Dry skin issue -- HELP!

rml_16
rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
in Chit-Chat
So this is really weird, but I've tried everything so now I'm polling the group here on MFP.

I do not have overall dry skin. However, no matter what I try (exfoliation, all sorts of different lotions, even Vaseline -- you name it) my left elbow is dry and rough. All the time.

My right elbow is fine -- soft and smooth. The left elbow is the only spot on my entire body that's like this. Does anyone have any suggestions for how to fix it???

Replies

  • Forty6and2
    Forty6and2 Posts: 2,492 Member
    Baby oil. I use it on my legs all the time because they're always dry.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Oh good idea. It's the one thing I haven't tried.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,021 Member
    Creams are better than lotions. I've been using CeraVe. It's been really good.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • justianne82
    justianne82 Posts: 10
    You can use coconut oil to hydrate and moisturize your skin. Coconut oil has Vitamin E which is good for our skin and can help to repair skin. It also prevents premature skin aging like wrinkles, dry and crack skin. You can apply it by using a cotton ball or your fingertips.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    You can use coconut oil to hydrate and moisturize your skin. Coconut oil has Vitamin E which is good for our skin and can help to repair skin. It also prevents premature skin aging like wrinkles, dry and crack skin. You can apply it by using a cotton ball or your fingertips.
    I've actually been using cocoa butter and coconut oil and it does help, but only if I apply it several times a day. And even then, it doesn't always work.

    I just don't know why it's just that ONE area. And it isn't even so much that the skin is dry, but it's rough. It's literally only my left elbow where I have this issue. I guess I just have to live with it. :-)
  • Pipsg1rl
    Pipsg1rl Posts: 1,414 Member
    Have you seen a dermatologist? It may be more than just dry skin.
  • DevSanchez
    DevSanchez Posts: 314 Member
    So I've tried mostly everything. Coconut oil. It is THE best for dry skin. Helps with acne, skin rashes sometimes, as well as stretch marks.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Have you seen a dermatologist? It may be more than just dry skin.
    No because other than being odd it doesn't bother me and I mostly only even think about it when I'm putting lotion on in the morning and I can feel it. It looks normal. It's just a little rougher than any other spot on my body. And it's been there a long time without spreading or anything else happening.

    I have a physical scheduled next week. I'll add it to my list of things I need to talk about. Ugh. I'm starting to feel like a hypochondriac.
  • Aliciaaah
    Aliciaaah Posts: 379 Member
    Sounds like it could be psoriasis. There are certain creams/gels just for that, but I'm pretty sure they all require a prescription. I would go see your doctor.
  • kkay3182
    kkay3182 Posts: 90 Member
    Coconut oil... yes yes I know people cook with it, but it is very effective for dry skin, I use it at nights after my shower and it works even for my face that is notoriously dry! good luck!:drinker:
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Sounds like it could be psoriasis. There are certain creams/gels just for that, but I'm pretty sure they all require a prescription. I would go see your doctor.
    I'm going to ask about it, but I just looked up the symptoms and I don't think that's what it is. It isn't red or inflamed, no itching or burning. It's just a patch of rough skin. The oil does help.
  • smiley245
    smiley245 Posts: 420 Member
    Weird question, but is it the side you tend to lean on while sitting at a desk/home?

    My bf sits at a computer all day leans to the left and has a really dry elbow.
    weird whitish/grey dry elbow patch.
    he wears out his shirts there too... must spend all day leaning!
  • TheRoadDog
    TheRoadDog Posts: 11,788 Member
    My daughters all use coconut oil.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Weird question, but is it the side you tend to lean on while sitting at a desk/home?

    My bf sits at a computer all day leans to the left and has a really dry elbow.
    weird whitish/grey dry elbow patch.
    he wears out his shirts there too... must spend all day leaning!
    Hmmm. I hadn't thought about that, but it's possible. I'll pay more attention and see if that's it. It's very possible, since I wore a hole in the elbow on that side of the cardigan I used to wear at work.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    On one side of the body and not the other? Doesn't respond to moisturizer? No redness or heat? Sounds like a fungal infection. Not all fungal infections spread. Def have your doctor check it. A little prescription ointment and/or medicated powder should fix that right up.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    On one side of the body and not the other? Doesn't respond to moisturizer? No redness or heat? Sounds like a fungal infection. Not all fungal infections spread. Def have your doctor check it. A little prescription ointment and/or medicated powder should fix that right up.
    Maybe.

    It does respond to the coconut oil and coco butter, though. I just have to use it a lot.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    On one side of the body and not the other? Doesn't respond to moisturizer? No redness or heat? Sounds like a fungal infection. Not all fungal infections spread. Def have your doctor check it. A little prescription ointment and/or medicated powder should fix that right up.
    Maybe.

    It does respond to the coconut oil and coco butter, though. I just have to use it a lot.
    Coconut oil/coco butter/Vaseline can temporarily help fungal infection symptoms, but they won't cure the underlying problem.

    If it were just dry skin, you would be able to get both elbows equally moisturized over time (unless you, I don't know, wash your one elbow way more than the other. but that would be weird).
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    On one side of the body and not the other? Doesn't respond to moisturizer? No redness or heat? Sounds like a fungal infection. Not all fungal infections spread. Def have your doctor check it. A little prescription ointment and/or medicated powder should fix that right up.
    Maybe.

    It does respond to the coconut oil and coco butter, though. I just have to use it a lot.
    Coconut oil/coco butter/Vaseline can temporarily help fungal infection symptoms, but they won't cure the underlying problem.

    If it were just dry skin, you would be able to get both elbows equally moisturized over time (unless you, I don't know, wash your one elbow way more than the other. but that would be weird).
    Ha ha. No, I wash them an equal amount. :-)

    Thanks for the input. I hadn't even thought of that since it really just feels like a patch of dry skin and looks perfectly normal. I do definitely lean on it more than then other, too, so there's that idea.

    Either way, I will be talking to the doctor in a couple weeks.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    If anyone is burning with curiosity, I have solved the mystery.

    I completely forgot to even mention it to my doctor. However, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's and started on Synthroid and the dry elbow has cleared up completely. So, it was a hypothyroid side effect.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,021 Member
    Sounds like mild eczema. I didn't think I had it either, just dry skin. Then this patch appeared, then another. Ended up getting a steroid ointment from the dermatologist and it went away.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • PurringMyrrh
    PurringMyrrh Posts: 5,276 Member
    rml_16 wrote: »
    Weird question, but is it the side you tend to lean on while sitting at a desk/home?

    My bf sits at a computer all day leans to the left and has a really dry elbow.
    weird whitish/grey dry elbow patch.
    he wears out his shirts there too... must spend all day leaning!
    Hmmm. I hadn't thought about that, but it's possible. I'll pay more attention and see if that's it. It's very possible, since I wore a hole in the elbow on that side of the cardigan I used to wear at work.
    This is what crossed my mind too. My ex had a big rough patch on one knee from always kneeling on that side for work.

    A lotion that has worked well for me is Jergens (sp?) Shea Butter formula. I had rough elbows and dry forearms and it's cleared both up.
  • PurringMyrrh
    PurringMyrrh Posts: 5,276 Member
    Doh! You gots it handled. :)
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    LOL

    For those offering new advice, read my last post. :-) It isn't eczema or fungus or even resting my elbow on the desk. It's hypothyroid, as strange as that is.

    All cleared up with Synthroid.

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