Examples of added stress while suffering with chronic hives are; 1) fighting to stay awake during the day while taking sedating anti-histamine medication, 2) trying to function while unable to sleep comfortably at night (laying in bed with twitching, creepy, crawly skin-all sticky from hydrocortisone ointment-wondering why you could hardly stay awake while driving home from work, but can't fall asleep now--even while sedated--because the itching is so bad), 3) frustration in finding clothes to wear that won't a) touch the hives and make them start itching again, b) show the attractive hives to others, c) cause damage to the fabric due to the creams and ointments needed, 4) depression and sometimes suicidal thoughts as a result of the staggering negative lifestyle effects and undermined cause and duration of the condition, 5) the list could go on and on.

On a personal note, I have suffered with chronic idiopathic hives off and on my entire life. I made the connection between excessive stress/hormonal imbalance and my condition thirteen years ago, it was the only consistent trigger of the symptoms. During the last three months of my first pregnancy I suffered with hives, at times almost everywhere but my face. Before that time, they would appear in small patches for only a few hours when I was really worried about something. At least weekly, and many times daily, for the last 13 years I have had outbreaks of hives. Usually they are small patches, but several times I have had massive outbreaks, coupled with angioedema (severely swollen eyes). However, almost every doctor I have seen (several M.D.s and three dermatologists) regarding the hives has dismissed stress as the cause, even though they were unable to give me any better explanations. One of the dermatologists told me that my thesis was a popularly believed myth with no scientific evidence to support it. I began to doubt my thesis based on what appeared to me as lack of support for my conclusion. It caused me more stress feeling like I didn't have an answer, which probably exaggerated my symptoms over the last several years. I chose to do this project in order to force myself to spend the needed time and energy to fully research my theory. I found substantial and significant scientific information and research studies supporting my theory (see references and links), and absolutely no evidence that would refute it. I welcome any feedback about my thesis and research, especially to contribute new information.

FYI--my experience with most doctors is that conditions they can't fix quickly with a pill or surgery, or diagnose with a blood test, and treatments that don't involve visits to their office, are often not supported by them. However, I find that many of these types of conditions are the most heavily researched (such as Attention Deficit Disorder, fibromyalgia, etc.) and the subsequent conclusions and treatment options suggested sometimes make more sense than treatments for common ailments doctors view as easy to diagnose and treat. I'm sure that is why alternative medicine evolved. I now look for doctors that embrace the holistic mind/body theory and routinely suggest treatments based on that connection. A doctor with a background in psychology is a major plus as well.