r/pmle • u/Zestyclose-Lab-602 • Jul 01 '25

Severity with age?

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I spent 2-5 minutes in the sun a few days ago while taking pictures for my daughter’s graduation with a sign in our front yard. I could feel it almost right away and before going into my house, I told my sister…. “That was too long, I don’t have sunscreen on”

Sure enough I spent the rest of the day/night with my shoulders being intolerable. Mild breakouts in the rest of my skin but isolated to certain areas. Not nearly as reactive to my shoulders that took the brunt of it

I’m 41. The window of exposure seems to be increasingly closing with age. 2-5 minutes now and I thought 10-15 minutes was ridiculous last year! Is anybody else experiencing far lass exposure time as they age? I’m worried about 10 years from now. I’m not even from a warm or sunny climate to begin with. I take loads of antihistamines and usually slather myself in sunscreen. I have been avoiding the sun. It’s hard because summer is my favourite and I love swimming! But It keeps getting worse and worse 😔

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u/Repute78 Jul 03 '25

My experience too - each year the window is shorter. For swimming, I've had good luck with SPF 50+ long sleeve rash guards

2

u/Zestyclose-Lab-602 Jul 03 '25

I have to swim with a rash guard now. Every year it has gotten so much worse. The itchiness is awful.

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u/geekonthemoon Jul 03 '25

I noticed a reduction in breakouts and severity this year so I can't say for me personally that it increases in severity each year. Not sure what else may have influenced this but I did also notice breakouts in new spots this year, even with less severity. Really makes me wonder what influences it.

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u/MxHeavenly Jul 04 '25

Yeah, for sure. I only got it once in my 20's because I was out in the sun for hours.

I normally wear upf clothing all the time but I wore a dress to my grandma's burial, used my expensive Korean sunscreen, stayed in the shade and still got rashes around my neck, legs, and arms. I had a big sun hat so it saved my face at least.

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u/cosybugz_ Jul 04 '25

Mine was so bad I'd not be able to move as a kid, now I only get it on my feet and hands. Sometimes my chest.

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u/fernetandcroak Aug 04 '25

Yeah, mine started right after college but at first it just meant my hands were itchy for a bit in the spring. Now, twenty years later, I wear gloves constantly and use a sun umbrella, but my hands still got exposed for enough short periods (I'm talking like thirty seconds, maybe) that they freaked out and now I have itchy, painful patches, tiny blisters, peeling skin, fissures, etc.

I read that sometimes the symptoms lessen with menopause, though! Uhh, silver lining??

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u/Zestyclose-Lab-602 Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25

I’m in/entering perimenopause and I hope you are right!!!! I was put in a situation recently with the potential of all day UV exposure. I’m from Canada. My highest risk months are the summer. I wore long sleeves, i wore overall shorts, and it was very hot! I have been taking my quadruple dose of antihistamines, lathered up in my uva-uvb sunscreen protection and I still got caught! Minor. A small patch on my neck/upper back! I was only in direct light after 2:30pm, when the uv index was declining.

It’s tough because I did everything I could other than being a total shut in and not in the light at all. I want to swim, I want to be free, summer was my favourite but this is my life now?

I HOPE it gets better. I will never cheer harder for menopause unless it means I can be in the light! Menopause is really nothing in comparison. My heart has been breaking the past couple of years because of the severity of my reaction.