It seems almost unimaginable, but Barbara Ward, 43, lives with a rare condition called aquagenic urticarial.
Barbara was diagnosed after she suffered a severe anaphylactic shock when she was taking a shower.
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Her condition is so bad that she can’t even play with her children like normal mums.
Speaking to the Metro, Barbara said: “I’m used to living like this now but it is such a limited life. I’m not like other mums, I can’t even run around with my kids or play with them because the sweat could send me into shock.”
In case of going into shock, Barbara, from Hartlepool, has to carry emergency jabs with her at all times. If she comes into contact with water, she breaks out in a painful rash and starts to wheeze.
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As well as having to carry medication around with her, Barbara has to take strong antihistamines daily.
The condition even forces her to avoid anything that might make her cry. She continued: “It’s an absolute nightmare. I can’t even read sad posts on Facebook because if I get dragged into an emotional whirlwind and end up crying, I could die.”
While drinking water makes Barbara’s throat close up, she can drink tea but only tiny sips at a time.
She said: “For some reason I’ve always been OK with tea and milk. A sip of water can make me have a wheezing and angioedema of the throat. My only guess is it must be down to the chemicals they pump into the water supply.”
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Her condition is so severe that Barbara’s husband has to do all the household chores, and even takes their four children on holidays and out to dinners without her.
“Other people’s perfume can set me off so going out in public is really dangerous too,” she added. “It sounds so unbelievable, but I have to live like this.”