HH4lyfe
New member
First time poster here, long time sufferer of HH, haha.
There is a TLDR version at the bottom.
I have HH in my hands, feet, underarms, lower back, and buttox area.
Growing up through high school was absolutely awful for me. Always had to make excuses to not shake hands, never had the confidence to hold a girls hand, tests and homework was always wrinkled and warped, the instrument i played was always wet, the list goes on and on. Actually the problems were just as bad in middle school, but they really started having an effect on my social life.
The worst part in high school was the underarm sweat. I had pools of moisture the size of my head under my arms at all times. Created some really bad confidence issues for me. One day i finally begged my mom enough to take me to the doctor. By Dr. prescribed me Drysol. First night of using that stuff i didn't sleep. My underarms burned, itched, and hurt so badly the pain was unbearable. Far be it from me to go and wash it off though, i didn't care if it burnt a hole strait through my skin, if the doctor said this stuff would work, i was doing it. Slowly but surely, it started working! And after about 2 weeks, i was completely dry under my arms.
The problem at that point was that the sweating increased considerably in my hands and feet after that. My doctor told me that the drysol should work on my hands as well. So after doing that every night for 2 weeks and getting zero result i gave up. My underarms were dry, good enough for me. Right? ...
In college my palmer HH started wrecking my life and future. I wanted to work in IT so i got a job doing help desk support (which later lead to an internship) The problem with working in IT is you have to go to other peoples desks and work on their computers...touch THEIR mouse and keyboard with MY hands. I would leave their keyboard and mouse pad completely soaked. I loved the job, but could not handle going to some one else's computer to work on it. That was my favorite part too.
So, i started looking for more options. I learned that a simple pill (glycopyrolate) has helped many individuals with HH. So i go to my doctor again and literally BEG him to write me a prescription so i could try this stuff. He said he normally doesn't prescribe it due to the side effects, but he would let me try it. So i took the first pill in the morning and oh boy did that mess me up. It was like being drunk plus the inability to focus on anything. But like the Drysol, i stuck with it.
I was amazed at how much the small 1mg pill helped my extra sweating in my lower back, and buttox area. It didn't eliminate it, but helped substantially. The side effects eventually went away, and i take it every day now. I can REALLY tell when i forget to take it, the difference is huge. HOWEVER, it did very little to help my hands out. The water was still pouring like niagra falls from there.
So i was looking for other solutions. Well, as luck would have it, a very close friend of mine, one of the few that knew of my condition, her mom also had HH. So i wen't and talked to her about it. She had a set of drionic units. She said she hadn't used them in years because they didn't work for her, but she gave them to me to try out. Damn these things were a pain in the butt. Soak the pads, pour water in the basins, turn on, sit for 30 minutes, pour out water, rinse pads, wring pads, wipe of metal parts, open units to let dry. All in all an entire drionic session would take about 45-50 minutes.
But again, i stuck with it. I did 2 sessions a day for 5 days. After those 5 days, i wen't to work, and the very tips of my fingers were COMPLETELY DRY. I could not sweat from them at ALL! I was all smiles. 2 days later my hands were sweat free! I had never felt so fantastic in my entire life.
The problem was that the drionic unit started to rust, the pads started to mold, and you had to replace the 9v batteries every 6th session or so. Plus it took FOREVER. So i got my insurance to cover a Fisher MD-1a (however im still waiting for the refund check). That was the best 700$ i ever spent. The Drionic only did the palm of your hand, and didn't cover the very middle. The Fisher submerges your hand and runs the current all over it. It is twice as effective in half the time. A 25 minute session is all i had to do with that. Granted the thing hurts a hell of a lot more, but if you are a HH sufferer, i think most of us would happily cut off our ring finger with a spoon than suffer from HH. So the pain is...well it gets better the more you use it, but it still works, so i don't care. Haha.
TLDR VERSION
So my solution...
-Daily - 1mg pill glycopyrolate when i wake up
-Every other day - Drysol on underarms at night
-Once or Twice a week - Fisher session.
I don't care about my feet because i can just wear socks and shoes.
So here i am, about to graduate college, confident about my career, and interactions with co workers, peers, and friends. Correcting this problem feels like an enormous weight has been lifted off of me and i hate the fact i had to deal with this for the time i did.
I have been through the depression, nights of crying, and endless hours of research many of you have been through. I've seen all of it, been there, i feel all of your pain. If any one has any questions feel free to ask. I just encourage all of you to not give up, there are solutions out there, and for me, it was just a matter of finding the right combination.
There is a TLDR version at the bottom.
I have HH in my hands, feet, underarms, lower back, and buttox area.
Growing up through high school was absolutely awful for me. Always had to make excuses to not shake hands, never had the confidence to hold a girls hand, tests and homework was always wrinkled and warped, the instrument i played was always wet, the list goes on and on. Actually the problems were just as bad in middle school, but they really started having an effect on my social life.
The worst part in high school was the underarm sweat. I had pools of moisture the size of my head under my arms at all times. Created some really bad confidence issues for me. One day i finally begged my mom enough to take me to the doctor. By Dr. prescribed me Drysol. First night of using that stuff i didn't sleep. My underarms burned, itched, and hurt so badly the pain was unbearable. Far be it from me to go and wash it off though, i didn't care if it burnt a hole strait through my skin, if the doctor said this stuff would work, i was doing it. Slowly but surely, it started working! And after about 2 weeks, i was completely dry under my arms.
The problem at that point was that the sweating increased considerably in my hands and feet after that. My doctor told me that the drysol should work on my hands as well. So after doing that every night for 2 weeks and getting zero result i gave up. My underarms were dry, good enough for me. Right? ...
In college my palmer HH started wrecking my life and future. I wanted to work in IT so i got a job doing help desk support (which later lead to an internship) The problem with working in IT is you have to go to other peoples desks and work on their computers...touch THEIR mouse and keyboard with MY hands. I would leave their keyboard and mouse pad completely soaked. I loved the job, but could not handle going to some one else's computer to work on it. That was my favorite part too.
So, i started looking for more options. I learned that a simple pill (glycopyrolate) has helped many individuals with HH. So i go to my doctor again and literally BEG him to write me a prescription so i could try this stuff. He said he normally doesn't prescribe it due to the side effects, but he would let me try it. So i took the first pill in the morning and oh boy did that mess me up. It was like being drunk plus the inability to focus on anything. But like the Drysol, i stuck with it.
I was amazed at how much the small 1mg pill helped my extra sweating in my lower back, and buttox area. It didn't eliminate it, but helped substantially. The side effects eventually went away, and i take it every day now. I can REALLY tell when i forget to take it, the difference is huge. HOWEVER, it did very little to help my hands out. The water was still pouring like niagra falls from there.
So i was looking for other solutions. Well, as luck would have it, a very close friend of mine, one of the few that knew of my condition, her mom also had HH. So i wen't and talked to her about it. She had a set of drionic units. She said she hadn't used them in years because they didn't work for her, but she gave them to me to try out. Damn these things were a pain in the butt. Soak the pads, pour water in the basins, turn on, sit for 30 minutes, pour out water, rinse pads, wring pads, wipe of metal parts, open units to let dry. All in all an entire drionic session would take about 45-50 minutes.
But again, i stuck with it. I did 2 sessions a day for 5 days. After those 5 days, i wen't to work, and the very tips of my fingers were COMPLETELY DRY. I could not sweat from them at ALL! I was all smiles. 2 days later my hands were sweat free! I had never felt so fantastic in my entire life.
The problem was that the drionic unit started to rust, the pads started to mold, and you had to replace the 9v batteries every 6th session or so. Plus it took FOREVER. So i got my insurance to cover a Fisher MD-1a (however im still waiting for the refund check). That was the best 700$ i ever spent. The Drionic only did the palm of your hand, and didn't cover the very middle. The Fisher submerges your hand and runs the current all over it. It is twice as effective in half the time. A 25 minute session is all i had to do with that. Granted the thing hurts a hell of a lot more, but if you are a HH sufferer, i think most of us would happily cut off our ring finger with a spoon than suffer from HH. So the pain is...well it gets better the more you use it, but it still works, so i don't care. Haha.
TLDR VERSION
So my solution...
-Daily - 1mg pill glycopyrolate when i wake up
-Every other day - Drysol on underarms at night
-Once or Twice a week - Fisher session.
I don't care about my feet because i can just wear socks and shoes.
So here i am, about to graduate college, confident about my career, and interactions with co workers, peers, and friends. Correcting this problem feels like an enormous weight has been lifted off of me and i hate the fact i had to deal with this for the time i did.
I have been through the depression, nights of crying, and endless hours of research many of you have been through. I've seen all of it, been there, i feel all of your pain. If any one has any questions feel free to ask. I just encourage all of you to not give up, there are solutions out there, and for me, it was just a matter of finding the right combination.
