LIKE MANY CHILDREN, I dreaded the weekly PE lessons at school. That hour of rushed dressing and undressing with aggressive, often much fitter classmates was never something to look forward to. It was made worse by my sweating. Although I wasn’t officially diagnosed with hyperhidrosis at the time, the signs were painfully obvious. Indeed, school laid foundations for a crippling low self-worth that persists to this day.
But I’m not alone. It’s estimated that at least one to three per cent of the UK population suffer with some form of hyperhidrosis, a condition that causes excessive, sometimes uncontrollable sweating. The majority of people with the condition experience localised hyperhidrosis, finding it in specific areas such as their hands, armpits and feet. Others, like me, find there’s not a place on their body that goes unaffected. This is known as generalised hyperhidrosis and is much harder to treat—if possible at all.
Both varieties of the condition can cause considerable embarrassment, even shame for some. Aidan from Liverpool, who developed heavy sweating at age 13 and is now in his early twenties told me, “It makes me anxious that it’s noticeable, and selfconscious that people are looking or talking about it.”
The physical effects are obvious, but it’s how damp patches and clammy handshakes affect the mental health of hyperhidrosis patients which needs more attention.
Bu hikaye Reader's Digest UK dergisinin Reader's Digest April 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Reader's Digest UK dergisinin Reader's Digest April 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
EVERY SECOND COUNTS: TIPS TO WIN THE RACE AGAINST TIME
Do you want to save 1.5 seconds every day of your life? According to the dishwasher expert at the consumer organisation Choice, there’s no need to insert the dishwashing tablet into the compartment inside the door.
May Fiction
An escaped slave's perspective renews Huckleberry Finn and the seconds tick down to nuclear Armageddon in Miriam Sallon’s top literary picks this month
Wine Not
In a time of warning studies about alcohol consumption, Paola Westbeek looks at non-alcoholic wines, how they taste and if they pair with food
Train Booking Hacks
With the cost of train travel seemingly always rising, Andy Webb gives some tips to save on ticket prices
JOURNEY TO SALTEN, NORWAY, UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN
Here, far from the crowds, in opal clarity, from May to September, the sun knows no rest. As soon as it’s about to set, it rises again
My Britain: Cheltenham
A YEAR IN CHELTENHAM sees a jazz festival, a science festival, a classical music festival and a literature festival. Few towns with 120,000 residents can boast such a huge cultural output!
GET A GREEN(ER) THUMB
Whether you love digging in the dirt, planting seeds and reaping the bounty that bursts forth, or find the whole idea of gardening intimidating, this spring offers the promise of a fresh start.
Under The GRANDFLUENCE Suzi Grant
After working in TV and radio as an author and nutritionist, Suzi Grant started a blog alternativeageing.net) and an Instagram account alternativeageing). She talks to Ian Chaddock about positive ageing”
Sam Quek: If I Ruled The World
Sam Quek MBE is an Olympic gold medalwinning hockey player, team captain on A Question of Sport and host of podcast series Amazing Starts Here
Stand Tall, Ladies
Shorter men may be having their moment, but where are the tall women?