Jewelry allergy help!

I happen to suffer from jewelry allergies myself. I constantly get told how "fancy" my condition is, simply because I’m pretty much restricted to wearing nothing but solid gold or sterling silver.

stormytrucker4 said:I just finished an allergy test. Turns out I'm at a Grade III for nickel and Grade II for cobalt. My dermatologist told me there's no cure—just gotta stay away from anything containing them.

Identical. But none of our brilliant dermatologists—if they even exist—bother to mention that nickel is actually in your food. You've got nuts, legumes like peas and beans, dried fruit... and obviously, you should ditch canned goods since those cans are lined with nickel. Even broccoli has it. Oh, and cocoa. Chocolate.😢 Just found this out a few days ago. Here's the link:

http://dermnetnz.org/dermatitis/nickel-allergy.html

😢

stormytrucker4 said:It's such a pain having to wear an undershirt every single time I want to put on jeans... 😁 I heard about using Botox for those allergies... can that actually help? I don't really get how...

Why not just stitch a piece of soft fabric inside the waistband of your jeans? Simple as that—you wouldn't need the undershirt.😉.

Botox (besides being trendy...) honestly just temporarily smooths out skin texture in certain spots; it doesn't fix the root cause.😢 The cause is an allergen you need to eliminate as soon as possible. You mentioned issues on your elbows and across your body too... what, are you planning to get injected with Botox everywhere every few months?😕?

brighttinker2 said:😢

Why don't you just line the inner seams of your jeans with a scrap of decent cotton fabric? It's a simple fix—you wouldn't even have to bother wearing an undershirt 😉.

Regarding Botox (aside from the fact that it's currently "trendy"...), I suspect it can only temporarily improve skin texture in specific spots rather than addressing the actual root cause.😢 The culprit is an allergen that needs to be eliminated as quickly as possible. You mentioned having issues on your elbows and across your body too... surely you aren't planning on getting full-body Botox injections every few months? 😕?

Honestly, there are days when my allergies drive me so insane I'd consider drinking cyanide if it actually provided relief. 🙄
Otherwise, is it possible to eliminate the trigger, and if so, how?
And that business about nickel being in food... that's terrifying... does that mean chocolate is off the menu too? 🙂

Susan Scott5 said:I’ve dealt with jewelry allergies since I was a little girl—it’s just one of those things—so I pretty much have to stick to gold. I try wearing silver every once in a while, but most of the time it just triggers an allergic reaction for me. That said, if I can find high-quality, pure silver, I can usually manage it—right now I'm wearing this silver ring from a local jeweler that isn't causing any issues at all.

I can only wear earrings for about a day at most—after that, the itching and redness always start up.
A long time ago, I was given some ointment—I guess it was just one of those things you had on hand back then. Betrion I was using a certain cream for those inflamed spots—but then the pharmacy ran out, so they ended up giving me a substitute instead. Nystatin—it’s one of those things you don't think about much until you actually need it, I suppose. It’s pretty straightforward, though—just a reliable way to handle certain fungal issues when they pop up. I’ve tried that ointment from Johnson & Johnson—it’s okay, I guess—but honestly? It isn't all that great. If you can track down some Betrion, though... that stuff is actually the real deal.

You can pick up Betrion at most pharmacies—you can even get it via prescription, I believe. I'm not entirely certain, though, whether it's classified as a corticosteroid or an antibiotic—maybe one or the other?

stormytrucker4 said:Seriously, sometimes this allergy drives me so insane I’d consider cyanide if it actually worked🙄

I feel you. Honestly, I’ve been tempted to just pour sulfuric acid on it because the itching and irritation is that bad😢!

Watch out for nickel—that's usually the culprit. Just try to keep it from spreading too far. If that little patch of damp eczema won't heal with a bit of corticosteroid (try some hydrocortisone cream, but don't use it for more than a week), maybe try a tanning bed? If it's really getting out of hand, go see a dermatologist for UV therapy.

Cut back on the makeup. Not all of it is safe—those brands with all the glittery flecks always look suspicious to me...

Robin Robinson8 said:You can get Betrion at most pharmacies, even with a prescription. I'm not positive if it's a corticosteroid or an antibiotic.

Betrion is a broad-spectrum antibiotic.

For those wet, stubborn little allergic eczema patches that just won't heal? Hydrocortisone cream ointment applied thinly usually does the trick—should clear up in about a week. If things are really bad, sometimes you have to wrap it in plastic (occlusive dressing), but that makes absorption way more intense. You have to be careful with steroids—it depends on where the eczema is located. Absorption is lowest where the skin is thickest, like your palms or soles. Still, talk to a dermatologist first. Don't go playing doctor on yourself.

That's my two cents.

I am opening a new thread to pose a question:

For nearly a decade, I wore a silver ring set with a semi-precious stone without a single issue. After deciding to take it off for a while, I recently slipped it back on, only to be met with immediate swelling beneath the stone, redness, itching, and even some weeping. I removed the ring instantly, of course, but I am curious if this could be an allergic reaction. How is it possible for such a reaction to manifest now, after ten years of wearing the piece with absolutely zero irritation?😕

Rachel Ross66 said:starting a new thread here:

I’ve had this silver ring with a semi-precious stone for years, but I took a break from wearing it for a while. The other day, I decided to pop it back on, and suddenly the skin under the stone is all swollen, red, itchy, and just generally irritated. I took the ring off immediately, obviously, but I'm wondering if this is actually an allergy—and how on earth it could show up now after I wore the exact same ring for nearly 10 years without a single issue 😕

It doesn't necessarily have to be a "classic" allergic reaction.🤔
It could honestly just be mechanical compression, where the tissue in your finger isn't quite "used to" having the ring there again after such a long break.
Maybe try wearing it for just an hour at a time for a couple of days, and then we might get a better idea of what's actually happening.
There's also the possibility of some weird interaction between, say, the ingredients in your soap or hand cream and whatever metal the ring is made of.🤔

How long have you been wearing it this time?
And did the swelling and redness go down once you got the ring off?

I suspect the issue actually stemmed from some soapy residue that managed to seep underneath the stone. My thanks to 👍

If someone is allergic to costume jewelry, does that mean they'll react to gold plating too?