Yes, HH can kill you!!!

[HHDisturbed]

I have severe craniofacial hyperhidrosis and sweat excessively from the head, face and neck. Dehydration is a major concern for me when it is hot and humid outside, especially if I have a lot of manual labor to do. A couple years ago it nearly killed me.

It was a beautiful early summer morning. It was the weekend and I decided to help a friend to cut some brush and plant some trees in the woods by myself. Things started out well but it quickly heated up and became very humid and I was sweating like rain. I ran out of water in the first hour I was there but continued working anyway. This was my biggest mistake because I was all alone and over a quarter mile from where I had parked my car with my cell phone and extra water inside.

In less than another half hour I started to get very shakey and delirious which are definite signs of dehydration and possible heat stroke. So I just left my shovel and other tools behind and started to make my way back to my car. Before I had made it even half way back I collapsed to the ground nearly passing out. At this point I never had felt more scared and alone. My car had might as well had been 10 miles away from where I lay.

Although my mind and body was quickly shutting down I knew I could not close my eyes and go to sleep NO MATTER WHAT. But I wanted to so bad. From where I first collapsed I would basically walk/crawl about 20 or 30 yards at a time then lie on the ground for a few minutes and then force myself to do it again, and again, and again. I finally made it to where I could see my car about a tenth of a mile away but I still wasn't sure that I could make it...but finally I did.

All together it took me over an hour to make it back to the car where I had my phone and more water. I towelled off got in and cranked up the air-conditioner. I knew then that I was going to survive this. I probably shouldn't have driven because I was still very delirious and woosey but I made it home.

The bottom line is that I almost died that morning and I can say with complete certainty that it was my severe sweating that put me in that situation. It was by far the scariest thing I have ever endured. That was a very big life lesson learned. Now I always have plenty of water with me as well as my cell phone. I also made a solemn promise to my wife that I will NEVER allow myself to be in that situation EVER again.

So as you can imagine I just shake my head in dismay and scoff at those doctors who say that HH and excessive sweating cannot hurt you. Because I know first hand that in the right (or wrong) situation HH CAN KILL YOU!

 

[Sprawling]

I think that saying HH can kill someone is going a bit to far. I used to do manual labor for a living. During the warm months I'd sweat everything out of me within the first 20 minutes of working. I'd be totally drenched. Sometimes I wouldn't drink as much water as I should have.

It's possible you had something else going on with your body at the time. HH by itself is not deadly. Please don't feed this type of info to members of this group. I'm sure what you experienced was awful. But HH is not deadly or life threatening.

 

[Rickyberkey]

Interesting post and an extreme opposite reply. I have always consumed a lot of water (I seem to crave it as well as I'm worried about dehydration). I often think I should cut back my water intake to the bare minimum thinking that it might lessen the scalp/facial sweating.

 

[HHDisturbed]

I think that saying HH can kill someone is going a bit to far. I used to do manual labor for a living. During the warm months I'd sweat everything out of me within the first 20 minutes of working. I'd be totally drenched. Sometimes I wouldn't drink as much water as I should have.

It's possible you had something else going on with your body at the time. HH by itself is not deadly. Please don't feed this type of info to members of this group. I'm sure what you experienced was awful. But HH is not deadly or life threatening.

All I can say is that this is a 100% true story. I almost died that morning and I truly believe that it was my excessive sweating that led to this incident. I also feel that no matter how much water I would have consumed would have made any difference in the matter. So in this particular case, yes, I feel it was life threatening. If I had just lied down and fallen asleep like my mind and body were telling me to do then I do not think I would be here today.

 

[Sprawling]

HHDisturbed,

Were you taking Glyco at the time this happened?

Keep in mind that normal sweating people can have the type of experience you described when dehydrated. Severe dehydration can kill anyone.

Those of you taking Glyco should probably be extra cautious in the warm weather and drink plenty of water.

 

[HHDisturbed]

Hi Sprawling,

No, this happened two years ago, prior to me discovering glyco but was the event that prompted me to start investigating possible solutions. You are correct though. Anyone can get dehydrated. But when you sweat in buckets it can overtake you very quickly.

This evening I was working in the woods planting trees with my son. It was very hot and muggy with no breeze at all. This morning I did the Secure wipes along with 2 Advert capsules. I still sweat like mad under the conditions but I am sure that it would have been far worse with out it. Now I am just so much more aware of the dangers so I take more breaks, drink more water, and now I know when it's time to quit for the day.

I am a pretty healthy guy and enjoy working outdoors. But I always notice that my helpers dont sweat a 10th as much as I do while doing the same work. They never seem to get all shakey and feel like they are going to pass out like I do. The funny thing is that I never feel like I am doing anything to make me sweat to that degree.

This is why I shared my story...to make others aware that under these conditions HH can lead to dehydration and heat stroke much faster than people without HH. I am constantly reading the post from others who are infuriated that the medical community doesn't take HH seriously and dismiss it by saying, "Oh, a little extra sweating won't hurt you." I have heard it myself but I disagree! I really almost died. My excessive sweating made the dehydration set in so quickly that I barely had time to react before it was too late.

 

[HHDisturbed]

I do have a question for you Sprawling and I do not mean any disrespect to you or others in the forum. Why does it seem to be ok for others to post that they want to kill themselves over sweaty hands, armpits or feet (which I think is a bit rediculous) but when I share a story where I feel like the disorder itself nearly killed me then I get blasted like I did something wrong?

The same thing happened on another recent post of mine where I shared a very proud moment that I wanted so much to share with others. I hoped others would see that just because you have HH you don't have to lock yourself inside your home and not enjoy all the wonderful things that life has to offer. I got blasted quite badly by a few on that one and it truly dampened my spirits. How sad because my story was so positive and I thought this was a site for everyone to share both their highs as well as their lows.

I would apreciate your insight on this. Thanks

 

[Sprawling]

HHDisturbed,

My response was in no way to disrespect or undermine your story. I do understand and see your point of view from which you write. My objection was to that HH can kill, and in your story the result was pretty close.

The lesson I see from your story is that those of us with HH can be more vulnerable than our non-HH friends. We must take extra precaution and drink more when we do physical activity. In our case, just thinking causes us to sweat, add that to warm weather and humidity giving us a recipe for potential dehydration.

I'm not sure of the other story or post that you are referring to that brought negative comments. I do hope you continue to offer your input within this group. I guess we all don't see eye to eye on everything, but the one thing that we are all really good at is... sweating. It sucks, but we find ways to cope. I agree one hundred percent that this is really not the group to discuss killing yourself or inflicting harm to oneself over sweating. When things get to that degree it's time to get professional help.

Despite the agony and the effect of our excessive sweating most of continue to have lives, marriages, relationships, children etc. Not everything comes easy and we all have challenges. WE are a group that's here to share experiences, and promote ways and treatments to get us through the sweat. Yup, we sweat the small stuff, big stuff and everything in between. We are sweaters and we should be proud of it... well, not really but it just sounded cool even though it's really wet.

 

[Rickyberkey]

Regarding your post on the turkey hunt, I think it was just too long and detailed about the entire trip and most would consider it way off topic. Just a simple description that you did successfully go turkey hunting although still dealing with HH would have sufficed. Most of your post was about the details of your turkey hunt as were most of the replies as well.

The same thing happened on another recent post of mine where I shared a very proud moment that I wanted so much to share with others. I hoped others would see that just because you have HH you don't have to lock yourself inside your home and not enjoy all the wonderful things that life has to offer. I got blasted quite badly by a few on that one and it truly dampened my spirits. How sad because my story was so positive and I thought this was a site for everyone to share both their highs as well as their lows.

I would apreciate your insight on this. Thanks

 

[Amherst]

An interesting discussion. The most serious medical problem I've faced with hyperhidrosis hit me about a year ago. I'm a runner, and running regularly in warmer temps with high humidity will cause me to lose so many fluids. It, of course, also decreases the amount of urine. I wound up passing a kidney stone about a year ago, an experience I wouldn't particularly wish to repeat. One woman told me that passing kidney stones is worse than childbirth.

My lesson: drink a lot. But my doctor also pointed out something important: my blood pressure tends to be a bit low, and he urged me to up my salt intake. Because I sweat out so many minerals, I also take potassium pills. But it's a perfect excuse to indulge occasionally in high-sodium foods.

Amherst

 

[corranhorn]

HHDisturbed, I think I'm with you on this one. I used to be in the military and we did stupid things like 10 mile marches in the summer at 100+ degrees. Everyone was sweaty, but I started sweating much faster than everyone else. Everyone else was sweating from the torso, whereas my sweating came from the hands, legs, face, etc... which is more surface area and evaporates faster so more sweat comes out. We were all treated as equals so I couldn't bring extra water. I often felt delirious like you described, when everyone else was just fine. And at the time I was in top shape. I know it was from the extra sweating.

This next part has nothing to do with the story, but it illustrates how little people know of this condition, and how serious it can be under the right circumstances. I brought the issue up with the NCO (supervisor) and asked if I could bring more than one canteen of water. He said no and told me to just pee in the canteen and drink my urine. Not very compassionate! It was funny when he said it, but I often felt I was on the verge of losing consciousness during long marches when everyone else was fine. The only explanation was HH.