My Story, the same but different

Introduce yourself and share your personal hyperhidrosis related experiences.
Post Reply
bbmccoy
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Jan 18, 2016 9:46 am

My Story, the same but different

Post by bbmccoy »

Hi All -

28 y/o Male. I have had palmar and plantar hyperhidrosis since I was 10 years old (or so). Over the years, I have also developed axillary and facial (specifically above the lip) hyperhidrosis, but they are not very severe, just a further annoyance at times. Others in my family have plantar and facial hyperhidrosis, but I am the lucky one who was stuck with palmar, which has plagued me since I was young.

Before I get started, I want everyone to know that regardless of your condition, success and happiness are achievable. I have done quite well for myself and I attribute it to a "tough" mentality. With that said, life is hard and cruel at times. This condition exacerbates the highs and lows and I know how low it can feel at times.

Treatments:

Drysol for Hands - This worked slightly for me. The key here is to apply it at night when your hands are dry, so that you get a dried, chalky feel to your hands. As many of you know, it is hard to achieve this because our hands are constantly wet. A trick I used was to apply Drysol on days when I used Robinul, i.e. when your hands are dry. Over time, Drysol did not work for me. The impact was minimal, it led to rashes and kept me up at night when I had an abrasion on my hands.

Drysol for Armpits - It works better for armpits. Again, apply it when the area is dry. I have had some success here, but have stopped using it. It can burn and keep you up at night at times.

Robinul (Glycopyrrolate) - It works (sort of). I would set my alarm for 4:30 AM, take 2MG and then wake up and have a coffee and toast. It will dry you up if you take it properly on an empty stomach like many have described. 1 MG was enough to dry armpits (lesser side-effects). 2 MG was enough to dry up all areas, although my fingers remained cold/clammy. The issue is long term use of this is pretty rough. I wear daily contacts and any time I take Robinul I have to remove them mid-day and wear my glasses because my eyes are so dry. My mouth got very dry as well, which was quite annoying. For those of you dealing with the dry mouth, both of these can help https://www.therabreath.com/ and https://www.biotene.com/dry-mouth-products/mouthwash/. The therabreath lozenges can at least be kept in your pocket. Also, I am not sure if Robinul has caused it, but I have noticed over time my memory is not as sharp as it used to be. I don't know if it is due to this or other medication, or stress, but I try not to use this all the time.
*Along with the empty stomach rule, try experimenting with the first meal you eat at breakfast. Personally, Robinul works best on a light, carb breakfast like toast, waffles, oatmeal and is less effective when I would eat a heartier breakfast like eggs, meats, dairy.

Botox for Hands - It works. I have had success with this, I'd say I have done this almost 10 times. However as many of you know, it is a grind to continue treatments every 3-4 months, which was roughly the duration of relief I would get from this. If your insurance doesn't cover it, the cost can add up as well. The biggest issue I had every time I would get it, is the doctor missing small areas. The dermatologists I have used were always kind enough to "touch up" the missed spots, but I would always end up with a tiny area that would still sweat. I also noticed that the fingers still sweat slightly.

Iontophoresis for Hands - This works too, although it is spotty for me. I have tried this in several different states, and therefore different water-types (I have moved over the past few years) and get varied results from using it. To achieve initial dryness, I needed 8-10 sessions daily using the RA-Fischer MD2 device. Once it was dry, I would follow up once per week. Unfortunately, It does not stay completely dry, and having cuts or irritation can make it impossible to keep up with. It was also much more effective for the palms, but did not work at all for my fingers. I would do 20 minute sessions at 15 ma for the whole hand and then follow up with an extra 10 mins at 5 ma for the fingertips. Currently, when I try to use this, the very center of my palms get so irritated/itchy that I can't sleep at night.
*When I had cuts, covering with vaseline would help. If the inside of your fingernails burned badly, you can cover with vaseline also.
*I always found it most effective to use the least amount of water possible. Perhaps, it creates a stronger electric current, since there is less water.

Iontophoresis for Feet - I did this twice and had terrible results. I actually started sweating more from my feet and never tried it again. Plantar hyperhidrosis is annoying, but does not bother me as much as palmar.

Xanax - I am prescribed Xanax, which helps during stressful situations that bring on my hyperhidrosis. We all know those stressful situations (meetings, presentations, gatherings) that increase sweating because we are self-conscious about sweat, which further increases the sweat. Xanax will help avoid that and will keep you calm. It will not directly reduce sweating like an anti-cholinergic like Robinul. I don't know if this has contributed to my slightly impaired memory, so I try not to take it often. If you are going to a social event don't over-do it with alcohol if you take any anti-anxiety meds.

Sage Tea - Didn't work for me. I drank 2 cups for two weeks straight and it didn't do anything.

Tyrosine, specifically N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine - This helps release dopamine, which helps with mood and happiness. I take 350MG most days in the morning on an empty stomach with Coffee. For those of you that have caffeine or stimulant sensitivity, skip this one. It makes you feel slightly wired, but more "happy" on those days that you are feeling down about your condition. I like it however because it doesn't increase my sweating like other stimulant-type supplements.

I do think my hyperhidrosis is a little different than others, and would like to know if anyone can relate to either of these observations:

1. Seasons. Living in NY with 4 seasons, I noticed that my palmar hyperhidrosis was always worst in the Winter!! I know this is not the case for most, but I attribute it to be feeling so "uncomfortable" due to the cold. My hands are coldest/most sweaty in the winter and my armpits would be sweatiest (perhaps because of the layers). During the summer months, I am drier. I know the admin wrote that being at the beach would reduce sweating, and it is the same phenomenon for me. I am happier, drier in warmer months.

2. Coldness of hands. I remember when I was very young, my hands would be very warm and wet (would drip). Now, I would describe them as more clammy, but always cold, specifically the fingers/finger tips/outside of fingers. I'm hesitant to call this a circulation issue (i.e. Raynauds) because I believe the moist surface area make the fingers cold. Does anyone else with hyperhidrosis deal with very cold hands/fingers?

3. Indoor/Outdoor - I notice that I sweat more when I am inside. Maybe it is again a happiness thing. It can be hot outside and I am dry, but in an air conditioned officer, my hands are most sweaty.

Lastly, I am considering ETS. I have an appointment with a well-known Thoracic surgeon in 3 weeks. Clearly, I have tried just about every treatment available, and at times they have been successful in treating my hyperhidrosis. It is a grind however, and I am starting to think that long term use of medication might actually be more harmful than altering my CNS to fix my palm sweat. The ups and downs of the seasons, and differences in my sweat output and happiness might stem from seasonal effectiveness disorder, anxiety/depression. Perhaps a year round dryness of the hands will help with that. I do believe hyperhidrosis precedes the psychological issues many of us face.

Feel free to ask questions on any of my treatment experiences. I will check on this regularly. Also, if anyone can relate to any of my three observations, I would really love to hear about it. Maybe I will find that they are not specific to me after all.

Keep fighting.
K

sinx
Posts: 19
Joined: Sun Nov 22, 2015 4:28 pm

Re: My Story, the same but different

Post by sinx »

Hi,
I'm taking robinul 2mg for almost 1 week now,so far i'm having a good result on it,but i'm having sore throat as an side effect,do u know some remidies or medicine that will help to cure sore throat?

Thank u

bbmccoy
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Jan 18, 2016 9:46 am

Re: My Story, the same but different

Post by bbmccoy »

Hi Sinx,
A sore throat is common due to the dried mouth/throat as a side effect of the medication. Try gargling a saline rinse.

Also, hot tea with honey will help soothe the dry throat, along with throat lozenges. I like halls lozenges, but the therabreath ones (link in original post) have a medicine specifically for dry mouth. I hope that helps.

K

Post Reply