Help me sort my hands out!

[Goldstar88]

Posting for traffic. My hands have never been in such a terrible, dry state. Not even just dry but I have these deep cuts on my fingers/knuckles that are so painful when I do anything with my hands, often bleed etc. I’ve never had it like this before. I’m at a bit of a loss as to what’s causing it. I’ve always had dry hands in the winter but they’ve tended to just be general dry skin, fixed with moisturiser, never as bad as this.

Some context/what I’ve tried so I don’t drip feed!

• I’ve been to the GP, they suggested emollients (Dermol) which I use as soap every time I wash my hands.

• I’m 13 months pp and still breastfeeding - could that be a factor?

• I use rubber gloves every time I do any sort of washing up or cleaning.

• I either have hands in pockets or in gloves every time I’m out walking at the moment, unless doing something quickly with phone etc!

• I try to use gentle shower gels, face washes etc. I was using an acidic bonding shampoo but have switched to a Garnier Hair Food one in case it’s my shampoo, doesn’t seem to help.

• I put a thick emollient cream on every night before bed (although sometimes hands are too sore to bear it) but invariably if DC wakes up I end up having to wash my hands after a nappy change etc. so I guess it’s not always on for hours at a time.

What am I missing? I feel I’m going to have to change every shower product I own to see what it is? It must be something I’m using daily, surely? They’re currently feeling so dry, tight and sore and I’m at a loss.

Any words of wisdom??

This might sound a bit weird but have you had B12 levels checked post birth? I didn't realise but gas and air can deplete b12, which obviously makes women super drained but also affects skin. I really think a lot of women post birth are deficient without realising it (I also suspect links with post natal depression but no research into that yet).

Good tip, thank you!

No I’ve never had B12 checked - I was anaemic in pregnancy and lost a lot of blood during the birth (CS) so had to take iron afterwards but they never said how long for and to be honest I just stopped in the post partum blur.

Aveeno baby cream is brilliant

Sometimes yes on the sides of my fingers but at the moment it’s just the cracks and tightness!

Sounds like dematitis/eczema. When the skin is damaged like this, it loses its barrier function and things which would normally be ok worsen the irritation.
Where possible, use rubber gloves to avoid all soap/shampoo/shower gel etc on your hands. Yes, at its worst I even wore gloves to wash my own hair.
Use emollient/moisturizer every time you wash your hands. (A million times a day, if needed). Ointments are greasier, but don't have preservatives which can be an irritant.
You don't seem to have a steroid? See your GP and get one. You'll need it daily for a week or two, then probably just on weekends to prevent another flare up.
I find that my hands are irritated by my winter gloves if they're not super-clean, so I wash them every few days.
You have my sympathy.

My 12 yo DS suffers terribly with eczema/contact dermatitis on his hands. We recently tried a new natural cream called Salcura and cannot believe how much it helped! The final photo is after 3 weeks use but we saw a huge difference after one application. It’s the salcura bioskin zeoderm moisturiser

This happens to my hands at times. I really sympathise, because it’s extremely painful. My GP gave me 2 types of creams for flairs. I use eumovate first for a few days, and then hydrocortisone. She also gave me cetraben moisturiser and the cetraben emollient for night time. I use a really thick layer, and sleep with those cotton gloves. I was also given dermol 500 to use as handwash!
I’ve tried every hand cream under the sun, and this is the only thing that worked. Good luck!

Gosh that sounds awful

Dermol is crap though - your GP is an idiot - it’s barely a moisturiser (although great gentle antibacterial cleanser)

something like flexitol as Pp suggests is good. Since your hands are so cracked overnight I’d use foot products - Put balm on the cracked bits. O’keefes foot cream is good as a general moisturiser.

Get a pack of cotton gloves and put them on overnight, every night, till it’s better. If you have to change the baby or go to the loo, reapply and re-glove

during the day I’occatane Shea hand cream is the best I think, but it’s pricey - O’keefes hand cream also good. Add balm to the cracked bits throughout the day as needed.

everytime you wash - reapply hand cream or everytime your hands are dry.

Get a very gentle hand wash. L’occatane do an almond oil one which is good but expensive, so otherwise I guess something like dove.

It’s such a pain but you just have to moisturise endlessly.

If your house is v dry - which lots are with the heating on, consider getting a humidifier to have in the room with you. Peep Club also do a desk size one - I’ve never tried that but their products are generally good.

If you can possibly afford it I would also see a dermatologist privately (it takes a hundred years on the NHS) to check it isn’t some sort of eczema or infected dermatitis that needs specific treatment - often they can just diagnose over zoom. GPs are just not good w dermatology.

I have had eczema all my life so lots of sympathy.

Hot water washing and not rinsing the soap off properly combined with not drying them thoroughly, or on an already damp towel, will make matters much worse. You must moisturise every time you wet them also.

It's miserable isn't it.

I can only wash my hands in cold water or they go nuts. That's shockingly painful in the winter, I can tell you.

CCS cracked heel cream works a treat on my very dry hands and torn cuticles. I found out quite by chance when too much came out of the tube when I was doing my feet and I rubbed the excess into my hands.

Doing it last thing at night when you're not going to wash them for a few hours is best, it has plenty of time to soak in then.

Forgot to add - I was told it was contact dermatitis! It flairs when I’m washing my hands a lot.

I've tried all sorts of creams, lotions and emollients.

The only thing that doesn't set mine off, believe it or not, turned out to be cheap Vaseline lotion.

This one. Not the others.

Tiny squirt after every wash.

Edit to add name because my image, of a bottle of lotion, is under review ????

Vaseline essential Healing. The yellow one.

My hands used to have deep cracks and would often bleed, until I read it could be the chemicals in pump soaps. I switched to bars of soap (pears) and it cleared right up and they’ve been fine ever since! Very occasionally they get sore when it’s very cold - I think the cold water from the taps does it. But never the deep cuts anymore.
I’d tried all sorts of emollients (my hands never felt properly clean) and hand creams and all they did was make them more sore.

Hemp hand cream from Body Shop came to my rescue when everything else failed.
would most definitely recommend trying it. It isn’t the most amazing smelling one but within a week it had healed sores between my fingers I had had for months.

Bepanthan!!! For baby and for you - if baby doesn't need it at changes just wash your hands in cold/ lukewarm water, dry by patting and then gently rub in some Bepanthan. Absolutely amazing stuff 👍🏼 Make sure you get the one for babies not tattoos (unless baby has tattoos obvs 😉🤣) Good luck OP, it's excruciatingly painful 💐

Could it be the rubber gloves? Try latex free gloves and see if that helps. Also Fairy washing up liquid is actually really harsh. I had to use surcare but not sure if they still do it.

Eumovate cream from the pharmacy and cetraban cream are the only things that keep my hands in check.

like others life long eczema on hands/ wrists and with a flare up it’s miserable .
betnovate - prescribed by GP works wonders to get on top of it.
then lashings of emollient
also find Okeefes working hands good
also experience of not tolerating many brands finding them too watery or they sting.
it really can take hold and linger-

I suffer terribly with my hands in the winter, it was particularly bad in the nappy years. The only thing that has helped is O’keefes working hands, (I tried absolutely everything…) applied liberally at night it just about keeps my hands from cracking in the cold weather

Try wearing disposable gloves in the daytime to save on the post nappy change hand washer, just to give your hands a break, also latex free rubber gloves.

Body Shop hemp cream is great during the day, I also swear by O’keefes working hands at night once under control. You may need to do the cotton gloves and Flexitol first though, I only use this on my feet. I have psoriasis on my hands, winter is tough but O’keefes working hands is a life saver for me.

Biggest break will come from reducing hand washing of course. Get onto Amazon and stock up, most of this stuff is fairly inexpensive.

I'd stop using soap or shower gel to wash with and just use the emollient cream to wash your body with, (I use epiderm, but it'll be basically the same as dermol) . Wash you hair over the side of the bath wearing disposable gloves. Any household jobs that you have to do where your hands would get wet or come into contact with soap or cleaning products or you'd need to wash them afterwards wear gloves. Keep them as dry as possible for a few weeks

Also what really helped me was to slather my hands with epiderm ointment (rather than the cream) before bed and put cotton gloves on over it. I find the ointment stings less than the cream when it's really bad. And soothes any itching much better.

Cotton gloves inside the washing up gloves

I think it was called hemp from bodyshop is great.

Or ' working hands' cream from Tesco etc is good dh uses that.

Use olive oil or shea butter soap instead of those chemical liquid "soaps" and gels

Coconut oil makes a good emollient.

Use a cuticle oil. Game changer for me.

I swear by coconut oil