facial/all over hh

I have facial hh really bad and the rest of me has it too but its not so severe....but i don't sweat under my arms which is weird.

my face also goes really red which makes it even more embarassing

Ditropan works for the average day, getting ready for work, showering, rushing around about etc...it makes a world of difference to me. But as soon as it is hot i get dehydrated, really red in the face, hands swell etc so when i need it most that is when the side effects are worse.

it's hard to hide it on your face, and people make comments. I feel it has ruined my life. I'm in my 30's and use to be slim and fit, but during my teenage years it appeared and i stopped moving to lessen the sweat, and stopped being generally active like going shopping with friends etc, anything that might bring it on, and gradually put on the weight till the point that i'm very unfit...and i'm sure this must make it worse.

Does general fitness help much or is it just futile?

thanks guys and gals

Hi Aimeee - That's a tough question. My HH is triggered by 2 things....heat and anxiety. When I am exercising on a regular basis and in pretty good shape it reduces my anxiety level. I feel better about myself when out in public so the extra self esteem definitely helps with my HH. In the past when I've put on weight I feel like I sweat more but I could just be nervous. If I had to guess I'd say being fit would help with HH because your body is not carrying the burden of extra pounds. Skinny or plump my HH is horrific without my Glyco. I struggle with the side effects too but for me the trade off is worth it. Anyway, try not to let HH keep you from getting back in shape. Exercise is the best thing to help with the stress and depression that we all go through.

I can certainly relate to the weight thing, I have gone from being around 9 stone when I was 17 to around 14 stone now aged 27, I am not fat as such (I'm 6ft+) just bigger everwhere (well almost everywhere) and I am fairly sure this is a result of me cutting out daily light exercise such as walkiing round town etc etc. I have just started with the Glyco and it does help and allow me to get out and about without dripping but I don't want to be on in 24/7 as the side effects are a bit of a struggle (I need about 6-8mg per day to be dry).

Anyway, in answer to your question!... I don't think my sweating is made much worse since being bigger but I should add that I am still in reasonable shape, run a few times a week and play football.

With the anxiety, regular excersise is a must, I split up with a long term partner a year or so ago and and basically turned into forest gump for a few months, running and running and running and I genuinely believe its all that got me through!

Good luck.

thanks for your replies. It's a real "catch 22" situation really. I avoid moving to avoid sweat and embarassment but it just causes more sweat and embarassment in the long run.

What is glyco?

i feel like it has completely changed my lifes course. from being sporty, energetic, full of life and confidence as a kid i am now moody, sullen, hiding from life and scared. all the things i want to do or have done have been tainted by this damn THING that i have. I didn't even know it had a name until i turned 30 because i was to ashamed to talk about it to anyone. Then i self diagnosed after seeing a magazine article.

Every situation i've ever been in has been dwarfed by hh. Every memory i have revolves around how much i sweated, every plan i have revolves around how much i might sweat and how/if i can avoid it.

As a woman the emotional effect is traumatic. It is not lady like to sweat, especially on your face.

I've never told anybody, not even family, i just say i'm really really hot, but for some reason feel ashamed that i have a "sweating" disorder.

Does anxiety bring it on, or does it bring on anxiety? i can't tell.

i think it's also changed who i am. i am jealous when i see someone walking in the heat and not sweating or red. I am jealous when i see people at the Big Day Out in 40 degree heat and they still look good, i get jealous when people dance in nightclubs while i stand in a corner hoping no one can see my face.

I am healthy even though i am now overweight. But i have this thing that will not hurt me physically but emotionally it has controlled me from my teen years. I really feel for everyone who suffers from this but admire you all for having the guts to get through the daily struggle that is hh.

cheers

another thing. The article i read in a magazine was about a girl who had to shower several times a day her hh was so bad. She went to a detox retreat and at the end of it she was supposedly cured. It was apparently on a show called embarassing illness' or somthing like that. I was so excited i was considering flying overseas to pay for this expensive treatment but it is probably just a load of BS.

Has anyone had any luck with detoxing or these types of retreats?

"What is glyco?"

Glycopyrrolate is another med which helps many of us with HH. The brand name is Avert in Canada, and Robinul is another brand name elsewhere.

I have no idea if it would work better for you than Ditropan, but it's been a big help for me and several others on this forum.

I still get some head wetness if it's very hot and humid, and my face can be red for a while after exercising, but it's so much better than it used to be.

I'm sorry that you seem so down. HH sure can be frustrating and depressing. But you can find lots of support on this forum Hang in there!

Hey aimeee im no expert with facial HH since my main area of sweating are my feet, but i can definitely tell you that intense exercise for a long period of time helps decrease sweating. How? I think it's because working out eases my anxiety and increase self esteem which helps limit how much i sweat from HH and you sweat A LOT throughout your whole body and maybe empty your sweat tank lol? Cuz i noticed when i lift weights and run i sweat everywhere except my feet... kinda like its relocating all the sweat to my upperbody. For weight, i don't think its a factor for how mild-sever your HH is, cuz i'm fairly average weight and still have HH.

For the anxiety part, i can tell you that it goes both ways. First, you can already be sweating and start to slowly build up anxiety because your sweating and you'll start to sweat more. Second, you can be completely dry or fairly drier then normal but worry that it's gonna start or if your unsure if your dry and start to build up anxiety and trigger the sweating. HH + Anxiety = A Big ? if you ask me .

You can also try glyco. which seems to work for a good number of people. I've tried avert which is the canadian brand and it worked but it dried out my eyes and throat that i couldnt take it anymore. So read up on some of the more usual side effects and if your willing to try it, then try out a trial sized bottle and see how you like it. Also, for the most part, glyco is safe to use.


To sum everything up. HH is affected by MOOD. Atleast thats my opinion :/

You should exercise as much as you can. It's the one time when it's perfectly normal to sweat =)

If you're really fat, then you will sweat a little more, but also remember that if you lift weights, you will generally sweat more throughout the day b/c your body is working harder to circulate blood to repair your muscles

idk if someone else said this already cuz i didnt read all the posts but being fit can do nothing but help out your situation. i myself am extremely fit, i hit the gym everyday, and love it. i also suffer from extremely bad all over HH. It is ruining my life. But working out and being more in shape than the majority of the population can certainly help with self esteem. Because i am in such good shape and still have uncontrollably awful HH, one may want to conclude that weight has no effect on HH. But carrying around extra pounds will cause your body to work even harder on a daily basis just to move around, which will lead to quicker and worsened outbreaks of sweating. and again, being fit can have a HUGE impact on your psychological state (confidence-wise). it truly is great. and even the least bit of added confidence is a plus and could help u out more than u would think. And also i kind of look at it like this....put yourself on a scale of 1-10...lets say your looks are an 9 alone...but then factor in HH which brings you down to a 6...then factor in that you have a few extra pounds which brings you down a couple more notches and leaves you at an overall 4. If you were to be fit, then rather than subtracting the points you add them which would put you back around 8. Idk if this made sense but i think of it like this sometimes. and not to mention no matter what lifestyle your HH causes you to live, it will be a healthier one and in the long run, more enjoyable and satisfying. so as i said before, being fit can do nothing but help you. hope i helped you out some

Hi Aimee,

Not sure where you live, but if UK then take a look at Hyperhidrosis Support Group or if USA then Very Sweaty Betty Lots of things you can try, and lots of support on both. Also facebook pages for both of those.

Regards

Steve

anyone else click this link expecting something completely different? sorry I'm a 19 year old boy... I can't help it, it's biological

Luna1740 said:

anyone else click this link expecting something completely different? sorry I'm a 19 year old boy... I can't help it, it's biological

Click to expand...

I assume you mean sweaty betty, and as a porn reference. Then yes. I too thought it was porn related.

Sorry to disapoint you then lads! Anne who founded Very Sweaty Betty has done a couple of tv documentaries about HH, and fights to raise awareness in the states, and Hyperhidrosis Support Group are fighting to raise awareness in the UK.

aimeee said:

I have facial hh really bad and the rest of me has it too but its not so severe....but i don't sweat under my arms which is weird.

my face also goes really red which makes it even more embarassing

Ditropan works for the average day, getting ready for work, showering, rushing around about etc...it makes a world of difference to me. But as soon as it is hot i get dehydrated, really red in the face, hands swell etc so when i need it most that is when the side effects are worse.

it's hard to hide it on your face, and people make comments. I feel it has ruined my life. I'm in my 30's and use to be slim and fit, but during my teenage years it appeared and i stopped moving to lessen the sweat, and stopped being generally active like going shopping with friends etc, anything that might bring it on, and gradually put on the weight till the point that i'm very unfit...and i'm sure this must make it worse.

Does general fitness help much or is it just futile?

thanks guys and gals

Click to expand...

Fitness always help. Lighter, slimmer will always be better. Keep in mind it depends what reason of normality is your sweating coming from. If you had to pump your heart through a good 5-10 min of intense running, of course you will sweat !

But if your sweating out of the blue because of a slight discomfort or trigger and it bothers you, then you might really need to look into it.

I have been dealing with hyperhidrosis of my face and hair. When I went to see my doctor, they just thought it was anxiety and gave me prescriptions for depression/anxiety. This worked at first and then the facial sweating just came back. The one drug that I have tried that works great, but my doctor did not want to prescribe it for long-term use, and here I am back to the same old sweating every day! I only recently found out that it is hyperhidrosis that I have and not anxiety. My face also becomes red.

HOW EMBARRASSING!!! ::