Eczema?! Please help!

I have suffered from eczema for a number of years now. It first started on my breast and than went away only to pop up on my ankle. I scratched it so bad I took skin out and left an open sore. I went to a dermatologist and received some cream and another cream to help with the itching. The cream he gave me has helped immensely with making it go away. However, it seems to come back when I am stressed or sick. I haven't been able to completely get rid of but I have been able to get the redness down. It still isn't the most attractive spot on my leg. My diet really doesn't seem to be a factor on the breakouts.

You should go to a dr and see what he can give you. The amount of cream I use is less than a small nail full. They want you to use it sparingly.

Hope this helps one sufferer to another.

African black soap (found on Amazon/ebay/natural health food stores?).

It's worked wonders for me!

Also 100% Shea Butter. They also sell shea butter soap on Amazon that some reviewers have claimed helped their eczema, but I have not tried it yet.

This is coming from someone that suffers from psoriasis my whole life.......There are several natural healing books that deal with eczema and psoriais that I have read over the years. One in particular states that there are several trigger foods that causes inflamation of both skin conditions. Tomatoes and tomatoe based anything is extremely toxic for ppl who suffer from this, along with black pepper and any white starches.
I am one that has every treatment in the world (including natural ones) I have decided after suffering for years and now with having psoriatic arthritis from having psoriasis for years I would highly recommend seeking medical advice for the Dx and then make your determination about what Tx would be best for you. Unfortunately there is NO natural healing for myself at this point, not if I want to keep my ability to move. Good Luck on finding out what works.

Go to a doctor to have it diagnosed, but you may not have to use the steroid cream they may prescribe. I have eczema on my hands and face and Cetaphil cream really makes an outbreak go down. You have to use it every time you get the area wet until the eczema heals, but it works wonders. Just be sure to by the cream in the jar, not the moisturizer in the bottle.

Ok, so I found a dermatologist that would see me today. I was told that it is contact dermatitis. "Use a steroidal cream to clear it up, and an over-the-counter cream that I just happen to have a whole pad of coupons for..." Blah, blah, blah. Treat the symptom... Just as I knew would happen. Western medicine is so screwed up. I explained my concerns with steroidal medications. She insisted that I trust her. After all, she uses the same steroidal ointment, and she is pregnant. This was supposed to make trust her? It just made me think she is nuts. I'm supposed to go back in a week. If it isn't cleared up, then we'll do patch testing. But if it is cleared up, then we just ignore that it ever happened? Pretty much. That was that. No time for discussion, time to make $ treating the next person's symptoms... If I didn't have to take a half day off work for every appointment, I would shop around for a better doctor, but I have to work so I can keep getting this insurance to pay the ****ty doctors, and to get my paycheck so I can pay the ****ty doctors the chunk that isn't covered by insurance. Grrrrrrrr.....

My doctor did warn me that the steroid creme would thin out the skin where you are using it. Need to be very careful. I decided against it. Still think you should try my suggestion early in the thread before you consider a prescription. After a few weeks of using the Raileigh salve, I rarely have to use it anymore, and my hands were a total mess...basically open sores because of having to wash during the day so much. Very painful. They cleared right up.

I have several friends who have had success easing the symptoms of eczema with aloe based moisturizers. I sell a brand they really love. Most skin diseases of this nature don't have a cure, but there are ways to improve the look and ease the symptoms.

A good mineral oil free, aloe base moisturizer can really help. If you are interested in what I sell, I would be happy to tell more or gather testimonials, but I don't want to advertise and get into trouble.

bump - My son has Eczema - so many helpful suggestions here.

Ok, so I found a dermatologist that would see me today. I was told that it is contact dermatitis. "Use a steroidal cream to clear it up, and an over-the-counter cream that I just happen to have a whole pad of coupons for..." Blah, blah, blah. Treat the symptom... Just as I knew would happen. Western medicine is so screwed up. I explained my concerns with steroidal medications. She insisted that I trust her. After all, she uses the same steroidal ointment, and she is pregnant. This was supposed to make trust her? It just made me think she is nuts. I'm supposed to go back in a week. If it isn't cleared up, then we'll do patch testing. But if it is cleared up, then we just ignore that it ever happened? Pretty much. That was that. No time for discussion, time to make $ treating the next person's symptoms... If I didn't have to take a half day off work for every appointment, I would shop around for a better doctor, but I have to work so I can keep getting this insurance to pay the ****ty doctors, and to get my paycheck so I can pay the ****ty doctors the chunk that isn't covered by insurance. Grrrrrrrr.....

Okay, but now at least you know it is indeed eczema. So start researching. I agree it's a ridiculous and backwards system in many ways. I had to do the same thing with migraines. I've always had migraines, when I was younger I just suffered through them (pressing my head against the wall and trying to fall asleep in a dark, quiet room). The first doctor I asked talked to about them tried me on a couple of different medications - all of which were new and just on the market. They made me ill, sure the migraine pain would be gone in about an hour, but in the meantime I was shaky and nauseous, sometimes vomited, and couldn't do anything but lay there - might as well have just had the migraine. But they got really bad for a couple of years and I read up a lot about them on my own and was able to find ways to diminish them somewhat and then found a new doctor who was more willing to work with things the natural way, but I still knew more about migraines than she did. It's just the way things currently are. It's still better that you know what it is for sure. I hope you find a way to treat it!

I have suffered from this my whole life and I am not on tablets that keeps it clear, but when I went swimming and I was broke out we used to put vaseline all over my body to keep the cholrine from getting onto my skin x

I get it a lot, and if it's bad, something that works for me is baby oil gel applied to wet skin, straight out of the shower. It really helps with the tightness and stinking when it cracks etc, because I find the skin is softened by my shower, and the baby oil gel retains the elasticity that the moisture gives. Because it's a gel, it's not greasy either. And my skin is super soft afterwards

Look for your triggers as well and learn to avoid them. For me it's stress. And if that happens when the seasons change, I break out in the most horrible way (big weather changes always make me break out)

^^This pisses me off to no end!! My wife is in the medical profession, I have worked in the medical business as well, your stereotype of doctors is so wrong on so many levels it isn't funny at all. I agree that there are some doctors out there that are not as good as others, but there are plenty of physicians that do take the time and interest in their patients to properly diagnose and treat the issue. The first step in your treatment process is to change your not so pleasant attitude toward the medical profession and those who work in it!!

Sorry I clicked on this thread.

To be fair - they are talking about a specific doctor, not a stereotype, and have said they would like to look for a better doctor. Implying she is fully aware there are good doctors around.

I've suffered bad eczema my whole life. Evening primrose is supposed to help though I've had little success. Steroids don't even work well for me.

I'm with you, my brother and I both had it bad as kids, but we have conquered it.
We take Evening primrose and cod liver oil. Stay away form any cream with chemicals in them. When it flairs up best thing I have ever found is Oilatum Emollients, it so cheep and usually gives me perfect skin in 48 hours!

:flowerforyou:

Try Bragg's Organic Apple Cider Vinegar for both external application and internal consumption. I'm trying it cause there has been many benefits associated with it.

I had eczema for ~12 years. 17 now. My worst was at my primary-secondary school age where I would eat whatever in the day and suffer at night.

I would recommend you to not eat fast food, not drink soft drinks and to add more fruits and vegetable into your diet.

I got better because of the anti-biotics medicine and steroid cream that my doctor gave me because at that time, it was absolutely terrible. Of course, I've reduced the intake now but it really helps in controlling and subsiding it when I really really need it.

Don't EVER let this overcome you.

Not the same thing but I suffered from very bad psoriasis for many years. It completely covered my scalp and when really bad (when under stress) part of my face as well.
I can't tell you how that effected me socially to be that disfigured. Its is incredibly itchy and torturous because you always want to scratch it. Just touching you scalp or effected skin causes the flaky skin to fall off into super dandruff so there is always a charming cover of skin flakes on your shoulders. Under the skin flakes the skin is red and sore, sometimes it will bleed.
I spent years trying to get it fixed and using whatever was recommended by doctors and dermatologists.

Finally what did work was recommended by a new hairdresser that I went to. Neem oil. Its very very cheap to buy. I think it is not well known by the medical professional because drug companies haven't worked out how to make money from it so it isn't pushed forward as a treatment to medical personel. I put this on my scalp and felt very quick relief from the itching. After wearing it overnight with a towel wrapped around my head I washed my hair. Repeated this 3 times that week although after the first treatment my scalp looked clean and the itchyness has disappeared and then that was it for 2 years it was gone. If I start to see it coming back (slight bit of flakyness) I do one treatment and that lasts me another year or so. Its like a miracle. I don't know how it works as I believe psoriasis is an autoimmune problem, but it did dramatically for me.

I have heard that it works on eczema as well although I don't know anyone personally who has used it for this. Remember to patch test anything in case of a reaction.

This site has information on it and you can order from them as well. They make alot of claims I can only vouch for it freeing me from psoriasis outbreaks.

http://www.neemoil.com.au/index.php?_a=product&product_id=22

Any doctors or medical scientists out there this stuff is amazing and worth looking into.

i have eczema on my hands. it is annoying when it happens but the cremes are absolutely not affordable in the slightest so I just deal with it.

doctor recommended dove soaps, or 'the least harsh you can find' as he said. try not to use alcohol products on your skin as they will dry it out and make the itching worse.

get it looked at by the doc. it might be eczema, might not! you can't know til they check it out.

^^ This! I have eczema on my hands as well. I freaked out because I had a bad rash and it kept spreading. I went to the doctor who couldn't come up with a diagnosis so I was referred to a dermatologist. I was given a steroid shot to help the redness and itching and a cream to get rid of the rash. I was told to use Dove soap, avoid coming in contact with any chemicals or cleaners (even dish soap breaks my hands out so I wear gloves while doing any kind of cleaning), and avoid any lotions and body sprays that aren't designed specifically for people with skin conditions. I also have rosacea so I have to be super careful what goes near my face or I look like a tomato for a few hours.