Eczema flare up made worse by showering

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ellsaroo
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2013 12:31 pm
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by ellsaroo on Thu Aug 08, 2013 3:24 pm

Eczema flare up made worse by showering

I have had head to toe eczema for a number of years now- im under the dermatologist and they have never quite managed to get it under control beyond stopping the infections on my arms, hands and legs.
I think due to the heat my eczema has flared up all over my arms, legs and hand and back.
I have short luke warm/cool showers using doublebase shower gel but even after my skin is so itchy and sore it makes it worse and i dont have a bath in my flat
Does anyone have any suggestions for what to do? As i know washing helps put moisture back in but it seems to be counter productive for my skin

Julia
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Mar 20, 2009 9:28 pm
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by Julia on Fri Aug 09, 2013 10:33 am

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

Hi there,

Poor you. I know how you feel - my skin has not been under control for almost a year now and I know how desperate it can make you feel. I often feel very alone (the world just seems to be full of people with lovely skin!) but we're not alone really...there are lots of other sufferers out there.

Here are some ideas for things you could try:

- when my skin is v dry I slather on E45 wash cream before I shower and then rinse it off in the shower. Works well for keeping my skin moist.

- I bought a water softener for the shower head. Don't know where you are, but if you live in a hard water area then it might be worth a try. Mine was about £35 so not too bad. Too be honest, I can't tell if it has made much difference - you know what it is like...SO many things affect your skin it's nigh on impossible to tell what helps sometimes! I read some research into water softeners which basically said they couldn't conclude that it improved people's eczema, but me dermatologist thought it'd be a good idea.

Also, becuase I was getting pretty desperate I decided to try a few more things. One is taking Turmeric (curcumin) supplements as I heard an eczema suffered had tried this and it had worked very well. I only got them yesterday (from a health food shop, just chose the highest strength they had) and my skin is so much better already. I had actually come out in some sort of rash a few days ago all over my body(more lumpy and red then normal eczemary) for some reason (sun? insect bites? who knows) and it is so much better today. Could be the Turmeric. There is quite a lot research evidence of turmeric helping inflamatory conditions eg arthritis.

I am also taking a high dose of vitamin D3 at the moment (4400 IU a day). To be honest I don't know what the IU means, but it is what it says on the jar! Again, I read some research saying that D3 did have a positive effect on eczema. I'm not sure if it has on me.

I am also cutting out caffeine - just down to one cup of tea a day now, with the plan to not have anything from Monday. I suppose it could be this and not the turmeric that has improved my skin.

And then from Monday I am going to try an exclusion diet to see if I can work out if any food is making it worse or not. I guess after that I'll know if caffeine makes a difference or not!

Good luck. xx

ellsaroo
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2013 12:31 pm
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by ellsaroo on Fri Aug 09, 2013 10:56 am

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

I know its so hard, my gp said i had a heat rash on top of my eczema.
My dermatologist is pretty much of the view that if you've got eczema then you've got it and you can only really control it with creams etc. which is quite depressing! they've recommended councilling to help me cope with the day to day grind of keeping on top of it all. i've had patch testing and blood tests- i have a nut allergy so it seems- great!!!!

My skin does seem a lot better today- last night i had a cold shower- as cold as i could take- then put some steroid cream on- cant remember the name- between eumovate and dermavate. then i covered myself in olive oil???!! seemed like i good idea- and then epiderm over the top of that.
Welcome to the weekend! Cant really go to the pub again!
Im just trying to avoid having to take oral steroids again to sort it out as that didnt really sit well with me!

Thanks for the advice! I've tried some oil suppliments and things but cant really see too much difference to be fair.
Humph

megamel99
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Aug 10, 2013 12:23 am
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by megamel99 on Sat Aug 10, 2013 12:48 am

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

Hey I also know how irritating a shower can be. When my eczema flares I take coolish baths because the pounding water from a shower makes my eczema worse. I actually make the bathroom really warm and humid first, then get in the bath. You may want to also try washing your hair in the sink if you have eczema on your face. Avoid getting that area wet (like taking a bath).

Besides moisturizing, which is a given, after I rub in the moisturizer in I apply vaseline on top to seal it in. So moisturizer and then vaseline. True eczema is not common in adults. It is usually caused by an allergy or contact dermatitis or sluggish lymphatic system.

You can also look for soaps with only 2 or 3 ingredients, I've seen some in the drug store made of olive oil and 1 or 2 other ingredients, don't remember. I also once ordered soap from alabu.com. I am not affiliated with them, just thought their soaps are very gentle.

One long term thing you can work on, is to starting cleansing internally. Stay hydrated, start adding some more veggies and fruits to your diet. Fruits will help you tremendously. Cut down on sugar, take a probiotic. If you have the extra cash, start doing infra red saunas (but only if you are in good health). Take it slow, don't try everything at once. Take baby steps, because you can stress yourself out trying to "cleanse".

I believe there is a solution to eczema and we just have to try new things until we can figure it out. Everyone is different.
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ellsaroo
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2013 12:31 pm
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by ellsaroo on Sat Aug 10, 2013 3:45 pm

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

hi, thanks for the reply.
I dont have a bath in my flat so I cant do that. my shampoo is from lush ans onoy has a few ingredients amd I also make sure I wash it away from my face.
what I tend to do is wash with double base shower gel, then pat dry. put steriods on then a layer.of moisturiser then epiderm to lock it.in. I've tried wet wrapping but my skin is so sore having stuff on it just hurts.
I've had all my bloods done and patch testing the onoy thing that showed was chromate as an irritant not an allergy. only nuts showed up in my.bloods and I've had tests on my thyroid, diabetes etc everything really!
I also eat really really healthily. I dont eat processed food I eat loads of fruit and veg. I hardly drink and have given up smoking.
ive tried to eliminate dairy but that made no difference.
I feel like im doing everything possible to help myself but its just not working

sueandthecity
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 5:10 pm
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by sueandthecity on Mon Aug 12, 2013 8:29 pm

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

You do not say how long you have tried the diet changes and oil supplements. I think that common sence should prevail, it makes sense to me that taking omega oil supplements will help in the long term as will a healthy diet ( I have never heard of an allergy to vegetables!).

With my son it took a year to get him stable, I agree that at times you cannot see the point of a lot of it but stick with common sence, and as long as it is not harming it could help.

I gave him anti histamine as well because he got very bothered and reactive with the heat.

I have also read a lot of stuff about the emolients doing more harm than good. so my advice is try to cut down on the emulsifiers you cannot get away from some in cream but washes are jam packed with them.

I know this is not giving you an answer butthere is never one size fits all, you have to find your own reciepie, and it will probably be a mixture of lots of things.

ellsaroo
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2013 12:31 pm
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by ellsaroo on Mon Aug 12, 2013 8:49 pm

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

hi, im prescribed antihistamines for everyday from the gp- my dermatologist has told.me that I can take them.off spec instead of the one a day prescribed I take three- I also take three piriton a day to sleep.
I pretty much have alqays had a healthy diet and especially so since this came on about three years ago. an example of.my daily food is like what I had today
breakfast: banana, apple, satsumas, plums
lunch: homemade spinich and chickpea. curry with cous cous
dinner: salmon, salad, homemade potato.wedges
melon and yogurt for dessert

its a really healthy diet and I have oily fish a number of times a week.

I've started to make my own shower wash from oats, yogurt and olive oil and that does seem to have helped.
I try and stay away from dairy as much as possible and take three evening primrose capsules a day. I always try and wear cotton and make sure all my bedding etc is cotton and I make my own washing powder from bicarb amd essential oils.
its quite a cocktail

sueandthecity
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 5:10 pm
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by sueandthecity on Thu Aug 15, 2013 8:49 am

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

Well you are cetianly doing all the things I would have thought of and good for you for making your own shower wash.

Please tell me to but out if I am being too pushy but, in your earlier post you mentioned double base shower cream, steroid and epiderm.

Have you stopped using the double base now and has that made a difference, it should have because all washes contain some emulsifiers, and these are the real killer.

Having seen my son in agony from flare ups, I know how dependant you become on steroids but in the long term they thin the skin and destroy pigment so I am sure you are careful with them.

What moisturiser do you use, before the epiderm?

I found that although I hate using petrol chemicals that vaseline was sometimes good ( again no emulsifiers), it does not moisturise but it did seal his skin, and allowed him to go swimming and have a bit of a normal life.

The biggest problem I found was I knew certain things were bad but I could not always avoid them. I found that but identifying what was the triggers, I could avoid them when things got bad.

CaseySheehan
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 1:26 am
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by CaseySheehan on Wed Mar 08, 2017 1:28 am

Re: Eczema flare up made worse by showering

Recently I have suffered from the worst Eczema & Rosacea flare at the same time. I could not wear makeup, and my skin was out of control. I had it on my face, fingers, and elbows. Foderma serum helps to keep my eczema on my face and elbows controlled. I have started carrying a little makeup jar of it around with me, for when I start to feel itchy or notice I am getting bumps on my fingers. I have already used up one jar, and have purchased another. I never want to be without foderma.

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