11th November 2007
Hi there, first post here so I'm assuming this is the right place :)
To give abit of background, I suffer from Allergic Contact Dermatitis triggered by Chrome. It was diagnosed using patch tests while living in England, where I discovered that not only did I need to replace almost my entire wardrobe, but pieces of furniture, avoid a group of friends and otherwise do some quite unpleasant things to get away from sources of my reaction. I was unable to completely avoid it however, because due to industries in the area, it was in the soil.
I have since moved to Australia for unrelated reasons (I got married to an aussie), and while it has cleared up alot, it still requires daily treatment with a bath (can't have showers) containing a special solution, and liberal application of the strongest Betamethasone Valerate cream the doctor can prescribe me. The entire routine takes about an hour each morning, and due to the fact that this is the strongest stuff I can use, I have no extra method of treating outbreaks due to inevitable exposure. While I can be almost clear for a month or so, any exposure leads to months and months of discomfort, pain, and social awkwardness.
I have heard something about a weekly shot that people can have which replaces the need for steroid cream, but unfortunately only in very vague references, and was wondering if anyone here had any experience or knowledge of such a thing. Baring that, if anyone has experience of other successful treatments. Note that avoiding it is simply impossible due to the wide spread usage of this chemical, so there will always be outbreaks. Ten years of spending an hour bathing in special stuff and plastering potent steroid cream all over my skin, to prevent my skin going from discomfort to screaming pain is having a negative effect on everything from my employment opportunities, to my social life, to my sex life...
To give abit of background, I suffer from Allergic Contact Dermatitis triggered by Chrome. It was diagnosed using patch tests while living in England, where I discovered that not only did I need to replace almost my entire wardrobe, but pieces of furniture, avoid a group of friends and otherwise do some quite unpleasant things to get away from sources of my reaction. I was unable to completely avoid it however, because due to industries in the area, it was in the soil.
I have since moved to Australia for unrelated reasons (I got married to an aussie), and while it has cleared up alot, it still requires daily treatment with a bath (can't have showers) containing a special solution, and liberal application of the strongest Betamethasone Valerate cream the doctor can prescribe me. The entire routine takes about an hour each morning, and due to the fact that this is the strongest stuff I can use, I have no extra method of treating outbreaks due to inevitable exposure. While I can be almost clear for a month or so, any exposure leads to months and months of discomfort, pain, and social awkwardness.
I have heard something about a weekly shot that people can have which replaces the need for steroid cream, but unfortunately only in very vague references, and was wondering if anyone here had any experience or knowledge of such a thing. Baring that, if anyone has experience of other successful treatments. Note that avoiding it is simply impossible due to the wide spread usage of this chemical, so there will always be outbreaks. Ten years of spending an hour bathing in special stuff and plastering potent steroid cream all over my skin, to prevent my skin going from discomfort to screaming pain is having a negative effect on everything from my employment opportunities, to my social life, to my sex life...