Patient Stories

Eczema Patients and Caregivers In their Own Words

NEA posed the question,

“What Should every Eczema Patient Know?”,

on the NEA facebook page recently,

and here’s what people had to say:



 

JW That not all treatments work for everyone.


AG Eczema patients should know side effects of all treatments and what factors can trigger eczema flare-ups (stress, diet, etc).

JB That steroid creams aren't always the solution.

KS You are not alone.

CZ It’s hard but there is always hope and keep trying.

SK That open skin breaks the barrier between you and the rest of the world.

Itching for a Cure

I am itching for a cure—a cure for eczema. I know that most readers will know that eczema is a rough, red patch of itchy skin, but do you know that eczema can cover your whole body? Do you know that tiny babies who have eczema sometimes scratch until they bleed? Do you know that many adults get eczema on their hands, causing cracking and soreness that can be debilitating? Most surprisingly, do you know that eczema can lead to feelings of sadness, frustration, and isolation?

Itching to Know

To my great delight, a new t-shirt came in the mail the other day. Not only is it the bright sunshine yellow I feel drawn to on these gray winter days, but it also represents a new dawning for NEA. The logo on my yellow t will be on our first official t-shirt for our inaugural fund-raising walk, Itching for a Cure, in April 2012.

Corn Allergy Triggers

Through that search I discovered I have dyshidrotic eczema, which can be a very common reaction to corn when someone cannot tolerate it.

Good Results with Multivitamins

Then my aunt suggested I take a multivitamin. I went the grocery store and found Women’s One a Day Plus Healthy Skin Support with FloraGlo Lutein in it. Since starting the vitamin three weeks ago my eczema is almost completely gone.

Video: E.T. - Eczema as a Teen

It can be lonely growing up with eczema because it is so hard to talk about, especially when you're a self-conscious teenager. Here's a message to everyone with eczema and those who care about them: you are not alone!

Video: National Eczema Association Promo

An introduction to the National Eczema Association which works to improve the health and the quality of life of persons living with atopic dermatitis/eczema, including those who have the disease as well as their loved ones.

Anecdotal Stories of My Life with Eczema

By way of introduction, I’m 41 years old, and I’ve suffered from eczema, allergies and asthma since I was very young. I really do not remember my life without a drippy nose and bad skin. My asthma, thank goodness, has been relatively controllable my entire life.

How We Struggled to Save our Daughter: A Mother’s Story By Dawn Shover, Milan, Ohio

I am writing this message to all the families who have a child with severe eczema. I am the mother of four daughters ages 21 to 6 years old. Busy house! Our youngest daughter, Carlie, has severe eczema. When she was 2 years old her eczema was getting so bad she would not sleep at night. By age 4 her skin was literally scaling off of her. She would sleep from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. and from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m. She would just begin to sleep and then she would be attacked by the nonstop itch demon. We would spend the night in the rocking chair, and in the morning I would brush up her skin flakes and wash her blood stained pajamas and blanket. Nobody really believed this was our family's life; it was hell for everyone. We had tried everything, yet nothing was working.

Parenting Children with Eczema: Beneath the Surface

Excerpted from a presentation by Joanna Hamilton, at the 2010 National Eczema Association Patient Conference. Mrs. Wyoming 2009, Joanna shares her experiences as a parent of children with eczema.

Organic Virgin Coconut Oil, Soap Nuts Helps Son's Seborrheic Eczema

I found organic virgin coconut oil and soap nuts (a fruit, not a nut, that grows on the soapberry tree). I boil the nuts to make a soap nut liquid for my son’s bath/shampoo/laundry. Since using these there has been a huge improvement in his skin!

Steroids, Coal Tar Shampoo for Severe hand Eczema

I soaked my hands in one quart of water mixed with four capfuls of a coal tar shampoo for a half hour EVERY night for six weeks. After soaking, I would rinse and pat my hands dry, and then I would apply a steroid ointment and cover my hands with white cotton gloves.