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Sunburn with horrible Pins and Needles Sensation
Hi...I am a 28 year old female. I rarely sunburn and can count the number of times on one hand. However, three days ago, I spent about three hours at the pool. I covered myself in sunscreen prior to going and while there. When I came back, it appeared I had a nice tan. Then, as the hours passed, my back and the back of my legs became very red. Since I was in the sun, I spent even time on both sides of my body so as to get an even tan, but for some reason only my back side burned.
The real issue here is that now, after three days, I am experiencing extremely uncomfortable sensations that feel like pins and needles in addition to the fact that the burn hurts to touch, is hot, and red (although some redness has now gone away and some of the heat radiating from the burn has subsided). Is this normal for a sunburn? I haven't had enough of them to know really. But, I have literally been awake all night and in tears because I cannot bear this sensation of pins and needles. Is there anything that I can do to make this stop? I am desperate. I work and cannot function without sleep. I cannot take off work as right now as I have deadlines that must be completed on time. Please...is there anything that might help??? This is terrible.
Thank you for assistance.
This discussion is related to Sunburn .
The real issue here is that now, after three days, I am experiencing extremely uncomfortable sensations that feel like pins and needles in addition to the fact that the burn hurts to touch, is hot, and red (although some redness has now gone away and some of the heat radiating from the burn has subsided). Is this normal for a sunburn? I haven't had enough of them to know really. But, I have literally been awake all night and in tears because I cannot bear this sensation of pins and needles. Is there anything that I can do to make this stop? I am desperate. I work and cannot function without sleep. I cannot take off work as right now as I have deadlines that must be completed on time. Please...is there anything that might help??? This is terrible.
Thank you for assistance.
This discussion is related to Sunburn .
So thankful I've found some people who understand. I got this Hells itch for the first time when I was 10 and my parents thought I was overreacting. Overreacting is acting as if Satan himself was possessing me. Only when did I get it again when I was 16 did they start thinking that it's a problem. I remember both times vividly. It was the last day of school when I was 16 and went to the beach with my friends. Afterwards I noticed I was pink. No biggy, I've gotten sunburns before. Throw some aloe on it and watch some tv. When I woke up the next morning, it was the most painful 24 hours I've ever experienced. You run out of tears because the horrible pain is too much. My stepmother rubbed every gloop she could think of on my burns and as everyone else says, it only made it worse. The only solace was pressing my back against the cold walls and moving to a new spot when it started to flare up again. Eventually I found peppermint oil would be of some relief but by the time I put it on, it was towards the end of the 24 hour reign of terror so I can't give a good say if it worked or not. My only advice, get special medical sunscreen to ensure it'll never happen again. This pain I'd never put on my worst enemy. Sadly, I'm here right now as I forgot to put sunscreen on my legs after a 6 hour boat ride. Give me strength my comrades, for I fear the worst.
I've now had a google. I few suggestions that this could be associated with a virus and so it is also worth noting that I had chicken pox as a child (some suggestion that it is related) as well as back problems. Anyhow, I decided to post again as the only answer, I am sure is drugs that work to deaden the nerve endings/disrupt the pain receptor messages from your skin nerve endings to your brain. This is why ice - numbing the nerve endings - will work temporarily as it is numbing the nerve endings (not recommended, as the relief will only be temporary, and again, the sensation feels ten fold as the nerve endings start to wake up again). I am sure local atheistic would work, but obviously is not practical and would be dangerous. Anyway, the only solution, I am sure are drugs! :) Drugs, which stop the nerves in your skin sending pain messages to the brain. I have always been burnt abroad (it is always raining in the UK) so have usually got over the counter pain relief, which has helped, but this requires something stronger, so go to your doctor/pharmacist now! It is the only solution.
I have had this all my life. Amazing to find this forum as no one has ever understood! As people have said, you cannot explain. Is it raw and sore? Yes! But it's not that! Pins and needles, being electrocuted go someway to describing it but as everyone on this forum knows, torture is the only word that can truly do it justice. it is not pain as such, not itchiness, simply torture. Anyways, you are all here looking for a solution to this torture. I'm afraid I cannot offer you one. However, as someone who has suffered from this maybe twenty times in their life, I can offer some insights. I am not a doctor.
- It is certainly to do with the nerve endings. It will come on as the skin is starting to regenerate, before peeling, this for me is usually 2-3 days after I have been burnt. It helps mentally, to think of it as a healthy process, as the skin regenerating. That is what you are feeling, your new skin growing!
- As it is the nerves that are causing this torture, anything that can help deaden their sensitivity will help - strong pain etc - especially if they can be administered without touching the skin (seek advice from your doctor/pharmacist)
- Traditional sunburn remedies do not help, such as Aloe Vera as you are touching the nerve endings and irritating them, it may feel good whilst you are applying, and very briefly after as you are 'scratching an itch' but the nerve endings will be irritated and the sensation will come on ten fold
- this is the same for showering and baths - it will relieve the sensation while you are in the water and shortly after as it is all encompassing and distracting but as soon as you are out your nerve endings are on fire! People have mentioned hot showers, and in my experience this works briefly only because the heat sensation is a distraction for your nerve endings.
- the torture is worse in places not used to sun exposure - I have never had it on my face, for example, and only once on my arms when they were very badly burnt but it was easily tolerable. It is always severe on my back and chest, especially my back, places not used to consistent sun exposure.
- I have never tried vinegar. Thanks for that, will try, but I am not convinced unless it has been shown to have some deadening effect on the nerves.
- It helps me, to find distractions, to try and focus the mind on something else and think of it as a severe battle of wills, although I admit, the torture is so severe that it is almost impossible not to return to the 'pain' (pain, I know, does not do this sensation justice - the best I can do is the feeling of your skin growing!)
- it might be worth noting that I have very fair skin and I was burnt very badly when I was eight, I don't remember having this sensation then, it is only the subsequent times I have been burnt - maybe this is some kind of warning from your body, not to get burnt again!
- worth noting that the torture will stop/lesson as your skin is starting to peel, usually between 24-48 hours
Sorry I can't be much help, especially as this is the first time I have googled this - I haven't been burnt in about 6 years (I am, for obvious reasons, very careful) - and I haven't tired some solutions such as steroids which would not usually be prescribed here in the UK, but I am certain, anecdotally and without any medical expertise or research, that it is the nerves causing this torture, and anything that can be safely administered/prescribed from your doctor/pharmacist that helps with nerve deadening/pain relief, will help.
- It is certainly to do with the nerve endings. It will come on as the skin is starting to regenerate, before peeling, this for me is usually 2-3 days after I have been burnt. It helps mentally, to think of it as a healthy process, as the skin regenerating. That is what you are feeling, your new skin growing!
- As it is the nerves that are causing this torture, anything that can help deaden their sensitivity will help - strong pain etc - especially if they can be administered without touching the skin (seek advice from your doctor/pharmacist)
- Traditional sunburn remedies do not help, such as Aloe Vera as you are touching the nerve endings and irritating them, it may feel good whilst you are applying, and very briefly after as you are 'scratching an itch' but the nerve endings will be irritated and the sensation will come on ten fold
- this is the same for showering and baths - it will relieve the sensation while you are in the water and shortly after as it is all encompassing and distracting but as soon as you are out your nerve endings are on fire! People have mentioned hot showers, and in my experience this works briefly only because the heat sensation is a distraction for your nerve endings.
- the torture is worse in places not used to sun exposure - I have never had it on my face, for example, and only once on my arms when they were very badly burnt but it was easily tolerable. It is always severe on my back and chest, especially my back, places not used to consistent sun exposure.
- I have never tried vinegar. Thanks for that, will try, but I am not convinced unless it has been shown to have some deadening effect on the nerves.
- It helps me, to find distractions, to try and focus the mind on something else and think of it as a severe battle of wills, although I admit, the torture is so severe that it is almost impossible not to return to the 'pain' (pain, I know, does not do this sensation justice - the best I can do is the feeling of your skin growing!)
- it might be worth noting that I have very fair skin and I was burnt very badly when I was eight, I don't remember having this sensation then, it is only the subsequent times I have been burnt - maybe this is some kind of warning from your body, not to get burnt again!
- worth noting that the torture will stop/lesson as your skin is starting to peel, usually between 24-48 hours
Sorry I can't be much help, especially as this is the first time I have googled this - I haven't been burnt in about 6 years (I am, for obvious reasons, very careful) - and I haven't tired some solutions such as steroids which would not usually be prescribed here in the UK, but I am certain, anecdotally and without any medical expertise or research, that it is the nerves causing this torture, and anything that can be safely administered/prescribed from your doctor/pharmacist that helps with nerve deadening/pain relief, will help.
Interesting, my husband gets the prickly stabbing 2-3 days after sunburn on his back, and although she doesn't suffer the same sun burn related problem, his sister has demographia. Something in the genes maybe?
I'm so glad I'm not the only poor soul that goes through this horrible episode of pain.
Unbearable isn't even the word. I wouldn't wish this sensation upon my greatest enemy.
I live in Canada, and here in Ontario the summers are hot. I'd always get sunburnt as a child, but never had this issue. Once I hit 13, I started getting this wretched sensation after getting a sunburn. It would kick in the 2nd or 3rd day after the initial sunburn, and boy, I let everyone know about every second of pain I was feeling. No one in my family knew how to handle me, or how to help. They'd just watch me go through it from the sidelines. I wanted help, I begged for it.
At the time, the only two things that helped calm it down was having one industrial fan blowing at me from the front, and one behind me. And I'd just cry through it.
I rarely cry, and when I do, that's how you know there's something really wrong with me. It would finally go away after a good hour. I'd be so exhausted from the pain that I'd pass out for the rest of the day. And, I'd stay out of the sun for the rest of the summer.
I've had about 5 of these episodes since. One time about 3 summers ago, it started. After I was initially burnt, I carelessly didn't apply moisturizer to keep my skin from getting tight and too dry. So, my skin looked like ******* crocodile skin by the 3rd day. Very sore! I applied lotion to it, it was the Johnson & Johnson's baby lotion in the pink bottle. Almost instantly the pins and needles took over! I couldn't stand it. I jumped in the cool shower in hopes to soothe it, but it worsened it. I got out
and then sat infront of my fan bawling my eyes out on the edge of my bed. Then, passed out.
Just last summer, I got my first sunburn of the season and everything was going well until day 4, I felt like I was on the verge of an episode and then I quickly applied APPLE CIDER VINEGAR. The sh*t saved my life! I was able to tan every sunny day last year, without an issue, and didn't even have to apply the vinegar. I realized that for me, once I get that first sunburn with the pins and needles one time, the rest of the burns are completely fine for the rest of the summer. I was able to achieve a beautiful, dark glowing tan for the first time ever! My skin became so used to sun exposure, that I didn't even get the regular sunburn feeling anymore, nor would my skin be red, it would just be super brown! And I have British and Scottish DNA, so maybe that contributed to my terrible episodes.
Now, today, it's starting to get hot again in Ontario Canada, and of course I have a sunburn again, it's about day 3, and after my shower I felt like I was going to have another episode. We didn't have any apple cider vinegar, so I just applied plain white vinegar, and then put Vaseline over that (the petroleum jelly type). I am trying to lay down and take it easy, and not move so much. I feel okay, but I do feel the odd pinchy sensation every so often. Once I pass this, I'll let my skin relax and then try to get tan again. It ***** being here because the winters are so long and snowy, and my tan fades very quickly. So it's like I have to start all over again every April-May, and my skin goes through those terrible episodes. Where if I lived somewhere that was constantly hot and sunny, my skin would be used to it and this wouldn't keep happening. Ugh.
Time to pick up and move to Hawaii, LOL!
Anyways, sorry about the rant, just wanted to share my experiences. All in all, always have apple cider vinegar, a fan and Vaseline petroleum jelly on hand whether you're on vacation, at home, or just stupid and get a wicked sunburn. Not everyone goes through this, and no one will understand it. I've tried to explain it to my sisters, but they just laugh and make fun of me. So I've stopped trying to explain...
Good luck to us idiots who get sunburns and go through this!!!!
Unbearable isn't even the word. I wouldn't wish this sensation upon my greatest enemy.
I live in Canada, and here in Ontario the summers are hot. I'd always get sunburnt as a child, but never had this issue. Once I hit 13, I started getting this wretched sensation after getting a sunburn. It would kick in the 2nd or 3rd day after the initial sunburn, and boy, I let everyone know about every second of pain I was feeling. No one in my family knew how to handle me, or how to help. They'd just watch me go through it from the sidelines. I wanted help, I begged for it.
At the time, the only two things that helped calm it down was having one industrial fan blowing at me from the front, and one behind me. And I'd just cry through it.
I rarely cry, and when I do, that's how you know there's something really wrong with me. It would finally go away after a good hour. I'd be so exhausted from the pain that I'd pass out for the rest of the day. And, I'd stay out of the sun for the rest of the summer.
I've had about 5 of these episodes since. One time about 3 summers ago, it started. After I was initially burnt, I carelessly didn't apply moisturizer to keep my skin from getting tight and too dry. So, my skin looked like ******* crocodile skin by the 3rd day. Very sore! I applied lotion to it, it was the Johnson & Johnson's baby lotion in the pink bottle. Almost instantly the pins and needles took over! I couldn't stand it. I jumped in the cool shower in hopes to soothe it, but it worsened it. I got out
and then sat infront of my fan bawling my eyes out on the edge of my bed. Then, passed out.
Just last summer, I got my first sunburn of the season and everything was going well until day 4, I felt like I was on the verge of an episode and then I quickly applied APPLE CIDER VINEGAR. The sh*t saved my life! I was able to tan every sunny day last year, without an issue, and didn't even have to apply the vinegar. I realized that for me, once I get that first sunburn with the pins and needles one time, the rest of the burns are completely fine for the rest of the summer. I was able to achieve a beautiful, dark glowing tan for the first time ever! My skin became so used to sun exposure, that I didn't even get the regular sunburn feeling anymore, nor would my skin be red, it would just be super brown! And I have British and Scottish DNA, so maybe that contributed to my terrible episodes.
Now, today, it's starting to get hot again in Ontario Canada, and of course I have a sunburn again, it's about day 3, and after my shower I felt like I was going to have another episode. We didn't have any apple cider vinegar, so I just applied plain white vinegar, and then put Vaseline over that (the petroleum jelly type). I am trying to lay down and take it easy, and not move so much. I feel okay, but I do feel the odd pinchy sensation every so often. Once I pass this, I'll let my skin relax and then try to get tan again. It ***** being here because the winters are so long and snowy, and my tan fades very quickly. So it's like I have to start all over again every April-May, and my skin goes through those terrible episodes. Where if I lived somewhere that was constantly hot and sunny, my skin would be used to it and this wouldn't keep happening. Ugh.
Time to pick up and move to Hawaii, LOL!
Anyways, sorry about the rant, just wanted to share my experiences. All in all, always have apple cider vinegar, a fan and Vaseline petroleum jelly on hand whether you're on vacation, at home, or just stupid and get a wicked sunburn. Not everyone goes through this, and no one will understand it. I've tried to explain it to my sisters, but they just laugh and make fun of me. So I've stopped trying to explain...
Good luck to us idiots who get sunburns and go through this!!!!
It sounds crazy but get in the shower and use the hottest water you can handle. Barely pat dry then air dry the rest. Don't rub the skin in any way! I just went through this a week ago and literally thought I was going to die! Staying in hot water was the only relief I could truly get. Also, a very hot tea bath will help. I feel sorry for anyone whom is going through this. Hope you all find relief!
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