Hello. I was wondering if anyone in the group joined because they are suffering from hidradenitis suppurativa, sometimes called acne inversa?
I have been dealing with it (the best I can, anyway). This is purely a self-diagnosis, but I'm certain it's HS. I would visit a doctor, but I also suffer from agoraphobia, so that has been a challenge. Anyway, I would love to connect with others about HS because... strength in numbers, perhaps? It would feel nice to have someone else to talk to about the lance, drain, and bandage routine. Thank you <3
If you find it hard to visit a psychiatrist because of your Agoraphobia, it is possible to do a telephone consultation as well.
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Agoraphobia/Pages/Diagnosis.aspx
It's never a good idea to keep walking around with a disease for many years out of stress/fear/reluctance. I did the same thing, i kept walking around unwilling to go with stress for years out of fear that i had a STD, i went to the doctor on a very foggy day so that no one would see me. It turned out to be nothing, and that i had been worrying and stressed for years for no reason *facepalm*. Doctors are quite discreet and have sworn secrecy. Moreover, it's a lesser fire compared to the agoraphobia, then getting finally a proper diagnosis. Be courageous or go out of a foggy day like i did to your gp.
I think it's even possible for your GP to do a visit towards your house. That way you can get diagnosed in a more proper way rather then doing self diagnosis ( you might be suffering from something completely else), and you can get a reference towards a specialist. Who might also be able to visit you at home. I would definitely do some research about it if i were you.
@xylitol Hello there. Thank you for the advice, but I am already dealing with my agoraphobia, which has been properly diagnosed, separately. I would be a hundred percent certain that I have HS, but I’m not a doctor of course. I really just wanted to know if anyone else had this (diagnosed or otherwise), and if it was fitting to post under acne (since it is a skin condition like acne, but also an auto-immune disease).