Irritation from enagement ring!

[Nicrez]

I assumed maybe it was dipped in holy water, and maybe I am melting...? Perhaps I was alergic to being engaged?




Honestly, the setting is fairly high, as many of you have seen, and I am so active that I often find myself sitting on my hands or something of the like, and the ring digs into my finger...It''s a wee bit large now that I lost a bit of weight, so it often spins a bit...




But I have this slight bump that is dry and somewhat like a callous, right underneath the ring...? Anyone else ever hear of that happening or happen to you? What is it from? Could I be alergic to white gold? Is it the soapy water that perhaps drips down from the setting, when I clean it, and can''t get it all completely dry? what is it? It''s like a little lump that has turned a bit dry....?




Any help would be appreciated! I do wear it 24/7, even in the shower (I have a safety drain, no worries!)....is that a big deal?




Thanks!!!

 

[icelady]

Hi Nic,

Have you ever been known to be allergic to white gold? You would likely know from wearing earrings. If not, I would say it sounds like you have gotten some soap trapped under your setting. That is really what I think has happened.

In any event, I don't think you should wear the ring anymore. In fact, I believe you should send it to me so that I can wear it for you and do some research!

 

[verticalhorizon]

You KNEW someone was going to say that!

 

[chialea]

Doesn't white gold allergy usually show up with rings instead of earrings, unless you wear the earrings every day, since it's next to your skin so much more? Do you know what alloy your ring was made out of? Nickel would be the real problem metal you're looking for, in general...

Does the callus-like area hurt in any way?

In any case, you could try wearing the e-ring on the other hand until it clears up, and see if it happens on that hand too. Just try to be extra-careful to move the ring over a bit so you can wash and dry under it, and see if that helps.

I wear my hand-me-down ring all day, even in the shower, but it moves around quite a bit on my finger (relative to its size), so it does dry under it relatively quickly. My SO dries his finger and blows into his engineering ring before putting it on, which seems to work for him. (His ring rusts if it's wet, so it's a bigger deal)

 

[Iceman]

Zinc or Nickle is the other alloys of white gold. Its that or cut back on the valium

 

[Mara]

well a callous is created by friction...so the ring must be causing some sort of friction with your skin...my ring finger is still getting used to my wedding ring accompanying my e-ring..I have two tiny cuts on the side of my ring finger where it scratches consistently going on and off. Those will probably scab/callous over. doesn't really sound like an allergy..

 

[fire&ice]

You may be sleeping on it wrong. In your heavy sleep, you may be irritating your finger. Have you thought about putting it in a safe place at night?

 

[MichelleCarmen]

My rings do the same thing to my finger. It's from water (& soap ?) getting trapped under your ring. When I don't wear my rings, this problem goes away.

Michelle

 

[Nicrez]

ahhh.case solved. Don't wear my e-ring. Or don't wash it....




F&I, I have thought of that, but I am always sort of nervous that I will either forget where I out it, or forget to put it on, and i like making sure it's always there...I guess I may not have a choice then, huh?




my friend said it was the soap, but I use snesitive skin handsoap in some warm water....it's never bothered me before, and I always TRY to shake it off vigorously and leave it on tissue paper to dry while I get dressed...

 

[icelady]

I usually clean my ring every morning (I don't wear it at night) and when I rinse it, I dry it with a towel and then use my blow dryer to completely dry it off. Through out the day I make sure I dry it as well as I can when I wash my hands. I refuse to take it off when in public because it would be just like me to leave it somewhere!

 

[victorianblue]

I have experienced the same issues with my previous ring---Diamond & white gold.

I was told that it was possible that the white gold could be the culprit--further explained that some white gold mixtures contain nickel--the usual suspect. Apparantly, females are more prown to this form of allergic reaction if it is going to occur.

With that being said, this plain ol garden variety consumer would like to offer some possible suggestions to consider in attempts to hopefully alleviate what's happening.

I don't know if this is a possible or acceptable option for you. But I had the bottom(shank) of my ring squared up to inhibit the constant rotating motion of the ring. When I did this, I was no longer constantly flipping my ring back up in proper positiong which was causing a constant friction and the bumpy callous area.

Next, if you are experiencing a dermatitus type reaction not due to the metal content of your ring, it could possibly be a little trapped moisture and or soapy residue from your cleaning. Or it could be caused by lotions etc...

I personally,chose to remove my ring when doing chores that involves having my hands in soapy water and also when showering. I know that this sometimes is not a option for some who wish never to remove their ring.

When it came time to clean the ring up, I used a clear mild dish soap w/a couple of drops of Mrs. Stewart's followed with a (don't laugh) a good blow dry of the ring make sure there was no moisture trapped. I know this is not a professional explanation, but certainly it's a couple of angles to consider.

 

[hannah]

I never wore jewellery until I recieved my e-ring. Five years later, and my skin is still irritated by both the wedding band and e-ring, both white gold, both causing rashes around my ring finger. The only time my finger didn't get irritated was when I had the rings replated with rhodium (obviously, I have some sort allergy to nickle).

My husband (bless him) has suggested that we get a new wedding set in platinum.

Works for me

 

[MichelleCarmen]

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On 6/15/2004 6:06:01 PM Nicrez wrote:


ahhh.case solved. Don't wear my e-ring. Or don't wash it....


F&I, I have thought of that, but I am always sort of nervous that I will either forget where I out it, or forget to put it on, and i like making sure it's always there...I guess I may not have a choice then, huh?


my friend said it was the soap, but I use snesitive skin handsoap in some warm water....it's never bothered me before, and I always TRY to shake it off vigorously and leave it on tissue paper to dry while I get dressed...


----------------

Just wanted to note that both my rings are YELLOW gold, so you may want to just be sure to try drying under your ring and around your finger after washing dishes and all that, since the white gold may not have any relation to the problem here. It may truly be as simple as water being trapped.

Michelle

 

[Iceman]

Have you thought about Platinum ?

 

[Nicrez]

LOL, Michelle, who said anything about washing dishes...?




Iceman, actually, this is the TEMPORARY setting I was given until I could get mine custom made. That was back in March. Seems I am dragging my feet a bit on getting it done, but eventually it WILL be in Platinum. I was just curious if it was something I was doing, or if it was something that was totally out of my control, like an allergy.....

 

[chialea]

If this were contact dermitis (allergy), you should theoretically have a reaction like VB's... a rash. That's why I was asking if it hurt in any way. If the skin's weepy or red or puffy, it might be a culprit. Otherwise, it's probably not.

 

[Nicrez]

Not sure, but I can feel the bump underneath the skin, so it only hurts when I press it. It is indeed a bit red, but not sure if it's a rash, per se... Took pictures




...ok, I have too much free time...




but I really want to make sure it's an allergy versus just not being used to wearing a high set heavy ring 24/7.




Plus doctors will never help, they may not see too many crazy people like me, going in for a silly thing like a tiny bump...

 

[Mara]

could be a wart..you note it only hurts when you press it. I had a very tiny one on my index finger..it was just a round bump, and only hurt when I played around with it. Since it was so small I cut it off even though I know you aren't supposed to and it didn't come back.

 

[Nicrez]

That's the first thing I thought of, so I went to the drug store. my pharmacist said that he was sure it wasn't, as the skin was not toughend on the outside like it would normally be, creating that blisterlike look. it was indetectable unless you run your finger over the spot.




He said that since it was underneath the skin, and he gave me the idea that it was more likely a callous from the friction, OR the allergy, but he wasn't positive about the allergy.




Sorry, I just want to make sure I am not allergic to WG, as I thought I would turn this ring into a gemstone solitaire once I swapped out the stones, and I won't wear it again if it's going to irritate me...




Thanks again guys!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

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On 6/16/2004 10:55:45 AM Nicrez wrote:


LOL, Michelle, who said anything about washing dishes...?




----------------

What? Okay, I am going to throw rocks at you

! lol Life must be good for ya!

Michelle

 

[Nicrez]

In case anyone has a nickel allergy, I found a wedding ring that is supposedly 100% free of nickle in white gold...


http://www.greenkarat.com/detail.asp?product_id=WBPD001




Still don't know why the bump is there. I HATE not wearing my ring. Feels creepy now without it....nothing to play with when I am bored or nervous! *GROAN*

 

[Mara]

wear the ring, screw the bump. what kind of diamond lover are you? i am going to have to revoke your pscope license!




to show my dedication to my rings and diamonds...last week the sides of my ring finger split along the creases (where finger bends). i found that my wedding ring added to my e-ring makes it harder to take them off and is double the irritation since i do them separately when my fingers are swollen, aka in middle of summer like now. couple this with extra hand washing thanks to our new baby in the house, and it's the perfect recipe for dry, split knuckle sides.




so i've got split finger sides, knuckle is red and swollen, hurts like hell, can't even get the rings on and off without almost screaming in pain (hate pain!). so i start slathering on the neosporin every time I wash my hands and lotioning up the whole finger with oils and salves. a pretty sight. the next day, the splits are slightly better, a little healed but still very painful. at this point i am JONESING for my rings and diamond...so i devise a little plan where i can put the rings on at an angle and press them against healthy skin to skip over the cuts on each side. seems good in theory. it works, there is some pain and gritted teeth but the RINGS WERE ON. by that evening, i had the process down and now 2 days later thank GOD and neosporin slathering, the areas are dry and healed.




So you've got this TINY little bump that doesn't even hurt. Wear the ring! Sacrilege!! Or you can always send it to me.

 

[valeria101]

The setting looks like the stone culd be lowered with a bit less effort than remaking everything fromm scratch. If you have never worn a ring on that finger before, it could well be just from wearing any ring. Allergy can be tested conclusively by a dermatologist on the spot... but I doubt it is the case.

 

[Patty]

Mara, you are a martyr. The suffering you've endured just to wear your rings!! When you die, I bet that you will be made the patron saint of diamonds.

My ring is white gold and it's made of the palladium mix instead of nickel. It does not bother my left hand at all. BUT...whenever I wear a ring on my right hand, whether it's this new one or a 14k yellow gold one, that finger gets irritated and red. I have very sensitive skin. I know it's not a true allergy or it would bother my left hand too. I think my right hand is just not used to rings.

I'm one of those people who can't stand tight waistbands or twisted socks, or tags in clothing, lol. So a ring on my right hand is annoying. It's like the little hairs on that finger aren't used to the friction!