It’s Surprisingly Common… Unless You Live In Australia, Apparently

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My Name is Kayden, I'm 22 and I live in Darwin, Australia.

Darwin is one of the most humid and hot places to live in Australia. And I have had wet palms and feet, and damp thighs for as long as I can remember. I thought it was common and that this was just what happens to people who live here.

Growing up, my mother would say to me more and more often that I had ‘frog hands'. Using a smart phone with a touch screen was out of the question (though, I still used one).

As I got older, I became more and more self conscious of my wet hands.

And as I got older, my parents would start to complain of smelly shoes.I would routinely slip out of my shoes if they weren't enclosed. Sandals or strappy shoes where a nightmare to walk in. If I wore running shoes, my feet would still feel wet, and my toes would come out wrinkly.

Walking was and still is difficult. I am not the skinniest of people, but I'm not hugely overweight. I fit into an Australian size 12/14. Standard. But my thighs touch, and have always touched because of the way I walk (I have duck feet). I get ‘cowboy rash' or ‘chub rub' almost every-other day. Most days the rash gets so bad it's as if I have been burnt and the skin is raw and sticky like a healing burn. I've gotten scabs and blistered. And it's because I sweat and it rubs and catches.

I was and still am, hyper aware when I sit down anywhere in public, because I always leave a sweat mark – even in aircon.

All this, but I still didn't realized that there was a problem.

Not until my phone had started to malfunction  when I was 19 and I couldn't interact with the touch screen because of my wet fingers. I finally caved and googled ‘my hands and feet are always wet'. And my world was widened. Everything started to make sense now.

I booked the next appointment with my GP and told him. He blinked at me, turned to his computer and pretty much googled the same thing I had. He read one of the same articles I did when I was reading up about it.

On this article, it mentioned the use of beta blockers as a preventative measure. This would also help with my anxiety issues (non related to this issue). I was prescribed Deralin  – Propranolol in 10 mg. I took it for a few months.

This didn't work much. It reduced the feet hand feel a little bit, but not enough for me to like it.

I am starting to try Vaseline/anti rash cream  for my thighs, and baby power for my hands and see how that goes. Here's hoping.

I will be checking this site a lot more now that I know it exists. This was exactly the type of resource that I have been searching for. Thank you.

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About Author

I have had hyperhidrosis (palms and feet) since my childhood. I have tried/researched almost every treatment for hyperhidrosis over last decade, and in the process have acquired considerable experience that I hope will help others suffering with hyperhidrosis. I am happy to help you in whatever way I can to manage your excessive sweat problem - see the About page for more details and my contact information. Remember you are not alone, and that hyperhidrosis is entirely manageable with informed treatment. Good luck! PS: I recently published all that I have learnt about Hyperhidrosis in my book No Sweat! I encourage you to check that out as I believe its the best resource out there to understand and manage hyperhidrosis without falling for the miracle cures. Will love to hear your feedback on how to make it better.

2 Comments

  1. Having read this I thought it was very enlightening. I appreciate
    you spending some time and energy to put this short article together.
    I once again find myself spending way too much time both reading and
    leaving comments. But so what, it was still worthwhile!

  2. Great post. I was checking continuously this blog and I am impressed!
    Very helpful info specifically the last part 🙂 I care for such information a lot.
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