@grovercleveland sorry to hear you have GD. I was diagnosed in summer 2018. I had a brutal outbreak. I had no prior medical conditions and did not take any medications, so I was convinced it was shingles or some other crazy infection. They were VERY painful and itchy ~ felt like neurological pain. I had it on most of my front and back torso as well as upper arms. I had rounds of steroids both oral and topical as well as antibiotics for suspected secondary bacterial infection. It was over 6 months before things settled down some but never went away completely. By early 2019, I joined @gardeningjunkie and @frogger as well as some others with the cilantro smoothies. I did them through early summer and had amazing results. I’m a nurse, so I was very curious as to why this was working. The only thing I could find was a connection to heavy metal detox. So perhaps there is some connection to GD and heavy metal build up?? Unfortunately, as you have likely discovered, this disease is not well researched, so the best information I’ve found is from others who are living this along with me.

Other things I have noted are similar to @gardeningjunkie ~ eating a diet high in inflammatory types foods (wheats, grains, pastas, rices, sugar, dextrose of any kind, and dairy) all seem to coincide with breakouts. Also the fabrics I wear can cause issues, so I try to stick to cotton and looser fit when I can. The last trigger for me is heat. I live in WI, so I do have seasons which is helpful. I love gardening, working in the yard, hiking and outdoor summer activities, so I have to be sure I take breaks to allow my skin to cool when it’s hot out, wear cotton and looser fit when I can, and stay hydrated. I only deal with very minimal outbreaks now as long as I follow my above advice. 🙂

Hopefully this is helpful to you. Best wishes on a recovery/remission.