KWR: Any ladies with a sun allergy?

It doesn't sound like it is the sun. Could it be dehydration? Could it be something you ate at the waterpark?

Whooops, I edited. I get these really weird spots on my skin too. Like discoloration, that goes away in a few days. That's really the only reason I suspect it's from the sun.

FH is allergic to heat and there isn't much that he's found that helps outside of taking an over the counter non drowsy allergy medicine before doing things in high heat.

I don't have a sun allergy, but I'm extremely pale and can't be in the sun. I have gotten sunburned on cloudy days, get very sick when I am sunburned, and have had heat exhaustion many times, to the point of having heat stroke once. I have learned just to avoid it, but since I am not a fan of heat and humidity, this is no big deal for me.

Since it doesn't happen every time, I wonder if Crystal is on to something with dehydration. Make sure you are drinking a lot of water when you're going to be outside. Maybe see about a second opinion since your doctor didn't have much to say about it. I don't know if a dermatologist would be appropriate to consult for this?

Is it being outside or being directly in the sun? Maybe just sit under an umbrella at the beach. I agree there has to be something else to it if it only happens some of the time. Maybe its the UV? Does sun screen prevent it?

Obviously we are not doctors here. Just throwing some ideas at you.

It's just in direct sunlight. That's why I think the river didn't get me sick, its completely lined with trees and stuff.

I have a pretty bad sun allergy and I get really bad sun rash if it's really hot with no breeze or anything. I didn't have any problems in the Caribbean since even though the suns out the temperature isn't too bad and the sun isn't beaming since it's cooler there.

Also it probably doesn't help thats its 110 here in the summers. Jamaica will be considerably cooler so I'm hoping that helps a little too.

Do you use plenty of sun screen, and reapply after every couple hours? Since there was a lot of natural shade from trees, maybe you could try a beach umbrella while on the beach, and use a parasol when walking around.

If you get spots, a trip to the dermatologist is a good idea. If you already have one, see if they would look at photos and send pictures in. My daughters pediatrician will often do that. Dr Phil has some sort of app that you can see a Dr over the internet, even if it was just to ask questions.

As for the rest, the reason I suggest dehydration is because when I get dehydrated, I get headaches and nausea, which sometimes leads to throwing up. I'm a red head so it only takes minutes until I burn. The dehydration makes that worse. Spending the summer at a river sounds more relaxing to me. Sitting having a beer will actually keep you hydrated to a point. Going to the waterpark, running around, standing in the heat waiting in lines etc. You forget to drink as often. Of course, I don't know anything about what you are doing at the river, but that is my guess.

Sunscreen has been my weakness /: I always forget since I don't burn. I'll definitely try it the month or so of spring before the wedding, hopefully I notice a difference.

See a dermatologist. Years ago, I had a boss who was allergic & had to wear sunscreen all the time. I heard he died of cancer (don't know if it was skin cancer or not). Don't mean to alarm you, but it could be a disease or a reaction to medicine (even BC pills) or even something you ate before going out in the sun (remember the girls who got acid burns on their faces after eating limes in the sun?).

@Nancy whaaaaaaaat? Limes can cause acid burns??

Ask a doctor

ETA: why plan a beach honeymoon when you could be sick the entire time?

Good luck with that, not to be rude but the sun is super strong in Jamaica. Last summer FH and I went outside (with sunscreen on) for two hours the day we got there and we both got terrible sunburns and it was painful the rest of our trip. A girl we met there got extremely bad sunpoisoning and she used tons of sunscreen.... not trying to discourage or scare you but just sharing my experience.

ETA we went the first week of June.

@emmy..... i asked a doctor... its right there in the post. I'm now asking if anyone else has this problem & maybe what they do to avoid it/ what i can do.

Just be sure to stay in shaded areas as much as possible. Most resorts have plenty of umbrellas/palm trees on the beach. Where are you staying?

There were 5 girls playing with limes. They were squeezing the juice into soda, but were also daring each other to drink the lime juice. So they got acid burns on their skin. If you think about it, you "cook" seafood for ceviche in acidic citrus fruit like lemon and lime. If it can cook shrimp, chances are if you don't wash it off, it can do some damage to your skin.

We're going right after the wedding, 2nd week of april. I looked at avg temps and its mid-high 80s. Here, its in the high 90s if we're lucky. Sun beats down constantly here as May-Sept it hardly rains or even gets cloudy.

I know that it's something I'm doing, or not doing, that's triggering it. But I'm a beach/pool person. I never let it stop me from doing what I like to do. I just kinda deal with it. Just seeing what other peoples experiences with it is.

Make a list...add as much information as you can think of. Where you were, what you drink, what you ate, how much water you had, how much alcohol, the temperature, the cloud conditions, ect. See if you can find a common factor.

Weird as it sounds I had to do this for another situation....sometimes I would go out and a couple drinks in get all red and flushed, feeling warm and such. Turned out this only happens when I drink beer in addition to eating dairy (mostly cheese....so it would happen if we went out for mexican or I ate anything with cheese on it)