Annie Lowrey

I was diagnosed with it during my second pregnancy, though I clearly had it in my first pregnancy. And I was young, although not unheard of, young to get it. And my OBGYNs had never had a patient with it. It took a while to get to a hepatologist who recognized it.

I was diagnosed with it during my second pregnancy, though I clearly had it in my first pregnancy. And I was young, although not unheard of, young to get it. And my OBGYNs had never had a patient with it. It took a while to get to a hepatologist who recognized it.

But it, like a lot of liver and kidney conditions, for reasons that are not understood at all, causes really, really bad itching that does not respond to antihistamines and does not respond to steroids.

But it, like a lot of liver and kidney conditions, for reasons that are not understood at all, causes really, really bad itching that does not respond to antihistamines and does not respond to steroids.

But it, like a lot of liver and kidney conditions, for reasons that are not understood at all, causes really, really bad itching that does not respond to antihistamines and does not respond to steroids.

We know a lot more, and we have a pretty clear map of itching that is a allergic response, a histamine response. So the kind of itching that probably comes from trying a new laundry detergent that doesn't agree with you or getting a bug bite, something like that, sometimes called histaminergic itch.

We know a lot more, and we have a pretty clear map of itching that is a allergic response, a histamine response. So the kind of itching that probably comes from trying a new laundry detergent that doesn't agree with you or getting a bug bite, something like that, sometimes called histaminergic itch.

We know a lot more, and we have a pretty clear map of itching that is a allergic response, a histamine response. So the kind of itching that probably comes from trying a new laundry detergent that doesn't agree with you or getting a bug bite, something like that, sometimes called histaminergic itch.

And it's basically that histamine is firing up these nerve circuits, goes to the brain, brain senses itch, and then you scratch. That's a very, very probably oversimplified explanation. Scientists did not know until recently what was happening with itch that didn't involve histamine.

And it's basically that histamine is firing up these nerve circuits, goes to the brain, brain senses itch, and then you scratch. That's a very, very probably oversimplified explanation. Scientists did not know until recently what was happening with itch that didn't involve histamine.

And it's basically that histamine is firing up these nerve circuits, goes to the brain, brain senses itch, and then you scratch. That's a very, very probably oversimplified explanation. Scientists did not know until recently what was happening with itch that didn't involve histamine.

They understood that you could itch completely independent of histamine, but what chemicals and what nerves were involved in that? It's really only like 20 years ago that they began to get a good sense of it. And that was about the same time that they really began to see that Itching was a sensation distinct of pain in the sense that there are nerve circuits that only work with itch in the skin.

They understood that you could itch completely independent of histamine, but what chemicals and what nerves were involved in that? It's really only like 20 years ago that they began to get a good sense of it. And that was about the same time that they really began to see that Itching was a sensation distinct of pain in the sense that there are nerve circuits that only work with itch in the skin.

They understood that you could itch completely independent of histamine, but what chemicals and what nerves were involved in that? It's really only like 20 years ago that they began to get a good sense of it. And that was about the same time that they really began to see that Itching was a sensation distinct of pain in the sense that there are nerve circuits that only work with itch in the skin.

That said, and I'm going to caveat this because every scientist I talked to caveated it too, that, you know, these pathways within our body, it's not like a car traveling route. from destination B to destination A on a road, right? It is like trying to describe a city full of traffic. There are many, many pathways. They're enormously complicated.

That said, and I'm going to caveat this because every scientist I talked to caveated it too, that, you know, these pathways within our body, it's not like a car traveling route. from destination B to destination A on a road, right? It is like trying to describe a city full of traffic. There are many, many pathways. They're enormously complicated.

That said, and I'm going to caveat this because every scientist I talked to caveated it too, that, you know, these pathways within our body, it's not like a car traveling route. from destination B to destination A on a road, right? It is like trying to describe a city full of traffic. There are many, many pathways. They're enormously complicated.

They interrupt or intensify or turn down one another. And so pain and itch are still pretty tightly linked in the body. And lots of painful things will ping itch receptors. Itch receptors will ping pain receptors. So we don't want to cleanly say that these are two different things. But there are itch circuits that are just for itch. And we found those. We sort of nearly found them in the late 90s.

They interrupt or intensify or turn down one another. And so pain and itch are still pretty tightly linked in the body. And lots of painful things will ping itch receptors. Itch receptors will ping pain receptors. So we don't want to cleanly say that these are two different things. But there are itch circuits that are just for itch. And we found those. We sort of nearly found them in the late 90s.

They interrupt or intensify or turn down one another. And so pain and itch are still pretty tightly linked in the body. And lots of painful things will ping itch receptors. Itch receptors will ping pain receptors. So we don't want to cleanly say that these are two different things. But there are itch circuits that are just for itch. And we found those. We sort of nearly found them in the late 90s.