Would you say something?

**professor~yaffle**

Jobseeeker wrote: »

I don't know if this helps but one of my friends was exactly the same as your son. She cut out wheat and gluten and it went away completely, no cream/steroids etc ever again. Its worth a try.

Yes, I have heard this, too. The only trouble is, it's one thing saying I won't eat wheat or dairy but another knowing what to eat instead.

nickj_2

have a look here ,

itsanne

One of my daughters has mild eczema. She sometimes finds applying something very cold helpful when the urge to scratch is strong.

swampduck

I too suffer with eczema but (fingers crossed) have it under reasonable control. As I've grown older it has developed into hyper inflammatory pigmentation which means the skin remains scarred for up to six months after a flare up - not a good look I can assure you!
However it can be lived with - this young man does need to get real and deal with it. If that means seeing the doctor and having a blitz with epaderm/aqueous cream/steroids then he must do it. Given how severe his eczema sounds I am inclined to think that he has developed psoriasis which is even more prone to stress related out breaks.
I have actually found that using bodyshops' coconut body butter is one of the few products I can use that helps keep the eczema away. There are properties in coconut that are known to help with skin problems and it seems to do the trick for me. It may be worth a try and it does not smell unlike a very mild covering of sun tan oil so he needn't worry about that.

I hope you can persuade him that it won't get better unless he is proactive about it.

Swampy

tesuhoha

I've read quite a lot about various oil supplements helping eczema. Apparently a high daily dosage of evening primrose and flaxseed oil helps.

http://www.topix.com/forum/health/eczema/TTAGQMNQ5501FK2E4

It would be worth a try for someone in so much discomfort. Perhaps try Milk Thisle as well.

Its possible to buy high dosage supplements such as these on line. Also I would give a vote to coconut oil.

Brighton_belle

Your poor son - I do feel for him (and you as well)I suspect he feels so rubbish he just can't be bothered because what ever effort he makes probably has little impact in his eyes.


My experience of crippling levels of psoriasis (80% skin loss) are that it takes humungous effort to moisturise, cream up etc etc for very little benefit other than very briefl feeling more comforatble.
I've tried every single complimentary medicine/diet suggestions on this planet and non have worked.
The whole, 'leaving skin every where' is gross but it can be truly impossible not to scratch, particularly when half asleep at night. It's utter utter torment.


The only 'but', is he does seem to be sinking into low self esteem about it all (unsurprisingly)and seems unable to make any effort in the same way we have read on here about other young men without this skin issue. So I think as his mum, yes you do need to say something. He is going to struggle at uni in shared accommodation if he doesn't do something to try and minimise the skin loss/clear up after himself.
Hopefully it is possible to say something in a way that doesn't leave him feeling worse.


I don't know much about eczema - I am on major drugs for the P that have transformed my skin and my life - is there anything out there for eczema?

Savvy_Sue

No-one's yet mentioned the National Eczema Society, they are a mine of useful information.

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

One other tip...

Some people have said that to say "don't scratch" really doesn't help. I agree.
There are times when you scratch and you don't need to, but other times when you really just need to scratch.

But something that I have found is that you can scratch with your knuckles rather than fingernails. It gives almost the same instant relief but doesn't do the same damage.

The other thing you can try is stroking rather than scratching.

Also, I'm not denying the severity of the itch, but some of it is often habit, and if you can learn to break the itch-scratch cycle, the skin will improve. There was an article about this in Exchange several years ago, if you search their site for 'itch scratch cycle' you should find it easily enough.

DH is a long term sufferer, but only DS2 has any trace. Fortunately he learned to stroke his itches rather than scratch them, and I'm convinced it's helped his skin remain in reasonable condition although very dry.

Brighton_belle wrote: »

I don't know much about eczema - I am on major drugs for the P that have transformed my skin and my life - is there anything out there for eczema?

Yes, there are various strong drug treatments for eczema, but none of them would be appropriate for someone who hasn't tried to get it under control with creams and moisturisers.

It does take trial and error: DH finds that taking a sauna every other day and using E45 wash afterwards is his best solution. Obviously he gets quite hot, but he does cool off thoroughly afterwards, and he can have a good sweaty rub down in the process.

He has had two courses of light therapy too, but I don't know if he'll be allowed any more. He has learned how to answer their questions now: "has your skin been red and itchy since the last treatment?" means "more than usually red and itchy", because his skin is ALWAYS red and itchy!!!

I absolutely agree about the piles of skin, DH 'sheds' everywhere but at least refrains from picking it off in public. The other problem I have is that most of his clothes have to be washed at least twice, because we get flakes of skin mixed with moisturiser left behind, it is truly gross at times.

One thing I would make sure he knows is that if he ever develops a cold sore, or is in kissing contact with anyone with a cold sore, there is a very nasty condition called eczema herpeticum, where the cold sore virus gets into the broken skin and runs amok. It can be life threatening.

BTW, DH's eczema was pretty bad when we started going out, and has flared a lot worse at times since, so it's not true to say he'll never get a girlfriend. But as I say to him, I didn't marry him for his looks! He's a lovely caring person, and that shines through.

lindseylocket

I was prescribed an ointment called "Elocon" several years ago and it's effect on my ezcema was fairly miraculous
Have recommended it to several people who have been very impressed too.

It has instant soothing effect which helps itching and then helps the skin repair.

The fact that it is an ointment rather than cream seems to make it more effective too.


Also before when my ezcema was bad not washing for a few days could often help , though you wouldn't want to take that too far

paulineb_2

I'd say get medical advice before your son starts cutting anything out or taking supplements, some allergy tests if they haven't been done already might be a place to start.

What works for one person won't necessarily work for another.

Fuzzy_Duck

Brighton_belle wrote: »

I don't know much about eczema - I am on major drugs for the P that have transformed my skin and my life - is there anything out there for eczema?

Not really- as no one knows what causes eczema it's very difficult to treat. You tend to end up with steroid cream, and whilst that has always cleared it up for me it's not a permanent solution as it thins the skin and can end up doing more damage if used long term.

In my personal experience, stress is a major cause, and I end up stuck in a cycle- get stressed, get eczema, get stressed out by eczema, scratch and make it worse, get more stressed...!