I have a disorder called hyperhidrosis. Folks with hyperhidrosis have abnormal sweat patterns. We sweat in our hands, scalp, feet, underarms, or other areas of the body in conditions that may not necessarily result in sweating for a "normal" person. Over a lifetime, this condition caused me untold emotional pain, shame, social anxiety, and feelings of isolation. About a year ago, I chose to take my shame and turn it upside down. I started a blog about hyperhidrosis. I write about the many issues surrounding this disorder on my blog and everywhere else on the Internet that I am able to search out. On my blog can be found not just my writings but also treatment options, warnings about the plethora of hyperhidrosis scams on the Internet, as well as clothing and product reviews and shopping. Above all, I want to raise awareness that hyperhidrosis is a real disorder with real solutions and there is no room for shame about it anymore. Sweat Happens-- it's time to talk about it! Visit my blog at http://www.HyperhidrosisAndMe.com :)
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Hi Alison--
I am glad you would like to know more about hyperhidrosis-- it is a disorder that afflicts more than 9 million Americans, and there is so little awareness about what it is and what causes it.
I began having symptoms in early childhood, and grew up with the gradual realization that I was not like anyone else in my little world. Incredibly, it never occurred to me that I had a medical disorder. I was convinced I was a freak and concealed my sweating as best I could until at the age of 33 I heard the word "hyperhidrosis" for the first time. If you would like to read more about my story (because I could go on ad nauseum!), I encourage you to check out my blog (link is in my story), and in particular the category "Hiding in Plain Sight", listed right there on the header, that will further describe my life growing up with hyperhidrosis.
If I had to choose one word that encapsulates the experience of most people with hyperhidrosis, it would be "SHAME". Public awareness and compassion can change this, but I feel as though I am screaming into the wind.
To answer your other questions, I underwent surgery to alleviate my palmar sweating, but that is a very controversial treatment that I would not recommend to everyone. I overcame some of my social anxiety by addressing the sweating, but also by trying to be more open about it. This is a daily struggle, despite the fact that I write about it every day. In my life "offline", being open about my condition does not come easily after 43 years of hiding my shame-- but I am forcing myself.
In fact, I just "outed" myself to all my Facebook friends, which has been the most difficult move I've made to date. I blogged about that (of course) and that can be found on my blog page.
Sorry this is so long, but hyperhidrosis is a very complex subject!
September 20, 2010 - 7:09amThanks again for your interest!
Charmaine
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CharmaineC,
September 19, 2010 - 5:39pmThank you for sharing! I would love to hear more about your struggles with this condition, and I'm curious how old you were when you first started having symptoms, how you were finally diagnosed, and what treatments worked for you. How did you overcome the social anxieties associated with this condition?
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