I am having the same sensation with contact with warm water, i also get itchy and painful legs after contact with some beach water.
I started doing this too...my legs and feet. I wonder if it could be peripheral neuropathy since my mother has that. I know the other night my legs and feet throbbed so much I couldn't sleep. Sometimes when I am in the shower or just sitting it feels like I get bitten by something or a needle stuck into my leg. I sometimes have this tendency to want to move my legs around when I am relaxing at night so I have thought of restless leg syndrome. I have had fibromyalgia for years...long before they had a name for it...and myofascia pain syndrome...however this has been different for sure...can make you miserable.
(Cross Posting, originally posted to Blizzardduk's similar thread).
Showering has become a terror for me over the past three years. I get the sensation mostly in my legs, rarely in my shoulders and upper arms. I have dubbed it "electric itchies". It's similar to pins and needles (paraesthesia), but the needles are slower, larger, and hooked up to car batteries. I literally cannot stand it when it happens-- the sensation is so intense that I have to either pace the room or lie down with my legs up and rub my legs together. I can't keep my legs still (which makes me think of Restless Leg Syndrome?-- except when I am trying to dry off and get ready, not when I am relaxing).
It's as though the muscle tissue is itching. I feel like I want to flay my legs and scratch the muscle, but the itch is like a tingle and it travels, disappearing just as it appears somewhere else. It's torturous. When it happens I try to stay strong, but I nearly always end up sobbing thinking that I'd rather die than suffer much more of it. I am incapacitated by the episodes, so I only take showers when I know I will have hours before I am expected somewhere. I have dramatically reduced the frequency of showering as well.
For months I took detailed notes about showers: time, length, temperature of the water/ room, products used, my own mental state (stressed/ relaxed, etc) and then tracked when "Electric Itchies" began, body part affected, how long they lasted and the intensity. I could find no correlation EXCEPT the obvious: it happens after I shower, sometimes. Since then I have found that taking my shower at night reduces the likelihood that I will experience Electric Itchies, but it's not a guarantee. If I take a shower before noon it's like playing Russian Roulette with a half-loaded gun.
I have lupus with vasculitis, fibro, hypermobility syndrome, and a brain tumor on my thalamus.... but my doctors still give me a blank stare when I try to explain this to them. Not one of them has suggested anything that this could be related to, nor do they seem concerned about the impact this has on my life. It's hard enough to get myself into the shower without the fear of abject torture afterwards. I am desperate to find better terminology for the sensations, if such terminology exists.
I am 30yo female, average-thin build, and in fairly good shape considering my medical conditions. It is unlikely that my weight is a contributing factor.
Have u been checked out for vasculitis? There r multible types. Please mention to ur neurolist. Also, if it gets really bad, the doctor could order a skin biopsy. I am not a doctor, but i have had those signs but more when i am in a stationary position like sitting to long, or laying down, etc. I do have demylination disease, tho, but that was from a mistake by a hospital that gave me wrong medicine. I do remember, tho, many years ago, got bit by an insect, just happenned to spread all over my body, turned out my first episode of vasculitis. Beginnig stages usually a predizone therapy case will take care of it. I also had a vascular problem from heart disease, & no one ever even thought about it, cas i use to be so fit, but things happen like lost medical records, & now a days even tampering. I am sure ur neurolist will figure this out! Best thing ur doing is getting it checked out at early stage, & wish u well, cas its probably nothing to worry about! Good luck. Keep us posted!
No one ever told me i was having multible strokes, & my doctor still is denying them, when they show up on my history! I went to multible hospitals, & not 1 hosp. was told of my strokes, & they gave me neuroleptics!, which is 1st thing a doctor takes a person off of, not give them! Also i just noticed some time ago, the 1st hosp. DNR me! I now have nuclear scerosis, demylinating disease, cateracts, glacoma, & can hardly stay awake! This all started over 3 years ago, & i was made fun of in divorce court! I had my real estate lawyer ask for my court documents, & even the tape of the transcript! 'WHAT DIVORCE!" I have copies of everything. The state refuses to help me. OCR, ALSO REFUSES! I have no where to go for help. The hosp. wont see me in 2 states. I now have also really bad vascular dimentia. I know the demyelination has no cure, but what upsets me is the fact that this was all covered up! It is getting so bad i cant spend over an hour on the computor without getting dizzy, & have to lay down. I cant even get honest spycological counciling! I did notify the national stroke foundation, & 2 of the women were very nice to me! They also told me what i should do, but i am not strong enough mentally anymore! Luckily i have an appoiontment at a leading hosp. in the U.S., IN LESS THAN 2 WEEKS! I hope i make it! I also hope my doctor doesnt find out about it, so he can try to cover up a few bad doctors! Luckily, my daughter helped me reprganize all my pictures, & tests, that they didnt do! I dont plan on making it, but when time comes at least i can die with serenity! I have had a life that people only dream about! Unfortunately i am paying for it now, the last 3 years! OH! The reason i posted this in this columb, is i noticed something ws wrong with me, when i mention to his nurse i had myelin sheath damage, & 'shower shock!' This should of been posted under strokes. I hope i did not offend anyone, but i just wanted to let my story out before i got dizzy from using the computor!
has anyone had weakness/numbness in the leg(s) and low back pain relieved by sitting, or been diagnosed with spinal stenosis. I have spinal stenosis and get this sensation after bathing. it is circulation returning to areas suffering from peripheral neuropathy caused by the spinal problem...hot water increases circulation. A good test to see if it is a circulation issue is to add 1/2 cup Epson salts. if the tingling is stronger, you have peripheral neuropathy...although it does not mean it is caused by spinal stenosis like mine.
I have small fiber neuropathy and I do experience tingling after a hot shower or bath. I believe it's the heat that gets the nerves going haywire. I also experience this during hot or cold weather
I'm having the same problem. Was it MS?
From what i was told if it was ms it wouldnt stop so soon
Hi allll,,
Nice to know there are people like me. I too had the same problem yesterday. Though it was the first time for me. Fatigue and tingling after a really hot water bath. I am scared - hope it isn't MS.
I have anxiety and take inderal (beta-blocker), which reduces the blood pressure. I guess this might lead to the problem......please those of you who are undergoing various tests.....keep posting!!
cheers to life........
Hi. I still have my problem sadly, I am 3 years older than when I first posted on this thread, which makes it 10 years since my problem started. Looks like you are having many more tests than I did, so I hope they find out what is wrong with you. Did you get any results back ?
Many thanks !!
Hey All,
I have had the same problem for over three years now and it sounds like I am going through the same round of testing that many of you have been through. I feel like I have tried everything under the sun from switching soaps, no soup, organic shampoos, colder showers, changing my shower head, taking benedryl before and after the shower, gold bonds anti itch cream after the shower, etc. nothing has worked.
I was living in PA when it first started so I thought that it was due to the "hard" water, but when I moved back to NY it continued. It seems that the problem is worse in the winter, 10x worse if I shave my legs and worse with warm water. Lately it has even started happening WITHOUT taking a shower when I am too warm under the covers before I go to bed.
Someone that I know went to a neurologist and was diagnosed with something called brachiordial pruitis and prescribed Neurontin. I made an appointment with the same office (different doctor) and her advice is that I'm too young to be on this nerve sensitizing medication (I'm 22 years old). I agree. However I'm desperate for a solution.
I have an ENG and EEG scheduled for this week, followed by four different MRI's for brain, cervical, lumbar and thorazic with and without contrast.
M.S. has not been mentioned as a possible diagnosis, but every time I go online to try to find a solution I read something else that scares me.
I have even written to Dr. Oz about this problem because I see/find so many threads with numerous people suffering from the same symptoms and it seems like EVERY doctor has no idea what we're talking about.
If anyone finds a solution I'm desperate to know! Thanks.
My husband has a severe anxiety disorder and is currently suffering from he describes as "rolling in fiberglass" after a shower. He asked his neurologist about it and we get the "dry skin" answer as well as "there is no neurological connection" that he is aware of for this. I am not a neurologist, but I am convinced there is most definitely a neurological connection to it but what I don't know. He has also been tested for MS and came back negative. Any help from other posters would be great.
polycythemia does cause erythroalgia....ie itching after a hot bath. any condition that causes increased basophils in the blood
Hey, my tingling comes on after i have been in the shower long enough for it to warm my body up and then stops about 10-15 minutes after my shower, so that makes me even more worried. It is strange though, i had a really hot Hot shower this morning and i didn't get tingling at all!
Do you by any chance suffer from anxiety too ? As you sound the same as me. I worry all the time that I have MS as my symptoms sound a lot like it, but every test I have comes back negative, making me edge more towards anxiety being a contributor (although maybe not sole cause) rather than MS. I have had a spinal and brain MRI in the last 90 days and both came back clear, even though I was actually telling myself I had MS before I sat on the MRI bench to have the test. I have signed up with more MS website forums asking what their symptoms are like then probably a lot of diagnosed MS sufferers have done,
Of course I could still have it, an MRI is only about 90 percent accurate for MS, and less when symptoms are new, but every new negative test makes it a lot less likely. I can't obviously say you wont have MS, but on the brightside a lot of my symptoms sound like yours and the chance of me having MS have reduced greatly then they were before the MRI. A spinal tap would indeed be even better, but doubt my GP will go for that with a clear MRI. Good luck with yours though, if that comes back clear consider yourself very unlikely to have MS.
How long does your tingling last ? As I found out that usually an MS sufferer goes back to normal after their body is back to normal temp, where-as my tingling lasts hours to days. So although I could still have MS it sounds closer to peripheral neuropathy or something along those lines.
Hey, I'm scared of this problem because it resembles "MS" Multiple sclerosis :(
I have had an MRI on the brain and that was clear, i'm now waiting on a spinal MRI and a spinal tap.
Not wishing to hijack your thread sammycung, I hope you don't mind me asking the doctor who replied to you a question. When you say "psychic reasons" do you mean stress, anxiety, etc ? As I suffer from GAD but not sure if I did when this problem began.
Peripheral neuropathy sounds very interesting. I wonder if I could have this, or if the hot baths caused me nerve damage in my legs. What tests can be done to find out about peripheral neuropathy ?
Ditto, I found this page due to Googling tingling legs after shower. I have suffered from this for 7 years now. Mine started after I would have a nightly hot bath, every time I got out of the bath my legs were bright pink from the heat of the water, but it didn't bother me at the time. Then suddenly one day I went to bed after the bath and my legs were tingling and prickling like mad, it even made my lips tingle. I then moved to having showers as this happened everytime I had a bath, but it happens with showers too. Now anytime I have a bath, or shower, my legs tingle for days after. So I have to wash using a sink and flannels now, which takes ages, although I do have a bath or shower on occasion, like yesterday, and I am living to regret it as my legs feel like they have electric currents going through them.
I had an MRI last month and it came back clear. I had a ECG, came clear. I had a blood test (not sure what it tested for though) and that was also clear. So I am stuck now on what to do. It bugs the hell of me when I try and sleep. I so miss the daily baths and showers.
If you get any help at all, please let me know, and I will do the same for you.
Hello :)
No, my tingling deffinitely isn't an itch, but thank you for your answer :)
Hi, wow I wasn't expecting an answer from a doctor, wow, thank you very kindly
No however, it is not itching but I have experienced what you are talking about.
Back a few months ago, well maybe even soon than that I have had a strong itching sting after I would get out of the shower, it was so bad I would be in tears, I would go to the doctors and get a shot of phenergan to get rid of the itch because it was so bad but it wouldn't get rid of the itch, it did indeed make me fall asleep so I guess it still helped.
Back when the sting was happening all of the time I kept going to doctors about it and they would just say I’m probably using the wrong soaps. I started using soap free soap but still got it, I got so desperate to rid my stinging itch, "i stopped using soaps completely" but it still happened, it was so horrible & I had had this for two years off and on.
Although that has been a long problem for me, the tingling I have been experiencing after my shower, seems to be where I have had a hard/strong force of water spraying, so perhaps the pressure of the water is irritating my nerves?
I have been referred to a neurologist; it's just a matter of time.
Thank you very kindly, you have been a great help
Samantha
Hi,
Causes of itching after shower could be excessive chlorine in water ,frequent use of hot showers and soaps that dry the skin ,cholinergic urticaria , polycythemia vera (a rare blood malignancy) and psychic reasons . It could also be due to peripheral neuropathy . Water irritates the nerve endings and hence tingling may occur . Please consult a dermatologist and neurologist . Hope this helps you . Take care and regards !
Are you sure it is tingling or is it itching? Itchy legs after hot shower appear in physical (cholinergic) urticaria. Antihistamine pill would help in this case.
Itching is a feeling that provokes a desire for scratch but tingling doesn't.