Switching from E45 to betamathasone valerate

[Carl Halling]

Hi. I suffer from a variety of severe skin problems, in the shape of eczema, urticaria, and tinea cruris. The eczema tends to break out in various places, including my feet, shins, legs, back and lower arms, all of which I tend to try and control – very successfully for the most part - with a combination of betamethasone valerate and E45. I also suffer in other more delicate areas, including the region embracing my lower back and kidneys, hips, lower stomach/upper groin (riddled with eczema/dermatitis; I've also noticed two slightly raised areas on either side maybe connected to scratching in my sleep) and buttocks, although for some reason I’ve been nervous about using the steroid ointment here, and tend to rather attempt to control outbreaks with E45. However, I’ve recently been fighting something of a losing battle, and was wondering if it might be a good idea for me to switch to the betamethasone valerate. Is it safe for these areas?

[Marcie Mom]

What about getting a prescription for a lower potency cream? Since betamathasone valerate rank on upper mid potency strength.. hope you'd find something that works and is safe, since corticosteroids are meant for short-term use.. take care!

[mikeworth]

Hi Carl,

I recommend you try protopic ointment. This has the benefits of a strong steroid cream but without the side effects (such as skin thinning). Make an appointment to see a dermatologist. In the mean time I have a tube for sale (cheaply) in the following link:

[ShandaEllert]

I am 31 and have had eczema on and off since Jr. High. For 3 straight years in my 20's, I also had eczema all over my face, neck, and chest! I went to doctors, dermatologists, got skin biopsies, allergy tests, blood tests etc, but they couldn't figure it out...3 whole years later, I finally did; I realized it was the chlorine in our water because my eczema had gotten so bad when we had moved to the city. Once I put a filter on our shower head, it went away in a few days! I still am prone to getting dry skin (I live in AK, so sometimes in the winter, the air gets dry, Or if I sweat when I workout, that causes my skin to itch too.)
But what I've found is: apple cider vinegar is the only thing that has ever helped my eczema and dry skin. I use it daily and dab it on any itch or scratch; and I also put it on (diluted with water) my face after my shower before going to bed.
*I always need to remember to dilute it when I put it on my face, because your face is sensitive, and apple cider vinegar full strength could sting and dry it out more. If u ever accidentally put full strength on; add water to your face!
*Also, if I have any cuts or scratches (which sometimes if I forget to trim my nails, and I accidentally scratch my skin) I use apple cider vinegar to dis-infect them, and then put raw honey over it with a bandaid. (If the scratch or wound is on your face, I put raw honey on it before bed, and cover that with a paper towel. Then just wash your face in the morning.
Raw honey is the best healer for your skin! It has so many nutrients your skin needs to heal and soften! If I have a dry spot on my face, I usually will put water on my face before the raw honey; that way the raw honey traps the water in your skin to hydrate it even more.
*Another thing is, in the shower; I don't use any soaps on my face or arms etc. If I have a dry spot, I usually put a dab of oil on it before hopping in the shower. This will help it retain the water in the skin.
*I also try to always keep my finger nails short. Just in case I ever accidentally scratch without thinking about it. (I've caused many deep cuts accidentally when I wasn't thinking about it, just itching my arm or leg etc.)
*One time I had accidentally rubbed my eye when I was itching from a cat allergy, and the next day I had a red dry mark right under my eye...for the life of me I couldn't get this big red mark to go away...I put vitamin e on it every day, several times a day to no avail. Then I read somewhere, that its not oil that hydrates your skin, but water! You need just a drop of oil after putting water on your skin, so it will hold the water in your skin. I immediately started just putting water on my skin without a ton of oil (a lot of oil just makes your skin hot and itch more usually!) -I just used a drop of healthy oil (olive, jojoba, etc) and it worked! The dry red mark on my face went away within a couple days!

I felt like I needed to write all this, because I remember what it was like so vividly- always doing desperate google searches to look for cures...so many said to use oil, but that made it worse for me! I tried prescription steroids, creams, etc.. to no avail...
My lesions would ooze, crack, bleed, get infected, etc! I could hardly sleep when I had oil all over my skin at night. It was so painful sometimes that I'd use aloe with lidocaine. It'd bring relief and coolness for the dry, itchy and burning feeling, but it still kept my skin looking bright red!
I also had lived off the raw food diet for 3 years, when I had thought that maybe I had some food allergy or something my body was intolerable to.

This is my nightly shower routine that has worked: water on my skin, then a little healthy oil on any dry spots if needed. After the shower, I put Apple Cider Vinegar diluted with water on my face. Lastly, if needed; Raw Honey on any open wounds.
This has been the only thing that has worked for my eczema- hope this helps!