Englishman
Well-known member
Hyperhidrosis does not receive much interest in the medical field. We've all been to doctors hoping they have some cure for us or could tell us what is wrong with us, but to no avail. It may be because very few people suffer from it, or to others, they don't see it as much of a concern/problem. If only they knew.
I'm currently in the medical school application process, and I am not a doctor, but I believe I have pondered my hyperhidrosis and it's causes for more hours than any doctor. I'm not going to try and start a piss contest attempting to justify my hyperhidrosis as being "the worst" or describe how terrible it is because you all know how frustrating this condition is. We all suffer from it, and we can all agree that it sucks.
I've tried various prescription topical solutions to apply to underarms/hands and they did not work... at all. I've tried pills that dried my eyes and mouth and basically everything else except my hands/underarms. They dried my eyes so bad i began to have blurry vision and my mouth dried so bad I even got a cavity which I haven't had since I was 4. I even tried an iontophoresis machine which I thought would actually work. Unfortunately it didn't. These remedies clearly didn't work for me so I needed something else. They were like taking a tylenol when you have a torn ACL. It's not fixing the problem, just attempting to cover it up.
Now, I believe I know what causes hyperhidrosis, and how to stop its symptoms from occurring. Too good to be true right? Nope, it's *** science, I love science.
I'm not going to delve into all the technical jargon because none of you care and if you do, you can do the research yourself. I will simply go through the basics.
And if you're too lazy to read further, just read this; drink a lot of water.
The nervous system is a complex system that sends signals throughout our body using neurons. In ETS, part of the SNS (I will abbreviate parasympathetic nervous system as PNS, the sympathetic nervous system as SNS, and the nervous system simply as NS) is severed, specifically the preganglionic neruons of the thoracolumbar region to prevent these signals from being sent. This has far reaching consequences that go beyond just stopping hands from sweating. I can't describe them all but ask some patients who have undergone the surgery yourself.
Now, the SNS is responsible for the Fight or Flight response. The SNS is constantly activated at a basic level to maintain homeostasis. The SNS when primed increases sweating, breathing, heart rate, and tenses muscles. I believe the common condition for all hyperhidrosis sufferers is an overactive SNS. For us it relates to an excess in sweating almost constantly.
The PNS, responsible for Rest and Digest is also always active, but the SNS and PNS compete constantly, always a dynamic with one overpowering the other to meet our body's needs. When the PNS is primed, we notice a restful state with little to no sweating (what "normal" people are accustomed to at all times of the day). Also, alcohol inhibits activity of the SNS, which is why we notice dry sweat free hands when we have a nice buzz going on.
So the key is, we need the PNS more active than the SNS, and the result- sweat free or minimal sweating. How do we do this? The answer is not to drink alcohol at all times of the day because that would be dangerous and would be a terrible idea for many reasons that I will not get into. What we can do, is stay fully hydrated at all times. Researchers at Vanderbilt have conducted studies showing that drinking water can increase activity of the PNS. There you go folks, staying hydrated and consistently drinking water will decrease excessive sweating drastically. Your PNS will be more activated, countering the SNS, and you will be like a normal person, sweating a little when very nervous and totally dry at normal points of the day.
It has worked incredibly well for me. A good way to check if you're hydrated is by the color of your urine. If it's yellow, you're dehydrated, so drink up some h20. It should be clear. It may be the easiest and best remedy ever, so why not just give it a try? I know such a simple explanation may be hard to believe, but trust me, it works. I may pee a few more times a day than your average joe, but hey peeing is fun and my hands/underarms are dry.
P.S. I know this totally counters the one users advocacy of dehydration, or water fasting, which is downright idiotic and dangerous. No one should be preaching that information. Ask any doctor if he thinks water fasting is a good idea. Matter of fact, ask anyone you know if they think water fasting is a good idea. Yeah...
Hope this helps, I've been living a different life ever since i've given this a try.
golfer
*
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2013 8:18 pm
Top
I'm currently in the medical school application process, and I am not a doctor, but I believe I have pondered my hyperhidrosis and it's causes for more hours than any doctor. I'm not going to try and start a piss contest attempting to justify my hyperhidrosis as being "the worst" or describe how terrible it is because you all know how frustrating this condition is. We all suffer from it, and we can all agree that it sucks.
I've tried various prescription topical solutions to apply to underarms/hands and they did not work... at all. I've tried pills that dried my eyes and mouth and basically everything else except my hands/underarms. They dried my eyes so bad i began to have blurry vision and my mouth dried so bad I even got a cavity which I haven't had since I was 4. I even tried an iontophoresis machine which I thought would actually work. Unfortunately it didn't. These remedies clearly didn't work for me so I needed something else. They were like taking a tylenol when you have a torn ACL. It's not fixing the problem, just attempting to cover it up.
Now, I believe I know what causes hyperhidrosis, and how to stop its symptoms from occurring. Too good to be true right? Nope, it's *** science, I love science.
I'm not going to delve into all the technical jargon because none of you care and if you do, you can do the research yourself. I will simply go through the basics.
And if you're too lazy to read further, just read this; drink a lot of water.
The nervous system is a complex system that sends signals throughout our body using neurons. In ETS, part of the SNS (I will abbreviate parasympathetic nervous system as PNS, the sympathetic nervous system as SNS, and the nervous system simply as NS) is severed, specifically the preganglionic neruons of the thoracolumbar region to prevent these signals from being sent. This has far reaching consequences that go beyond just stopping hands from sweating. I can't describe them all but ask some patients who have undergone the surgery yourself.
Now, the SNS is responsible for the Fight or Flight response. The SNS is constantly activated at a basic level to maintain homeostasis. The SNS when primed increases sweating, breathing, heart rate, and tenses muscles. I believe the common condition for all hyperhidrosis sufferers is an overactive SNS. For us it relates to an excess in sweating almost constantly.
The PNS, responsible for Rest and Digest is also always active, but the SNS and PNS compete constantly, always a dynamic with one overpowering the other to meet our body's needs. When the PNS is primed, we notice a restful state with little to no sweating (what "normal" people are accustomed to at all times of the day). Also, alcohol inhibits activity of the SNS, which is why we notice dry sweat free hands when we have a nice buzz going on.
So the key is, we need the PNS more active than the SNS, and the result- sweat free or minimal sweating. How do we do this? The answer is not to drink alcohol at all times of the day because that would be dangerous and would be a terrible idea for many reasons that I will not get into. What we can do, is stay fully hydrated at all times. Researchers at Vanderbilt have conducted studies showing that drinking water can increase activity of the PNS. There you go folks, staying hydrated and consistently drinking water will decrease excessive sweating drastically. Your PNS will be more activated, countering the SNS, and you will be like a normal person, sweating a little when very nervous and totally dry at normal points of the day.
It has worked incredibly well for me. A good way to check if you're hydrated is by the color of your urine. If it's yellow, you're dehydrated, so drink up some h20. It should be clear. It may be the easiest and best remedy ever, so why not just give it a try? I know such a simple explanation may be hard to believe, but trust me, it works. I may pee a few more times a day than your average joe, but hey peeing is fun and my hands/underarms are dry.
P.S. I know this totally counters the one users advocacy of dehydration, or water fasting, which is downright idiotic and dangerous. No one should be preaching that information. Ask any doctor if he thinks water fasting is a good idea. Matter of fact, ask anyone you know if they think water fasting is a good idea. Yeah...
Hope this helps, I've been living a different life ever since i've given this a try.
golfer
*
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2013 8:18 pm
Top