Iontophoresis Woes

Thanks to Caryn, author of the "Just a Little Sweat" blog, for sharing her experiences with iontophoresis. Though she had been using her iontophoresis machine regularly, the palmar and plantar sweating returned. She spoke with the head of the company, R.A. Fischer, that makes her hyperhidrosis machine (and mine too.) He offered some suggestions to help her use the device more effectively. For details, read her blog post: "Iontophoresis Trials." Thanks again, Caryn, for sharing such valuable information.

Love,
Tiara

Radio Show About ETS for Blushing

"This American Life," the amazing radio show produced by WBEZ in Chicago, recently aired a segment about one woman's decision whether to get endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy (ETS) surgery for excessive blushing. The surgery is also used as a last-resort treatment for hyperhidrosis, so I was thrilled that "This American Life" producer Sean Cole provided an in-depth look at its pros and cons in the show's episode #558, Game Face.  (To listen to the segment about ETS, scroll down to Act 4, "Frankly Miss Scarlet.")

ETS surgery, according the the International Hyperhidrosis Society, "frequently causes serious, irreversible compensatory sweating (excessive sweating on large areas of the body or all over) as well as other dibilitating effects such as extreme hypotension, arrhythmia, and heat intolerance." Thus, the surgery is not recommended by most physicians.

Elna Baker, an actor and professional storyteller, considered getting ETS surgery after a failed audition for a TV show. Network executives, noticing her red face and neck, said she looked too nervous on camera. She ultimately decided against getting the surgery. Her particular type of slower-onset excessive blushing could not be addressed by ETS because it is caused by her adrenal glands, not her sympathetic nerve.

Interestingly, it turns out that what helped Ms. Baker the most was simply telling people about her blushing. When she stopped trying to hide the blushing, she blushed less frequently. I wonder if this would help with hyperhidrosis. Sometimes my palms and feet sweat when I'm home and not at all anxious. But sometimes, when I've told friends about my condition, the sweating decreases.

Has anyone else experienced decreased sweating after telling others about their hyperhidrosis? Please share your experiences in the comments section.

Love,
Tiara

New Year's Resolutions: Think Small and Steady

Do you have a New Year's resolution? If you're like me, and like most people, chances are that you will break your resolution. In fact, four out of five people break their New Year’s resolutions—and a third of people break them by February. 

I finally found a technique that helped me create a positive new habit without too much difficulty. I hope this blog post will equip you to make small but steady positive changes that can help you overcome the negative effects of hyperhidrosis.

The technique I mentioned comes from Dr. B.J. Fogg, a Stanford researcher specializing in behavior change. He sponsors an ongoing experiment called 3 Tiny Habits.  

3 Tiny Habits promises behavior change without relying on willpower or motivation. His goal is to help people learn how habits work. He believes that people can create new habits by changing their environment (your surroundings) and taking baby steps.

The behavior should be

• ·      Easy
• ·      Quick
• ·      Specific
• ·      Scheduled at a certain time each day or prompted by a trigger

      Once you accomplish a small change, you can build on it to accomplish slightly larger changes. For example, instead of setting the resolution to "lose weight," you could set the more attainable goal of "brushing your teeth every night immediately after dinner" to prevent evening snacking. This action is easy, quick, specific, and prompted by a trigger (finishing dinner.)

What would be a small change to help with the social anxiety that results from hyperhidrosis? The change, to be successful, needs to come from inside you rather than from someone else. But I can suggest the kinds of behavior changes that have worked for me in hopes of inspiring you to come up with your own.

One of the negative effects of hyperhidrosis is hyper-focus on oneself. This impedes one's ability to socialize and build relationships and rapport with other. One tiny habit that might help would be when you meet someone new to notice their eye color. This would help you focus on them rather than your own anxiety. Another tiny habit that could help would be when you meet someone to say "Nice to meet you (repeat their name)." This would help you focus on and remember their name. 

One of the most successful changes I have been able to make is, as my head touches my pillow at bedtime, to say three things I'm grateful for. This helps me focus on what is most important in life and to better appreciate the people around me. It doesn't cure hyperhidrosis, but it is an attitude shift that helps one live better with the condition.

What tiny changes will you make in 2014? Whatever they are and whoever you are, I hope you have a great year.

Love,

Tiara

Start-Up Company Works on Hyperhidrosis Treatment

According to Fierce BioTech, a website that covers the biotech industry, "Miami-based Brickell Biotech grabbed $7 million in a new venture round led by a South Korean cosmetics company to back its work on new chemical entities for dermatology." (View article: Cosmetics group leads $7M round for dermatology upstart Brickell)

Fierce BioTech reports: "Brickell's big idea is pushing the fast-paced development of new treatments for acne, atopic dermatitis and hyperhidrosis, better known as excessive sweating. That may not represent the kind of unmet medical need as, say, advanced cancer, but several developers like Allergan ($AGN) have staked out sizable markets for new products in this field. According to the company's website, the biotech in-licensed BBI-4000 for hyperhidrosis late last year." 

Brickell Biotech describes BBI-4000 as a "topical soft anticholingeric for the treatment of hyperhidrosis." SweatHelp.org has a useful web page on anticholingerics, Hyperhidrosis Treatment Medications.
  

Botox everywhere...but who can afford it?

An NBC News Blog recently published an article about various uses for Botox, including treatment of excessive sweat. A woman interviewed for the article had Botox injected in her fingers and on her palms, and the resulting dryness enabled her to get fingerprinted without smearing the ink. Here is a video of such a procedure. I have to admit that I can barely watch it. It looks VERY painful. Some of the people who commented said that they had palmar Botox but it didn't work. Has anyone tried it? If so, please let us know how much it cost, if it worked (and, if so, for how long), and if it was painful.

Love,
Tiara

Australian Vogue Publishes Detailed Description of Botox Treatment to Prevent Underarm Sweat

Let's all love our armpits, sweat and all. 

Thank you to Mez Love for posting 

this awesome image to Flickr. (Photo 

by Mez Love, Some rights reserved.)

Australia Vogue published an article with a detailed description of Botox treatment for underarm sweat: "Don't  Sweat It: At last, a cosmetic treatment that stops you from perspiring." Interestingly, the author has never been diagnosed with axillary hyperhidrosis but is concerned enough about underarm sweat that she sought this expensive treatment. Must we all be afraid of a little sweat?

Medications for Hyperhidrosis: What's the Latest?

New from sweathelp.org: Medications for Hyperhidrosis: What's the Latest? Oral medications can be used by certain hyperhidrosis patients to successfully control their excessive sweating. But it’s not a one-size-fits-all therapy; only specific kinds of hyperhidrosis respond well to oral treatments. In this article, we discuss the in’s and out’s of anticholenergics and other oral medications used for treating certain types of hyperhidrosis. Could systemic medication be the right for managing your type of excessive sweating?

Drionic Success Story

A story from a West Coast reader...she had good luck with Drionic. I, on the other hand, found that it didn't work for me! So buyer beware!

***

So I'm 18 years old and I live in Seattle, Washington. I've been living with hyperhidrosis of the hands and feet for my entire life and it has been horrible. Two years ago, I started using Drysol and those other aluminum chloride things. They barely worked.

About six months ago, I went to a dermatologist with my mom and she gave me a brochure for Drionic. It has completely changed my life.

While I don't have HH in my armpits, there is a Drionic device for your armpits too.

I ordered my device online from drionic.com. It was about $140...more with tax and shipping, but it was well worth it!

I only use it for my hands, because they need it most and batteries are $7 a pair. This will change your life, I promise you. I first used it for a total of 7 hours (in half hour treatments) and i was dry for 5 weeks! I started doing it once weekly after another set of treatments to stay dry. So a pair of batteries usually lasts about two months or so.
I hope I have helped!!!

Thank goodness for Drysol!

I tried on wedding gowns yesterday, and I didn't have to worry about leaving sweat stains on the gowns.

Now I only need to figure out how to stop leaving sweat stains on the poles on the subway train.