My skin is on the dry side, so most winters I tend to get a little patch of eczema on the top of 1 hand, which I just slap moisturiser on and ignore.

However this year its decided to go all out. Had 1 patch behind my knee, which luckily I've almost managed to get rid of \o/

A more severe patch on my hand, inside my elbow, back of my neck and at the top of my arm.

I couldn't work out why it was so bad this year, but lately I'm starting to see massive links between my diet and how my health/skin goes.

So, if nothing else, this has been my kick up the back side to improve my diet. It's not that I've been eating unhealthy foods, just very small amounts of the good stuff, I must be deficient in numerous things, and as bad as it sounds i haven't really cared until it's started affecting my skin.

Does anyone else on here suffer from eczema? How do you deal with-both in terms of treatment and just emotionally. This recent bout really knocked my confidence, but trying to stay on top.

My tips are to try a shower/water filter, and obviously there is a strong correlation to diet.

What works for you?

I have it too, and it shows up in different places each year (and almost disappears in the summer). Right now it's ALL over my hands/creeping up my wrists. Uncomfortable and awkward. I also work in a lab and have to wear gloves a lot, which irritates it further. I really don't have all that many good tips, but I'd like to see what other people have to say! Mostly, I've noticed that it gets bad when I eat too much dairy, and better if I slather my hands in greasy lotion and wear gloves at night. How does the water filter help, out of curiosity?

It removes a lot of the chlorine which a lot of people are sensitive too, and other chemicals that are just in the water to make it safe. I suppose the difference depends on what kind of water you get anyway, where I am the water is hard, and lots of chemicals/minerals in it etc.

I prefer the filters which use vitamin C, since that is beneficial to building up the skins immunity to irritants. Or so I've read...

Go see a dermatologist. They can prescribe you a steroid cream that will clear it up in a week or two. I use to get it really bad when I was a teenager and worked in fast food (those gloves really do make it 1000% worse) and the only thing that made it eventually go away was the cream.

I have Eczema just on my hands, mostly on the sides of my fingers. It comes and goes at random, when it's bad, its BAD. Itches like ****. Right now my hands are completely free of it, I can't explain it.

Best tips, get a topical ointment like others have said from a Derm, only way to really keep it in control if it is bad. I've been told not to stop using the cream when it clears up, but of course I do, so it flares up randomly.

Also use gloves when washing dishes, shouldn't use harsh soaps like dish soap to wash your hands ever, but of course I do anyway (haha) and moisturize with a good hand cream regularly. Thats about all the advice I have. If it is really bad I would see a Derm!

I just realized I gave advice if it is only on your hands. Still good advice though, if its elsewhere? Rx and moisturizer!!!!

Swimmer, I had excema like this when my kids were infants. I think I am/was allergic to the baby wipes. My hands were covered too--so badly that my dermatologist wrote me a letter after an office visit telling me that he had never seen anything like my hands and felt badly for me. They were oozing/weepy and really itchy. Usually one hand was worse than the other, luckily. All of the women in my family have it inside their ears (yuckers!) so I consider myself the lucky one. I agree with the posters that suggest seeing your doctor for a rx. Slathering on the rx and wearing cotton gloves or socks over the affected areas overnight really help. I sometimes get patches on my shins in the winter and have found that slathering on vaseline petroleum jelly after showering, as a preventative is the ticket. You can emulsify the jelly by rubbing your hands together before applying it to the affected areas. I do sometimes have to resort to the rx but the vaseline is really helpful in preventing it from getting out of hand or spreading.

Hmm I'm not sure why it didn't post my reply!

I went to my Drs and she prescribed an emollient called Diprobase (Which works fantastically!)

She also gave me some medium strength steroid cream which was great, I only have a little patch left on my hand now, which is fading nicely

I think I will continue to use the emollient where I tend to get eczema as a preventative treatment hopefully

I'm glad you went to the doc.... everything aside, in the end when my eczema gets bad there's truly nothing you can do to make it go away without some help from meds.

I hadn't had a bad flare up since my early teens until this year when I went abroad and contracted an intestinal parasite. It was like my childhood problem and THEN some! Ohhh... so painful. :/

My specialist recommended the regular things (Dove soap, non-scented, moisturize twice a day, etc) but also recommended that I take BLEACH bathes once a day until it gets under control. You take a cup of bleach and pour it in a tub and sit in it for 20 minutes. I was skeptical... but it did help! I only did it for a week though cos I wasn't sure how it was affecting my lady bits! Aside from that, I got two steroid ointments that work AMAZINGLY well and now use a lotion/cream for my body that he recommended because it helps replenish skin cells faster... it's called Cerave. It's kinda expensive, about $15 a jar, but I use 2 a month and its worth it!

Good luck... not many people realize what a horribly painful problem this can be.

I have eczema on my arms which keeps coming out like little spots that itch so much. I can usually pacify it during the day but at night time when I am in bed as I get a bit warm the itching drives me bonkers!! When you are half asleep and just want to doze off the last thing you want to do is then get up and get the ointment to rub on, not that it stops it straight away.
This was actually brought on by using statins which were prescribed for me but as soon as I realised I stopped them immediately but the side effects continue.
I use aqueus cream for showering and always moisturise afterwards. I also have steroid cream for using on this but as fast as a few spots get better some new ones break out!
I am soo fed up with my arms looking so awful and was unable to take my cardigan off in the hot weather.
Don't know what else I can do to help clear this up. I thought that once I got onto a healthy balanced diet things would improve but unfortunately not.

My sons suffer like crazy! AND they hate the vaseline that is wonderful in preventing it. Too bad diprobase is not sold in the USA. Would love to give it a go.

KittyCat, how old are your sons? I used to slather vaseline petroleum jelly on my DS's face and knuckles (which were always chapped in winter) after he fell asleep at night when he was little. I'm a sneaky mom...

Just thought I'd do a little update in case it helps anyone else!

I just had another flare up on eczema, up the small of my back, outer thighs and hands/fingers.

We are now sure of the culprit though! Turns out I have a somewhat severe contact allergy to nickel.

I was always aware I had a sensitivity since i could never wear fake jewellery. However after 3 days or so of slightly too much chocolate my eczema has come raging back. I was always aware chocolate could be a trigger for it, but I never knew it actually contains very high amounts of nickel! I also work as a cashier so it is no surprise to me the eczema on my hands has become so bad.

I'm hoping now Christmas food is done with the eczema should go away, though I'm a little gutted chocolate is seeming to be off limits

Anyway I totally went off track... I know a lot of people have a similar allergy so if you find you have flare ups, perhaps this might be useful. I was suprised just how many things I eat regularly are very high in nickel, from nuts, leafy veg, soya and so on.

hmm. lots to think about. i'm an extreme case, i've had eczema since birth. during my sensative teenage years i wassuper sedated and about 80% covered. adulthood has given me a break - there were years where i didn't see my old friend at all, but now it has returned. i work in a lab so there is a lot of gloved time as well as alcohol and bleach. i seem to be having flares on all parts of my hands and on my eye lids. bleck, the eye thing really sucks. i do have a regimine of treatment including steriods (though seriously prefer non-roid meds). My current doc recommended Robathol. it's cottonseed oil. added to some tepid water for a soak, it seems to work wonders.
i'm really curious as to the foods you all avoid as well as those that help. i avoid those i have known allergies to, but i haven't yet made the effort to do diet restrictions and learn if there is more i should be staying away from. has anyone here done so? what type of plan did you follow?

thanks,
jennifer

This thread is so timely for me! I just got back from the Allergist because of a recent eczema flare-up on my eyelids. I only get flare-ups in the winter and I always thought it was because of our heating system blowing around excessive dust and dust-mites (which I'm allergic to). Doc explained that people with eczema generally have more issues in the winter because of the lack of moisture in the air. He recommended soaking the affected area for 20 min/day then an immediate application of Vaseline to trap the water into my skin. He also prescribed a cream but I haven't picked it up yet so I don't have the name.