Winter eczema

If you have eczema, you'll know what it means to literally scratch yourself to ribbons. Even as your patch of eczema is scratched to the point where the area is swollen, weeping and bleeding, you still gotta scratch that patch! Winter is the worst time for eczema because the heat sucks the moisture out of the air, making it a perfect eczema environment.

So for eczema sufferers, moisture is important. Use a humidifier and moisturize often. When my eczema was really bad, I used to slather on lots of moisturizer and cover the patches with tights for my legs, cotton gloves for my hands and cotton socks for my feet. I would sleep like this to not only keep the moisture in, but also in an attempt to keep me from scratching in my sleep. If I could prevent scratching, the patch has a chance to heal, otherwise, it's just a never-ending cycle of scratching and suffering.

For me, my eczema can be triggered by specific things such as asthma or certain foods. I won't talk about the asthma here since I rarely get asthma attacks, but I will talk about food triggers. I am not actually allergic to sugar and dairy, but if I overindulge, it can trigger eczema. Generally, I don't worry about my diet since I think I eat pretty moderately, but if I know my eczema is getting bad, it helps to cut back on sugar and dairy. This just for me personally. Others may or may not have food triggers, but it's good to notice these things.

As for moisturizer, it's now cold enough that coconut oil alone isn't enough. I need intense therapy! I now have an eczema patch on the back of my left wrist. It's not bad and I'd like to keep it that way. I'm sorry to say that I did scratch that patch and I broke skin, so I need to be more aware and careful. I recently made a batch of my favorite lotion to help with my winter eczema. It's made with aloe water to promote healing and has a few drops of glycerin to help pull more moisture from the air to the skin. I also made a lotion bar, which is made with wax and oil. I put the lotion on first and then rub on the lotion bar to help seal in the lotion. It's the same concept as moisturizing and then covering up with cotton gloves. Of course, for the worst cases, I think the cotton gloves are the most helpful. In the worst of times, I wore the cotton gloves during the day - even to work. To help distract you from the itching, you can add some peppermint oil to your lotion. The minty feeling doesn't make the itch go away, but it helps keep your mind off the itch.

So far, this is working for me. Of course, winter has only just begun so things could still get worse. Wish me luck!