Carly Findlay

Writer, speaker, appearance activist. Loving life!

Itchy and scratchy

9 Comments

Another shitty symptom of ichthyosis is the constant itching.

The itchiness is usually easy to manage. It comes and goes. But sometimes, like today, I wake up and the itchiness is so intense I worry that I will scratch myself to a bloody mess. Luckily I have learnt not to let it get to this stage, but as a young child I’d often wake up with bloody sheets and pillow cases from deep scratching, and then my skin was very sore when it was washed.

This morning I was so itchy I couldn’t go to work. My eyes and nose were itchy and runny. My face was puffy. My body was itchy all over. My scalp itched so much that I wanted to scratch it against furniture corners, like a sheep scratches itself on a fence.

There’s not much to treat my itching with other than antihistamines. So that’s what I did.

I’ve been in a haze of phernergan and zyrtec today. I’m not sure whether you can take them together without side effects, but I took them anyway. I’m not dead so it must be ok.

I admit, I love a phernergan sleep. It’s a deep, warm sleep where most of the itching subsides and the world is forgotten. But when I wake up, I am left with a hangover. Not a headache type hangover after drinking all night (I’ve only had one of those in my whole life!). It’s a hangover where my body is heavy and I don’t feel fully awake for a long time.

After Rush I don’t know whether I will take another phernergan or not. I am still itchy. I don’t want to feel horrible at work tomorrow. I have an event to coordinate. I can’t risk not waking up in time or feeling like a heavy lump all day.

When I scratch, people tell me not to scratch. I am used to it. But I really hate it when people tell me not to scratch and throw in a slap on my hands. That really pisses me off. Them slapping me is more annoying than me scratching.

Here’s hoping tonight is without itching. And tomorrow too.

(PS: don’t forget to enter my giveaway!)

Comments

  2. I'm so sorry things are bad for you darl 🙁 I really hope things subside for you really soon. Oh and as for anyone who slaps you on the hand, slap them back! LOL

    PS: How awesome was Rush tonight? They have to let Stella back in or I will cry. x

  8. Hey Carly… I'm an eczema sufferer, and I use phenergan to kill off the itchiness when that gets too bad. Like you, sometimes I dose up and enjoy the itch-less sleep, and suffer the heaviness the next morning. I've found that taking the smaller dose during the day (10's usually one or two at a time) and then using the heavier dose at night (25's – sometimes two) works well… particularly on weekends when I don't have to be up and on the ball for work!! Glad you're feeling better! Malady

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Copyright

The material on Tune into Radio Carly is copyright. The writing in this blog is by Carly Findlay unless otherwise stated. Most photos in this blog are by Carly Findlay unless otherwise stated. Please do not reproduce without permission from Carly Findlay. This blog represents my personal opinions and experiences. It does not reflect those of my employers'. The information I provide about ichthyosis is mostly based on personal experiences. Please seek medical advice or counseling before trying any new treatments I've written about. Where stared, I use affiliate links on this blog. By clicking them, I receive a small percentage of the purchase.