Should I go for ETS surgery?

[Rexus]

I sweat from my palms, underarms, feet, and face the most. I have facial blushing as well. I do have to say I sweat all over as well. So my question is, if I sweat from all these places, does that mean I'm a bad candidate for the surgery? I feel so f'd up I can't take this anymore.

 

[JturfSweats]

Rexus,

Hang in there! I don't know if you've looked into everything for help. Or if you've tried everything else. If so you might be a good candidate. I haven't personally talked to anyone that has had the surgery. I would just be reluctant to have anything increase the amount of sweating. I understand that you sweat all over, but I just wouldn't want it to increase in the areas that you already have it. My symptoms are bad enough that it frustrates me too. Some days it really really pisses me off.

Try to keep your options open and don't give up.

Good Luck!

 

[Rexus]

I did try everything! The latest was iontophoresis but that stopped working. Thanks for your friendly post. I feel very down atm.

 

[ultrafrost]

I did try everything! The latest was iontophoresis but that stopped working. Thanks for your friendly post. I feel very down atm.

hey, Rexus
i don't recommend ETS surgery. no one knows its results, maybe your problem would be gone, maybe your life would be ruined.
I think iontophoresis should work, you may change your water because the effectiveness of iontophoresis is closely ralated to the water quality.
you know, our climate is changing so frequently due to the global warming, maybe the water in your area is seasonly different from before.

I also did my iontophoresis treatment. it works 85% on my palms, it feels much more better than wet hands!

 

[Rexus]

I am really researching ets, and although we see plenty of dissatisfied people, I am very sure there are plenty of satisfied people, especially those who don't come to post about it on the internet. I tried out everything and this is my final choice. This will make or break my life. I'm gonna see as many doctors as I can in the following week and read as much as I can about the procedure. I would love it if learned members could also give me knowledge into the subject. Very much appreciated,

a currently very suicidal individual

 

[JturfSweats]

Rexus-
If you are at that point, Surgery may be the next best thing for you. I would encourage you to seek help from as many people as you can at this point. Yes, you have a condition and so do I, It does suck, but life is valuable and there are people that love you and care for you and are willing to help you. It sounds like you haven't found the right ones. I don't know where you are located but you might try getting in touch with the people at the International Hyperhidrosis Society, they might be able to put you into contact with people that can help in all of your situations. Don't give up!

 

[Rexus]

So I talked to a couple of people here who have done it, one a bank worker (female), another an engineer (male). The female had it for 6 years. Not sure about the male. The female had the procedure done for her palms, and she experiences compensatory sweating on her stomach. She told me, "I highly encourage you to do it! Life is so much better now". As for the engineer, he experienced compensatory sweating for 6 months then it disappeared.

So, the main point here is that there are satisfied people out there that don't go on the internet to talk about it, so I might have a high chance of ETS working for me. I really hope it does. I got 2 appointments booked so far, and I have two others I'm trying to contact (one is in surgery so he turns off his phone). I will try to see from their experience if they can tell if I'm good or a bad candidate. If I ever go on with it, you'll hear monthly updates from me, especially after the honeymoon phase a lot talk about.

 

[grimaldi]

I am exactly in your position. I have spent countless - and I mean countless - hours of researching ETS due to my generalized sweating, nervous sweating, blushing, trembling, palpitation and regular feeling of anxiety when among people. I have also spent countless hours and thousands of dollars on hospitals, acupuncture, all kinds of remedies.

I know how much this **** gets us down. I know how crap it is, never to trust your own body, always worrying, give up things like dating and parties, job and education. To this day I am still tempted to go through with the surgery but I have not - and I will tell you why.

Being a generalized sweater, the operation will mess our bodies up even more. i don't know about your state now, but I will sweat from chest/back easy when nervous or when in hot weather. When mutilating the Sympathetic Nervous System, it is unavoidable with reflex sweating. For people that didn't suffer from heavy body sweating before, that can be a good trade, but sometimes even for them, reflex sweating will be unbearable.

The mechanism of reflex sweating is believed to be: You get hot/nervous --> Your nerves send signals to your body to sweat or to "defend" (flight or fight response) --> You will not be able to sweat or you will sweat less on the upper third of your body --> You get drenched everywhere else.

The mechanism works as such, if you are nervous, the signals will be "kept" in the lower third of your body (depending what level you cut) and instead try to "get out" there. People with severe reflex sweating are still handicapped because they will sweat even more than before when nervous.

And we my friend, are in the risk zone of being there.

Even doctors Telaranta and Lin - described as greedy by many - say that they can not avoid reflex sweating in my case. And maybe not in your either. Certainly not if you cut/clamp T2.

You have to understand in the end that even if you talk to other people, it is no guarantee that you will be as happy as them. Or as sad as them. It is all down to individuals, everyone will react different on the operation - and we have the odds against us.

Every night when I sleep, every day when I eat, every morning when I wake up I curse this state - it consumes me. But still I refrain from the operation.

Because when it's done there is no turning back.

 

[Rexus]

ok let's consider this

we are already generalized sweaters

would u want to be dry from top and sweat from below, even if to drenching level (my armpits already drench my clothes and so does my sweating when I'm lots nervous sometimes)

from my research, I realized that you get much less anxiety after the procedure, and you mostly sweat buckets under hot temperatures. So for us, people with anxiety problems, psychological troubles, hyperhidrosis, etc., wouldn't the surgery be a good option for us, especially since I heard it was used to cure SOCIAL PHOBIA

Just my 2 cents. I'm gonna update with what the doctors tell me

 

[cure]

I'm on another forum and the last two people to get ETS there regret it. They did it for blushing and their blushing has returned after some time. Now they blush AND sweat. I believe one of them even got Horner's syndrome.

ETS is Russian roulette.

 

[grimaldi]

You are of course free to draw your own conclusions. But no, I would like to be dry at the top third and drenched on the two bottom thirds.

You might get less anxiety if you make a large cut, i.e. T2-T3 or even T2-T4. But the anxiety will most likely take your lust of living with it.

I am not against you, neither am I against ETS as a procedure, as long as the patient really know everything about potential side effects.

But for myself - I will try to have patience because there are so much money to earn for doctors in this field so there must be something new coming soon.

In the meantime, I live on half pace, trying to find things to pleasure - exercise, work, movies, music, there is much. The times when I fell worse is when thinking about it.

 

[grimaldi]

There is something new coming - I've heard about magnets and chemicals. Until then - eat healthy and stay sound.

 

[Rexus]

I will do as much search on the subject, and if I feel that I will end up with horrible compensatory sweating, I'm not gonna go for it, in hopes, like you said, some miracle cure will be invented for us one day.

 

[Rexus]

There is something new coming - I've heard about magnets and chemicals. Until then - eat healthy and stay sound.

Seriously? What is that? *hopes

 

[grimaldi]

If you PM me your email i can send you some mails, but i'll do it tomorrow since it's 3 a.m. where i live now..

Night!

 

[claus78]

I had this surgery almost one month ago for facial sweating and I am now very happy. I used to start sweating in my face when I was nervous or in a hot room and then I soaked my face and my shirts. I had generalized hyperhidrosis except my armpits, hands and feet, but head, chest and back in situations I told. My life was llike a crap until got ETS.

Surgeon cutted me T2 ganglion. First 2 days after the operation, I had terrible CS in all my body at night, but I think it was because of the medication for pain. It was like I had fever... Now I have low CS in my feet. When I'm nervous or hot, I feel a bit sweating in my chest, but lees than before the surgery, and it stops in a few minutes. So I believe CS is lower than original hyperhidrosis. Now my head and my hands are totally dry all time. It's awesome!

 

[aberob]

I had ETS back in 1998. I had suffered miserably from wet, drippy hands and feet for as long as I can remember. Just the thought of touching anything/anyone or going barefoot made me cringe. I was at the end of my rope and surgery was chosen out of desperation. This was before clamping was developed, they cut the nerves. Waking up from the procedure with dry hands (for the first time), I knew my life had changed for the better.
My only complaint is, of course, compensatory sweating. I sweat very profusely from the center of my chest to about the bottom of my rib cage and the same on my back. With the slightest exertion I will start sweating, even in the winter. It's embarrassing when my shirt has damp spots and uncomfortable when I feel it dripping. My arm pits sweated heavily before having surgery (much less after) but the compensatory is a larger, more visible area and triggers very easily. As a solution, I use Certain Dri, an over-the-counter, extra strength antiperspirant that I apply at night to my chest and back - were I can reach - before I go to sleep. two or three nights in a row and I can go for about a month before I need to reapply. My chest and back still sweat, especially in summer, but it takes more exertion and the sweating stops quicker once I'm at rest.
My quality of life vastly improved almost 12 years ago. Even with compensatory sweating, which is very aggravating a lot of the time, I don't regret having surgery for a second. However, my condition and my life experience is very different from any other person's, so I cannot advise anyone on whether or not they should have the surgery. I hope knowing my experience benefits in some way.

 

[Mr_Drips]

If you PM me your email i can send you some mails, but i'll do it tomorrow since it's 3 a.m. where i live now..

Night!

Hey, can you send me it too? I'm very interested!

 

[grimaldi]

Mr Drips please see my latest post here called "Future of ETS - Electricity and Magnetics"

Thanks

 

[Rexus]

Thanks all for the posts. Some people are really encouraging me to do this, but at the same time I know now that generalized sweaters have a high tendency of developing severe compensatory sweating. I'm desperate, so I don't know if I'm going to do it.