My
ITCH started late in November 2003 I
think it started as an Ear Infection? And it seems that each time it
Flairs-Up
again I get an Itchy crust inside my ears. I
developed BITES, like individual Sand Fly Bites on my lower
legs
and forearms. They
were VERY itchy - Just like sand-fly bites and I treated them as such,
by spraying on "Stingose"
and applying a Baking Soda
Paste to the individual LUMPS. It didn't help. Within
weeks the Bites had spread to my upper arms and legs, shoulders, trunk
and back. 8/12/03
I went to my Doctor,
when my Wife counted over 200 individual Bites on
my back alone. He prescribed
BETNOVATE
cream (the Same Cortisone Ointment I used in my Ear) But
by now I found that I was NOT alone and other people either had or had
friends who suffered SIMILAR Hives. They
ALL had different Remedies to try, but nobody had any real CURE. So
I tried The LOT. I
tried applying Corn-flower Paste
(which set like PAINT, and was useless) and spraying on Apple
Cider Vinegar (which STUNG like hell,
but was better than the Itch for a short spell). The
individual Lumps soon spread and joined up into a RASH, like Ring-worms
but much larger. These
Rashes felt like Dry Orange Peel to touch, but I couldn't bear people
touching
it as the ITCH became worse. I
found temporary relief by applying ICE
Packs, and would do so at night in order to get to sleep, but I'd wake
up again at about 3-00am feeling as though my skin was BURNING. Then
I'd
immerse in the Swimming Pool (or an ice cold Bath) for about an hour or
more until the itch subsided enough to be able to go back to sleep. I
tried an Oatmeal Bath (One of many home remedies suggested), but the
Rash
seemed WORSE afterwards. I
tried DETTOL
Baths, and PINETARSOL
Gell body washes, but neither worked. I
tried a course of Antihistamine Tablets with NO success. And
I've tried NEEM Oil
Tincture with little success. CALENDULA
Cream seemed to ease the desire to Scratch, but that may have been due
to keeping it in the refrigerator, but at over $50 for 500ml it didn't
seem worth it. I
get some relief from rubbing fresh ALOVERA
juice onto the rash, and PAWPAW skin also seemed to work (But maybe
because
it was COLD). I've
also had limited relief from using Q V
SKIN
REPAIR Lotion, and also VASELINE
INTENSIVE CARE Dry Skin creme, but I've
now
switched to the Cheaper Lotions such as BLACK
AND GOLD and SORBALINE
LOTION because I need to use so much and
the
results are much the same. I
recently tried the new HOPE RELIEF CREAM
as seen on T.V. but at $20 for about 60ml I can't afford to bathe in
it,
and it didn't seem to be any better than the Black & Gold, in fact
it didn't work as well.
27/12/03
I went to a local Naturapath, who tested me for Allergies and told me
that
I reacted to; OATS,
MILLET, PORK, PASSION FRUIT, YOGURT, SMOKE and MOSQUITOES and to avoid
ACIDS and SUGAR. (Big help) So I've cut out my Oat Bran which I used to
take to reduce Cholesterol and also also sugary biscuits. She
put me onto; Super CAL C
and SODIUM PHOSPHATE
Tablets and also the CALENDULA Cream. I'm
still taking the Sodium Phosphate and Vitamin C, but I've also still
got
my RASH.
5/1/04
I went back to my Doctor who prescribed the same creams that a friend
had found beneficial (ELOCON
and ELUPHRAT)
and another cream supplied as substitute NOVASONE,
but
my Doctor said they were ALL similar to his original Betnovate.) He
also cut out a Sample LUMP? and sent it for a biopsy, but the result
came
back as an INDETERMINATE ALLERGY (He
said
I must have scratched it - I wouldn't be surprised - I can't help
scratching
them, even though I know they will be WORSE)
20/1/04
My Doctor sent me to Pathology for a Skin Patch Test the results of
which
showed I reacted to; DUST MITES, MOLD, and PINE (Another Big Help)
Perhaps
that's why the Pinetarsol made me worse???
My
Doc finally admitted that the only thing left to try was a
Dermatologist,
so at the HEIGHT of my ITCH, I finally made an appointment with the
Specialist,
but found I could not get in for about SIX WEEKS. At
this stage (mid January) I was awake half the night using Ice Packs and
floating in the Cold Water Pool for 2 hours every night (Which was the
only way I could relieve the intense burning itch) But
two weeks before my appointment was due, I woke up after sleeping right
through the night and felt as though someone had switched off the Itch
to a degree. Each day the rash faded more, still there but NOT AS
INTENSE. I thought it was going away by itself the same way it had
started. So
I canceled my appointment at that time a couple of days before the due
date as there was little to see in comparison to before. That
was also the morning I took the following photographs, as a memento of
this horrible experience.
But
it DIDN'T GO AWAY completely. Little patches
would come back and I would use more cortisone or other cream, but in
the
last month it started back more than it had flared in the past three
months.
It is not at the same degree as January, when it was almost unbearable.
On a scale of 1 to 10 it
was about 9. 5-6-2004
The rash is presently about a
half of what it was then, in size, and very itchy a lot of the
time (about 6).
I feel I've tried everything, it
won't go away, and the weather is not conducive to immersion in cold
water
for hours at a time at night. If it is this bad now, what will it
be like in summer?? My friend in Brisbane who had a similar rash
in October, 2002, still has hers and it flares up frequently, and she
scratches
till it bleeds, especially on her arms. Mine seems to come up
worst
behind my knees, on the back of the upper arm, and in the middle of my
back. And
I'm still using the Lotions and Creams and I'M
STILL ITCHY. So
I'm off to the Dermatologist......
7.7.2004 Specialist
put me onto MASSIVE Cortisone treatment ELUPHRAT
Ointment (Not Creme) and it's
applied with a Wet Dressing over the top to PUSH the ointment into the
skin. And it worked, kinda.
The rash faded over the next week and I thought I was Cured.
But again, it didn't go away COMPLETELY.
It seemed to be Dormant - Just below the surface - Waiting for HOT
Weather to break out again.
So how come a Specialist who must have seen thousands of similar cases
as mine can only treat the SYMPTOMS and not the underlying CAUSE?
28.9.2004 Back to the
Dermatologist
again.
It flared up really badly a fortnight ago and I made another
appointment, mainly to get some more cortisone ointment before the
summer heat arrived, but he didn't want to give me any more because
it's DANGEROUS to stay on for any length of time.
He's now going with the Dust Mite theory, and my wife has now been
madly HOT Washing all our bed linnen and ripping out all the carpets. (sigh!)
This time he sent me for heaps more BLOOD Tests, but the results are
all NORMAL.
So the SPECIALIST Doctor has NO REAL CURE - AMAZING eh?
Someone suggested I try a Liver Cleansing Diet, and I'm currently trying Dr.Sandra Cabot's. The basic
theory looks GOOD; Lots of Water, Carrot juice, No fatty food etc.
But the actual DIET is a bit
daunting. My normal diet is CLOSE, but not exactly the same. So,
at least if I flare up badly enough again, and I'm DESPERATE, I'll have
one last thing to try. The FULL ON LCD.
14/10/2004 In the
mean time I've met a lady who actually had a similar rash and who
also did the rounds of Dermatologists with the cortisone treatment with
Plastic Glad wrap wraps to force it in like my Wet Wrap Dressings (Also
to no avail) but she has now apparently CURED HERSELF.
Her Theory (and she has the beautiful Skin to
prove it) is to cure it from within. 2xOmega3 Fish Oil Capsules 3
times a day with meals - Plus 1xEvening Primrose Capsule
(Omega6) at breakfast and dinner - Plus up to 8 Kali Sulph Skin Tissue
Salt (or Sodium Phosphate) tablets/day. in combination with the basic
LCD of Mega Water intake, Carrot Juice etc above and also the use of a
good skin moistureising lotion such as QV or Cettaphill
And I've added an occasional swig of Flax Seed and/or Sunflower Seed
Oil to this.
So that's where I'm AT at the moment, and it feels good to be actually
trying something positive instead of merely treating the symptoms. (And SCRATCHING)
On a scale of 1 to 10
my Itch is currently hovering around the 4.
If
You have SIMILAR Itches, E-Mail
Me and let's compare notes.
