I'll never learn!

I've had a sun allergy for about the past 10 years. It usually never flares up unless I go somewhere extremely sunny for vacation. It happens every time we go to Florida. I actually thought I had an allergic reaction to shellfish one time, until the doctor at the urgent care in Florida told me what happened. I had a huge reaction when we went on our cruise and I had to see the doctor on the ship. This weekend was the first time it ever happened to me while I was in Tennessee. From what I've been told, the form that I have is pretty rare. I'm just going to keep rubbing on cortizone and hope for the best!

Here's a little info about sun allergies:

A sun allergy is an immune system reaction to sunlight, most often, an itchy red rash. The most common locations include the "V" of the neck, the back of the hands, the outside surface of the arms and the lower legs. In rare cases, the skin reaction may be more severe, producing hives or small blisters that may even spread to skin in clothed areas.

Sun allergies are triggered by changes that occur in sun-exposed skin. It is not clear why the body develops this reaction. However, the immune system recognizes some components of the sun-altered skin as "foreign," and the body activates its immune defenses against them. This produces an allergic reaction that takes the form of a rash, tiny blisters or, rarely, some other type of skin eruption.

Sun allergies occur only in certain sensitive people, and in some cases, they can be triggered by only a few brief moments of sun exposure. Scientists do not know exactly why some people develop a sun allergy and others do not. There is evidence, however, that some forms of sun allergy are inherited.

This is the "form" that I have....

Polymorphous light eruption (PMLE) — PMLE, which usually appears as an itchy rash on sun-exposed skin, is the second most common sun-related skin problem seen by doctors, after common sunburn. It occurs in an estimated 10% to 15% of the U.S. population, affecting people of all races and ethnic backgrounds. Women are affected by PMLE more often than men, and symptoms typically begin during young adult life. In temperate climates, PMLE is usually rare in the winter, but common during the spring and summer months. In many cases, the PMLE rash returns every spring, immediately after the person begins spending more time outside. As spring turns into summer, repeated sun exposure may cause the person to become less sensitive to sunlight, and the PMLE rash either may disappear totally or gradually become less severe. Although the effects of this desensitization process, called "hardening," usually last through the end of the summer, the PMLE rash often returns at full intensity the following spring.
PMLE — PMLE typically produces an itchy or burning rash within the first two hours after sun exposure. The rash usually appears on sun-exposed portions of the neck, upper chest, arms and lower legs. In addition, there may be one to two hours of chills, headache, nausea and malaise (a general sick feeling). In rare cases, PMLE may erupt as red plaques (flat, raised areas), small fluid-filled blisters or tiny areas of bleeding under the skin.