Flushy McGee

October 6, 2007 7:42 PM

How can I stop getting so flushed all the time? It isn't just when I drink alchohol- it happens all the time. If I haven't eaten all day & I eat- I get flushed. If I stand up too quickly, I get flushed. If I am in a hurry or stressed, I get flushed. My whole face turns beet red for about 15-30 (sometimes longer). I am white and have mildly pale skin (not pasty while, but still pale). It happens to my mother too, so it's probably genetic, but if there are meds or some sort of change in diet that will help I'd love to hear about them... My blood pressure has been perfect everytime I've had check-ups. Any thoughts?
posted by MayNicholas to health (17 comments total)

check your glucose: you might be type II
posted by francesca too at 7:49 PM on October 6, 2007

I should also mention that I am not overweight, never had children & 30 years old.
posted by MayNicholas at 7:56 PM on October 6, 2007

You could get what is called a sympathectomy, a relatively minor surgical procedure. For related information, check out sweatypalms.com -- it discusses a sympathectomy in connection with the biologically related problem of (of course) sweaty palms.
posted by Mr. Justice at 8:04 PM on October 6, 2007

You need to talk to your doctor about this. I suffer from the same thing, and about two weeks ago I finally went and talked to my doctor and it turns out there are numerous things that can trigger extreme facial flushing. Extreme facial flushing results from abnormally dilated blood vessels. I don’t want to freak you out, but some of the possible causes my doctor mentioned were quite serious. My doctor ordered a bunch of blood and urine tests.
posted by Jasper Friendly Bear at 8:05 PM on October 6, 2007

This happens to me too, especially when I get nervous or stressed out. Drinking ice water, staying cool, avoiding coffee and alcohol seems to help a little bit...sometimes. I recently had complete bloodwork done and it all came back fine. You might want to go have a complete physical and bloodwork done, just to make sure there's nothing physically wrong.

It's farking embarrassing. I can empathize. People who are around me quite a bit just know that it is fairly normal for me to walk around with a ruddy, blotchy looking face.
posted by pluckysparrow at 8:14 PM on October 6, 2007

Rosacea?

I have this (along with normal blood pressure). There's a topical medication for it, and various other treatments, but most of the prevention advice is along the lines of "don't do the things that make you flush". Since those things include exercising, drinking, and going outside in cold or hot weather, I haven't been very good about that. See a dermatologist for a diagnosis and treatment.
posted by gingerbeer at 8:20 PM on October 6, 2007

Are you from east asia by any chance? It could just be Asian flush, which is pretty common from what i understand.
posted by mulligan at 8:29 PM on October 6, 2007

Nope, white kid here.
posted by MayNicholas at 8:58 PM on October 6, 2007

It sounds like the symptoms of a "hot flash" - a cousin of mine had these well before menopause, due to the contraceptive pills she was on. Obviously these are most common in menopausal women to the point where they are commonly only associated with menopause, but they can occur in younger women, due to hormonal imbalances. You definitely need to see your doctor about it, but in preparation for that visit you could consider the correlation of the frequency and strength of events (if any) with your menstrual cycle, and if you are taking contraceptive pills, bring the pack with you to the doctor.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 9:39 PM on October 6, 2007

not taking BC- been like this since I was a kid.
posted by MayNicholas at 9:49 PM on October 6, 2007

Look closely at gingerbeer's rosacea link again. You seem to have several of the listed flushing triggers:

* Alcohol Flushing
* Heavy Meal and Sugar/Carbohydrate Flushing
* Adrenaline Flushing

The flushing when you stand up is harder to categorize, but otherwise, it sounds as if you may in the early stages of rosacea. See a good dermatologist and follow their recommendations to avoid your flushing triggers as much as possible (and you obviously can't completely eliminate any of them), and see what topical medications, oral medications and other treatments they recommend.

Some laser therapy, such as V-beam, and other light treatments such as IPL (Intense Pulsed Light, technically not laser therapy) are said to help reduce (not eliminate) flushing and any permanent pink or red tone your skin may take on after long bouts of uncontrolled flushing, but these therapies are expensive and somewhat unpredictable. You may see little or no improvement after treatment, and a bad practitioner can actually damage your skin further. Do your research and find a doctor or clinic with an excellent reputation who will show you lots of before and after photos.
posted by maudlin at 10:11 PM on October 6, 2007

(Well, you may be able to completely eliminate some triggers, like alcohol, but not everyone is prepared to do so, preferring to cut back or substitute drinks. For example, white wine typically produces less flushing than red wine.)
posted by maudlin at 10:16 PM on October 6, 2007

Symptoms similar to the ones you described can be related to the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system overreacting. The sympathectomy mentioned earlier in the thread would probably prevent these symptoms but it is a destructive and irreversible procedure that creates new and odd problems of its own (google gustatory sweatingfor more about the odd part) A starting place for some people seeking relief from these symptoms would be training with biofeedback devices that allow them to learn to have greater, if still indirect, control over this aspect of their nervous system. A cheap way to do that would be found here.

Obviously, you'll want to speak to a doctor about this to rule out anything serious before doing anything else.
posted by 517 at 10:31 PM on October 6, 2007

Here would be the corrected link.
posted by 517 at 10:35 PM on October 6, 2007

Casting my vote for the possibility of rosacea; I have it as well, and my dermatologist gave me a 3-page list of "potential triggers", which covers, well, just about everything. Ambient heat makes me flush, ambient cool makes me flush (face and arms, mostly). It can be caused by some foods, some activities, alcohol, etc. I'd say check with a good dermatologist; they should be able to explain the cause, and though if it is rosacea, it can't be cured, there are things you can do to control it.
posted by the luke parker fiasco at 12:49 AM on October 7, 2007

I am also a flusher. I have had a series of Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) photofacial treatments that have helped with the frequency and intensity of my flushing events. It was fairly expensive, but I am happy with the results. I don't find the treatments particularly painful. I have had about 10 treatments, and will continue to get a few each year for maintenance.

Like maudlin mentioned above, results may vary. I still flush, because nothing is ever going to cure me of my German/Irish heritage, but the IPL appears to have reduced the number of damaged, overreactive blood-vessels in my face, and has also eliminated the little spider veins that I had developed because of years of flushing.

You should absolutely see a doctor, but I have to say that I have talked to doctors and dermatologists about it, and they have been amazingly unsympathetic, I think because there is little they can do. Because my problem is limited to flushing (i.e. I don't have the later-stage rosacea issues like papular/pustular breakouts) there really isn't much they've been able to do for me (the standard topical treatment for rosacea, metrogel, does nothing for flushing).

One tip that I picked up from scanning rosacea boards it taking an antihistamine daily. I don't do that so much now, because the IPL has been helpful, but it can help with food and alcohol related flushing. The more you flush, the more the blood vessels are damaged and weakened, so attack the flush on as many different fronts as possible. Pick your battles. I was never willing to give up beer, but I started drinking lots more water, taking an antihistamine, and using very gentle cleansers. All of these things helped some.

Some doctors will also prescribe atenolol, which I believe is a beta-blocker that is also sometimes prescribed for social anxiety. I tried that and it did nothing, but YMMV.
posted by MsElaineous at 6:29 PM on October 7, 2007

If you do decide that it's rosacea, here's another article I found helpful. Also, new information on the cause.
posted by gingerbeer at 8:24 AM on October 8, 2007