Woman develops rare allergy to water after giving birth

After giving birth to her daughter, a new mother suddenly noticed painful and itchy hives all over her body whenever she came into contact with water.

Cherelle Farrugia, 26, from Cardiff, Wales, was diagnosed with a rare water allergy called aquagenic urticaria, which makes bathing herself and her now 18-month-old daughter Willow extremely difficult.

“Up until I had my daughter, I had no issues with water at all, I had three baths a day and literally the first bath after I had her I broke out into this awful rash, ” Farrugia told Barcroft TV.

“Physically it’s quite painful and it’s very itchy. It’s kind of like a prickly feeling and then it’s a full-blown rash.”

The rash breaks out mostly on her stomach, shoulders, back and neck but will occasionally spread to her face if she’s having a particularly bad reaction. Doctors believe it could be linked to changes in Farrugia’s hormones after giving birth to Willow.

The allergy is so rare there are are only 40 reported cases of it worldwide. Prior to finding the allergist who finally diagnosed Farrugia with the condition, the 26-year-old said doctors didn’t take her symptoms seriously.

Instead, they suggested she try changing her soap and told her she might be allergic to her towels.

But Farrugia was convinced water was causing her symptoms so she experimented on her own by bathing in different water temperatures as well as osmosis water, which goes through a chemical removal process — though neither method worked.

“I was getting really upset and I was thinking nobody is going to take me seriously,” she said.

“When I told the private allergist and he told me ‘you have aquagenic urticaria,’ I was like, thank God there’s somebody who finally understands.”

For the first few months after giving birth to her daughter and being diagnosed with the condition, the young mother said she felt panicked and isolated.

“The weather used to make me feel really anxious. I think for about two months even if it was just drizzling, I wouldn’t leave the house. I had panic attacks because I was so overwhelmed,” she said.

“I didn’t know much about the condition and I read the horror stories online of people going into shock.”

Fortunately, Farrugia said can still shower, however she keeps them short and does so right before her first meal of the day.

“I usually shower in the morning because I’ve got it done so I can kind of have my breakfast then and distract myself while the reactions are happening,” she said.

“I think a lot of people who do have long showers are sort of there enjoying the water, so for me I don’t have that time I just have to clean very fast.”

But Farrugia said there are some frightening things about her allergy she still doesn’t know.

“If I did decide to go swimming with Willow it can potentially be very dangerous. It means I could go into shock,” she said.

“I’ve spoken to a number of doctors and they don’t know what could happen if I go swimming and for me that’s a really scary thing not knowing.”

Farrugia has previously told local news publication WalesOnline that she can drink water as the allergy does not affect her internally. However, in severe cases of the condition, even drinking water can cause throat swelling, a Utah teen with the same condition told ABC News in 2015.

That teen reportedly spoke with another woman suffering from the disease who can only drink Diet Coke.

And even things like sweat and tears could cause an allergic reaction, according to an article in the Journal of Allergy Immunological Practice.

Luckily for Farrugia, she has a strong network of family and friends who are helping her navigate her daily tasks and help her lead as normal a life as is possible no matter what her future may bring.

Her closest friend, Lucy Gilmore, has been particularly helpful, dropping by to lend a helping hand nearly every day.

“Cherelle is my best friend and of course I help out when I can. That’s just what you do for your friends,” Gilmore said.