sweaty hands and feet

Chocolate?

/ carynjoan / 2 Comments

Today as I rode the subway, I saw a girl snacking on some chocolate covered candies. My hands were a sweaty mess at this point and I imagined trying to eat what she was eating. My thoughts in order: Impossible, Disgusting, Messy.

How have I never mentioned this before? I can’t eat chocolate anything when my hands are sweaty!

M&M’s? Forget it! I will have a colorful mess left in my hand.

What’s up with their tagline, “Melts in your mouth, not in your hand?”

These candies surely have not been tested by people with HH!

Maybe the candied shell is keeping the chocolate from melting, but it is giving me an unwanted multicolored palm.

Another Reaction to Glycopyrrolate

/ carynjoan / Leave a comment

This one is not physical. This reaction is emotional.

After getting a glimpse of dry hands (or at least significantly less wet ones), then abruptly stopping the medication and becoming sweaty again, I am sad.  Having sweaty hands again after almost two weeks of being dry has been depressing. It is a let down that feels brand new. What a tease.

I feel like if I think about it too much, my outlook on life starts spinning out of control, leaving me a terrible feeling of the unknown in the pit of my stomach. I just have to shake the thoughts away because I can’t deal with it right now.

I am still afraid of going back on the medication right now because of my reaction to it. The plan is to speak to a doctor about it soon.

Good luck out there!

Caryn

Glycopyrrolate Week 2.5- WARNING

/ carynjoan / 1 Comment

Please be careful with Glycopyrrolate for HH!

I ended up in the Emergency Room last week for severe pain in my side, below my ribs.

I had no idea what was wrong with me at the time, but I had difficulty standing upright!

The pain was originating near my kidneys, so I was checked for Kidney and Gall Bladder stones among other things. All tests were clear.

After a few days of pain, I realized I never took my medication into consideration. I was on this medication before, and never had such side effects.

However, when I looked at the paperwork, I realized that the side effects fit my symptoms.

My doctor says that since I have lost weight since the first time I was on the medication, there was a chance I would react differently to it.

Glycopyrrolate will slow the activity of your abdominal cavity and I guess it basically caused a blockage.

I was unintentionally ignoring my symptoms, thinking that a little bloating and loss of appetite wasn’t anything to worry about.

A few days and intense pain later, I realized these symptoms had been going on for almost a week!

I have stopped the medication, and added a ton of fiber to my diet. I am feeling so much better now, and have plans for starting the medication again with a new diet.

I will keep you posted.

Caryn

 

I posted my Blog Site on Facebook

/ carynjoan / 1 Comment

Dear Facebook Community,

If you’ve come across this because of Facebook, chances are you know little to nothing about a certain medical condition called Hyperhidrosis. This is a condition that I am living and struggling with every day. I have had Hyperhidrosis (HH) my whole life, the first symptoms came when I was only one year old.

Posting my blog website on Facebook has been a goal of mine for many months because spreading awareness is one of the most important goals of my mission. Until today, I’ve been too afraid to post it. And to tell you the truth, I’m still terrified.

But…

I am always telling my readers to be brave and encouraging them to tell someone about their HH. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I have been part of the problem. I will tell people here and there, but mostly I hide in the shadows, living silently with the struggle.

As someone who has stressed the importance of awareness, I’ve done a heck of a job keeping my two lives separate for the past 9 months my blog has been live. Until today, I have done everything in my power to keep my music life and my HH life separate on the Internet. I don’t sign my full name to these entries. I have created a different email address and Facebook account. None of my websites have been linked, and I check Google every now and then to make sure I didn’t mess anything up.

Here’s the thing. People like me have to stop thinking like this. We aren’t going to mess anything up! HH is part of who we are, and we have to accept it and stop living secret lives!

So, for me, this changes today.

I am acting vulnerable and putting myself out there.

I do this for EVERYONE living with HH. I have decided to dedicate my life to helping people like me. We all have the courage in us. Things need to change. I am growing sadder with every heart breaking HH story I hear from my readers and from other HH support groups. We aren’t alone, and I hope that soon we don’t feel like it.

For those just encountering this blog, feel free to start from the beginning, or work your way around at your leisure. For a quick overview, you can check out my story by clicking “About Me”.

You may know me well, little, or not at all, but thank you all for visiting this site. Every person this reaches is a step forward in achieving universal awareness and I believe that universal awareness and understanding will make our lives so much better.

Please send me any comments or questions, or even just a quick note to let me know you read this. Especially if you know me personally but had no idea what I’m living with. I would like to be more open about it with people, but it’s a tough thing to talk about at first.

As a gift to my readers, here is my personal website: www.carynfreitag.com. Now, I have officially linked the two together.

Finally. I’m not hiding anymore.

Sincerely, Not Anonymous,

Caryn.

Glycopyrrolate (Robinol)

/ carynjoan / 2 Comments

After being off the Glycopyrrolate medication for 1 year and 3 months, I started up again this past weekend.

I went off the medication because I was feeling immune to it, but my doctor and I thought we could try it again and see what happens.

This medication worked miraculously the last time I was on it (2007-2011). I was really hoping I would receive the same results.

So far, I have!

The medication worked almost immediately. My hands and feet are dry.

The one side effect I am struggling with is having a dry throat. My doctor says this may go away with continued use.

It is a strange sensation, being on this medication. My hands will still get hot and really feel like they are sweating, but they are not.

Personally, I worry a little because I want to have that visual of sweaty hands to explain to people what HH is. As someone who wants to help the HH community, I feel like I should continue struggling and suffering with it. I want it present in my everyday life.

This might sound crazy to you. To purposefully want to struggle with HH. I guess I just never want to forget about it. I never want to dismiss its impact on my life and others.

We will see how this medication goes. So far, I’m dry. So far, I’m still passionate about helping the HH community.

I recommend this medication to anyone suffering with HH.

Thanks for reading!

Caryn Joan

More Tips for Coping with HH!

/ carynjoan / Leave a comment

Here are more tips to cope with your HH:

1. Try to wear socks often. I don’t like the look of socks with my ballet flats, but something needed to change, so I bought these small cotton “ped” socks. I know you will frequently find these in nylon or mesh, but I suggest looking for cotton to best absorb sweat. They also work with closed shoe heels! I got mine from Steve Madden.

2. To prevent swelling, I will run my hands under cold water, take a cold shower, or stand in a bath of cold water for my feet. This works so well for me and I do this all the time! If you are still in grade school, excuse yourself to the bathroom and just run your hands under cold water for a while.

3. Stand in front of a fan to put on jewelry with small clasps. Trying to put on jewelry in the morning is always very frustrating for me when I’m sweating. Just take a deep breath, and get in front of a fan! It will help!

4. Drink water. It’s proven that drinking water helps regulate your body temperature. I drink water all the time. Buy a Bobble or another water bottle with a filter and refill often! I feel like drinking water helps my HH a lot. I’m drinking out of this yellow Bobble right now!

5. If you struggle writing with pen/pencil, put a sturdier piece of paper like a postcard or brochure under your writing hand and drag it along the page while you write. This way, the actual piece of paper that you are writing on doesn’t get ruined. I do this often! Also, it’s pretty discrete. Especially if you get a white paper-colored piece.

 
Enjoy!

Caryn Joan

 

What HH has taught me

/ carynjoan / 1 Comment

I know that these posts can come off pretty depressing sometimes, but I want to change it up with a quick post about what HH has taught me throughout the years.

As a sufferer of HH, I have learned the importance of:

Patience for myself and others
Strength and Courage in every day
Tolerance for all
Pride in beating all the odds including my own negativity

As always, thank you,
Caryn Joan