Help please! TRIGGER WARNING-PHOTO ATTACHED

It sounds woo but try kinesiology, Touch For Health, Health Kinesiology (diff names for similar treatment) there’s a register of kinesiologists or chiropractic practice sometimes do it.

A close family member had similar, sparked off by having antibiotics (not penicillin). Had it for two years before they determined it was allergic reaction. They were prescribed Methotrexate in the end, it’s taken another 2 years to clear and they’re slowly being weaned off it. So far it’s worked.

OP push dermatology for allergy tests quicker and if they’re saying it’s psoriasis then ask about taking medication that might suppress your immune system for a while
to allow your skin the chance to repair. Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease (so is eczema but the causes are different) so you need a systemic treatment to get it under control. Eczema can sometimes need systemic treatment in the short term but identifying the trigger is imperative. It doesn’t have to be something you touch it can be something you ingest, common triggers are dairy, wheat, soya but it really could be anything and it’s a process of elimination to find out. Stop using perfumed anything, use non bio washing powder and no fabric conditioner, don’t wear latex gloves for washing up- always use barrier creams when you do so. it could be a nickel allergy which is in so many different things. The possibilities are endless.

what you’re showing doesn’t need some companies fancy creams or rubbing lavender oil on or any of that shit. It needs medical treatment. Have you tried oral steroids to get it under control while also using a heavy prescribed moisturiser and probably topic steroid cream too? Your skin is raw and adding something perfumed or potential allergens will sting like buggery. A stronger steroid cream should help not 1% hydrocortisone.

just keep going back to the dr and be a pain in their arse until you get a response.

OP, how long have you had this? I know you said since adulthood, but it sounds like you've had a few different skin things. How long have your hands done this?

This happens to dh with washing up liquid and if out in the sun longer then an hour

My hands sometimes do this. Please mix Vitamin E oil with a few drops of Lavender oil and apply several times a day ru bbing in well. You should see improvement in 24 hours. I have put several friends onto this with good results. It works for cracked heels too.
if you try it and it works for you please update to let me know. Good luck.

Oh and just to second a PPs suggestion....my MIL completely cured her severe hand eczema by installing a water softener.

A holiday to somewhere with soft water might help you work out if that might be a factor before you invest!!!

Definitely hold on for the allergy testing. I am allergic to multiple things (some of which are very "inert" and "safe" ingredients used in lots of hypoallergenic and "sensitive skin" products) and turns out this was primarily causing my hand and foot eczema which has now almost completely cleared up now I've stopped using. Interestingly with skin allergies it's often a delayed type IV allergy and so you could be reacting to exposures 3-5 days ago.

Plus you can react on your hands when the exposure was elsewhere on your body (I am allergic to standard plaster adhesive for example and using a plaster can cause a later flare up in my hands or feet). Plus sometimes exposure via others can cause a reaction (eg I am allergic to fragrance and other people's fragrance can cause a reaction).

In the meantime though the only thing that I found managed my hand and foot eczema other than steroid cream (which tbh didn't work that well) was a combination of two products: Tropic skincare Tamanu balm mixed with a few drops of vitamin e oil. Neither seem to work as well in their own. I apply both at night and wear cotton gloves. It soothes my flare ups within a few days. Works better than the steroid cream.

I would say though that if you are going to try any new products with that type of reaction (which looks so sore bless you), I would do your own patch test. I do this before introducing any new products.

Just take a bit of the product and apply to an area of skin (under a plaster) you can keep dry such as under your arm for 3-5 days and then see if you've had any reaction at the plaster site. It's not perfect but might help rule out anything that you would have a strong reaction too before you whack it all over your hands!

Best of luck.

You poor thing, I've suffered with similar and it's horrible. I second that moo goo is worth a try. I've also found this very helpful lloydspharmacy.com/products/aveeno-dermexa-lotion?gclid=Cj0KCQiAn4SeBhCwARIsANeF9DI5836FT8hgq3uANxMpST34sam09aPOA_G9j-PdOBLbL9LAB0b4kO8aAjTSEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

My eczema on my hands appeared after I gave birth and has remained whilst I've breastfed. I'm quite hoping that it'll go once I've weaned. My triggers are cleaning products and cat hair.

I've not tried it personally but a friend with extremely bad eczema found light therapy very effective (although she had to sign a disclaimer because of the increased risk of skin cancer)

Good luck in finding something and sending you hugs in the meantime

I have eczema and the only thing that clears it up quickly is Betnovate ( it’s a steroid but you don’t need to use much ). Though my excema is more of the dry type. Hope you find something that works for you.

in the meantime - pb7 wraps, potassium permanganate soaks and mometazone steroid cream

dupixent / dupilumab biological injections!! saved my life!! my eczema had me suicidal it was so bad. i had sepsis because i used to itch myself to death using tweezers and my hands were totally unusable too. please ask for dupixent it will change your life

You poor thing. First you'll need some steroid cream to clear it up (hydrocortisone 1%) then try some cream from the company moogoo. You need something organic & natural. Stay away from E45, Aqueous cream and so on.

I sympathise OP, your hands look so sore. Do they burn at all? Sometimes my hands look like yours if I have a fungal infection and it feels like they are burning, rather than itching.

I've had different types of hand eczema over the years and mine are helped by bathing them in warm salt water and then wet wrapping on a night. I use tubular bandages and cut a hole in for my thumb. If you're not familar with wet wrapping, I cut 2 bandages for each hand, but one slightly longer than the other. Wet the shorter bandages and wring them out, then apply emollient (I have found both Diprobase and Ultrabase work well for me). Put the wet bandages on, with the dry ones over the top. I cut them, so they cover my fingers and wrists completely. You can put a little steroid cream on too, but you have to be careful, so I wouldn't do it every night.

I have also found that Elocon helps me too.

I really hope you find something that works for you.

B12 supplements. I get cracks that won’t go in the sides of my mouth nd tried everything. Then b12 supplement they went in days. Get them sometimes and it always help

@eczemahelp When my eczema got like that I was put on antibiotics because the doctor said it was infected.

After a few days of taking the antibiotics it started to clear up.

You might need antibiotics to clear up the infection. Go back to the doctor or a gp and ask them.

Op this message is for you - Lanolin is in a lot of industrially produced creams - it is from slaughtered sheep - their sebaceous glands :( It contains pesticide residues. Please be careful about putting anything like that on it (although I'm sure you've probably already tried it) I have to agree with a PP who suggested buying an aloe vera plant - the gel is in the squishy leaves. Very soothing. Good luck OP

Did it start after a house move?

My DF always had severe eczema, and lived in the same house, child and adult, till he retired (farmer). They moved to a different house, 1/4 mile away as the crow flies, and his eczema cleared up completely.

My brother had eczema like that as a child, his knuckles, elbows & backs of his knees would split open. My mum was told to use emollient in his baths & then apply steroid creams & wet bandage all the areas, sometime he looked like a mummy with all the bandages. It was always worst in winter, during the summer when he could wear shorts & Tshirts it never flared up. He had his tonsils & adenoids out when he was 12 & within a year his asthma & eczema cleared up & never came back. Have you tried antihistamines to see if it is an allergy? Otherwise only wash clothes in non bio detergent & avoid all chemicals like cleaning products, use washing up gloves & ask to be referred to dermatology as you may need specialist creams to heal your skin

I have had eczema all my life (I'm 42 now). I've never managed to shift it completely. I am gluten intoleran,t accidental ingestion of gluten causes flare ups, but thats not the only thing.

I have had allergy testing and despite being tested with over 400 substances I am only allergic to nickel and PPD which is a chemical in dyes.

When my hands look like yours they are normally infected and unless I have a course (or several) of antibiotics nothing else I do will help. Once any infection is under control them most recently I have found elcon ointment (mometasone furoate) and hydromol ointment to be the best at keeping it stable. The Elcon is only available on prescription, but the hydromol can be bought from chemists or places like Superdrug. I have tried pro-topic before which a previous poster mentioned, but I didn't get on with that.

If you are very itchy then you could try taking anti-histamines to try and break the scratching cycle, but tbh looking at your photo you really need to be seen by a GP IMO.

Try this: Lasinoh lanolin cream.
works wonders on cracked and bleeding skin. My son has terrible skin and this clears it up where emollients etc have all failed.
it’s very thick, just like a barrier cream, but soaks in within about 5-10m and is natural; we haven’t found it to cause any aggravation

www.boots.com/lansinoh-hpa-lanolin-nipple-cream-1-x-40ml-10153449

@Dilbertian @eczemahelp
Re allergic to laundry soap and fabric conditioner
Definitely affects a family member- The perfume in fabric conditioner.
The “baby” stuff seems to be ok.
The strong perfumes of some seem to be a trigger.

Many fungal infections will glow under UV light so thats worth trying.

Yes you can be allergic to fungus which is why it won’t look like traditional fungal infections and only appear to get worse and spread.

Is this a fungal infection? Have you been tested to see if you have athletes foot or similar in your hands? Fungal infections can trigger eczema like reactions that blisters and bursts. I know. I’ve had it 😬 and my foot and on my hands and they looked just like your hands.

I went to the GP and was prescribed terbinafine cream but you can purchase this over the counter. it’s worth asking your dr to consider this. It will clear up in a week -10 days if it’s fungal.

steroids did help a bit by suppressing the itching so having some relief from steroid cream would fit with this possibility.