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Help! Itchy rashes after pole (developed recently)
Hi Veeners!
I’m a little concerned because I woke up this morning and had very itchy rashes on parts of my body that were used as points of contact from my class yesterday (under my armpit and knee pit from brass monkey and my side from a sad girl drop). Also, the class was only an hour and I did these moves 2 – 3x tops so it’s not like I was training for hours.
I have been poling for over a year and this has NEVER happened to me before. I am allergic to nickel but I have been using a chrome xpole for the past year (both at home and at my studio) and haven’t had any issues until now. I haven’t changed or used any new grip aids, shower gels/soaps, body lotion, etc., I always wipe down my pole with rubbing alcohol and these rashes are only in the areas that made contact with the pole from last night so I know that it must be from pole. The only thing that has changed recently is that I switched to a new studio. However, the new studio also uses chrome xpoles and are cleaned with rubbing alcohol so I’m a little baffled.
So, my question is, can it be possible for me to develop a sensitivity to pole over time? Maybe something like overexposure to the metal? If this were true though, I don’t see why it would take over a year to manifest when I’ve had plenty of exposure to pole over the last year (I’ve been poling an average of 4 hours a week).
I’ve put cortisone cream on it to reduce the itching, which has helped, but are there any preventative measures I could take that could possibly help with my problem? Switching my studio again is out of the question and I would never give up pole for something like this so any tips/pointers are much appreciated!
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30 Replies
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I have seen lots of people complaining about this lately and frankly I think it’s far more likely that you’ve developed a sensitivity to something that you’re using to clean the pole or something in a grip aid. I would try using a steamer to clean the pole really well to remove any residue of cleaners or grip products, and also make sure to use a clean towel to wipe the pole and yourself every session, as your towel could also be holding something that’s irritating you. This is especially true if you have shared towels at the studio….bring your own clean one. It’s also worth a try to wipe your pole with water only. Giving the pole a wipe with a damp cloth and then a dry one does a good job cleaning it and you can eliminate any outside factors of substances that could be on the pole. If you try to eliminate the possible chemical irritants and you STILL get a rash from the pole, then you might consider nickel allergy. But if you switch away from chemicals and the rash goes away, you can find the culprit by doing “patch tests” of the different chemicals. Basically taking a little rubbing alcohol or grip or whatever, rubbing it on a little quarter sized spot on your forearm and leaving it there overnight to see if you get any rash. The most important thing if you’re having a recurring issue like this is to be systematic in checking different potential irritants otherwise you won’t know what it is.
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I just realized it might not have come off how I intended with the use of the word “complaining,” I didn’t mean that to sound like I think you’re whining! I’ve just seen a few people lately with rashes blaming it on metal allergy to the pole but we use SO MANY CHEMICALS on and around the poles that I think that’s the most logical place to start in ruling out an irritant, not the pole itself.
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No worries, I know what you meant by “complaining” 🙂
The only reason why I think it’s a metal allergy is because it is the same type of rash I get when I wear jewlery with nickel in it (and I have already tested positive for a nickel allergy).
I’ve always used my own fresh towel that I bring to class everyday and wipe the pole down really well with rubbing alcohol before using it. Maybe I’ll try just water (or maybe vinegar?) and avoid rubbing alcohol to see if that helps. As for grip aid, I only use tite grip and a little bit of dry hands on my hand (which doesn’t bother my hands) but maybe it’s rubbing off on the pole and other area of my body may be sensitive to it? But I’ve been using these products consistently for a year without any trouble so it would be strange to start having a reaction this late. But I’ll try not using them to see if that helps. -
I second trying to eliminate all other factors first. It is possible to develop a sensitivity to anything over time. It is also possible that the chrome poles have been heavily used over the last year and it is exposing more nickle than before. Only way to know is to do a process of elimination like PDR said. Good luck!
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Do an experiment at home. Spray some rubbing alcohol on your arm in one spot, put some grip aid somewhere else, see if that shows any rash. If not, do the wash the towel with water experiment, don’t use any grip, if possible, and rub yourself on the poles at the studio.
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Thanks for the tips, I will definitely try that!
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There’s alcohol in most of the liquid grip aids so be aware of that if you do a spot test of alcohol and grips and get reactions from both. If it looks like you are having issues with metal allergy from contact with the pole, you might be able to prevent the effects by showering immediately after poling if possible, or washing off/wiping down at the studio before you leave. And it can depend on the severity of your nickel allergy. For example, some people have a nickel allergy such that wearing jewelry in a fresh piercing that has a high nickel content will cause a rash, but wearing something like a bracelet or even jewelry in a healed piercing might not cause a rash. Then again some people can’t even wear costume jewelry because just the skin contact is enough for a rash. Since you tested positive you might have a severe enough allergy that the contact with the pole repeatedly over areas that get tenderized by say, doing sad girl drops or working one knee pit grip heavily in a session, could be enough. Good luck, and consider reporting back on the process of elimination you use in trying to figure it out since it seems like there’s been a couple people with questions on this lately!
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I definitely get a similar reaction whenever I use brass. I don’t have any advice. Just wanted to let you know I feel your pain!
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I will definitely report back after experimenting. I am the type who breaks or immediately after any contact with nickel – I had to return a Michael Kors watch because I started breaking out in rashes right underneath my wrist after wearing it for a couple of hours. With that being said, I’m still hoping that this is being caused by something chemical rather than the pole itself.
I also read online that our skin is more sensitive when we sweat/our pores are open – and I was sweating more than I usually do during this particular pole session. So I think I’ll bring body wipes from now on and immediately wipe off after I finish to see if that helps.
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Keeping your skin clean could be the key then. This is weird, but so you know if you look in a pharmacy, they make basically baby wipes for taking care of bed/wheelchair bound people, but they’re much bigger. Like big oversize baby wipes for sponge bathing. Those could be good for wiping down during/after pole practice provided you don’t find them irritating, but they’re usually pretty gentle.
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That’s a great idea! Thanks!
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So here is an update:
I did the spot test on my skin for rubbing alcohol and dry hands – my skin didn’t react.
Yesterday I went to my new studio for an hour of pole and didn’t use any grip aids just in case, brought my own towel, etc. and I broke out in rashes on my right leg and it kept waking me up in the middle of the night because it was so itchy! It’s crazy because I worked on my phoenix spin, handsprings and tick tocks…so my legs only came in contact with the pole for not even 1/3 of the class. Here is the picture of the rash for those that are curious: http://imgur.com/NZITlWjSo, it’s looking more and more like I am reacting to the pole itself. But there are 3 more things that I’m going to try so I can rule out what is causing this.
– I’m going back to my old studio tomorrow, so I will see if my skin reacts (it never did in the past year and a couple months but we will see).
– The next time I go back to my new studio I’m going to try a different pole. I’ve been using the same pole since I’ve been at the new studio and I was thinking it could be so worn down from use that the nickel plating under the chrome might be exposed.
– I haven’t bought the wipes yet, but if switching poles doesn’t help I’m going to see if wiping down my body immediately after reduces/eliminates the reaction.Wish me luck!!!
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Thanks for the update! You’re being awesomely methodical about this. No matter what solution you find this is really good information for people who have been struggling with rashes.
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Update #2
So, I’ve determined that I’m definitely reacting to something at my new studio. I went back to my old studio on Sunday and poled for 2 hours and my skin was completely fine. No rashes and no itchiness that night or the next day. I went back to my new studio on Monday and poled for 2.5 hours – I used a different pole that I hadn’t used before and wiped it down really well with rubbing alcohol. Unfortunately, I woke up in the middle of the night scratching everywhere. The next morning I had rashes on my legs, parts of my back and even my elbow pit. I think the reaction was worse this time though because I am still itchy today and I haven’t poled since Monday.
Another side note, I found out these poles are definitely chrome xpoles, which I normally don’t react to, and they are only a little over a year old. Is it really a possibility that the chrome started to wear off in just a year? I know that these poles are used heavily (much more that my old studio and obviously my pole at home) but this is giving me hope that maybe it’s not the pole. I just find it so strange that I only react to the chrome xpoles at that studio and no where else – most people who have severe enough nickel allergies react to ALL chrome.
Anyways, I’m starting to get a little frustrated but hopefully I’ll uncover this mystery soon. I’m going back to my new studio tonight and I will try another pole that I haven’t used before and will also try wiping by body down with towelettes afterwards to see if that helps.
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I know you have probably already tried it but just in case you haven’t lol, have you tried taking antihistamines and fish oil supplements, when I first started poling I had rashes on my legs from the pole (I did have small patches of eczema occasionally) I went into the health food shop and that is what they advised….. It is very common to suddenly develop allergies/sensitivities to things you have been in contact with for years, since I have been taking my fish oils and antihistamines I have had no problems 🙂
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