|
[ Skilled Relaxation Archive ] [ Main Archives Page ] [ Glossary/Index ] [ FAQ ] [ Recommended Books ] [ Bulletin Board ] |
Search this site! | |
i suffer from hives...most of the time it is when i
excercise or work out, and i guess when i'm stressed but
i'm not sure. I believe it has to do with increased blood
flow or a rise in heart rate or activity. Basically it is
the textbook case of cholinergic-urticaria. I have had it for
over 7 years now, and still have not found a way to deal with
it other than just accept that it happens. i am gaining wieight
so now i go to the gym several days a week. I come out looking
like a monster: hives head to toe, and a swollen left eye.
Unfortunately every time i go to the doctor, i have not had
anything to show to them, i have only been able to explain.
One even made me do pushups for a minute to no avail. But
i now have a picture i took of my upper body covered in
hives. The doctors i have spoken with, and all the websites
i have seen dealing with the topic, all say one thing:
"take antihistamines"
let me tell you something, antihistamines suck. the ones
that work at all suck because of the nasty side affects.
I took hydroxyzene(generic attarax?) for years, but have
stopped taking because i drive an hour to and from work,
plus it puts me in a nasty mood. Now i take zyrtec, which
worked good for a while, but has really just about stopped
working at all...and i tried the hydroxyzene again, but
that doesn't work like it used to either...i thought i was
building a tolerance to it...so i stopped taking for a week
or so...and went back on it and it didn't work...it was
actually worse...i don't want to increase the dosage of
this crap because it is doing more harm than good i'm sure.
my next step is to find a way to remedy this thru a natural
approach...whether it is diet, exercise(???), relaxation,
medetation...whatever...
i know that many people suffer from this because of high
stress...but i don't think that is what does it for me, i
can sense when it is coming on, and then i will back off
and relax if i am stressed out, that is easy. but i want
to be able to be physically active like i used to before
i got this condition, and it is really rough because the
hives come on after like 15 minutes...sometimes sooner than
that, and then i have it for an hour or even more before it
clears up. i guess what i want to know is if there is something
i can do to PREVENT them from coming on during a workout,
other than take drugs...does anyone know any specific diets
to go on or anything?
another thing i read is that it is possible to reverse the
effects thru exercising, even though that is what brings it
on...possibly by starting out small and then gradually increasing
the dosage of workouts...and i was thinking of trying this.
anyone have any ideas?
click the link to see a pic of what i am talking about
In Reply to: cholinergic urticaria posted by doug on November 10, 1999 at 02:51:20:
i know, i'm replying to my own post...haha...
i just looked down a couple posts and noticed something
about psychadelic drugs and what not...and then i thought
to myself "ya know what? they're right!! i could eat half
a sheet of lsd and forget all about my hives for good" but
then again i might have scratched off all my skin by that
time...haha
ya know what? now that i think about it, there really IS
a cure...how about CRACK? yeah i'll just do crack every
day...that will work for sure!!! haha sorry sick joke
humor helps
doug
In Reply to: cholinergic urticaria posted by doug on November 10, 1999 at 02:51:20:
Hi, Doug.
Have you read the archives, glossary and references about hives on this BB?
Have you spent a few hours on those same sources about stress-effect storage in the hypothalamus (from where your skin reactivity is controlled)?
Since SR is the ultimate solution to your problem, you need to look at those same sources for everything you can read about that.
I will bet that you have had dermatographia for years before this started happening to you.
THEN, if you still have questions, write again. As you get over this, please take the time to share your experiences with the BB participants. This rapidly increasing (in incidence in this country) problem deserves your helping others to not have to suffer as you have already.
Walt
In Reply to: cholinergic urticaria posted by doug on November 10, 1999 at 02:51:20:
hey, i read as much as i could about all the stuff in the
archives i guess the next step is to start buying boox...
anyway, just wanted to say some things about what i learned.
I started doing a little bit of 'skilled relaxation', but
not knowing the consensus on what the proper techniques are
i just decided to make them up. anyway i noticed that during
relaxation i am MUCH more in tune with my psychic, wait, i
mean 'higher consciousness'. i don't like using the word
psychic because people immediately relate that to those ridiculous phone lines.
anyway for an example, i did some sr, about 15 minutes into
it i was so relaxed that i couldn't feel my body, and i started
seeing things like daydreaming or whatever, i kept seeing
smoke...well, when i came out i was scared because as the
old saying goes, 'where there's smoke, there's fire'...
anyway i tried to forget about it but i kept thinking about
it....later that night i was watching tv with my dad, i got
up to go to the kitchen to get a drink, i noticed the stove
was on and a coffee pot over the flame....i asked my dad
if he was going to make coffee...he said 'no'....i looked
in the pot, and it was EMPTY....i immediately shut it off.
that was scary...my house could have burned down...i was
ready to leave just before i saw that too!! i would have
come home to no home and a dead father....crazy...
anyway...one more thing: i read somewhere in the archives
about putting extremely hot water(as hot as you can handle)
directly on the hives. this supposedly accelerates the rate
at which the body releases histamine, when the body is
exhausted of all it's histamine...then supposedly it takes
8 hours or so to make more...therefore giving you 8hours
of relief...or maybe not visual relief(you will still have
rash) but you will not itch for 8hours...
i just want to say that i tried this, and IT WORKED!!
i was broken out all over similar to the pic i provided in
the other note...
and i took a bath in extremely hot water....not hot enough
to cause burns....well maybe...
i started with normal hot bath water and got in....then i
turned on only the hot side and let it run very lightly,
thus heating up the water VERY SLOWLY...
when i got it to a nice super hot temp, i shut it off and
soaked for about 20minutes...i also did SR while doing this.
when i was done with the SR 20minutes later...i looked and
ALL MY HIVES WERE GONE!!!!
i can't explain it...whether it was the water, or the SR, or
time...probably a combination of all three....but it worked.
i have to see if it works again...
next step is to PREVENT it from happening at all...
doug
In Reply to: Re: cholinergic urticaria posted by doug on November 17, 1999 at 00:46:53:
Doug,
This is great. Your sincere desire to get well is probably more important than any specific protocol. If we could all aproach wellness with your open minded enthusiasm Walt could shut down this board and do something more fun.
Regards
John
In Reply to: Re: cholinergic urticaria posted by doug on November 17, 1999 at 00:46:53:
Thanks, Doug!
It sounds like you are well on your way to resolving this. NOW, all you need to do is be sure to repeat your SR process at least twice a day for 20 minutes. Your experiences with the SR are specific enough that you will not even have to do the biofeedback.
Namaste`
Walt
In Reply to: This is a wonderful testimonial posted by John Counts on November 17, 1999 at 01:17:12:
Thanks, John.
You are right!
Namaste`
Walt
In Reply to: cholinergic urticaria posted by doug on November 10, 1999 at 02:51:20:
i have just come across this bulletin board, and it's been quite an eye-opener. i have had cholinergic urticaria for nearly a year now, it first rearing it's ugly head last christmas (i must have been bad that year). it came at the same time as a sinus infection - are they related? anyway, i didn't know what the hell was going on, and, stupidly didn't tell anyone about it. whenever it came out i just hid myself away until it had gone.
eventually, inevitably, it soon got bad enough for my family to notice. we at first thought it was an allergy to something, but after a bit of fact finding on the internet i diagnosed myself as having 'cholinergic urticaria'.
i went to the doctor, who clarified this for me. he gave me antihistamines (can't remember their name), which eased it off a bit, but, like doug, i think i became desensitized to it. he then gave me zyrtec, which, again, worked for a bit but now i'm coming desensitized again.
whew! now i've got my entire medical history out of the way, if you're still awake, i'll tell you my symptons.
i get a rash whenever i do exercise, walk around when it's hot, get angry, embarassed or have a hot shower.
i could live with most of this, except for the emotional ones. unfortunately, i've always gone red easily. any slight embarassment and i'm off. i then get angry at myself for blushing, which makes me redder, which makes me more embarrased... it's a vicous (is that spelt right?)circle.
now though, replace 'going red' with 'getting a rash' and, for me anyway, it's ten times worse. i have to try to contain my emotions and avoid any situations that could cause me embarrassment. this is giving me a rather limited life. i can't do any of the things that a normal person my age (17 years) could do, and frankly, this is really depressing me.
so, when i read about skilled relaxation on these cholinergic postings, my ears procked up. however, i'm having trouble finding out much about it, most importantly how to do it.
therefore, i would be grateful if anyone could tell me anymore about it, how to do it, and their experiences of it. also any websites specializing in it.
i hope message interests anyone who reads it. its quite theraputic to just let other people know about my problems, getting it off my chest and all that.
i would like to read other peoples experiences of cholinergic urticaria, and how they cope with it.
James
In Reply to: cholinergic urticaria posted by james on December 10, 1999 at 16:13:15:
James:
Please look up SR in our Glossary (see links at the top and bottom of this page). In the entry for SR, there are several links to good SR sites, plus reference to the book that Walt recommends people read to determine what form of SR would work best for them.
RHJ++
In Reply to: Re: Please Rush to the Glossary for info and links on SR posted by RocketHealer Jim++ on December 10, 1999 at 16:19:23:
Thanks RHJ++, I now have a huge list of things to try out. I'll keep you posted on how it all goes.
James
In Reply to: cholinergic urticaria posted by james on December 10, 1999 at 16:13:15:
Hi, James.
Listen to RocketHealer Jim (Thanks RHJ!).
You might even get more immediate relief (not a solution in the long run) by doing the e/diet. If you are interested in that, put a note on this BB with Robert McFerran's name in the title snd he will get you started. It is possible for you to get total remission in a week or so by doing this. Unfortunately, eventually, the problem will come back unless you do the SR.
Since this is a TOTALLY unnecessary condition, I hope you will share your experiences as it disappears. Many people have this and have no idea what to do about it. Conventional medical care has not a clue mainly since the solution to the problem makes no money for their coffers.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: cholinergic urticaria (How to approach.) posted by Walt Stoll on December 11, 1999 at 13:02:49:
Hi Robert,
walt has forwarded me to you with respect to the e/diet, could you please help me with this. it's for cholinergic urticaria.
thanks,
James
In Reply to: Robert McFerran (e/diet) posted by James on December 16, 1999 at 15:41:40:
James,
Please go to the archive section of this site and find the Elimination diet. If you have any questions afterwards feel free to ask.
Bob
In Reply to: Re: cholinergic urticaria (How to approach.) posted by Walt Stoll on December 11, 1999 at 13:02:49:
since reding through all the articles i can find on and relating to cholinergic urticaria, it seems that one of the good things to do is regular exercise.
i love sport, and before i got cholinergic urticaria i did loads of it, but i get next to none.
this is because of the inevitable results it produces, so i was wondering if there are any exercises i can do that will keep me fit but not bring out my rash too badly.
i thought maybe swimming, as when i was on holiday i did a lot of this and it didn't seem to produce a rash. is swimming a good idea?
also, is it true that regular exercise can build up a kind of resistance to urticaria?
thanks,
james
In Reply to: choinergic urticaria and exercise posted by james on December 19, 1999 at 09:36:54:
James,
Exercise tends to precipitate the skin lesions mainly because of friction from clothing. That is why swimming doesn't do it nearly so much. If you did your running in the nude it wouldn't happen then either.
Once you have done SR for 6 months, no exercise will produce them.
Let us know how you do.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: choinergic urticaria and exercise (Run in the nude.) posted by Walt Stoll on December 20, 1999 at 09:16:12:
thanks for that, walt.
maybe i'll try nude-running, but not until this winter is over. i hear frost-bite can be quite painful.
james
In Reply to: choinergic urticaria and exercise posted by james on December 19, 1999 at 09:36:54:
I'm seriously thinking about buying some kind of home exercise equipment, so I can keep fit in the safety of my own home.
At home I could exercise, get a rash, and not be bothered. What I was wondering is what piece of exercise equipment would you recommend? I am looking for something aerobic, that will improve my cardivascular health and generally keep me trim.
The options that seem to be available to me are:
exercise bike
rowing machine
elliptical trainer
step machine
ski-machine
Bearing in mind that I'm on a low budget (I'm looking to spend around £150 (I'm from England)), what would you recommend?
Thanks,
James
In Reply to: choinergic urticaria and exercise posted by james on January 11, 2000 at 13:55:35:
Hi, James.
I am not an expert in exercise machines any more.
I would put a note about this on this BB and title it something like "What are the "best buys" for total body aerobic toning machines?" Then sit back and see if any BB participants are experts in this field.
I would be surprised if there were not websites that are dedicated to resolving your exact requirements.
When you find out I would appreciate your sharing the information with us.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: choinergic urticaria and exercise posted by Walt Stoll on January 12, 2000 at 17:34:41:
I found the site:
www.whatsthebest-workout.com
and it was pretty helpful. It didn't go into huge amounts of detail about the individual machines, but it had good tips for when you're out buying your machine. And it was very nicely designed.
Personally, I think I'm going to go for a rowing machine, as it provides aerobic exercise as well as some good muscle toning.
James
|
[ Skilled Relaxation Archive ] [ Main Archives Page ] [ Glossary/Index ] [ FAQ ] [ Recommended Books ] [ Bulletin Board ] |
Search this site! | |
