First Blog Post Ever!!

Hi there everyone! It’s me, Carolyn, also known as, The Itchy Nanny!
Why The Itchy Nanny? Good question!
First of all, I am a nanny. I’ve been a nanny for almost 8 years now and I absolutely love it!
Now, why is this nanny itchy? That would be because I have a very strange skin condition called Aquagenic Pruritus. Aquagenic Pruritus (AP) is a skin condition characterized by the development of severe, intense, prickling-like epidermal itching without observable skin lesions and evoked by contact with water (according to Wikipedia).
Yes, you read that correctly, contact with WATER!
What the definition does not make clear is that not only is it severe itching, it’s also a horrible burning pain. The pain is unlike anything I’ve ever felt before and can probably best be compared to millions of fire ants crawling all over your arms and legs (though I really hope no one has experienced that)! The itching and burning pain are mostly contained to my arms and legs, but sometimes my back, stomach and chest are included as well.

The one thing that’s guaranteed to cause a reaction is a shower. Yup, a shower. That thing that relaxes so many people incites a feeling of panic and dread for me. Showering has become a necessary evil in my life; I hop in and wash my hair and body as quickly as possible before getting out and patting myself dry with a microfiber towel. Then I settle in for anywhere from 15 minutes to 2 hours of burning itch where I try anything I can think of to not scratch because that only makes it worse!

A shower isn’t the only thing that causes a reaction though; the rain, humidity, and even my own sweat can all cause uncontrollable itching.

Doctors seem to consider it an allergy and try to control it with topical itch management such as creams/lotions, antihistamines, H1 and H2 blockers like Claritin or Doxepin, as well as UVB phototherapy or tanning beds. Here’s the thing though, creams and lotions do not help, they actually make it worse. Antihistamines don’t do anything either, not otc Benadryl or prescription Hydroxyzine, although it’s possible that I’ve become somewhat immune to antihistamines because I’ve taken them so much for various itchy reasons. I’ve been prescribed Doxepin, but I can’t say with certainty whether it helped with the itching or not, what I can say is that it knocked me out so that I didn’t feel any itch, but being knocked out and sleeping after every shower isn’t exactly convenient. Phototherapy and tanning beds are not an option for me due to the fact that I also have Lupus and suffer from photosensitivity from that.

You may be wondering why I’m writing a blog about my itchiness. Well, I took a shower earlier and while trying my best not to scratch, I thought that I should try something that I’ve always enjoyed doing; writing. Journaling and writing down my thoughts has been something that has helped me tremendously in the past when dealing with anxiety and depression. So I decided to give it a try and see if writing would help to distract me from the itching, and it did!

So whether people read this or not doesn’t matter much to me, what matters is that I’ve found a way to focus my thoughts away from the itch and the urge to scratch. Will this work next time I have a reaction? I don’t know, but it worked today!

Right now I’m planning on using this blog as a way to de-stress and I’ll touch on all different aspects in my life, not just my itchiness! So of you read this first blog post, thank you!!