Woman Affected by Rare Skin Condition is Allergic to own Sweat,Tears

Julie Reid says that a rare skin condition she developed out of the blue three years ago virtually destroyed her life. The 28-year-old Florida woman recently said that in just three years she put on 100 pounds, but she can’t exercise since she quickly develops skin rashes due to her bizarre allergy to sweat.

Reid complained in a recent interview that she has morphed into a ‘monster’ and that she doesn’t go outdoors anymore.

“I used to be so beautiful, now I look like a monster,”

she told KGUN reporters in a recent interview.

She is currently trying to raise awareness about the rare condition on her blog site. From there we learned that she used to work at a gym and ran dance classes in the Clearwater area. Her life was fulfilling as she was active every day, one of her blog posts says.

But suddenly she developed the rare disease which doctors know by the name of ‘cholinergic urticaria.’ From that moment on, her life was over. Reid also wrote on her site that she felt like her life was taken from her. She became depressed as she breaks out into hives whenever she takes a shower.

She told her online critics that one is not aware of how much one’s body sweats until they develop the skin condition. Unfortunately, the woman’s allergic reactions get worse every year.

And on top of that, her condition has no cure. Plus, she has no medical insurance and was denied access to social security disability benefits. She said that a judge told her that the condition does not have an impact on her daily life.

“Are you kidding me? This has DESTROYED my life!,”

she wrote on her blog.

She added that the disability destroyed her too since she stopped living three years ago. The woman thinks that she may now have agoraphobia, a pathological fear of crowds and being outdoors alone.

Reid is now running a campaign to raise awareness about the extremely rare disease and get the necessary money to cover her medical expenses.

Experts at National Organization for Rare Disorders explained that cholinergic urticaria is an immune response disorder that is ‘relatively common.’ But it usually triggers an allergic reaction to heat and stress and does not last longer than six weeks. In extremely rare cases, it can last for years.

Image Source: Wikimedia