Living with HS

Ohh I so feel for you! I too have suffered with HS on and off for the past 10 years, first lot was under the arms but 2 years ago i started getting them on my inner thighs at the groin area. For 18 months i suffered the humiliation of trying endless amounts of anti- biotics, trips to doctors and weekly trips to the district nurse to get my wounds cleaned and dressed with those awful big white dressings! I was eventually refered to a surgeon last July and it was there that one of the nurses, who normally worked in the burns unit/ulcerated skin etc took pity on me and sent me home with a clear non sting barrier spray called [b:0f835e3830]3M Cavilon [/b:0f835e3830]and a sheet of [b:0f835e3830]Duoderm extra thin Hydrocolloid Dressing[/b:0f835e3830]. Amazing!! I did eventually get my lumps cut out in August (hardly any waiting time coz my legs were a mess and the surgeon actually felt my pain i think)! But i want to let you know that the spray and Duoderm were like instant pain relief. :D I was a bit wary at first because you spray the barrier film straight onto the wound and then cut a piece of the duoderm (slightly bigger than the wound) and stick it straight onto your wound also! But you just wash the dressing off in the shower, so no pain! The pain relief was instant and i actually could feel it shrinking my lumps, after the first week they had shrunk significantly! Like i said i did end up getting my lumps cut out but PLEASE speak to your dermatologist about this (I then got my doc to give me a script for it but you can also buy over the counter) as if nothing else i can tell you that the duoderm is just like a second skin which hides the lumps/open wounds well and felt so much more comfortable on me and helped me with my confidence, by that i mean simple things like i could get up from my office chair and know that my trousers were not marked (sounds gross i know!) I was slightly more relaxed with my husband and even he said he hardly noticed the dressing.

I hope this helps you as you are right there are very few people you want to discuss this with! Good Luck! :D

Thanks for your reply, its good to hear there is other people out there with the same condition as me, i was begining to think i was alone and a little bit of a freak if i was to be honest. I've had this constant for the past 6 years i cant actually think of a time i didnt have a boil/abcess somewhere on my body (usually theres always more than one) But its just something i've learned to live with.

That spray sounds fantastic, i'm goign to try that one so thanks very much for that :D :D as my bra's are getting ruined and i have quite a big set of boobs so bra's don't come cheap and its costing me a small fortune and thats not including what i pay for perscriptions and dressings etc...

I'm at the point now where i will try anything to see if it helps....because i dont really want to have surgery but it may be my last resort im just hoping and praying this last lot of anti-biotics work (although they are going to give me major side effects, its worth it) if not i will have to make the choice of surgery or not.

I've already had surgery twice due to HS, i had very large abcesses in groin area which caused me so much pain i actually passed out at one stage and was in hospital for over a week! (I'm saying these abcesses were caused by my HS, although the doctors haven't seemed to made that connection as i had these abcesses before my HS was diagnosed, but i am going to re-mention it again in my next hospital appointment)

Any how i shall let you know how the Cavilon spray duoderm dressing get on

Another thing, do you work?? if so how did your company react? my work is currently unaware about my HS as i use my flexi time to make doctor and hospital appointments. although i am considering telling them for future appointments and just incase i need to have surgery, and would i need a doctors letter to confirm that i do suffer from this

Hey there, I really hope the spray works but remember to use it with the duoderm Extra thin dressing as this is the thing i would swear by. Like i said it is like a second skin and i got a pack of 10 which are 10cm x 10cm on prescription and you just cut what you need and keep the rest for the next day. Dont wear any moisturiser on your skin or anything which being an HS sufferer you obviously know that!! Your bras will sit far more comfortably and the duoderm will stay put all day. Yes i do work,but i am the only female in a male orientated department!!! :x :x So having to walk like John Wayne and go for doctors appointments etc was a nightmare explaining to my male boss!! And then of course there was the other 30 men who all of a sudden want to know if your ok?! But having said that i just told them i had a cyst on my leg that needed cut out and they asked no more, it was after i got my lumps cut out that HS was diagnosed. My work have been really good with me as after surgery i was laid up for 5 weeks! But i did arrange a lot of appointments for after my work and due to work committments i had to cancel my surgery once but i let them know i was doing them a favour so it kind of worked both ways! :lol:

Please do let me know what you think of the Duoderm and to save yourself some money try asking your doc to send you to a nurse so that you can try it for free first to see how you get on. Another reason i preferred the duoderm and spray was the fact that i could do it myself (not too easy when you think of where my lumps were)! I live in a small town and i got really cheesed off by the fact that the doctors and nurses didn't know what i had and seemed to be fascinated with my sores, just like i was some science experiment! :evil: I mean your layed there every week with someone else going \"oh thats awful\" or \"My that looks painful\" or the best one was a nurse who just blurted \"Oh my God, what a mess\"!! By the time you've had them for over a year and the novelty has wore off with you and your like \"yeah whatever, just fix me\"!

Sorry., I appear to be babbling on but anyway just remember you are not alone and i really hope the duoderm and Cavilon ease some of your pain and give you little confidence back! :D :D