intolerably itchy skin

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my skin is itchy all the time. sometimes it is so distracting, i can't focus on anything else. and i frequently break into hives in a symmetrical pattern (tops of thighs, shins & calves, forearms, lower back are the first places). almost anything that touches my skin can set it off. occasionally it feels like bugs are crawling around inside my skin. i lose sleep because of it. when i wake up, the reaction has always calmed down.

it's like my histamines are on high alert and / or my nervous system is over-active. i also tremble really easily when even slightly cold (or nervous) and if i don't get warm within about ten minutes i'm quaking all over, a million muscle spasms.

is this (the itchiness, especially) something related to AS, or is it more likely a food allergy i haven't identified?

i know a lot of people here are intolerant of tags in clothing (as am i).
i wondered if anyone else has a similar thing going on with virtually anything setting off a histamine reaction.

I get hives and skin irritation very easily. Tags bug me but so do things that are tight and lots of detergents set it off for me.

I think it will be okay to use an over-the-counter antihistimine. Just use it according to the recommended doses. And many antihistamines do cause drowsiness. Please keep that in mind.

And it's important to have a doctor who you feel is at least a half-way good listener. And when you see him or her, this will be additional information you can provide, whether the antihistimine worked, pretty well or kind of-sort of, or whether it didn't.

Does not sound like fun, sorry. And wishing you all the best.

I have this too, and lately it has been worse. You can soak in an oatmeal bath. Just take a knee-high stocking and put a half a cup of plain oatmeal in it, then tie the end and throw it into the tub, swish it around. You can try some Solarcaine first aid spray and take a Benadryl. Also, there are different lotions with colloidal oatmeal you can use that may help.

Yeah I feel itchy too. Actually when I went off the gluten free diet I noticed that I'd get itchy again.
A lot of the times it's my sensitive tactical senses so I can't wear tight clothes of certain material, but other times it's a random spot.

i have read that the skin reaction from gluten that some people can get sometimes doesn't go away for a long time after you go on a gluten free diet. i have been off gluten for over 3 years though. so i don't think that's it.

feels like a combo of skin sensitivities and my nervous system being spazzy?

i'm very sensitive to medication so i'd be more inclined to soak in an oatmeal bath than take benadryl all the time. but mostly i'm wondering what causes it.

I have those problems, as well. I'm always itching.

I had the same problem until I went gluten free, although I had some eczema too. OTC benadryl-like products work really well, but figuring out what part of your diet is upsetting your system is a more permanent fix.

I have no skin itchiness-- or rather I ignore it; however I do have eczema on my hands that gets exacerbated by the cold.

I had this when I was pregnant and it went away and then it came back in January. I got rashes and itches. My husband insisted I make an appointment so I finally made one in February and I went in and it turned out to be bites. I am not sure how I got these bites because we have no pets and no mosquitoes.

Sometimes my clothes start itching me for no reason.

I used to get hives when I was seven and eight and mom always kept me home from school. Then they be gone the next day.

I remember I had these bumps around my ankles when I was 21 and 22 and they went away. They also itched.

I usually start feeling itchy in winter....think it's something to do with the low humidity in heated living spaces. Mostly it affects the calves of my legs but it can get me anywhere. It got so bad one year that I started using Deep Heat cream on it, which is quite effective....the burning sensation seems to overwrite the ttchy feelings. If it's not really bad then I can often keep it at bay with moisturising cream, and a hot bath with lots of scrubbing using a firm brush is also very helpful. Any slight touch of clothing or bedclothes on my skin can start it off. When it's active I tend to stay very still so fabrics don't move against my skin and set it off. And it means I can't easily share a bed with anybody who doesn't keep still.

The only other thing that helps is to keep my mind occupied. Once I'm into an obsession, I can screen it out, but if I'm trying to do anything that bores me, back it comes.

I stopped having itchy arms and calves after giving up bread and all wheat. But now when I occasionally fall off the wagon and have two consecutive days of eating bread, I get severely itchy arms - much worse than ever before.

For some strange reason, I am not intolerant to gluten - just wheat, which aren't the same thing. Most who are intolerant to one are intolerant to the other.

Try a process of elimination to see if it's a food intolerance, or go to a health food shop that does testing. No injections! I found I'm intolerant to all cow products, tomatoes and wheat. And pizza (my favourite food) has all three.

Also chocolate, sugar and coffee. And cappucinos have all three...

Food intolerances are not nearly as serious as food allergies, so itching could be the worst that happens when you do succumb to temptation, if an intolerance is what it is.

ToughDiamond:
Never use Deep Heat on itchy skin!

It's for muscle pain only. You will have scratched itchy skin ( "...lots of scrubbing using a firm brush..."), and Deep Heat should never be put on broken skin - even scratched skin will be slightly broken, so will sting and damage the skin (or Burn in your case) even more!

Use E45 or other moisturiser with no perfume. I would use Germoline or Lanacane to immediately stop the itching, then the moisturiser.

Good luck

I have TERRIBLE ichiness as well. No hives, but constant iching of the skin on my face and all over my body, and my scalp. Part of the problem is that one of my nervous habits/ "stims" is picking at/scratching my skin. I also have very sensitive skin. My mother also has very sensitive skin, and is always itchy. Maybe there is a genetic component.

The only thing that has helped me at all is to stay away from anything sented or perfumed, and to use vasoline intensive care lotion.

I've noticed that too. i wonder if this is what hyperfocus is about. once you've managed to circumvent the sensory distractions, best to stay in the zone as long as possible. otherwise you have to re-acclimate.

I itch like a mutha ucka at times. I wear baggy clothes which helps. I find that when the tempature drops I become very itchy.
At night is the worst for me. IT DRIVES ME CRAZY!

you want annoying? try having an itch on the inside of your skin; I've had that several times; very uncomfortable.