Shorts stories & Creepypastas

Hyperhidrosis

(The illness and the way peoples reacted to it are all real. Only the end is not, of course I never killed anyone 😅)

I suffer from hyperhidrosis. It's a rare disease, often overlooked. And for good reason, it only affects 1 to 3% of the world's population. Yes, worldwide. Needless to say, I haven't met many people like me. Am I going to die in a few months? Is something disintegrating on or in my body? Not at all. It's nothing "serious". And that's why medicine doesn't pay attention to it. Whether it's a factor in depression and aggravated social phobia, it's not considered serious. It's not considered disabling, not even socially.

What are the symptoms, you may ask? Excessive sweating. Where a normal human being only sweats when exercising, feeling hot, or stressed... for hyperhidrosis patients, it's constant. Whether it's cold, whether I stay still, it doesn't change anything. I constantly have this feeling of humidity on me. Said like that, it seems trivial and even ridiculous. "It's just a little sweat, you're not going to make a big deal out of it, are you?" A little... that's the problem. It's not just "a little". And where there's sweat, there's an unpleasant odor. And of course, it would be too easy if it disappeared with a little deodorant.

Yes, there are products that work. Alum stone worked wonders for a few months... or maybe a few weeks. I don't remember. The problem with this disease is that it constantly evolves. An effective product will no longer work after a certain time - usually a short time.

I suffered harassment bordering on torture throughout my school years. Perhaps the worst was being sidelined and humiliated by both the students... and the teachers. Harassment quickly turned into physical assaults and groping. "You should thank us," they said. "No one will want to touch you with your smell!" What a bunch of jerks... they were looking for any excuse to go after me. I fell into depression very quickly. I did everything. I tried all the products, all the old wives' tricks, all the "miracle cures". Nothing. Nothing worked. Yes... I wanted to die.

There is no cure. Since the patients are too few, why would the pharmaceutical lobby look into the problem, after all? It wouldn't be profitable enough, would it.

Okay... I admit it. There are two... solutions. Even if I wouldn't call them that. Laser treatment, to be renewed every nine months, and surgery. Why don't I do it? The laser leaves me with a 99% chance of getting cancer. The operation, a 99% chance of losing the use of my arms. You think that's the worst? In both cases, excessive sweating would relocate to another part of the body. And the certainty of this effect is 100%.

Why am I talking about all this exactly?

I thought that when I entered the adult world, people would obviously be more mature... When I signed up for a theater class, I explained my condition to them on the first day. I wanted to warn them, and make them understand that I couldn't do anything. I still tried, of course. I always try. I douse myself so much in cologne that my skin gets irritated and chafed. It hurts, but I have no choice.

They were immediately reassuring. They comforted me and assured me that it didn't bother them. That they would just open the window if the smell was too strong. I spent several months with them, and I was starting to feel better. My self-confidence was slowly returning... until the teacher called me, a month before the show...

"Listen, I know you're a good actress. You're even my best student. You learned your two monologues in two days, while some still don't know their two poor lines of text. But I don't want you anymore. There's no need to come back next week, and don't show up on the day of the show. You understand, the others can't stand your smell anymore. It's unbearable. You can't realize how much it bothers us. If you made more efforts, I would keep you with pleasure, but there..."

More efforts... more efforts?! It's me who wasn't making efforts?! Me who was destroying all other parts of my health trying to fix this one? Me who was chafing my skin trying everything to not bother them? Me, who was so scared of being rejected that my stomach twisted in pain every time I walked out the door?! ME, I had to make more efforts?! I cried for days, I didn't want to leave my house.

"Children are mean to each other"

... no. The world is just cruel towards anyone who needs help. I live daily with this disease. This smell, I'm the first person it bothers. So, I have to live with it. With this odor, this constant humidity, and the sideways glances. 

I'm better now. One should not underestimate a farm girl.

So... tell me, friends. Now that you're buried in manure... how do you find my smell?