How many sunburns have you had in your lifetime?

too many to count

Oohh geez about 15

I once had a sunburn so bad that I had heat stroke and it burned many layers down. The blisters were so bad they all merged into one and I couldn't wear a shirt or sleep laying down for about two weeks. (BTW that was bad as I am a girl and you can't just go topless.) I wore a shirt around my neck draping down my front to cover me without touching my shoulders or back. This is the worst one I've had, but not the only one. I've peeled before and it sucks and itches. My family has a history of melanoma on both sides so I am that much more prone to it. I am almost 30 years old. These burns happened about 10 years ago, the bad ones. I have had burns since then, but no where near as bad since I am paranoid about it now. I do skin checks every month. I see a dermatologist twice a year. Sooner if I see something I get worried about with my checks. Nothing has been cancerous so far, but I wear sunscreen like my life depends on it. I wear clothes and sit in the shade when I can. I can answer more questions if you'd like, just email me at [email protected]. I am doing good so far, no dangers even with my family history and my own personal burn history.

I live in the midwest - and have had one bad one as a child, though sadly, we didn't know that tanning was bad either, and spent a large portion of my childhood by a pool, and a tan at the end of every summer. Had another burn as a young adult, and until recently had avoided them. I turned a "certain age" and have become very sensitive to sun and burn far more easily with sunscreen. Apparently, you get more sensitive to sun as you get older. My father (who is much darker complected than I am, and 80) gets burnt at least once a season and is tan much of the time - he can't seem to keep a shirt on once the weather gets warm, and has had several skin cancers removed, and at least a half dozen suspicious growths removed that were later determined to be pre-cancers or benign. He has been very, very lucky: they required no more treatment than excision (being cut out).I volunteer in a cancer center, and melanoma often requires reconstructing the face/oral and nasal cavities/ears and the like - it can spread to other organs, just like every other cancer. Sun in the north during the summer is brutal - we get more direct rays than the equator, and for longer hours. I love fresh air, but have grown to respect that the sun generates radiation - so I wear sunscreen as often as possible.