Hello to everyone who has posted on this thread. I have the same exact problem like so many on here that have posted regarding COVID vaccination. I'm glad to have researched and found this forum. Here's a lengthy, descriptive post about my experience so far up to this point.

I'm a healthy 31-year old male with no history of serious skin conditions, no allergies, and no known case of having COVID. I recently received the updated COVID-19 Moderna booster on Sept 22, 2022 with no immediate side effects; only a sore arm as like the other COVID shots I got (this was my 4th shot). I felt great and normal as usual. But exactly at the 2 week mark (Oct 6), I started to have this skin issue. The night before (Oct 5), I had an itchy back which is considered normal itch activity for me. I had a good back scratch which resulted in nothing unusual. I also had my back scratched over the previous weekend and nothing was unusual then. As you can tell, I really do enjoy getting back scratched, lol.

Anyway, on Oct. 6, while dressing for work my privates started to itch; I figured it was my underwear. The itch disappeared quickly after I noticed; it didn't seem like anything out the norm. But later in the day around 4:30PM, my right armpit started to itch bad.. Like really bad. So I starting scratching my armpit to try and get rid of the itch. Before getting home from work, I was now scratching both of my armpits on and off. When I got home from work, entire body started to itch almost everywhere.

As like any other human-being, I was scratching where is was itching; assuming it was dry skin as the itch would not stop. I hopped into the shower and was still very itchy, especially around my hips. After the shower, my body was red and irritated. I noticed there were hives.. weals.. welts.. whatever the correct term is on my hips. I put anti-itch cream, lotion, and took some Benadryl. My itching finally stopped and the redness slowly went away. I have never experienced that kind of itchiness in my life; possibly when I had chickenpox but can't remember that far back.

The following day, things seem to be okay. While getting ready for work, I noticed my armpits burned when deodorant was applied. I thought that's weird and thought my armpits were sensitive today because of how hard they were scratched the day before. The day went normally as there was no itchiness anywhere on my body. Around 10PM that night while driving home from work, my right shoulder had a slight itch. I rubbed my hand on the area over my clothing (2 shirts and a hoodie) for about 5-10 seconds. Got home, undressed, and noticed welts in the area where I rubbed.

While resting on my couch for a few minutes, my left jaw line started to itch and inside my ear, so I rubbed them. As I precede to get into the shower, I decide to pop a zit on my nose and some on my chin. Immediately, my nose and areas on my chin started to swell and turn red. My left jawline was also started to turn red and my right ear was slightly inflamed and closed. I also noticed that my left elbow was red and irritated where it was placed on the couch. By this time, I figured something was up. Quickly took Benadryl, hopped into the shower, and put lotion on again before bed. I had no body itchiness anywhere after that.

When I finally woke up late on Saturday morning (Oct 8), I started to do some research online types of different skin conditions. None of the conditions didn't seem to fit the symptoms I was experiencing until I came across dermatographia. Looked at the description and photos of it and seemed to be a fit. I believe this condition or any other skin condition doesn't turn on like a light switch; something has to lead to it. I had no changes in my lifestyle with eating habits, washing habits, no changes in my environmental surroundings; nothing has changed. This led to me think would my recent vaccination be a part of why this is happening.

Behold, upon researching dermatographia with COVID vaccination, results popped up. A few scientific papers showed some cases where dermatographia happened with the Moderna booster between 1-2 weeks after the shot was administered. Then I found some Reddit forums discussing dermatographia with the same time frame after vaccination and then stumbled upon this forum.

Not to self-diagnose myself, but after reading all the posts under this thread, determining what could lead to this issue, and compiling information, evidence, and the timeline, I fully believe the Moderna booster has caused my dermatographia. I have documented my symptoms by taking photos of my body when a rash and welts are present. I do plan on seeing my dermatologist to get their professional input ASAP.

The next issue is will they take this into consideration with has happen to me and agree. I have all this information that will be presented to whoever medical professional I come across. I hope to get some sort of treatment and hope that this does go away at some point. I've seen all the posts on here with people still having issues and makes me filled with worry that this will never go away. I've managed so far by not scratching when an itch is occurring, taking Benadryl when necessary, and putting lotion on.

I hope everyone that has this condition is doing well. Has anyone noticed if they are free of dermatographia or if their symptoms have lessen over time? I appreciate everyone who has posted on this thread in order to help people try and seek some answers.