Hydrocortisone Dependency

A little over 25 years ago, the genetic profiles of two people came together to create a new human being. Nine months later, two days before Thanksgiving, that human being emerged into the world. At that time no one could have guessed what mixing those sets of DNA would do. It wasn't until many years later would anyone discover the problems that would arise: Terrible skin. Dun dun duuuuun!

That's right, folks. I'm talking about me. I'm talking about my parents, neither having great skin, coming together and foolishly expecting any offspring to have a shot at semi-normal skin. Okay - I'm being dramatic. But, I really do have a higher propensity for skin problems than the average person. Let me list off the issues...

1) I have the palest, whitest, blind-you-as-you-look-at-it skin. I can sit in a tanning booth or sit outside all day and nothing happens. I do not tan. I burn. And then I peel. And then I am white again. (It doesn't help that I married and often take pictures with someone who has some Hispanic DNA - he walks from the door of our apartment to the car and gets a nice, even tan.)

2) I have lots of freckles. Some people think it's kind of cute - Brad, having no freckles, is actually fascinated by them. But I don't like them.

3) I have eczema. It's not a terrible case (I should be thankful), but it's bad enough to be annoying and inconvenient - especially in the winter time. Thanks Mom!

4) I have just generally dry skin...again terribly annoying in the winter. My dermatologist has actually said that I should only shower every other day and I shouldn't use really hot water, because my skin's "natural oils" need to rebuild. Gross.

5) I seem to be allergic to most any body soap, lotion, or laundry detergent with any dies or perfumes. I will break out in a rash if I attempt to use them.

6) If I get a bug bite (mosquitoes, spiders, etc), I seem to swell up really bad and the bites get really tender. My dad has the same problem.

Anyways, you may be wondering why I'm rambling/complaining/whining. Last weekend, I met up with some friends who were camping. One of them actually wrote about it on her blog and posted wonderful, not-so-flattering pictures of me. :) You can find her blog here. Well, even though I wore bug spray both days, somehow I got eaten alive. I had heard the mosquitoes were really bad this year due to all the flooding, but oh my word! When I got home, I counted 32 bites...all over my feet, ankles, legs, arms, and one right on my backside! Good grief! Like I said, I swell up so bad with bug bites. I had CANKLES folks. Cankles! My feet and ankles were so swollen that I looked like I had two tree stumps for legs. It is gross. They are also SO itchy and sore.

How did I treat it? Note the title of this blog. Hydrocortisone cream and several doses of Benadryl (or Waldryl for all of us poor folk) made the following days semi-tolerable. When I got to a computer yesterday, I was curious what else I could do to help with itching that isn't just jamming more medicine down my throat. I came across this website! It was very interesting! It even said that the average human has 20 square feet of skin...the only thing that came to mind was Silence of the Lambs. Moving on...

Another website (and one of my favorites) can be found here. It is Mayo Clinic's website and had lots of useful information. Who knew that lemon could be used to cure an itch? Anyways, I know this was probably the most boring, complain-filled post I've ever written, but now that it's out of my system, I can move on with more interesting things in the future!

Hope your guys' week is itch free! ;)