Excessive head and face sweating

I can't tell you how happy I am to have found "my people!" I have had crazy head, neck, and facial sweating for many years and I'm in my forties! No one can tell me what it is or where it comes from.... I can tell you that I have muscular dystrophy ( adult onset), RA, and fibromyalgia. I had C spine surgery in 2003 and I remember it appearing around that time... I have always loved the heat and summer used to be my favorite season. Not Anymore!!! I have been called a "freak" and people try to give me sugar when I go shopping, I sweat so badly! It's absolutely mortifying! My hair gets drenched and it runs down my neck, chest, and back. I know when it starts to happen because I feel beads of sweat forming in my hair! I have never heard of this or seen it in 30 yrs of nursing!

I have sweats over 8 times a day, every day, and I would do anything to manage it.... Just knowing that I am not alone makes me feel a little better. I have gotten good suggestions and a topic or 2 to discuss with my doctors. Thanks to all and hope for fall soon! I truly thought I was the only woman in this world who can break a sweat making a salad!

Good luck to all!

I just read this off of the web has anyone heard of Anhidrosis or Hyperhidrosos or trimethylamime?? Also has anyone having problems with their hands, feet, legs and ankles swelling? I even been on Lasix for that and no one knows why I'm swelling either. You would think with all of the sweating I'm doing I shouldn't be retaining fluid?? Just got this off of the web just thought I would share it bc I'm lost and I'm tired of going to the doctors and they don't know why and wasting my money and always being told if symptoms gets any worse go to the ER? I've gone to the ER and they couldn't find anything either so why would I go back and pay more money for them to tell me I don't know?? That's such BS so I'm gonna continue to research this myself and see what I come up with then I guess I make a Drs appt and tell them what's wrong and let him treat me for it lol lol and tell them I'll send them a bill bc I had to diganosis myself lol. But this is what I got off the web hope it helps someone

going swimmingly during your summer walk, when suddenly you realize you've stopped sweating and you're starting to get dizzy. Anhidrosis, or the inability to sweat normally, can be dangerous, since it prevents your body from naturally cooling off. If you continue on without rehydrating, you risk heat illnesses like heat exhaustion or heatstroke. Move to a shady or air-conditioned space and have something cool to drink (without caffeine or alcohol). If you don't start to feel better quickly, call for emergency medical attention.

However, longer-lasting anhidrosis may be due to nerve damage, certain medications, or an inherited condition, which can increase risk for heat illnesses and heart problems, too, says David M. Pariser, MD, former president of the American Academy of Dermatology. It's pretty rare, though, he says; just because you don’t feel moist and clammy, doesn't mean you're truly not sweating. Turns out, most of us produce about an ounce and a half of sweat every day, not counting those puddles you make when you work out. If you notice a real drop in your sweat production, be sure to bring it up with your doc.

5. Your blood sugar's low

Normally, your blood sugar should be between 70 and 100 milligrams per deciliter, if measured when fasting. But if it drops below that 70 mark, whether because of diabetes or something like strenuous exercise, you may start to feel the effects. One symptom can be excessive sweating, or cold, clammy skin, particularly at the back of your neck at your hairline. (Watch out for a quickened heartbeat, shakiness, slight nausea, dizziness, and blurred vision, too.) Luckily, in cases of a mild dip, you can bring your blood sugar back up to normal by eating or drinking something. But if your blood sugar continues to drop, you'll likely start to notice other more serious symptoms and could require medical care.

( Photograph by Monkey Business Images/Getty Images )

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6. You're eating the wrong foods

If you've been cursed with particularly fishy smelling B.O., you may have a rare genetic disorder called trimethylaminuria, which means your body can't break down the chemical compound trimethylamine, produced during digestion of foods like eggs, legumes, and fish. Instead, your body sheds excess trimethylamine via sweat, urine, and breath—often producing a smell not unlike rotting fish, rotting eggs, or garbage, according to the National Institutes of Health. If you think you may have trimethylanminuria, work with your doctor to come up with the best treatment plan, which will likely involve avoiding these foods and possibly popping certain supplements.

7. You might need more to drink than your workout buddy on your next long run

Ever had sweat drip into your eyes, only to find yourself in searing, stinging pain? Does dried sweat leave a gritty feeling or white streaks on your cheeks, too? You're probably a salty sweater, common among people who get lots of water during the day and keep sodium pretty low in their diet. You'll probably want to reach for a sports drink or an electrolyte tablet you can dissolve in some H2O sooner than the average exerciser. (Bored with plain water? Try these slimming Sassy Water recipes.)

( Photograph by AMR Image/Getty Images )

8. You could have hyperhidrosis

If a doc can't find an explanation for your excessive sweating, you may have a condition called primary focal hyperhidrosis, when excessive sweating is a medical condition in and of itself. And no, spinning enthusiast, you do not have hyperhidrosis if you can produce a lake of sweat under your bike. Primary focal hyperhidrosis is typically marked by sweating so excessive it interferes with your daily activities. "You're supposed to sweat when you’re physically hot, or exercising, or stressed," says Pariser, who’s also secretary and founding member of the International Hyperhidrosis Society. "People with primary hyperhidrosis sweat at times when they shouldn't." Even in a cool room, sitting perfectly still, a person with hyperhidrosis could have sweat dripping from her hands, he says.

Experts aren't entirely sure why it happens, but they do know that hyperhidrosis runs in families and is the result of too much stimulation from the nerves that trigger the sweat glands. "The switch is stuck in the 'on' position," Pariser says. Depending on the location of the sweating, hyperhidrosis treatment varies, but can include prescription-strength antiperspirant (even on the hands and feet), Botox injections, and surgery.

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9. You could have lymphoma

Hyperhidrosis can also be a side effect of a number of health conditions—including gout, hyperthyroidism, and Parkinson's disease—and even some medications. Particularly troubling is that it can be a symptom of lymphoma, or cancer of the lymph cells, which play a role in the immune system. It's not completely understood yet why lymphoma can cause drenching sweat; it could be something about lymphoma itself or how the body responds to it, Pariser says. Perhaps it's a reaction to another symptom—fever—as the body tries to cool itself down. (Both fever and sweating are known as "B" symptoms and linked with more aggressive lymphoma.) Or, it could be caused by hormones and proteins produced by cancer cells themselves, according to the UK Lymphoma Association

I can totally relate to you. I'm 41 and this has been an off and on cycle for me. In the past I was put on propantheline by a dermatologist with some success. That was a few years ago. Currently I am without health insurance and so I can't go see dermatologist. I got my general practitioner to give me a prescription for propantheline with absolutely no relief. I know what you mean by sweating so bad my hair is drenched just from sweeping the floor. It is effecting me severely and I don't know what to do. Have you gotten any relief?

As bad as I feel that you are all going through this, I must say that it is also a relief to know that I am not alone with this affliction! I am the only one I know in my life that suffers from this, and it has been a big embarrassment for me for years now. I just brought in and put away groceries, and my hair is WET. And it is only about 74 degrees in my house. It is awful to attend a social event and end up looking like just got out of the shower.

From what I have read, there really isn't much to be done about it. It sounds like that medication works for some...but not others. Not sure Kaiser will even give it to me - they are so weird about what treatments they approve. What is the gadget people keep mentioning?

The only thing I have done is to wear a head/sweat band. Kind of across my forehead right up on my hairline - wrapping around underneath, so it holds my hair up off of my neck too. It keeps my hair back, and does absorb a lot of the sweat. Makes it a tad less obvious anyway.

Anyway, I am so glad I found this thread- I don't feel like such a freak anymore at least!

I too have excessive head sweating but mine is directly linked to physical activity.  I started noticing it about 20 years ago (when I was peri-menopausal) but, as I have aged and gone through menopause it has become more noticeable and embarassing.

I can deal with it when I'm at home (eg: I will do any heavy house or yard work before I shower and get my day started) but where it really bothers me is when I go dancing (an activity I have loved all my life).  Within two or three dances I start sweating from my head and, if I don't take frequent rest breaks, my hair will be dripping wet and sweat will be dripping into my eyes within 10 minutes.  Even with frequent rest breaks, I always have to use a towel to soak up the sweat and, by the end of the evening, I look like a drowned rat.  

It is discouraging and I am now becoming more reluctant to attend social events because of it.

The only positive is that there is no odour.

Are there any medications which can be used just to get through social events? Does anyone know?

Thanks!!!