Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS)







In these videos, Barry, Brian and Lee share their stories about living with HS. They talk about their often frustrating and painful journeys to establish a diagnosis, get the condition under control and their own inspiring philosophies that have help them cope and move past the challenges HS can present. Each video focuses on a different aspect of living with HS including day-to-day challenges, relationships and work. Watch or share these videos to help spread understanding and awareness.
What you need to know about HS
Download our new, dedicated booklet prepared with people with HS, dermatology nurse specialists and consultant dermatologists. This new resource aims to help people living with HS or anyone concerned that they may have the condition, to recognise their symptoms, access the latest thinking and get the support they need.
Barry's Travels with HS
You could literally throw a stone from my house to the local shop, yet just a few years ago I was unable to walk this distance due to having hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). At the time I had multiple, painful HS lesions in the groin and inner thighs, which made walking, even small distances, excruciatingly painful and unbearable at times. On bad days, I could barely manage to climb the stairs at home. The physical pain was bad enough but it was the emotional side that affected me most: I was losing the ability to walk, something that most of us take for granted, and this scared me.
Since then, I have had many surgeries, and have been receiving medical therapy, both of which have led to a profound improvement in my quality of life. Once my health improved I started walking and now cannot seem to stop (like Forrest Gump). I now can and do walk miles every day and although it may appear to be a minor thing to most people, it is something that gives me great pleasure. When the chance of going on a hiking holiday presented itself, I grasped the opportunity. Over the coming week I will be hiking with a group in Tegernsee in southern Germany and will report back on my travels.

Barry’s Travels – Day 1
Today is spent travelling to Germany. At Munich airport I meet my walking companions for the next week. Australia, Canada, England, Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands are represented, and we range in age from 30 to 70+. Most have travelled with the tour company before, while for others like me, it is our first time
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Barry’s Travels – Day 2
As we departed the hotel for our first proper day of walking, it started raining, but by mid-morning the rain had stopped and the skies had cleared. We followed a track along one of the rivers feeding into Tegernsee lake and walked along a steep incline (used as a ski road during the winter months)
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Barry’s Travels – Day 3
We began today with a pleasant ferry ride across the lake under overcast skies but the weather improved considerably as the morning unfolded. We began walking proper with a vicious ascent before stopping for âkaffee und kuchenâ (coffee and cake) at a mountain-top gasthof (a type of restaurant). After the brief reprieve, we ascended further
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Barry’s Travels – Day 4
Today began with a bus ride to a cable car station, which took us near to the summit of Wallberg, and we then completed the ascent by foot over the course of the morning to the Setzberg pinnacle (a height of 1700 m) where we had lunch. As in previous days, the hard work in
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Barry’s Travels – Day 5
Today was a day off from walking so I took the opportunity to visit the city of Munich, which was just over an hourâs bus ride away. On landing in Munich, I made for the Rathaus-Glockenspiel, which plays music daily at 11:00 and has a display that reenact stories from the 16th century, and is
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Barry’s Travels – Day 6
I could tell from the start that today was going to be a scorcher- by the time we left the hotel at 09:00 it was already 28 degrees Celsius. Fortunately, our walks today were mainly in forests where it was shaded and that bit cooler. Our coach brought us to Spitzingsee, a picturesque lakeside village
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Barry’s Travels – Day 7
Awake during the night with the sound of thunderstorms. Our last day of walking did not get off to a great start weather-wise as there was heavy rain first thing in the morning. The sky did not look too promising either. Our coach took both easier and harder walking groups from the hotel to a
Read MoreBarry’s Travels – Day 8
All good things must come to an end and today we all make our way back home. Prior to departing from the hotel, some of us took one last pleasant stroll around Bad Wiessee town and stopped for a final kaffee und kuchen overlooking the lake. We departed the hotel mid-morning to make our way
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Register for our events
The Irish Skin Foundation (ISF) will host a number of free HS Community Meetings. These informative evenings will provide people with the opportunity to learn more about the condition and meet others with HS.
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Hidradenitis Suppurativa
HS is a chronic or long-term inflammatory skin disease of the hair follicle, characterised by recurrent, painful nodules, âboil-likeâ lumps or abscesses that can occur in the armpits, groin, perianal area, buttocks or under the breasts.
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