Should I start using Steroids?

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eczemagirl
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Apr 06, 2016 6:36 pm
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by eczemagirl on Fri Apr 08, 2016 1:26 am

Should I start using Steroids?

Hi,
I am new to this forum.
I am away from steroids for a long time (almost 7 yrs), and my eczema kept increasing though I am using
creams , aquaphor, coconut oil, vaseline. etc.....
Before it was only on my skin folds but now it is all over my body.
I almost always keep scratching. couldn't control.
Heard that after steroids treatment the eczema will come back more.
But want to go back to steroids because I want to get it under control.

Does anybody have experience with this?
Should I go back to steroids?

Are there any other alternatives?

Thank you.

marigoldgran
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Feb 26, 2016 12:15 am
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by marigoldgran on Sun May 15, 2016 12:26 pm

Re: Should I start using Steroids?

Hi,
Please think carefully before embarking on a never ending steroid-paraffin- cycle. Steroids some times help in an emergency and work very quickly like a miracle, but usually the problem returns because steroids only suppress eczema symptoms, there is no healing. Damaged skin needs rebuilding, skin cells renewing, and that does not happen overnight. Natural remedies allow the skin to heal itself and the healing process is supported by plant oils, vitamins and minerals which are compatible with human body. The skin has many layers and herbal creams and infusions work their way through the layers and do a thorough job from the bottom upwards. It will take more time than the instant chemical cures so you need to be patient. However, most herbal infusions, when dabbed on irritated skin, relieve irritation and itchiness almost immediately.
I have successfully helped people with life long eczema with some healing herbs. One lady had been given steroid creams so many years that the doctor refused to give any more as her hands were in bits. There was an open sore between each finger and the poor lady had to wear gloves all the time. Bathing and shower were agony and household jobs half impossible because of pain. Her hands were cracking dry and the usual paraffin based emollient creams did nothing. Finally she emailed me for advice and I was happy to offer her what I knew, starting with a Calendula (Marigold) soak. I sent her some dried Calendula for emergency hoping it would work, and if it did, the lady then could buy her own supply. She made 'tea' from the Calendula and soaked her hands in it several times a day, and after two days there was an email full of joy; it had worked. The healing had started immediately and I was over the moon, and so was the lady who then went and bought a bag of Calendula to continue with the soaks. Later she also learnt to make her own moisturising creams and bath oils. Calendula is anti inflammatory and soothing even for babies. C.'tea' knits broken skin together very quickly. You can buy dried Calendula from a known market place or health food shops very cheaply and use when needed, it keeps dried well.You can also drink the tea for stomach upsets. After the skin has been 'sealed' with the wash treatment, use Calendula cream, or Chickweed cream, and avoid any products with paraffin ( liquid paraffin, soft white paraffin, vaseline, mineral oil) which only block the skin like a plastic wrapping and do not let it breathe. It also contains no healing properties whatsoever. You can also moisturise with Sweet almond oil (so gentle that it is used as a massage oil for babies) straight from the bottle, or Jojoba oil which is actually a liquid wax but it lets the skin breathe and does not block pores like paraffin does.Virgin Coconut and Sesame oils are also amazing oils which many people have found soothing.
Chickweed is another miracle herb; my daughter's terrible eczema healed with it and she has a bag of dried CW at home just in case there is a flare up. You can buy and use CW the same way as Calendula. It may sting a little, two seconds only as it is a strong herb, but that is why it is so good too. It penetrates many layers of skin and goes deep. The healing begins from the bottom up and is fascinating to watch. CW cools and calms the inflamed and itchy skin, and when healing, the redness begins to go, and is replaced with pale and normal skin. My daughter's raging, eczema-and steroid-ruined skin around her mouth, was completely clear in three weeks. Chickweed grows in most gardens as a weed, It is edible too but tastes a bit earthy, it is a matter of taste. You can pick fresh CW, leaves, flowers and stems and chop them up and make a tea, or you an hang bunches of it in a dry place to dry and keep for later. You can also make your own professional and exactly the same as in shops, moisturiser creams using lovely natural plant oils which nourish the skin and boost cell growth. It is fun and exciting to see your own products neatly in little jars! If interested I can post you the recipes and the making info.
By the way, the 'tea, also called ' infusion' is made as follows: 1 teaspoon of dried or fresh herb, put in a mug, pour boiled water on top like making tea, cover with a saucer and leave to brew for 15 mins. Then let cool and dab eczema with this with a clean cloth or cotton wool pad. It keeps 3 days in a fridge, then you need to make a new mug.

Good Night Sleep, something that eczema sufferers rarely may enjoy. There is a helpful herbal tea, Linden Tea, some times called also Lime flower tea, which calms and gives you a better night sleep so you don' t wake up scratching. Worth trying, my daughter swears by it. She experimented with this tea last week when a sudden bout of eye lid eczema struck again. It is treated successfully with Chickweed but there was a problem with the night time. My daughter used to wake up to scratch, and the healing was partly lost by the morning, although there was always improvement with the Chickweed. Then we were recommended Linden tea and it worked. First night: slept through. Second night: slept through almost, woke up once but was too pleasantly drowsy to proceed to scratch. The third, fourth, fifth and hopefully tonight, she has slept through and woken up refreshed. This tea is a miracle worker. Many people have just this problem with restless nights and scratching. Now the eye lid eczema is almost gone thanks to the calm nights.

There might never be a cure from eczema, but there are ways to manage it. Do not believe in cream ads which claim to heal eczema, they are only designed to make you part from your money. And many odd creams from far flung countries often also contain cortisone! Their ingredients are a secret, apart from it being 'herbal'. Legally, you can call any paraffin, lard, petroleum or whatever slime based gunk herbal or natural as long as it has 1 % of some essential oil or other herbal ingredient! Like those ' herbal' bath products in super markets...avoid! It makes sense to make your own, a lot cheaper too.

Also, you can have a bath without emollients. You can make bath oil (easy peasy this one) and it is lovely. It contains 1 part of Polysorbate 80 and 3 parts of oils of your choice, say, Almond, Coconut or Jojoba. Put all in a bottle, shake up and use 1 cap full in a bath. The oil mixes with water and does not float on top, so you are not sitting in an oil slick. Also, in the warm bath the healing oils penetrate your skin and leave it moisturised afterwards.
You can also soak several Chamomile teabags in your (warm, not hot, you are not making tea now!) bath water, it is calming and soothing for the skin.

Also to remember, eczema also needs treatment from the inside. Bad diet, lack of vegetables and fruit, fast foods, soft drinks, white flour products, sugar and nasty fats as vegetable oils ( only use Olive oil and butter in cooking) are poison for your skin (Google about cooking oils and Omega-3 please). Toxins break out through your skin too, and an unclean liver will keep you ill forever. You can clean the liver with Milk Thistle, even doctors use it. There are articles written about these things, so Google up if you have time. You might find that you will have to make changes in your diet and life style before expecting any improvement on your skin. Your skin alarms you from things that are not going well inside you. Many eczema sufferers have found much benefit from simply correcting their eating habits. To round it up; drink lots of water, eat lots of fruit and veg, stop junk and sugar, eat wholemeal bread instead of white, eat nuts if you like them and are not allergic. And if you are run down, take a good multi vitamin with minerals tablet daily. All this food info is just for general advice, some people are allergic to certain fruits for example, so you have to find what suits you by trial and error I'm afraid. And last but not least, exercise!
Best wishes and lots of love.

dsummerbell
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Jun 15, 2016 3:06 pm
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by dsummerbell on Wed Jun 15, 2016 4:06 pm

Re: Should I start using Steroids?

Steroids can offer relief but you'll be on it for a long time and you have to weigh the side effects as well.

nikkik27
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2016 4:44 pm
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by nikkik27 on Mon Jun 27, 2016 8:18 pm

Re: Should I start using Steroids?

Hi

Please do not start using steroids. I have just started writing a blog as I stopped using steroids last year and my skin has cleared by 80%.

Peace on the Road
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Jan 04, 2017 9:05 am
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by Peace on the Road on Wed Jan 04, 2017 10:33 am

Re: Should I start using Steroids?

I would advise against it. Instead, figure out what you are allergic to and make the necessary lifestyle changes. That may mean altering your environment, not just changing your eating habits. For example, if you are allergic to dust mites, do as much as possible to maintain a clean and nearly dust-free living space. Cut processed sugar out of your diet to the extent that you can. It is important to reduce gut inflammation. Maybe use over-the-counter coal tar ointment (shampoos and soaps are also available). Just my unprofessional but nevertheless experienced 2 cents.

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