I’m so allergic to water that I can’t shower — even my sweat causes an allergic reaction

A South Carolina woman has been left unable to shower due to a debilitating water allergy, which causes her to experience excruciating itchiness upon contact with H2O.

“It’s been difficult to navigate as a young woman,” Loren Montefusco, 22, told Caters News Agency of her condition.

The Southerner specifically suffers from aquagenic urticaria, a variant of hives that causes a rash to break out following exposure to water. This affliction is extremely rare with only 37 recorded cases in medical literature.

When Montefusco showers or otherwise comes into contact with water, she experiences intense itching, which can last for up to an hour.

“It feels like the itch is deep below the surface of my skin,” described the poor gal. “I try my hardest not to itch, but I can’t help it.”

To make matters worse, there is reportedly no way to alleviate the agony. “I just have to ride it out,” described Montefusco. “I claw at my skin to put myself in more pain so I don’t feel it irritation of the itching.”

The South Carolinian first noticed her dermal hydrophobia when she was 12, but her condition continued to worsen over the years. She finally went to the doctor three years later, whereupon she was diagnosed with the aforementioned affliction.

As there is reportedly no cure for the allergy, Montefusco strives to mitigate the symptoms by avoiding bathing as much as possible and showering super quickly when she has to. Afterward, she makes sure to clothe herself as soon as possible because the cold air can heighten the pain, as can scrubbing or shaving her body.

Unfortunately, abstaining from scrub-a-dubbing is only marginally effective given that her bath rash can be triggered by being in the ocean, hot tubs, pools and even from her own sweat. 

“I have tried washing myself using a cloth and water, but it’s still using water and causes an allergic reaction,” said Montefusco, who uses dry shampoo to lessen her time in the shower.

She says the only fool-proof solution is using “body wipes” as this precludes her from having to go in at all.

Unfortunately, the pain the condition causes isn’t just physical. “I thought it was disgusting that I try not to shower,” she said.

Thankfully, Montefusco has managed to find a social media group of others with her condition who also refuse to shower, which she said made her feel a lot “less gross.”

“It has helped me to find other sufferers and see that others have the same struggles as me because it makes me feel less disgusting about the fact that I have to refuse to shower,” she said.