Eczema Hell

After two weeks of really horrible hand eczema, my right hand middle finger got so bad that it hurt and woke me up in the middle of the night. Even in my dreams I was scratching my hand and searching for eczema relief. The Apple cider vinegar was giving me some relief and did eliminate the mild eczema but I finally had to give in and use the steroid cream. Two days after starting the steroid cream I was able to sleep through the night and while my skin looks flaky and super dry the blisters are disappearing. This is what my finger looks like today:

There are a few things that are probably to blame for the bad flare-up. I am a graduate student currently working on a dissertation so stress is a constant. In addition, a week ago I cleaned the vacuum filter, and cleaned and dusted my entire apartment without using gloves. I am very clean and organized but I do clean everything once a week. In the part I have not noticed a correlation between cleaning and eczema flare-ups but in this instance I think the cleaning, especially the dust exacerbated the eczema.

A couple of days ago, I was going crazy and just waned to rip the skin from my hand. It’s an awful feeling and I am so glad that it’s finally getting better. I know that I have to be careful with the prescribes steroid creme but I am SO happy to have it, it really saved my week. 

From now on, I am going to stop using the steroid cream and focus on moisturizing. I’ve been trying several different hand lotions. Including: The Body Shop’s Almond Hand and Nail Butter, Aveda Hand relief, Eucerin’s Intensive Repair, Nivea crème, and L’Occitane en Provence’s Dry Shea Butter Skin Hand Cream. I am trying each one more at least a couple of weeks and I will post full reviews once I am done trying them all. In the past I have used Burt’s Bees Almond Milk Beeswax Hand Crème and Boots Expert Sensitive Moisture Boots Hand Cream. The Boots Expert worked great but Target always seemed to be out of it so I decided to try something new. So far I have to say that I really enjoy some of the creams but L’Occitane and Nivea are my current favorites and at the moment I am using Nivea crème. 

Hopefully, my right hand will be back to normal soon!

Summer hopes and vinegar

I live in California and I hate to gloat but it’s basically summer here. As an “eczema sufferer” this means my eczema is about to get worse. It gets worse in part because of sweat and clothes that don’t let certain areas air out. For me it also means small bubble like blisters in my hands. I hate them because they itch like hell and it makes shaking hands embarrassing. I get them during the winter but they are worse and more constant during the summer. During this time I usually use my steroid cream like crazy but even that only helps so much because I try to not over use it, plus almost as soon as it disappears it comes back. The other thing that makes my eczema worse in the summer is shaving. I want to wear shorts and skirts more often, this requires shaving and the constant shaving irritates my legs and the eczema leaves them supper itchy and red.

I am not sure that I will ever be able to avoid all of this but I’ve been doing some research into what things help other people. I know to keep my hands washed and moisturized but I recently read that apple cider vinegar has helped some people so I decided to try it. Here is my experience:

The first time that I tried it I dabbed toilet paper into the vinegar and placed it on my finger for 10 minutes. There was an immediate relief of the itching and the next morning there was some reduction in the size of the blisters. The next night I left the apple cider vinegar soaked toilet paper on my finger and part of my hand for 30 minutes and two days later those blisters had almost disappeared. I stopped using the vinegar and focused on moisturizing my hand. A couple of days later new blisters appeared in a different part and I’ve been using the steroid cream for comparison. Unfortunately, it has been really hot and it’s been impossible to keep things under control so I’m trying out the vinegar again.

I am not sure if my early success with the apple cider vinegar was just a placebo effect or if it’s really going to help but I am hopeful that this will make my summer more enjoyable, even if my hands will be a bit smelly :) I also plan on doing more research and will post updates. 

Have a great day!

Soaps

I am not sure if most people put very much thought into their soap purchases. I know I never did. Even after I found out about my eczema, what soap to buy did not rank high on my priority list. The first dermatologist  I went to, told me that I could not use any scented soaps and to stick to plain ones. I think he gave me a list which included Dove and so up until a month ago I've been using Dove for sensitive skin.

About a month and a half a go I was talking to friends about skin care and they were shocked that I was using Dove. Apparently is has some of the worst chemicals ever. That conversation got me thinking about soaps and about trying different types. My current dermatologist had given me a few samples that I never used and so I started with those. The first I tried was Vanicream. I only used it for a couple of weeks but it was good while it lasted and I will probably go back to it at some point.

For the last two weeks I have been using Sebamed cleansing bar. It is made in Germany and cost me something around $5 on amazon, which pricey but if I like it and order more the price is better. I am also thinking that if it really helps I am willing to pay a bit more than normal.

After two weeks of use, I think it is a good cleansing bar. Unfortunately I think I need a soap that moisturizes a bit more intensely.This one dries out my skin a little bit which would not be a problem on someone with normal skin, but I don't have normal skin. On the other had, I love the clean feeling I get when I use it. So far it has worked over all because on the intense body butter that I am using. If I can't find anything better then I will come back to it. The next one I'll try is a paraben-free all natural cleansing bar. More to come.