Thinning Skin at 26 years of age

[SGM1979]

Hello,

I am a 26 year old male, who is presently about 15 pounds overweight. Unfortunately, since my early 20's I have suffered from a severe thinning in the density of my skin all over my body, although I feel it is more noticable on my face. My eyes especially have dark circles although I do not feel particulary tired.

Under most light sources I am able to see purple veins under the skin on most of my body, although possibly unrelated I also suffered light stretch marks during my teens, although these do seem to cover a lot of my body, including some I believe on my face.

Over the past few years I have also seemingly become allergic to any number of deoderants and aftershaves, with the latter producing a nasty dry rash upon any contact with my skin.

Although the cosmetic aspect of this problem makes me very depressed I am also concerned about the problems I will face in the future due to the natural aging process.

I have visited my doctor who has told me he cannot see what the problem is. I have also spent countless hours on the Internet looking for an answer but have no idea what this affliction is and whether it can be treated.

I have no history of medical illness apart from the usual colds and such.

Thank you for any assistance you may be able to provide regarding this issue.

[cheri2006]

I think telling a patient it is in his head is really insulting. Why do doctors always do that, blame the patient when they don't know the answer? If you don't know, it is okay to say so.

Anyway, I am suffering from the same thing. Severe thinning that came on suddenly and over the past two years has gotten so bad you can see the veins under my skin.  I had very thick skin before then and always looked at least 10 years younger than my age.

Combined with stretch marks and the weight you mentioned (is it mostly in your face and stomach?) I think your symptoms sound like Cushing

[sangeeta308]

A related discussion, week and yhin skin problem was started.

[brandusa]

A related discussion, thinning skin was started.

[LadyJae]

A related discussion, Thin Skin was started.

[ch290]

I have the exact same problem.  Every doctor I have gone to said it was nothing.  Then, recently, I went to see a geneticist and found out I could have a rare connective tissue disorder, Ehlers Danlos.    I know exactly what you are going through and then some.  I have always been very healthy and athletic.  This just seemed to pop-up out of nowhere in college.  I had some noticable veins in High School, but maybe only a couple which weren't too bad.  Now, well let's just say I refuse to show any skin.  

It's hard because I am still in college and not able to do anything really.  I am attractive too which really makes this hard.  People think that I am weird for dressing the way I do and not returning interest in guys that like me.  Yeah, it just plain sucks.  I feel trapped in my skin.  My family hasn't been helpful either.  They think I have some weird mental problem because they don't know how bad this really is.  Trips to the beach aren't fun anymore.  I never want to leave the room because I don't feel like receiving stares for wearing jeans and long-sleeve shirts.

I really am trying to work through this and was actually relieved when my doctor told me I was sick.  Now my family is saying the tests lied, I can't win.

Sorry for rambling here.  My advice is this, go to a specialist and demand a skin biopsy.  Thinning skin is sometimes normal and sometimes really serious.  I hope you are well and can figure out what's wrong.  Maybe you just need to change your diet.  I wish you the best really.  No one should have to go through this.  For me, it has to be the worst punishment ever.

[hender]

Also, I know that I did have a bit of an iron deficiency which is linked to skin wrinkling. As for the dark circles, I've heard that exercise can help with that.

[hender]

I am 24 and was having the same problem. I think its probably just aging to due to genetics but I've found that moisturizing and sunscreen are really important in preventing any further thinning and that an alpha hydroxy gel cleanser has helped some. Exfoliation in general is great for aging. And if youre willing to pay, you might want to invest in collagen peptide powder. I've been taking it (toki) for about a wk now so I cant tell if it's really working yet but I've heard great things.

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Quite honestly, I don't know what you mean.  There are no diseases I know of that do what you say you have--premature thinning of the skin.  The fact that your doctor can't see anything wrong suggests that there isn't anything wrong--other than that you are misinterpreting normal skin changes as abnormal thinning.  If you haven't seen a skin doctor, you should.  If a skin doctor says there is nothing wrong with your skin, you should see a therapist about your concerns, because they are almost certainly not physical.  Further internet searching will do nothing but heighten your anxiety, since there isn't anything relevant to look for, so anything you find will not be what you have.

Good luck.

Dr. Rockoff