Please tell me I’m allergic to exercise?

March 21, 2018 4:58 PM

I have developed pinkish brown spots from my neck to just below my boobs. They itch, mildly but persistently, whenever I get my blood pumping, even a brisk walk, especially if it is warm. I have had them for about a year, and they showed up shortly after I started taking Sertraline, but I only took that for a few months, and it could be a total coincidence. YANAD, YANMD, but any idea what’s up?

I have recently moved so I don’t currently have a doctor to easily ask.
They are also often dryer than the rest of my skin, and lotion often soothes the itch.
Besides when they itch, they are consistent in size, shape, color and area.

posted by Grandysaur to Health & Fitness (8 answers total)

Response by poster: I should add, I haven’t changed soaps, lotions or fabrics in that timeframe. And I mentioned I just moved, but the spots existed long before the move.
posted by Grandysaur at 5:10 PM on March 21, 2018

Time for a dermatologist! It could be many many things and you should really get it checked out, if only because it could be an easily solvable problem with some steroids, for example.
posted by lydhre at 5:25 PM on March 21, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Sounds like a fungal rash which can be solved in a variety of ways, depending on the fungus concerned, which a dermatologist could help you with.

If that is too expensive use dandruff shampoo as body wash, moisturize heavily after showering with a non allergic or drying cream or lotion (esp if it's advertised for psoriasis or eczema-I like cerave), try to stay dry in those areas and wear natural fiber clothing. Note: likely more expensive than just seeing a dermatologist depending on your market.

I have also had issues upon moving, due to being allergic to most things. Generally one acclimates to that sort of rash.

I am not a doctor; this is not medical advice; just my two cents as a rash, hives, and fungal infection prone individual.
posted by love2potato at 5:51 PM on March 21, 2018 [2 favorites]

Impossible to say without seeing the rash.. however the itching with pityriasis rosea classically worsens with exercise. See:
posted by 2whitehorse at 6:05 PM on March 21, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: As the others have said, that sounds a lot like a fungal rash - perhaps something benign like tinea versicolor, a common fungal infection. I'm prone to getting outbreaks of TV; sometimes they itch, sometimes they don't. When the infection is small or I don't have time to get to the doctor, I use this soap to keep the fungus at bay.
posted by LOLAttorney2009 at 7:06 PM on March 21, 2018 [1 favorite]

How large are the spots? Are they sort of like diffuse, large scales, pearly and different in texture from your other skin? Or are they more dot-like, like a spotted rash? Knowing more details about their appearance would make a difference in what they might potentially be. But of course, you should see a dermatologist to check in any case.
posted by limeonaire at 7:55 PM on March 21, 2018

See a dermatologist, but you can also try an antihistamine before you exercise (even a brisk walk) to see if that helps. If you recently moved, there might be environmental differences (different pollens, etc) that are causing you to have more of an allergic reaction than you previously would. Hives can be induced by things like exercise and cold, and this kind of urticaria can develop later in life.
posted by ProtoStar at 8:16 PM on March 21, 2018

For a couple of years I used to break out into really itchy, painful, tiny red hives all over any area of my body that got sweaty. I saw a couple doctors who basically shrugged. I Google'd around and found a community of people who seemed to have the same issue- Many pointed to an allergy to the by-products of sweating. Yours sounds pretty similar! At any rate, I started popping generic Zyrtec every morning and I never had another episode. Can't say if it'll work for you, but worth a shot!
posted by GilloD at 6:19 PM on March 22, 2018