I thought I was going crazy when my sweat turned BLUE – even doctors didn’t believe me
A MUM-TO-BE thought she was “transforming into an Avatar creature” after her sweat turned blue.
Keisha Sethi first spotted the bizarre symptom seven months into her pregnancy when her boyfriend Brad noticed a funny-coloured stain on the toilet seat.
The couple then discovered there were blue marks on her white pyjama top, duvet and pillowcases, leaving Keisha feeling like a “leaking octopus”.
The 24-year-old was terrified that the inky smears might be a sign something was wrong with her baby, so phoned her local triage centre.
But she claims the doctor thought she was joking and dismissed her complaints.
Keisha and Brad stayed up all night researching the strange goings on and soon discovered that colour-changing sweat is a potential rare pregnancy side effect caused by hormonal changes.
Chromhidrosis occurs when there is an excess of lipofuscin in the sweat glands, which can make sweat green, yellow or blue, according to DermNet.
Keisha, a fitness coach for women with polycystic ovary syndrome, said: “It just happened overnight. It was like I was leaking blue ink. I felt like an octopus.
“I had no idea what it was. I went to the loo a few times and my partner went into the bathroom and was like ‘Keisha are you wearing something blue?
“I thought I was going crazy or that my partner had done something, I was very in denial it was me.
“I tried to wipe it but it just would not come off.
“It turns out it was just my skin and the sweat changing colour due to hormones.
“I thought I was turning into [a creature from] Avatar.”
After growing out of her jeans months before, she knew it wasn’t denim stains on her toilet seat, so wondered if it could be something she ate – or worse, a warning sign from their rainbow baby.
She had no idea hormonal changes could have such an impact on the body.
Keisha said: “I thought, ‘Is my pregnancy not agreeing with me? Is it my clothes? Did I eat something wrong?’.
“My mum was super worried too as she’d never heard of anything like this.
“I called the triage up and they said they’d never heard of it. It’s so rare.
“The person I spoke to was laughing because she thought I was joking around.”
After posting the video about it online in June, she was soon reassured as other women had experienced the same thing.
Now, she hopes to raise awareness of the health issue and urge people to see a doctor when they know something’s not quite right.
Keisha said: “If you’re dealing with an unknown symptom like I was, seek help – from social media and a doctor.
“Try to find someone and reach out if they’re having the same experience, just for that extra reassurance. That was when I could relax.”
Thankfully, Keisha’s week-long tinge left as suddenly as it appeared, and two months on she is now streak-free and expecting a baby girl any day now.