effect of hyperhidrosis on your social life

[Eclectic]

(if you suffer from this condition)

I have hyperhidrosis (underarms, palms, occasionally feet, and cranial/facial).

I searched the soompi forums and came across this thread:

http://www.soompi.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=139626&st=0

so I'm pretty sure a good number of other people on this forum have it too. (statistically it affects about 2.8% of the population of the United States)

That thread just focused on treatment options, though.

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For this thread, I was wondering how has it affected your social life?

For me, cranial/facial sweating is the most obvious and embarrassing part of my hyperhidrosis condition so I tend to avoid people once I feel the beads of sweat on my head forming. Sometimes when I meet new people or cut small talk with strangers and feel the forehead sweat coming on, I try to play it off by saying "dang, it's hot in here". It's like a positive feedback cycle in which i sweat more when i notice that i am starting to sweat, probably due to being nervousness/anxiety.

Shaking hands is an important part when meeting new people, so i try to do it quick and lightly and then do a "props fist" in the future if i meet them again.

To make this relevant to the "love and relationships" subforum, my confidence goes out the window when I try to approach girls and feel the sweat coming on.

I already know about that one cliche that if you don't like something about yourself you should change it, but treatment for this condition is difficult unless you did something more drastic (and potentially dangerous) such as botox injections/sweat gland removal/ETS surgery.

So pretty much this is my social weakness and I'm slowly trying to accept and live with it.

Do you personally have this condition or have friends/know people who suffer this?

[Guest BAZINGA!]

OMG i wrote a reply but my internet went out the window. Anyways long post short:

As long as you don't smell, good people won't care. I know two people that have the same condition and they're both pretty outgoing people. As their friend it didn't matter to me when I met them and it still doesn't matter to me now. If you have sweaty palms, then you have sweaty palms. I've held someone's sweaty hands before. LOL!

I think you just have to try to work on being less shy. Someone that really likes you won't care.

[Guest udonXD]

I have hyperhidrosis too and I was very self conscious. I never wanted to give anyone high fives and i refused to play video games cuz i would sweat on the controller. but eventually, i just accepted it and usually i wipe my hands on my pants before shaking anyone's hands -.-

and i agree with the person above. i have a bf who doesnt care about it and he even told me that my sweat moisturizes his hands. haha lol

[Guest Cloud Expert]

I have hyperhidrosis too and I was very self conscious. I never wanted to give anyone high fives and i refused to play video games cuz i would sweat on the controller. but eventually, i just accepted it and usually i wipe my hands on my pants before shaking anyone's hands -.-

and i agree with the person above. i have a bf who doesnt care about it and he even told me that my sweat moisturizes his hands. haha lol

Aww thats so cute!

Hmm I'm not sure if I have that but my hands get sweaty easily too. They're not constantly sweating but when I get like hardcore about video games and such my controller would be like..LOL. And if anyone comments i'd say HEY SHUUDDAP :3! And they would just overlook it. So I guess if you treat it as something that can be overlooked people wouldnt mind. But I reckon the more attention you pay to it, the worse it gets.

[Guest monikadoesmakeup]

I have hyperhidrosis (hands). Honestly, it used to bother me a lot before, but I don't let it bother me anymore. My boyfriend doesn't care about it, so why should I? He's the one holding my hands anyway, haha.

If I'm shaking hands with new people, I don't make a big deal of it. I laugh, wipe my palms on my shirt or whatever, and just say jokingly, "Sorry, my hands are always sweaty" or something along the lines of that. No one ever cares or makes a big show of it.

[TVBuddy]

I guess I'm lucky cus eventhough I'm fat I don't really have nasty sweating from head and face but I do in my back...but only when it's really hot.

[Guest dumas]

good people will make sure that they don't "notice your excessive sweating" they'll try to make you feel like they don't notice it, but they will notice it, and inside they will be smirking.

people are just mean like that.

[Guest]

and i agree with the person above. i have a bf who doesnt care about it and he even told me that my sweat moisturizes his hands. haha lol

I feel the same way as your boyfriend; I have a similar relationship, except it's my boyfriend who sweats!

Even during the winter, when we are sleeping in the same bed, his legs are super sweaty! My legs are dry and I get cold very easily. During the summer, he's sweating 24/7 and his palms are always consistently soft and moist. I think he has a mild case of hyperhidrosis and was very embarrassed about it when we first started dating. He also puts his hands in his pockets very often, and when I reach to hold his hand, it's very sweaty (even during the winter). I still love him anyway. :wub:

[Guest SugarTeaCoffeeCream]

Well my hyperhidrosis only reacts when my adrenaline is acting up, my heart beats fast, or it's hot. As strange as it sounds, I can make my hands starts to sweat but I can't stop it after it's started. Ever since young, anything I would touch or hold would become wet from my sweat and people have noticed....they've all said "ew...gross!!" and refused to touch anything I touched before. Now that I've become older, I can semi-control it and know when it's going to start so I do everything possible to make it stop. It's almost to the point where some people I know are almost unaware that I have sweaty hands (but it's also the fact that I refuse to touch anyone as well as wiping my hands constantly before touching anything). This guy I knew told me recently that people with sweaty hands are nasty and that he wouldn't want to hold the girl's hand (he doesn't know that I have sweaty hands). I couldn't say anything but simply nod. However, I kind of made a deal with myself that I most likely wouldn't let a guy hold my hand. You could say I have a complex about it because the people I've met so far in my entire life aren't so open-minded about something like this. Even my cousin thought it was disgusting when she first found out. I've also seen my classmates face and hesitation when they see it too. It hasn't ruined my social life, just the physical part of it.

[Eclectic]

was digging through old threads and then i remembered this one...

funny story, a friend invited me over to a frat house party about a month ago (alpha phi omega or "apo" for short; i'm not in the frat btw). the main part of the house where everyone was at was in the living room because there were two beer pong tables set up there. well anyways, the place was really humid because of the large concentration of people in a small space (and thus emitting a lot of body heat). i was prepared this time though and brought a handkerchief, but the heat was too great that i pretty much kept sweating even though i wiped my forehead!

it was funny because other people noticed that it was hot too (and i saw some other "sweaters" but not as severe....perhaps fellow hyperhidrosis sufferers?)

anyways, i overhead a conversation:

person 1: "dang, it's really hot in here"

person 2: "yeah, seriously. just look at that guy over there."

[monicaaaa]

My cousin has sweaty palms and she went to see a doctor for it. Doctor told her that it's because of some gland on her neck and performing surgery on it,like, cutting the gland or something can cure it. But she doesn't feel that it's a big enough deal to get surgery so she's not gonna do it. She says it doesn't bother her too much nowdays and she has a pretty good social life :)

[Guest cutemonster]

I have a friend who has this condition. she just gets botox injected into her hands, arm pits, etc.

she said in a few years she'll just take the leftover botox and inject it into her forehead. LOL.

I personally don't have this condition and I honestly don't know how it feels to have it affect your relationships. But this is what I think: if you feel like a medical condition is affecting your social life, you should do something about it or be confident of who you are and OWN it. Just like acne, when people feel like it affects their social life, they seek medical treatment. But I've known friends who walk around with it and still be great sociable people. I think it's lovely to have a partner who understands and accepts your condition, but if you feel like it's stopping you from meeting people & making connections, you should try treatment.

[Eclectic]

My cousin has sweaty palms and she went to see a doctor for it. Doctor told her that it's because of some gland on her neck and performing surgery on it,like, cutting the gland or something can cure it. But she doesn't feel that it's a big enough deal to get surgery so she's not gonna do it. She says it doesn't bother her too much nowdays and she has a pretty good social life

this sounds exactly like ETS (Endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy). that is a drastic final resort with potential harmful side effects. i'd rather just live in drenched embarrassment

I have a friend who has this condition. she just gets botox injected into her hands, arm pits, etc.

if possible, could you ask your friend how much those botox injections cost her (or if insurance covered it). also, how long did those injections last until she had to get more?