A water-allergic teen says she can’t cry or shower regularly because she gets painful rashes.
Abigail Beck, 15, of Tucson, Arizona, was diagnosed with aquagenic urticaria last month after her symptoms first appeared three years ago.
The extremely rare condition, estimated to affect just one in 200 million people, causes hives to form when their skin comes into contact with water.
Abigail said when it rains or she showers, it can feel like “acid,” forcing her to only wash every other day.
She hasn’t had a glass of water in over a year because she vomits from it. Instead, she sticks to energy drinks or pomegranate juice, which have a lower water content.
Doctors have been forced to put her on rehydration pills and are considering giving her regular IV fluids to keep her hydrated in the future if her condition doesn’t improve.
Abigail Beck, 15, of Tucson, Arizona, was diagnosed last month with aquagenic urticaria — a condition that causes hives when the skin comes into contact with water
Rain feels like “acid” and washing causes rashes that force her to only shower every other day
Abigail first experienced the distressing symptoms in 2019 at the age of 13, when she was hitting puberty for the first time.
Although fewer than 100 cases have been recorded to date, it typically occurs at this crucial stage of development.
WHAT IS AQUAGENIC URTICARY?
Aquagenic urticaria causes sufferers to develop hives after their skin comes into contact with water.
Between 50 and 100 people are known to be affected worldwide.
Women are more likely to experience symptoms, which typically begin around puberty.
The hives are usually red and 1-3 mm wide. They typically appear on the neck, chest, and arms.
Some may also experience itching.
Once the water is removed, the rash usually fades within 30 to 60 minutes.
The cause of aquagenic urticaria is unclear but may be due to a substance in the water that triggers an immune response.
Most cases occur incidentally with no family history of the condition.
Due to the rarity of the condition, little is known about how best to treat it.
Therapies typically include antihistamines, UV light treatments, steroids, creams that act as a barrier, and bathing in sodium bicarbonate.
Source: National Institutes of Health
The cause is unclear, but it’s possible that the condition is due to a substance in the water that triggers an immune response. Most cases occur incidentally with no family history of the condition.
Due to the rarity of the condition, little is known about how best to treat it. Therapies typically include antihistamines, UV light treatments, steroids, creams that act as a barrier, and bathing in sodium bicarbonate.
Abigail was reluctant to see a doctor for fear they would think she was “crazy” and only worked up the courage this year.
She said: “It took a long time to be diagnosed. It was slow going and got worse over time. When it rained it hurt a lot, it felt like acid.
“I thought that was normal, so I asked my mum if rain made her feel like acid when it rained and she said no.
“I recently asked my mum if she remembers me asking that and why she doesn’t think something is wrong. She said she just thought it was something a kid would say.
At first she thought there was something wrong with the water in her house or that she had a reaction to skin lotion.
But over time, the symptoms worsened and she realized that other people didn’t suffer the way she did.
She held back from telling a doctor because she “didn’t want to seem crazy,” she said.
Now the condition has taken over her life, interfering with her ability to shower, exercise and even cry.
She said: “My own tears cause a reaction where my face turns red and burns really badly.
“I cry like a normal person and it hurts. Tears are one of the worst parts of it because when you cry, your tears shouldn’t burn your skin.
“It rules my life, but I don’t want it. I throw up when I drink water, my chest hurts a lot and my heart starts beating very fast.”
Abigail can only drink a small amount of water at a time and takes antihistamines and steroids to combat the reactions.
She had a reaction to a sports drink last week that caused stomach cramps and chest pains for four hours.
“I have to check labels, but everything in this world contains water. The last time I drank water was a year ago,” she added.
“I’m afraid that if one day it gets out of hand, no one will know what to do, including me. I don’t even know what to do.
“I try to stay in a good mood and I know that if something happens, the people around me will do their best.”
The condition has taken over her life, interfering with her ability to shower, exercise, and even cry
Abigail said the scariest part about the disease is the lack of information given how rare the condition is.
She added: “I have no idea what could happen, which is scary for me. I have no urge to drink water at all, I don’t want to drink it, the taste is bad for me.
“There was talk of getting an IV line put in so I could take fluids, but that’s more of the future. If things continue to progress I will need more permanent treatment.
“I don’t have an epi pen but I have an appointment with an allergist to set up a game plan and I have a health plan at school so the nurses have a plan ready in case I have a reaction from passing out could .’
Now she’s speaking out to raise awareness about the condition and educate people in hopes they’ll be more understanding.
She said: “It’s getting really frustrating. People ask me to explain how it works and I can, but I can’t explain why it happens because no one knows or understands.
“I had to tell my doctors about my condition because they had never experienced it.
“When I tell people I’m allergic to water, people find it absolutely ridiculous and a lot of people are shocked by it. People always point out that our bodies are made of water.
“Some people ask questions that I like because I want to help enlighten someone, so I’m open to answering questions.”