Just having a moan, fed up and sore.

[Yourinmyspot]

I’ve had this skin condition for ages on my hands and it’s flared up recently. It’s so sore tonight. I’ve had some painkillers and it’s barely taken the edge off. Just fed up of it.

Jesus, what does the GP said have you been referred to a consultant?

That looks so sore, i’m sorry.

I am in the middle of a violent D&V bug. It’s not much fun here tonight either.

You poor thing that does look sore. Do you have some strong prescription painkillers.

Yes I’m under dermatology and on medication it’s just flared up recently. I’ve been ill all week too which doesn’t help. I’ve got an appointment with the nurse tomorrow to get them bandaged up so I can function.

i hope you feel better soon.

That looks really sore, lifelong eczema sufferer here, so I empathise. Skin conditions can be so painful and debilitating. Can any of it be caused by an allergy, would an antihistamine help?

Thanks, it’s not allergy related at all. I managed to get some sleep in the end last night. Sorry you have eczema it must be so uncomfortable.

I can remember a wonderful dermatologist acknowledging the impact of skin conditions on mental health and being really concerned about that. Much empathy from another ‘skin person’, I hope you managed to sleep get some relief today.

It's mostly under control now, but I have been hospitalised with it, it's been so bad. I always found you are in so much physical pain and then people stare at you in horror, so you then have the pain of feeling like a freak. It's awful to go through. I'd pray my outbreaks would be on my body and not my hands, face and scalp. You can cover your body, as agonisingly painful that it is, but at least you have a barrier to people staring. Once it gets infected it's a whole new level of unbearable pain, your condition looks infected, so I really feel for you, it's not surprising the painkillers aren't doing much.

My eczema cleared up pretty rapidly when I cut out wheat and gluten!! I tested negative for celiac disease several times, with Doctors telling me I was imagining its link to food. Now if I have an exposure to either it flares up on my face, neck and scalp three or four days later, and I hide away, another side effect is tiredness, I can sleep for England during a reaction so at least that keeps me in and away from the stares.

It sounds awful and really sore and painful. I’m glad you’ve found something that can help.

I get this condition I’ve got mostly on my palms, though my right hand and wrist is covered at the moment, my hands are pretty much permanently bandaged up so I can function day to day. The medication I’m on now has cleared it from my chest and elbows but my hands are so stubborn. I don’t think it’s helped being unwell this week.

I’ve had that many antibiotics over the last 3 years that I’ve developed MRSA. They swabbed it a couple of weeks ago as it was getting worse and it came back as infected but is resistant to everything now. Just waiting for my next dermatology appointment.

I get embarrassed when people make comments about my bandages it’s usually ‘are you a boxer’ or have you had your carpal tunnels done. I usually just say ‘oh it’s just a boring skin condition’. At least in my home town everyone knows now so not many people comment now it’s if I go out anywhere.

sorry to go on, but it sounds like you understand what it’s like and I empathise with you, it must be horrendous for you getting it all over your body.

It's like we're allergic to life.

As soon as I hit peri menopause along came the late onset asthma, hayfever, contact dermatitis, food intolerances.

I have no idea what the answers are I'm fighting with the GP for eostrogen gel at the moment for my nether regions. I haven't seen a GP nurse everything diagnosed over the phone. I haven't seen a human for an examination, swab, etc.

You're not going on, it's all very debilitating, I don't think I've ever met anyone else who could empathise with me, they just didn't get it, people just see it as a rash that comes and goes, it can't be that bad can it...
I can't imagine how you manage to get in the bath or shower. I know when mines been flaring, doing either was utter agony, but also so beneficial once you plucked up the courage to go through the pain.
I ended up being bandaged for two days in a row whilst in hospital, it was called wet bandaging and usually something they did for children, but they tried it on me. I was freezing cold and sat shivering for two days, it was summer and even sitting in the sun couldn't warm me up. Eventually the bandages would dry out, then they'd have to be peeled off, my skin was raw and weeping, it was agony. Two days in and I asked for it to stop, I couldn't cope with firstly the uncontrollable shivering and then the pain of having dried on bandages peeled off the following morning.
Do you ever have steroids and do they help?

I think I am lol I suffered for years from childhood with it and no one really tried to sort it out. It wasn't until I was hospitalised with it that a dermatologist said, right, this is terrible, I am going to do everything I can to help work out what is going on. Then began the weeks of clearing up my back and arms enough to have patch testing done. He patch tested me for everything he could think of all over my back and my upper arms. I reacted to quite a few things. Eggs, hairdressing chemicals, dust mites, dog dander, wheat, perfume, I'm sure there's more, but I can't remember. Those are all the ones I actively avoid and are the ones that made a huge difference to my skin and my asthma.
I am now menopausal, and on HRT. I have noticed that I suddenly can't cope with too much chocolate or dairy products also.
Luckily for me, each time I have needed to see a doctor I have, initially the first two appointments to discuss my menopausal issues were over the phone with a newly qualified GP, so he was thorough, he wouldn't prescribe without actually seeing me in person, so I did get a face to face appointment with him and with the practice nurse to take blood pressure, weight and height checks etc

@Boopydoo it sounds like you’ve really been through it. They weren’t sure what my condition was as they said it didn’t sound like any skin condition. I’ve had patch tests a few times and after the last ones which once again didn’t show anything they decided to do a biopsy and cut out one of the blisters intact from which I got a diagnosis. At one point a few years ago they told me it was all in my head as I’d been going through a tough time!

I started on steroid creams but they just weren’t enough and I’m on my 4th different medication now, it’s cleared all but my hands.