Caroline: A lifetime of skin writing, with daily itch to manage
Caroline manages daily itching with scent-free products, loose clothing and fexofenadine, and wishes there were more information on lifelong dermatographia.
Caroline, 24, Dallas, TX ·
- Living with it
- More than 10 years
- Main trigger
- Tight and scratchy clothes, pets, dust, outside
- What helped
- Allegra every morning, environmental and clothing changes
Hi, I have had symptomatic dermatographia for my entire life and I am 24 now. I remember the skin writing my whole life, but I think the itchiness got worse around middle school. I manage the itch by using scent free everything and by wearing loose clothing and undergarments. The biggest help has been a daily antihistamine. I take fexofenadine (allegra) every morning -- I have found it makes me less drowsy than cetirizine (zyrtec). Outdoors, pets, dust, and sweat are also a big trigger for me so I take a lot of body showers after these activities. I still have itchiness and flare ups everyday, but I have learned how to manage it and not to scratch. I am in medical school and it is crazy how little information there is on this condition - especially for people who have had it their entire life and symptomatically. Happy to see this website and connect with fellow skin writers!
