What Am I Allergic To

If I could have spent this time totally in a cool bath I would have! I hated these scabs! I knew they were a good sign and I knew they were protecting the delicate skin underneath but they were so hard, so ugly and I wanted to be rid of them! Well, they did start gradually dropping off- usually in the bath but occasionally on the sofa or in the bed!! Yuck! We were changing the bed every day and keeping sheets on the sofa to catch the scabs! Well, it wasn't pretty but it was a necessary part of healing- there were just sooo many of them - all up my arms. I cannot recall how long it took all the scabs to fall off but it took a while. My arms were very stiff and sore and the itching and irritation were terrible so I stayed on the meds. I stopped the steroid tablets though as Doctor only wanted me on a very short course. I struggled to wear any clothes - I could not wear anything on my arms at all and had to cut up clothes so they were without arms. I felt awful and must have loo...

I rang the doctor surgery the next morning, it was a Monday and typically there were no appointments left. The receptionist asked if I needed to see a doctor urgently- hmmm I thought well no I am not bleeding or having breathing issues so No - but I said maybe I need to see someone- so she booked me in with a nurse for half an hour later. Thank goodness our doctor is close by as the walk there was a nightmare, my arms felt heavy and the blisters were now filled with a weird fluid.  I went in to see the nurse who took one look at my arms and said you need to see a Dr today - now! She said she thought it was infected and that I would need antibiotics. she didn't really want me to leave the surgery and sorted it out for me to see the Dr as soon as he had a gap. I went in to see our doctor, I had seen him before and he is a very calm, measured doctor, nice and professional. However, I saw the look on his face when he saw my arms and knew he was shocked at what he saw.  I r...

So how did it all start? Well, we were on holiday in a wonderful sunny climate and I was diligent as usual about wearing sunscreen and keeping covered up and in the shade. I am very pale-skinned and I can't take much sun so I am very careful.   We had a great holiday, sightseeing, resting, relaxing, a quality much needed time. On the day before we were due to fly back I noticed a small bumpy rash on my left forearm... it was a bit sore and a little itchy but nothing to worry about much.  To be cautious I went to the local chemist who thought it was a heat rash and gave me some gel to put on it and said to stay out of the heat. It was our last day anyway so this was not a problem for me.  Nothing changed much, we flew back to the UK , went shopping the next day in our town and drifted off to sleep that night. I woke up on a Saturday morning and there was a BIG CHANGE - looked at my left arm- it was covered in large - I mean - HUGE blisters!!  They sort of grew...

I wanted to start this blog with an expression of thanks to my healthcare team. In all my experiences of my skin condition one of the main things that has kept me going and kept me calm is the caring, professional and calm approach of my family Doctor.  Looking back I feel it is so important to be able to talk with your family doctor, to be honest how you feel, for them to be honest with you, and to feel able to ask questions, discuss concerns, for them to listen to you  and to feel like you really are a partner in your care and treatment.  I was so lucky to have that communication with my Doctor. later I will share some of the most useful questions I asked and the questions I was asked to help to advise me and help me to recover and deal with my skin condition.  For now I just wanted to say thank you to my doctors-they know who they are- for sticking with me through all of this quite horrible condition, for answering my many queries and questions and helping m...