MyItchyBoy's posts
Eczema: 5 dilemmas for parents in summer

Eczema is a pain any time of the year and each season brings it’s own problems – too hot, too cold, too dry, too wet (and too much time indoors!). Summer though, seems to bring most of my dilemmas over …
Continue ReadingAllergies: Eating out in Edinburgh

Plans for the big Scottish Adventure began to take shape earlier this year as we realised how many years have gone by since we last visited and MyItchyBoy could no longer remember going. A train was booked, accommodation sorted and …
Continue ReadingFood allergies: How to deal with kid’s parties

We have yet another birthday party coming up. I don’t know the parents – or even the child particularly, so we’re instantly on allergy alert. Here’s our list of things to think about when the invite arrives: MyItchyBoy is now …
Continue ReadingPacking an everyday bag for your allergy child

We have a bag for MyItchyBoy that goes everywhere with him. Over the past few years we’ve learned the essentials we need to keep in there. Ask your local pharmacy if they can sell you a small medicine bottle. Ours …
Continue ReadingPreparing for your child’s Allergy Appointment
How to prepare for your child’s Allergy Appointment Check your appointment letter to see whether there will be any tests done on the day – skin prick or blood test. Also check if and when you need to stop giving …
Continue ReadingHandling soft play with an eczema child

If your child suffers from eczema, beware the soft play party invite if you’ve never been before. Soft play places are noisy, full of kids going crazy and lobbing plastic balls at each other and therefore usually one of the …
Continue ReadingEczema: Finally some true respite!

Since November 2014 we’ve had an amazing breakthrough with MyItchyBoy’s eczema. MyItchyBoy has had eczema for over five years. Not just a little bit, but the kind of eczema that takes over the life of the whole family. The hospital …
Continue ReadingChristmas 2014 – allergies and eczema

A bumpy start to the holidays MyItchyBoy missed the last few days of term before the Christmas holidays as he was running a high temperature and was clearly not well. In an attempt to bring the temperature down, I gave …
Continue ReadingEczema: guilt-ridden, relentless helicoptering!

There has been much talk over the years of allergy parents being forced to become the much-mocked ‘helicopter’ parent out of necessity and panic over their child. Watching everything your child eats and touches and is given to avoid an …
Continue ReadingHow we’re preparing for winter 2014 – Eczema & Allergies

This week is Indoor Allergy Week in the UK and comes at the time of year that we’re all starting to realise that winter really is on its way. I thought I’d share a few things that we’re doing to …
Continue Reading10 Tips for Travelling with an Allergic Child

Here are my top 10 tips for travelling with an allergic child that I wanted to share after our experience of MyItchyBoy having an allergic reaction on holiday this summer: 1. Agree beforehand who is best equipped to deal with …
Continue ReadingAllergic Reaction on Holiday

Finding somewhere to take an atopic child on holiday is hard. For MyItchyBoy, it’s not just the food allergies, but eczema too. We have to find somewhere not too remote (proximity to medical services and availability of food), somewhere not …
Continue ReadingWill my son make a great pharmacist one day?
MyItchyBoy’s arms and legs are itchy and sore and it seems nothing we are doing is helping. Our last appointment with the dermatologist, lots of scary-sounding solutions were brought up. Since then, he’s been on a two month course of steroids. …
Continue ReadingWelcome to the food allergy Smug Zone

Oh yes, it is possible to be a smug allergy parent. Not often, I’ll agree, but possible. Usually eating out for our family is fraught with hours or days of planning, menu scanning and waiter interrogation. However, there is one …
Continue ReadingEczema is bad for my health – part 2

Ok, so I might be admitting here what a twit I can be, or maybe just highlighting what a danger nocturnal parenting can be. The other night I’d just started to drop off when the inevitable ‘Mummy!’ came from the …
Continue ReadingDermatology appointment – debrief
Well, it didn’t help that last time (4 mths ago) as well as this time, MyItchyBoy was seen in the Dermatology Department. Sound odd? No, I know, a dermatologist in the dermatologist department, right? Well, yes, but when you have …
Continue ReadingDermatology appointment this week
We have a consultant dermatologist appointment this Wednesday. It doesn’t seem to be the same person we saw last time. I started making a list a few weeks ago about the things we want to ask about. I contacted the …
Continue ReadingFood allergies at Christmas – 5 ways to trip up

Christmas is a great time of year for kids. Fact. Christmas is a bit trickier for kids with allergies. Fact. Here are my top five obstacles to be tackled in the run up to Christmas for MyItchyBoy: 1. Advent calendar …
Continue ReadingInstant way to get more calcium in your dairy free child

Yes, there is an instant way! MyItchyBoy was given this straw in a party bag at the weekend. This is the best thing he’s seen in ages it seems. Plus, it has magic powers. Amazing! Want your dairy-free child to …
Continue ReadingChoosing a school for an allergic child

This post is inspired by a post by Nutmums.com. This time last year we were busy trying to sorting out a school place for MyItchyBoy before the January deadline. I know there are allergy parents out there right now worrying …
Continue ReadingHow quick is your morning routine?

Do you know how quickly 4 year olds can get dressed? Did you know they can get dressed by themselves? This wa s all a bit of a revelation for me last week. We stayed with friends who have a …
Continue ReadingWho’s responsible for my son’s eczema?
Last night I went up to clean my teeth on the way to bed and passed MyItchyBoy’s room. That sinking feeling came over me as I heard the *khuh-khuh* noise of MyItchyBoy scratching his skin. I poked my head round …
Continue ReadingBananas, Pineapples and Eczema
Does Pineapple make eczema worse? For a couple of years now, MyItchyBoy has been eating and enjoying dried pineapple. It never seemed to cause a problem for his eczema. Or did it? He’d usually have the crispy type of dried …
Continue ReadingHow do you take emollients out with you?

So we can manage MyItchyBoy’s eczema properly, we have always taken a small bottle of decanted emollient out and about with us. We use it quite often, especially on long days out when he needs a cream top up during …
Continue ReadingAllergies and eczema: starting school
So, over the next couple of weeks, we are going through all the necessary preparations for school. MyItchyBoy starts this September but not before I seriously get my act together (I hope!). MyItchyBoy at school Prior to the end of …
Continue ReadingSummer Sports Camp

Over the first two weeks of the summer holidays, MyItchyBoy spent 5 days at a local sports camp. The 5 days were spread over the fortnight as he is still only 4 yrs and I figured that with such a …
Continue Reading3 things we use to deal with eczema

Our super useful supply of cloths 1. Cloths to wipe our hands on We are still using the packs of muslin cloths that we bought before he was even born. Thankfully they are still in one piece, despite endless laundering, …
Continue ReadingHuge improvement for MyItchyBoy

MyItchyBoy’s arm last week This morning, putting cream on MyItchyBoy, I felt very emotional. Why? Well, this morning, about 80% of his skin feels weird. Yes, weird. Perhaps not to a parent whose child has never suffered with eczema, but …
Continue Reading5 Things I Hate About Eczema

I hate eczema. It really sucks. Aside from watching MyItchyBoy suffer on a daily basis and the feelings of desperation, helplessness and failure that goes with it, there are a few other things that I really hate about eczema too. …
Continue Reading5 Treats for Allergic Kids

Caveat first: These are a selection of pre-packed treats that MyItchyBoy enjoys without any adverse reactions. This post in no way suggests that your child will be fine if they are allergic to any foods. As much as I like …
Continue ReadingMy Super, Super Itchy Boy
We don’t usually get much sleep as it is but this last week or so has been harder than normal. We have been struggling with MyItchyBoy’s itchy eczema a lot over the past few months as it is, but at …
Continue ReadingWhat my son’s eczema taught me about my own skincare
There are very few positives I can take from having a child with eczema, but learning about my own skin and how to treat and protect it has been one of them. We moved house last year and lost an …
Continue ReadingOur adventure into a salt cave

We live not too far from a couple of salt therapy places, but have never actually been before. However, it has been a tough week or so for MyItchyBoy with his eczema and so I thought that it would be …
Continue ReadingEczema friendly bedding: What I’ve learned so far

For a child with eczema, like MyItchyBoy, having the right bedding is key to a good night’s sleep. Tiredness makes an already itchy child more itchy and tired, grumpy parents will find coping with the daily trials of eczema harder …
Continue ReadingEczema: the impact on family life

MyItchyBoy has suffered atopic eczema since he was a few months old. His wrists are almost always dry and itchy but eczema on the rest of his body depends on so many other things. He has food allergies and …
Continue ReadingEczema is giving me piles – of laundry!

There are so many times that I wish MyItchyBoy had ‘normal’ skin. However, this week, my sighs and desires for normality come from the combination of a backlog of laundry and the change in weather. Due to the eczema that …
Continue ReadingEczema Egg Challenge
So, did I mention, we can now give MyItchyBoy eggs? Well, when I say eggs, I mean we can bake cakes and buns and things and actually put real egg in. Yes, real egg, from chickens. It may sound like …
Continue ReadingMaking others aware of allergies
Over the next few weeks MyItchyBoy’s nursery are covering the topic of food and healthy eating. I’ve asked if they could take the opportunity to introduce some food allergy awareness to the older children as part of this. Like many …
Continue ReadingHelp me! What is he allergic to???
Right, a few weeks back I got a call from MyItchyBoy’s nursery. I was told that he had a red eye, that it possibly looked a bit swollen. They were concerned enough to call, weren’t sure what had happened. They …
Continue ReadingSolving the Sleep Issue

For a while now, MyItchyBoy has had trouble sleeping. That is to say, he has no trouble sleeping when he’s asleep and is settling as well as can be expected from a procrastinating genius that all 4 year olds are. …
Continue ReadingAn image of my son in war-time Britain

MyItchyBoy is starting to grow up. It’s true. Apparently, they all do it…. For him, part of being more independent and responsible is looking after his skin and managing his allergies. This is a lot of top of the normal …
Continue ReadingEczema is bad for my health
And at the moment, it’s not even my eczema. I read the reports in the press earlier in the week about how all parents are pretty much screwed as a lack of sleep is apparently so bad for your health. …
Continue ReadingSleep is apparently great for you – if you can get it!

I am getting fed up with New Year! New You! magazine articles telling me that the secret to happiness, health, success is a good night’s sleep. Simple! Great! How??? The only suggestions they have on how to achieve this are …
Continue ReadingWhat to do with too much cake?
As a family, we’re not so easy to accommodate for food if you’re not used to catering for allergies. Unfortunately dairy and eggs are so prevalent that label reading is essential. For someone not initiated into the world of scrutinising …
Continue ReadingExciting discoveries in Gran Canaria

Earlier in December we were lucky enough to spend a lovely, sunny week in Gran Canaria. This post is about a couple of the products we enjoyed discovering on this trip. As mentioned in the previous post, we were lucky …
Continue ReadingFun in December Sun

A holiday in December is always good I reckon, especially somewhere warm and sunny. We recently spent a week in Gran Canaria and we had a great time. It was a great holiday for MyItchyBoy. He was easily amused with …
Continue ReadingTaking allergies on holiday

Having recently tried to book a cheap break in December for the three of us, I have once again been left debating with myself about what risks I want to take when it comes to food. Staying somewhere ‘safe’ is …
Continue ReadingMy hot night of three in the bed
Yes, we had another hot night down south – over 20 degrees. MyItchyBoy was already suffering an eczema flare-up from Friday so the heat was not at all welcome. We had all the windows open throughout the house as well …
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I have had a lot of empathy with my son and his eczema this week due to the insect that has had a few bites out of my leg. I’ve woken up three days in a row with a new …
Continue ReadingGood cotton pjs for eczema kids

After the usual hunt for pyjamas for MIB that are the right size, 100% cotton and not extortionate in price, I was really pleased to find a two pair pack in the supermarket. I usually find it so hard to …
Continue ReadingItchy Skin week here
A tough few days with itchy skin for MyItchyBoy at the moment. A bit of a runny nose and chesty cough and he’s flared up quickly in about 24 hours. It doesn’t help that he had one night with a …
Continue ReadingSticky Child
Finally, the sun is starting to shine. And with it, comes warmer weather. Hot days and nights are not always a good thing for a child with eczema. We are fairly lucky that heat itself doesn’t seem to worsen MIB’s …
Continue ReadingOur latest blood test experience

A while ago MyItchyBoy showed signs of a reaction to fish. Since then, we have had a consultant appointment and agreed to go for another RAST test. This is mainly because I hold no faith in the scratch tests since …
Continue ReadingSunscreen vs. Eczema
Have sent MIB (my itchy boy) off to nursery today with a hat but no sunscreen. Am I a bad mother? Nope, just an indecisive one. Too early in the morning to decide whether or not he’ll definitely need it …
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