Were you going through a very stressful time in your life when you got your first cu attack?
Yes
57%
[ 16 ]
No
42%
[ 12 ]
Total Votes : 28
Author
Message
Duper
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jun 2006 Posts: 33 Location: New york
Cholinergic Urticaria Posted: 08-27-06 16:44pm
There are numerous threads on this forum
about people who have cured their cu and
the rather large thread on cu. For those
of us who are still suffering, this would
be helpful. So i'm going to rummage
through the forum and quote solutions that
have worked for people as well as provide
a faq and basic information for those with
cholinergic urticaria/heat hives/
stress-induced hives. For those who don't
have this conditon, but are clicking this
thread to learn about it. Cu is
characterized by red welts appearing on
skin, along with an intense itching in
affected areas.
From what I have gathered...
Basics:
a)chinese medicine/acupuncture seems to
help, but not cure cu.
B)homeopathy doesn't seem to work,
although there are advocates for it.
C)antihistamines keep the cu at bay, not a
definite cure for cu.
D)exercise/steam room/hot showers and
baths will deplete the body of it's
histamine levels and keep the body from
having attacks for +/- 24 hours, varying
from person to person.
E)staying away from histamine releasing
foods will greatly reduce attacks. Common
ones:
* alcohol
* bananas
* certain nuts
* chocolate
* eggs
* fish
* milk
* papayas
* pineapple
* shellfish
* strawberries
* tomatoes
f) for most people, an atomsphere with
high humidity will reduce attacks and make
sweating easier.
G)some have found taking a multi-vitamin,
vitamin e/b pills can make this condition
less sevre.
H) not every antihistamine works for
everyone, some people will have better
results with one as opposed to another.
I) hydroxyzine (very commonly prescribed
antihistamine for cu causes drowsiness and
a very hard time concentrating, most
people who have taken this antihistamine
have switched/ gone off it because the
side effects are too unbearable.)
j) cu seems to be stress related
(in terms of developing the condition, it
usually develops during a time of great
emotional stress.)
faq:
1) how did I get this condition?
No one is sure about how or why people get
cu. It seems to be affected by stress as
many people who get c.U are usually going
through an unusually stressful time when
they develop it. Personally for me, my
family was having financial problems, I
was switching schools, schoolwork, etc.
2) what triggers a cu attack?
Histamines in your body, when released,
triggers a cu attack. Heat is the
stimulis, the actual precipitating cause
is sweating (inability to sweat). Red
welts begin to appear on areas including
but not limited to arms, neck, chest,
arms, back and sometimes legs. After
sweating is induced, the itching should go
away.
3) is there a cure for cu?
There is no sure cure for cu, it seems
different things work for different people
depending on the sevrity of the attacks
and other factors. Cu is a relatively
rare disease that effects a small % of the
population which is part of the reason why
there isn't a definite cure.
4) is cu contagious?
No, cu is not contagious.
5) will cu ever go away?
The average duration for cu is 7 years, cu
will spontaneously go away eventually for
most people.
6) is there a demographic of people who
are more likely to get cu?
I, unfortunately, cannot answer this
question. Part of the reason being that
cu is such a rare disease. However, I
have traveled halfway around the world
(i'm in the us) and met someone with cu.
Now for solutions I have found from these
forums, from various people.
cdz19
wrote:
detergent free method:
1. Get rid of all your clothes. Throw
them away or put them in a plastic bag air
tight. You'll likely never wear them
again.
2. Buy all new clothes. Preferably
loose instead of tight. If you are
budget strapped, buy just enough full sets
of clothes for a 2 week rotation only, or
however much you want, it's completely up
to you.
3. Buy new bath towels and bed sheets,
throw out your old ones. Again, only get
whatever is in your power in terms of
budget.
4. Before you do laundry, pre rinse 1
cycle with just water.
5. When you do laundry, don't use any
detergent. Use baking soda only.
6. Only wear your newly purchased
clothes, all cotton. No polyester.
7. Only sleep on the bed with the new
bed sheet.
8. To help you along further and getting
rid of the cu, I suggest starting off by
taking a detox bath to get rid of the
existing residue.
9. Wipe any furniture/couch/chair you
might have very clean. Detergent
residues are practically invisible.
Personally I didn't do #8 until later on,
because I was completely unaware of it.
Fact is, it actually helped me along even
faster. So just know that #8 is really.
Me personally, I couldn't stand the pain
during workouts, so I thought that i'd
take a lot of detox baths to start off and
then get to working out.
*note: ask your doctor about detox baths
before doing it.*
i havent' had a serious attack in a long
time, so I suggest at least starting here
and trying this out while you're looking
for other cures, should you even need
to.
cdz said his cu is 95%
better and hasn't had a serious attack in
a long time, he suffered cu for 2 years+.
sean3000
wrote:
yay!! I no longer have
this horrible condition which I have been
suffering from for 8 months!
I think theres a number of things that
have helped cure me.
I have been taking neoclarityn 5mg every
morning and xyzal 5mg every night (both
common antihistimines)
i also looked into vitamines that are good
for the skin, I settled for a vitamin b
suppliment and a multivitamin supplement
which I take every morning with the
neoclarityn, cost me $6 in total!
I have now been breakout free for a week
and I havent even had the slightest hint
of an attack , I havent even itched and it
has been very very warm here in the uk the
past few days!!
I really hope this gives cu suffers out
there belief that this thing will go away
and I would strongly reccomend anyone with
cu to take vit b suppliment on a regular
basis
sean has been doing much
better (90%) and continues to take 5mg
xzyal and vit. B supplement everyday.
spatel
wrote:
well I tried the
urticaria.Com site and received the
homeopathic meds which started taking.
The thing is that I also started
exercising around the same time and begin
eliminating alot of things from my diet.
My advice to you try to avoid unnecessary
preservatives (aka sodium benzoate,etc).
I also gave up diet coke which has
aspartme in it which is a huge a allergen
for some cu sufferers. I carefully look
at ingredients and try to avoid stuff that
has preservatives in it. Try to eat
organic bread, yogurt, milk, etc...I'm
telling u I used to think it was all
pointless but i've learned from experience
it helps! Okay the first couple of weeks
of exercising was hell but now my cu is so
much better! I used to not be able to
sweat and now I do w/out rash! I think
the homeopathic meds had some impact but
my boyfriend seems to think it was only
the exercise and diet modifications that
helped my condition. One more thing I
have to add for the smokers out there, I
hate to say it but cigarettes make it
worse. I smoke here and there and I can
tell if i've smoked that day or the night
before, a mild rash will show up during a
workout or stressful warm situation! I
know its hard but try to avoid the
cigarettes. So take home message from
this post, start exercising, avoid
preservatives and avoid cigs! Okay well
if anyone has any additional questions
please let me know via private
message.
cleo
wrote:
hi! I have chronic
urticaria aswell which gets worse by hot
food, heat, sweating, stress etc. I have
tried many histamines and zyrlex has
worked ok. However if you want to have
them removed 90 - 100 % try acupuntcure
which is very effective. The other very
effective remedy is homeopathic medecines
which will make your lives truly bareble
again. My remedy (each remedy is
individualised) constitues of ribes
nigrum, viola tricolor, apis mellifica,
histaminum (all 4 3 times per day) and
formidium d6 (one 1 ml ampul per night).
This remedy keeps the hives and itch away,
you wont even believe the state you were
in before you started. The good thing is
that it is all natural medecines so there
are no siede effects. Try it and regain
control...
jimmi56
wrote:
ive been breakout free for
several weeks now... Which.. Is quite
awesome... Heres what I did..
Liver cleanser - cleanse liver which will
clean your blood
candida cleanse - yeast overgrowth in
intestines creates numerous allergic
reactions.
Calcium w/ magnesium - balance your bodies
ph so the immune system functions
properly.
Royal jelly - good for allergies
apple cider vinegar - good for allergies
shower filter - $20 at home depot
salyctic acid body wash -
no drinking tap water - chlorine and
flouride in water = bad.
No flouride toothpaste - many people are
allergic to this poison and dont know it.
Hope that helps someone out there...
This is the all natural way to go.. I
definitely didnt want to have take
drugs... Id hope all of you would stray
away from them as
well
follow up post by jimmi56
jimmi56
wrote:
i had gone to a
dermatologist. They only prescribe
drugs. I am currently trying to go all
natural in trying to fix my body which has
numerous problems.
If there is a vitamin shoppe in your area,
they have everything on the list. Trader
joes, you can find some of the items, not
all.
I would recommend getting these items at
vitacost.Com (cause its cheap there):
nature's secret ultimate liver cleanse
nature's secret candistroy
any brand coral calcium with magnesium
(currently using natures' bounty from rite
aid)
any brand apple cider vinegar (currently
use gnc brand from rite aid)
any brand royal jelly. (currently use
gnc)
you can get the shower filter at home
depot for $20.
You can get the toothpaste at trader joes
or rite aid. (i use toms of maine brand
toothpaste with no flouride)
the body wash, just get something that
your skin likes. I use the biore blemish
fighting wash with salyctic acid- it has a
nice cooling affect.
Oh also.. Do not use deodarant with
magnesium and aluminum!
You can get the all natural deodarant at
trader joes or rite aid (i use toms of
maine all natural deodarant).
All these items are very important. Go
all out on these items. Give it several
weeks. Your body should be cleansed of
almost everything by then. Hope everyone
feels better
soon!
many posts have been deleted by mods. I'm
not exactly too sure why, but we lost some
valuable and informative posts. There is
a very bad spellcheck that seems to
uncapitalize a lot of things on this
forum, meh.
Feel free to correct me if I have gotten
any information wrong and if possible,
mods, please sticky this thread so that
people who are suffering from cu can do
something about their lives. Thanks to
all of those who have given me hope with
their posts about how they have found
their cure and hopefully, i'll find mine.
|
sambam
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 27 Aug 2006 Posts: 2
My Cu Posted: 08-27-06 20:34pm
I have had cu for about 7 months now and I
have tried basically everything. No
anti-histamines work at all for me...I
have tried benadryl, claritin as well as
other treatments I read about online.
For a while, I was on doxepin which
slightly reduces the problem, but it
leaves you very tired all day. I also
tried acupuncture which surprisingly
worked for about 2 weeks and then it came
back even worse. I am currently using a
combination of two medicines and it has
worked extremely well. I recomend this
to everyone suffering from cholinergic
urticaria. I take one tagamet
(cimetidine) 400mg pill every morning and
one at night. I combine night-time
tagamet pill with one .5mg cogentin
(benztropine) pill. Cogentin is used for
parkinsons (i think) but it is an
anti-cholinergic. I honestly have not
had a single hive for 4 months. I don't
guaruntee that it will work for everyone,
but it sure works for me. Good luck!
|
Sean3000
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 06 May 2006 Posts: 35 Location: UK
Posted: 08-28-06 04:40am
Fantastic post duper!
Also if anybody needs any advise off me
please feel free to pm/email me.
|
CDZ19
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 21 Jan 2006 Posts: 31 Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Posted: 10-26-06 04:47am
Awesome post man.
I wouldn't wish this pain on anyone, so
it's good to see that you're helping
people out who want to get rid of that
awful pain by giving them some options to
start off with, or if not cures to end
with.
In the process you're helping them to
further explain why it is that this
happens to them. Most people when they
get it, don't know why... It's the most
annoying pain in the world, and it's good
to see that you along with everyone else
is helping to alleviate the mystery as to
why it happens.
I hope you're doing fine and I wish you
and everyone else the best in their battle
against cu.
|
insats
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 26 Nov 2006 Posts: 14 Location: Sweden
Posted: 11-26-06 04:56am
Nice thread. However, try to quote some
medical sources as well.. I don't want
people with cu to read this and take
everything as if written by a doctor.
Especially the parts about stress
as far as I know, cu triggers by body
heat, and stress triggers body heat. I
don't think stress is a factor.. Stress
just creates body heat which creates the
hives.
My dermatologists said that it's believed
to be start with an infection sometime in
ages 15-20 (which is the most common age
for the start of cu). Stress reduces the
immune system.. Which makes infections
come easier. So like I said. I don't
think it's actually related to stress
anymore than it's related to eating hot
food..
And. Link to wikipedia on homeopathy.
Most people don't know what it is and
should know exactly what it is before they
start praising it. Drinking water hasn't
cured anyone as far as I know..
|
insats
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 26 Nov 2006 Posts: 14 Location: Sweden
Posted: 11-26-06 04:59am
Ps.
Im new to this great forum for ppl with
cu.
Short info on me:
live in malmö, sweden (europe for those
who don't know). I'm 21 and have had cu
since I was 17. I keep it at bay by
running on tread mill 1-2 times a week.
Avoiding histamin-rich food also helps.
Edit: I have never ever noticed any raised
histamin levels from drinking a lot of
beer. I go out 3-4 times a week and drink
beer, but have never noticed any different
in my hives from it.. So I don't think
alcohol in general have any high amounts
on histamin, but im not sure. Dried
strawberrys do have very bad effects
though
|
Pizz@
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 09 Dec 2006 Posts: 6 Location: Romania/ Europe
Posted: 12-10-06 08:49am
Ok..Insats...I have cu too...What do you
say..To try healing both the same time
:p i'm 19 and I have cu for 5 months
now..I'll try acupuncure in about 1-2
weeks..Ang I hope geting better..I suggest
to try it too..
If it doesnt work..Il buy ketotifen..In
could be a cure..
|
Duper
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jun 2006 Posts: 33 Location: New york
Posted: 12-10-06 11:49am
Very interesting article. I guess we were
right all this time.
that doesnt seem to have any relevance
since it's about other skin conditions.
I wouldn't say cu is a skin condition at
all, the urticaria only a symptom which
can be caused by many other things than
our form (cu)
|
kris81299
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 06 Feb 2007 Posts: 3
Posted: 02-06-07 02:23am
Ive had cu for about 10 years and just
always thought there was no answer to it.
I just started seeing a doctor for it and
nothing has really helped right now im
taking singular and zyrtec and they have
some what helped but I still get them
daily depending on if I get stressed out
or if its hot outside
|
kris81299
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 06 Feb 2007 Posts: 3
Posted: 02-06-07 02:25am
Ive also noticed that I get real red when
I drink but after 3 or 4 it goes away and
then I dont get any hives
|
AK1
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 06 Mar 2007 Posts: 2
Posted: 03-06-07 11:45am
I posted this in an older thread, I
thought I'd share it here as well, I hope
its ok .....
Hey everyone, I thought i'd share my
experience with you all...
English is my second language.. I'm sure
you'll find alot of mistakes
well, i'm 26 years old male who suffered
cu for about 3 years now.
It wasn't severe at first but the itching
started to get worset each time I get the
break out, after 2 years of my first
experience of cu things got really bad
that every time I got the break out it
brings me to ground, I couldnt even stand
up, talk or do anything besides scratching
and rolling over and over, the pain was
really unbelievable.
After reading through this great forum I
decided to fight the pain
so I bought some vitamins that I thought
hopefully will help me,
and I started to excercise fighting the
pain like it was a life or death issue
the first time was really bad, but as soon
as I start sweating the pain started to go
away.
Second day I did the same and the pain was
less and remained for shorter period. Now
after a month of daily excercising I don't
have break out anymore but I do have
little itches here and there during
excercise, and its still takes a while for
me to start sweating
my advice is just to fight the pain and
dont let it hold you back.
I dont know if this would work for
everyone but I thought I could help
someone here
p.S. The first time I experienced cu was
during radiation therapy for throat cancer
(synovial sarcoma), this might expalin the
stress thing
i am cancer free now
good luck for you all
|
twicken2
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 21 Feb 2007 Posts: 8 Location: Champaign, IL
Posted: 04-09-07 14:02pm
Nice post! I have had cu for what seems
like ever, but I just started seeing a
doctor for it this year. So far I've
tried stopping all meds and eating all
natural, a loratadine 10mg prescription, a
zyrtec 10 mg prescription, oatmeal
soap.... nothing has even slightly slowed
down my cu. The only thing that helps is
running and making myself sweat, but it's
absolute torture until I start sweating.
I've been thinking of trying ketotifen,
but it isn't available in the US. I can
order it online (don't know about the
legality of this, but my cu is getting
that bad), but I'd like to know some info
on it first. Have any of you taken
ketotifen? What is your dosage amount?
Any nasty side effects?
Thanks
T
|
Pizz@
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 09 Dec 2006 Posts: 6 Location: Romania/ Europe
Hi Posted: 05-22-07 13:35pm
I took ketotifen for my CU...nothing
spectacular for me...the first 2 weeks was
very good..but then I think my body bacame
used to it because it didn't work
anymore.. Ketotifen is a H1 and H2
blocker.. It has one side efect..it goes
through the brain barrier and makes you
dizzy and sleppy..
I'm from romania and here ketotifen is
cheap about 1/4 the price for Zyrtec
|
sailorvic
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 11 Aug 2007 Posts: 3 Location: Melbourne, Australia
Invisible? Posted: 08-11-07 22:19pm
Hi everyone,
I've been getting symptoms exactly like
the ones described in CU but there doesn't
appear to be any visible sign that
anything is happening. Is it possible for
CU to present like this?
|
chilipeppers
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 06 Sep 2007 Posts: 2 Location: greece
Posted: 09-06-07 04:27am
hi from greece.
i have cu 6 years now and i take atarax
and zirtec medicines.
here the doctors in greece tell me the cu
is a physical disease.
i stop smoking and i feel better.i think
it s a reason for cu.
i think the cu it s not solve by the
chemically medicines but only with a
physically ways and i don t know this ways
because all dermatologist doctors gives
only chemically medicines and not tell us
the psysicall ways to solve our problem
(because with this way they make money)
example:
if you have a fever and take painkiller,
they decrease the temperature but if the
ill have problem , the painkiller it s not
enought for him because they don t solve
his problem
Now, if anyone knows a psysical methods
(bitamins,food or other) please tell me
about them and which medicines they take.
on e-mail or my msn
i want to solve my problem and i dont know
how
my english is not good, and i hope to
understand the mean
|
hinrgee
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 04 Dec 2007 Posts: 4
Cu Posted: 12-04-07 19:15pm
my first attack was 91 and then i was
given hismanol(astimizol) but they took it
of the market for cardiac reasons. iv
tryied every antihistamine almost and now
i due for the keotifen try. im glad people
understand it more that makes it a litte
easier for me to cope with .Atleast you
know exactly what im feeling.I was fine
untill 4/2007 now im just trying to get
better it controls everything i
do....please post ur succes stories this
is a bad allergy
|
Duper
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jun 2006 Posts: 33 Location: New york
Posted: 02-17-08 17:22pm
bump
|
heartbeat0302
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 19 Feb 2008 Posts: 2
an experienced sufferer. Posted: 02-19-08 09:56am
hello, i'm a medical student. i was
diagnosed with exercise induced urticaria
since i was 17. i am currently 20. i have
to admit, i have been battling some rough
time with this type of Cholinergic
Urticaria (CU) because i'm a fan of sports
and exercise and CU just didnt make it
possible for me to do any activities
without going in to an itch fest.
however, recently I spoke to a professor
whom teaches allergies. he recommended me
to take Telfast and Xyzal. These two
classes of H1 antagonists works great on
this condition! I am exercising normally
again because all i need to do is take
this pill and it stops the itch and red
bumps. although CU isn't contagious but it
does scare away those who don't know about
it. These two antihsitamines must be
prescribed by a doctor, so you will need
to discuss this with your dermatologist.
They should know what these 2nd generation
antihistamines do.
i just want to let all you CU sufferers
out there - it's fine and someone knows
how you feel. you might have been through
a frustration phase thinking "why me?"
because this condition is idiopathic.
meaning there is no known cause.
if you want to know more about this
condition, PLEASE feel free to contact me,
because after knowing more about it, the
better you feel. knowledge can sometimes
really do wonders. i've been reading up on
this condition for a while and the more i
know, the more relieved i became.
|
skitomcat1
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 01 Feb 2008 Posts: 8
I would seriously love some help because as we speak..Im Itching Posted: 02-20-08 14:31pm
1. I need a way to easily make myself
sweat Without doing too much! Because
right now I cant do anything...In the
beggining I could tough it out until I
sweat but i havent worked out in awhile
and last night i started to run and it was
the worst, itching, burning, tinging,
twitching EVER. Right now i cant even
chase after my girlfriend without having
an attack. Does anyone know an easy way to
start sweating
2. I need to know exactly what vitamins
you all are taking and what store,
preferably website I can get them at.
3. Im a college kid so hearing this stay
away from alcohol thing is kinda hard. I
mean im not going to lie 2 drinks in and i
can just feel the itching coming more and
more until I have to leave whereever I am.
But after 4, 5, or 6 im usually so out of
it that I dont feel anything. I mean i
know its terrible to say but im always
feeling my best on weekends when im pretty
"tipsy". There has got to be a better
way!!
4. What has been working for me lately is
not taking the medicine at night when im
home and can control the temperature. and
then kind of "surprise" my body with the
medicine during the day. It seems as if my
body gets used to the hydroxyzine very
fast making it almost useless sometimes.
5. Next Im sorry this post is so long but
this page is helpful....will my kids in
the future have this or will my girlfriend
get it from me??
6. Lastly, What do you all tell people?,
Cuz i say some things and people look at
me like im crazy, like im lieng, or like
im just some pathetic guy with serious
issues popping pills all the time. I mean
ive said the allergic to heat line when im
just too tired to explain and lastly ive
said the cholinergic Urticaria line when i
want ppl to feel bad. but frankly most ppl
find it gross or wierd so what do u all
do?? Frankly the only advantage I have is
that im a 18 year African American Male
and people can't see the red spots on my
body!
