Woman’s rare ‘vampire’ allergy means she can’t step outside without burning skin

Until recently, Mallary couldn’t go outdoors without suffering from extreme redness, burning, itching and hives. But thankfully, she’s found a treatment to help.

‘We don’t even get much of a winter here in Houston, so I continued to get flare-ups in December and even overcast days of rain,’ she said.

‘It affects me all over. Even to the edge of my fingertips and toes. It only affects the skin that has been exposed to the sun. I have exact outlines of my clothing.

‘My symptoms include extreme redness, hives, intense itching and burning. 

‘They are very uncomfortable, and the pain can be so bad it makes me teary-eyed.’

People are often floored when she tells them she is allergic to the sun, she added.

”Usually, there is a short pause of before they ask, “What did you say?” or “Is that really possible?” Then they are interested to learn more and worry if it is okay for me to go outside, before I tell them that I now can,’ she said.

‘Sometimes I get the joke of people saying, “Mallary is a real-life vampire..” I also say the same thing to make light of the situation.’

When her condition was at its worst, Mallary lived alone, forcing her to go out and socialise often ‘even though [her] symptoms were horrendous’.

Thankfully, though, she has now been prescribed medication that allows her to live her life normally.