My Goodness, It’s been ages since we have given any kind of update, which might lead one to assume that all has been calm on the bay front but it’s actually the complete opposite! Spring led us to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital where we obtained some very useful information but between her short baseball season and additional appointments we have been noticeably absent from our virtual home.

We have many posts coming soon about all Mermaids new discoveries throughout Spring but today there is one main issue at the forefront of our fins. I distinctly remember one of our very first appointments a brief mention that “she may have some blockage of her sweat glands” and that was that; until now there has been very little thought placed on that statement but I never forgot. Summers have always been fine, she often claims she is “hot” on a regular basis and keeping clothes on her is a mission in itself but honestly, I chalked it up to being normal with NO concern whatsoever.

About a month ago we were at an outdoor birthday party, the day was especially hot for our area and the yard offered little to no shade. They had games with water balloons, plenty of cold fluids and ice cream so even though it was a scorcher, everyone tolerated it just fine. Mermaid has long been asking for a new play kitchen and the little girl celebrating her big #5 just happened to have one in the house along side her Mom’s real kitchen. Throughout the party I kept finding Mermaid in the house near that kitchen, My initial thought was that she just wanted to sneak off and play with it so I continuously led her back out to the party in the yard. She participated in a game where they placed water balloons on a spoon and had to run to the end of the yard and back without dropping their balloon. As I stood at the end taking pictures I noticed she seemed more flush than anyone else. When they were done she quietly went and sat on some steps by a bubble machine. I snapped a picture and when I set my phone down I noticed her color had drastically changed to a purple shade and her breathing seemed somewhat labored. I went from this is  just normal hot weather behavior to “Oh my Gosh what is happening”  in 2.7 seconds flat. I scooped up Mermaid and ran her in the house, she had no energy and I took her dress off as quickly as possible. For the first time in our lives I instantly knew what was happening. She was truly overheating. The left side of body where her nevus lives was bone dry and the right side was drenched. She begged me not to put it back on and began to cry. Within minutes I apologized and rushed her to the car and blasted the a/c. By the time we got home, almost 45 min later she was still roasting and eventually threw up. I felt terribly guilty for having her out in the heat like that and prayed it was a one time fluke.

Not so lucky, a few weeks later we were at a family members graduation party, again, it was a hotter than normal day for the PNW and we were outside. We were at my brother’s house and there was a bit more shade than the previous party plus they have a small pond that the kids typically flock too to catch frogs and tadpoles. More aware of her potential to overheat I kept a closer eye on her and just like clockwork, she went from fine to that scary shade of purple again within seconds. This time family was present and keeping an eye on her as well and because she refused to miss the chance of catching a frog we made her continuously return to the table for drinks of cold fluids, gave her ice cubes to hold and a wet cold rag to hold on her face and neck. Just as before the concern grew to the point that we chose to make an exit but this time left before it got so bad she threw up!

Just yesterday we went to visit my parents at an outdoor market where they had a booth set up, it was significantly cooler than the other two days that incidents occurred but still hot and I was very aware of the potential. She started out by sitting in my parents chairs eating some lunch we brought but shortly found a table in the shade behind their booth at a local restaurant. She seemed happy there but a worker quickly approached us and asked us to leave the table. I kindly explained that she would be done eating in 2-3 minutes and pointed out that there were multiple other open tables so I  bought Mermaid a short window but her retreat from the direct sun ended quickly.  We were not there long before she sat on the ground and proceeded to try to take her clothes off. I quickly stopped her and said No baby, not in public, when she grew weepy and said she couldn’t wear her clothes anymore. She proceeded to tell everyone she was too hot and that was my queue, off we went. Once in the car and a/c she used my water bottle to hold on her face and neck and kept asking me to turn the air on, despite the fact that it WAS on and cold enough I was looking for a sweater. Within minutes of being home she threw up. Daddy and I go her some cold ice water, a fan and had her lay down to rest while continuing to cool off.

So here we are, a random overcast day and I am reaching out. My gut says that this reaction is linked more to the EHK than LEN and is just now coming to life as her Nevus has slowly spread & thickened over her sweat glands on the left side. I can not find any direct information linked to her LEN that suggests this is a potential side effect but most Ichthyosis articles have share a direct link to overheating. Additionally, I read an interesting piece stating that the rapid turnover of cells in individuals with Ichthyosis require more energy thus meaning the host needs more calories to grow. Maybe, JUST maybe, this could be a link to Mermaid’s insatiable need to always be snacking like a teenage boy. I also cannot say that any of our followers with ILVEN or LEN have spoken to this directly and perhaps those with congenital, Giant or Ichthyosis can shed more light on this topic?

Mermaid falls in this weird category where she has three (One we recently received @ Doernbecher that we will share later) separate diagnosis working together to complicate the understanding and treatment. Is it simply that we need to acclimate her body leading up to summer or trips to warmer climates or is there truly no way to prevent it? Will sports be an issue? I am reaching out today looking for your expertise, tips & tricks to help us in our newest conundrum. I am at a loss as to who we should go to first to discuss it. Her PCP, her dermatologist or her genetic specialist @ the children’s hospital. Help guide us!

Coming up we have a new trial of a natural homemade cream thanks to a local friend, will dabble in some more salve making ourselves with intentions to get some out to a few of our special followers and a post about some other new discoveries added to Mermaid’s ever-growing list of diagnosis.

If you have experience in the overheating world please share your thoughts! We look forward to hearing your expertise and jumping back in to some nevus focused time!

Thanks for walking with us today,

Mermaid’s Mommy