Grover's Disease: What works to help find relief?

Scratching can cause bruises, particularly when the skin has become thin and fragile from the use of steroid cream. I therefore try my best not to scratch. For the worst itches, I use Biofreeze spray, which works, and works immediately. Biofreeze also comes in cream, gel, and roll-on formulations, which I also use for run-of-the-mill itching. But nothing works like the spray when the itching is intense.

I solved this issue by using zinc oxide under my breasts, which forms a moisture barrier. It is available in many forms, but I had the best results with Desitin, the cream formula, generally used for diaper rash. It’s one of the few unqualified successes I’ve had in treating my Grover’s.

Try Iverst cream I,ve had this disease going on 7yrs. Look at what relives itch this med is for poison ivy but it works for me I,ve been using for a couple of years now.If it works for you great. There,s a cupon on the inside of the box for a dollar. Good luck andGDgd.

Hello fellow scratchers-I , too, have purpura. It is on my arms and back of legs.
Mine look like bleeding right under the skin- purple blotches that turn different shades of purple, red, and brown. It all started with GD. I’ve stopped using steroid cream. Only cerave and Dermend.
Any experience with purpura going away… even if you scratch? Thanks

I had noticed the the various types of Biofreeze seem to work differently, so I finally examined their active ingredients. (Duh) The spray, which is the coldest is 10.5% menthol; the cream is 10% menthol; the gel is 5% menthol; and the roll-on is 4% menthol. The spray feels much colder than the cream to me, though.

For comparison, IcyHot spray and cream each have 16% menthol and 11% camphor. I rely on both, especially if I'm in a situation where I can't use an icepack. I suspect the spray feels cooler initially from the evaporation of the alcohol that is used in the spray.

I will try to keep this as brief as possible and if it helps anyone it will be worthwhile, I was literally in despair and desperate and a site like this literally “saved me” in 2012..
I was diagnosed with Grovers disease after bi-op ( this is the ONLY way it can be clinically proven) in 2012..
I saw some of the most “renowned “ dermatologists in the UK , was prescribed all the usual drugs mentioned on here.
I kept asking what is causing it,… as everyone on here knows I was getting lots of different answers, heat, diet etc etc

My symptoms got steadily worse over months, started with spots on torso, progressed to lots of spots on different parts of body, dizzy spells, twice had blackouts, no sleep, anxiety etc etc..

Through research a potential cause kept coming up ..mercury
No one in this country would test for it..(don’t know if it’s different now)
I had to go to New York and was tested by Dr Paul Dantzig, who did hair folicile and blood tests and found I had extremely high mercury readings..

He was convinced this was the cause of my Grovers and all my other symptoms..
The mercury he said came from my teeth, I had 2 split amalgams which were put in 30 years ago..

Anyway had 2 courses of Chemet
All mercury amalgams replaced with porcelain

That was 2014…
Never had a problem since, all the spots and symptoms disappeared

As I said this isn’t for everyone, but i found the cause and someone who was able to cure me..

For the serious cases on here it may be worth thinking about..

Best of luck

You are not the first, as you probably know, that suffers this misery due to mercury. I'm 79 and still have all my original fillings but attribute my situation to the shingles vaccine. Of course, this is just conjecture. I recently had a relapse after almost two years of dormancy. Fortunately, it is a fairly small area on my stomach. After trying countless numbers of creams, plain old Cortizone helps to reduce the itching if only temporarily. I read a couple of days ago that ice also helps to quell the itching, so while lying in bed I put some frozen food on the area and left it there for almost an hour. It eliminated the discomfort for the night and I slept. Thanks to anybody who suggested this remedy. I have been reading this site for almost 5 years and this was the first time ice registered as a treatment. Thanks again.

Have you checked to determine if the shingles vaccine you received contains mercury (thimerosal)? My GD in 2008 was triggered by a flu vaccine which contained thimerosal. Since then I’ve avoided vaccines containing thimerosal and have had no further incidents of GD.

I will try to find out. Thanks for your suggestion.