritation/itch/hives/swelling/etc all over my body cropped up at the same time and I highly suspect they are related.

My wife started having insane skin reactions on her face and they did a whole lot of tests for autoimmune disorders. She had indicators for lupus but not enough for a full diagnosis.

Have you had autoimmune bloods done? Skin reactions are most commonly an immune response

Actually I say not as severe as you but my skin flare ups can look pretty horrifying too. Just in a different way – angry textured hives of different shapes and sizes covering all the skin. Swelling of hands/fingers and feet/toes as well. I think yours is still more severe though. Do you also think your respiratory issues and skin issues are linked?

Didn’t want to read and run. I am very sorry you’re going through this. A lifelong excema and asthma sufferer with additional lifelong diseases. Skin related stuff is very hard to live with.

i use dermol to wash with, for dirty jobs I use disposable gloves. Any soap irritates me and shampoo conditioner is another story. I have massive active excema and it’s weepy itchy and horrible. Multiple bouts of AB’s. Just fed up. Have you tried looking at liver cleanse? It’s my next stop. I use surcare for laundry.

Have you checked if you have any hormonal imbalance?

also I heard good things about a lady called Mary Sharma a naturopath in Stroud. She treats many people I know. I’ve had reccomendations a number of times.

OP I had a friend who had severe psoriasis and ultimately they had to go abroad to get hydrocortisone steroid injections which worked wonders.

They wouldn't give them the jabs here.

Something similar happened in my mid-twenties when I became insanely sensitive to things that had been fine before. It seem to follow on from taking the contraceptive pill for a year in the forlorn hope it might improve my acne.

Over time the allergies have quietened down but I can't use soap at all on certain areas. If I use it on my face, my skin just starts to break down after 1 or 2 washes. I use Cetaphil. I avoid baby products at all costs as some of them are heavily preserved and/or fragranced. To clean off makeup I use microfibre cloths wrung out in warm/hot water. I keep makeup to a minimum, all unfragranced, and would never use additional steps like primers. I try to keep a fairly chemical free household - we'd never spray fragrances or flyspray, or use scented toilet paper etc.

I hope that helps.

I can't imagine how painful and upsetting this condition must be for you to handle on a daily basis.

You have a microbiome and gut problem. Search lion diet for someone else with similar symptoms and how she is okay now.

I think getting to the root cause is the best way to improve symptoms.

Looks like contact dermatitis. Occasionally work colleagues get it from the cheap soap at work and it looks exactly like your hand

hope your feeling better soon. Hugs from across the pond

I'm so sorry, looks so so painful x

Yes, I have a diagnosis of MCAS ( Mast Cell Activation Syndrome) which responds reasonably well to treatment for the mostpart but sometimes I end up in a state regardless if I don't avoid certain things entirely but I can relate to this.

I have a separate genetic condition - Ehlers Danlos, and apparently whilst MCAS is not common it does disproportionately affect Ehlers Danlos sufferers.

No idea if either condition would resonate with your own experiences OP but thought I would mention MCAS as it is not that well known and the NHS in my experience has limited experience of it.

You need to be assessed for biological. Your asthma specialist will let you know if you are suitable. Your skin conditions and your asthma are linked and your dermatologist needs to work in conjunction with your asthma consultant

Yes i was about to also suggest you look into Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS). Just like the poster above me, I have this along with Ehler Danlos Syndrome and better yet this has given me a rare gut issue called Cyclic(al) Vomiting Syndrome which has also given me Gastroparesis.

The worst part is, every condition i just mentioned is all linked with one another and the severity can be different for each person.. for me my Gut interaction is really severe while my Allergies were not as bad as i was on Lifelong Antihistamines however since getting pregnant almost 5 months ago, i had to stop my antihistamines (well i didnt have to but i wanted to try and manage for the baby) and as a result my MCAS is through the roof!

I cant use much on my skin now without a reaction and i have a really strong dose topical steroid i use to bring down the hives that can randomly appear but stay forever! Every deodorant i react to so i have gone without, even soaps with practically nothing in it, give me hives and the same for most creams! Im yet to find a shampoo and conditioner i can use, but i just bought some bars of 100% olive oil soap im waiting to try to see how i respond to that.

one MCAS sufferer recommended i see Professor Suranjith Seneviratne at The Manor Hospital, Headington, Oxford. He is meant to be really good with these things and while im not near Oxford, after my pregnancy i will reach out to him to see if he can help me out.. maybe he can be of some help to you also?

Yes I have occasionally had the bright red hands (and usually face and blotchy neck to match) - for me it's a histamine reaction, itches like mad and feels very hot. Bloody nuisance thing, also get dizziness, louder tinnitus, just generally feeling dreadful.

Please make sure you aren't using any kind of biological detergent to wash your clothes. I get horrible reactions to those, skin rashes.

My daughters best friend suddenly (in her late 20's) has developed huge allergies to a lot of random things to the point where she has to carry several epipens.

Her consultant thought he had nailed it down and then she had a massive allergic reaction to something not usually classed as an allergen (foodwise), then another to pollen but it was a life threatening reaction.

It is being fast tracked as right now she can eat or touch or use something today, and tomorrow it might kill her. This has happened about once every 2 weeks over the last three months, once was abroad on holiday with DD )booked after her consultant agreed she could as they thought they had sorted out her allergen) and she would have died but her and DD are ODP's and luckily DD knew what to do re the epipen. I suggest you need to push HARD on this.

Just poor you really. Sounds very tough. I guess the first thing is, it’s still relatively new for you so stay as strong as you can, in a ‘marathon’ not a sprint way. I know that is easy for me to say, but you sound like you are doing quite a bit to be on top of it, getting control of your asthma sounds really good. Praise yourself. You’ve already eliminated a lot of things also.

I have had minor things like this, not as severe. Eczema sparked off by being pregnant. Chronic scaling of the skin on my face that I need to keep moisturised with very good moisurisers, well for years really. Recently I found out I have severely low Vitamin D and low B12, so check these out (not routinely done on a bloody test). It didn’t solve everything but my skin was a lot better from Vit D.

But my son has quite a few skin and asthma type complaints, gastric complains, and also quite bad Tourette’s. No one seems to know why but they all seem to be related. What I’ve done is try to make sure optimal health, getting his bloods taken, (which showed quite a bit of activated immune systems), being on top of infections, steroids if needed for bad chest or congestion, not exposing him to colds if we can, (living life though), just all the basics. It’s helping, again not a cure but not letting it all overwhelm.

oh im so sorry/that looks so so sore.
you need to keep following up.
have they looked into lupus.
or immune disorders.
just keep pushing for help.
at the moment especailly sadly people are doing the bare minimum often in the health service. because of how stretched they are. so you need to stand up loud and be heard again and again.be a nuicanse until they hear and help.
this looks bad enough to me to need some serious help. as in hospital and consultant to review and do more wider test.

You need to be assessed for monoclonal antibody treatment- the ‘biologics’ referred to upthread. Can you call the Asthma and Lung UK helpline? The nurses there are fab and can walk you through the process

So sorry, Op. I developed a horrible reaction to the hand gels we had to use in the shops during the Covid pandemic. Burnt hands, almost full thickness peeling of skin and weeping cracks. I have no idea what is causing your problems, you poor soul, but I concocted an oil which greatly soothed my discomfort: Vitamin E oil mixed with a few drops of Lavender oil. Instant relief. You might like to try it on a small area and if it helps then use it until Drs come up with something. It has helped.friends with allergic reactions and also one with badly cracked heels.
Hope your situation improves soon.

As someone with psoriasis i just wanted to offer a little sympathy. Mine is nowhere near as bad as yours but I do know a tiny bit of the misery skin conditions can cause. You poor thing. It looks really sore. I do hope you can find an answer op

Yes!! Years ago I developed a chemical sensitivity. I was working in an industrial area at the time and one day I woke up and found I had an allergic reaction to my clearasil face wash that I had been using for years. It wasn’t just a rash, my face went puffy and it was difficult seeing out of my eyes. I tried the clearasil again and the same thing happened - so I know it was the clearasil that set it off.

My sister suggested that my health issues were due to mould in the house. I was the only person who would clean the bathroom and I scrubbed black mould with bleach. The house wasn’t safe (the mould issue was too extensive) and has since been demolished.

Do you have mould in your house??

My daughter has this problem too. She uses Omega 3 in a massive dose, 5,000 mg a day she took at first. Now takes 3,000. She quit steroids. It made it much worse for a while, then it started to clear up. I think sometimes the steroids make it worse
The photo shows how it was at times.