talkhealth Blog

I had eczema when I was a young baby and luckily that fizzled out before I started school but when I started my GCSEs aged 13, the stress of it all made my eczema come back again. It started just with the arms which I could cope with but as I did more exams the eczema got worse, it started spreading across my body until, aged 15, and it was everywhere.

I felt ugly, I hated the way I looked and because of that I didn’t wear short sleeved shirts or shorts like all my friends because I knew that people would be looking at my skin and judging. I would say that the worst moment of my eczema was when I went on a 3 day geography field trip in which I had to share a room with 5 other girls, some my friends, some not. By this stage, my eczema got to the point where I was scratching all night, bleeding onto my bed sheets and having to cream my skin as much as possible, which is hard to do when you’re in a room with almost strangers. People were asking questions which I am used to but they kept on asking all the way through the trip and I caught people looking at me weirdly because they heard me trying not to scratch the night before.

January of 2012, I was told that we were having an end of year 11 prom in June of that year. I desperately wanted to go and celebrate the end of exams with all my friends but I realised that my skin could still be a mess in June as I was still doing exams days before the prom night. There and then I made a promise to myself as a New Year resolution type thing; I was going to sort out my skin so I won’t look horrible for the prom.

I found this cream which works wonders for eczema sufferers called Hydromol and using that, the support of my friends/family and sheer will-power I managed to make my skin scratch-less for the prom night. I looked and felt amazing!! I had sorted out my eczema and given myself that self-confidence that I needed so I decided that I should tell others about my story. I know it isn’t as significant as other circumstances but I felt that it is still the little things that get people down and they need to be told that they can do this.

Eczema is a skin condition, not a life sentence. If I can do this, so can everyone else if they really try, it’s hard, I know but I feel that people are stronger than they give themselves credit for, especially eczema sufferers so if you need support follow me at @FaceOfPaige or comment on my blog posts.

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Paige

Hi, I'm Paige. A typical teenage girl but with a skin condition. But do I let it get me down? Noooo way!! I've managed to control it and I would love to help others!! So give my blog a quick read and ask me any questions! @FaceOfPaige