thank you, callaway.
yeah, i know what it was, but am a bit too embarassed to say.
oh all, right (cos otherwise people might think it's something even worse than it was): it was a depliatory cream. i got into a bit of a panic about not being as bald as people expect women to be (yes, even i collapse under the strain of fucking societal conventions
), and used that stuff. not used to it, so it all went mental. possibly, it was urticaria rather than physical allergy, but with eczema, it's often hard to tell, and the tingling mouth gave it away a bit. i was terrified i'd gone into full-blown anaphylactic shock (a degree in immunology and microbiology doesn't help, cos i know all the details
), and cos i'm on my own, i thought i'd die before anyone could get to me.
really don't want to do that again. i'm staying hairy, and everyone else can fuck off if they don't like it.