Skin allergies since moving back to NZ

[Croffle]

Hi all

I moved back to NZ about 18 months ago after 6 years in the UK. Since moving back my skin allergies (basically eczema type rashes) have been out of control.

I had eczema all my life growing up. Fairly bad from time to time but basically manageable. Mainly contracted on back of knees, inner elbows and hands.

Miraculously, in the UK it all but cleared up except for the occasional outbreak.

Back in NZ it's so bad. I have had a couple of outbreaks so severe I was considering going to the hospital - these outbreaks are more widespread - across my chest, down my arms and on my face.

Since moving house I can mainly keep it in check but I have to take 2x antihistamines a day. I coat myself in moisturiser each time I'm out of the shower too. I don't like using steroid type stuff as my skin is wrecked and so thin. But besides I'm now at the point where I need to tackle the cause of the problem and not just treat the symptoms.

I've obviously seen doctors, specialists etc. upside is there's no magic cure I just have to manage it as best I can.

I know I'm allergic to dust mites but allergy tests haven't thrown up anything else. I also know the environment in NZ means that dust mites are basically 50x more prevalent. So it does seem that that must be the root cause. I'm a lot worse in older/damp houses which makes sense.

I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar?

No one the. I guess?

When I moved from Sydney to Adelaide for a while, my eyes were terribly irritated. I had to change my contact lenses as me eyes were so bad. But in Sydney and in the U.K., no problems at all.

Could it be something you are using that you weren't using before? Like different washing powder or shampoo.

My dd had a patch test in hospital to eighty potential allergens. All chemicals. She's allergic to four things that we have had to make sure she doesn't have in any of the products she uses.

The doctor said a big problem is perfumes. N things like air freshener, reed dffusers, deodorants.

They have changed the formulation of Cetaphil. I used it for decades but the new formulation just ripped my skin open. I ended up with raw red patches on my neck and my face felt like it was on fire. It took over a week with prescription strength steroids to get rid of the rash. I know lots of eczema prone people use the gentle skin cleaner. Could this be the cause? The new formulation of the gentle cleaner has a pale blue top rather than a dark blue top.

Could if be due to the high pollen levels we are having in NZ? Or could a water filter on your supply help?

I am in HB and my husband and many of our friends have been sneezing like mad over the last few months.

Is it likely to be caused by stress?

I could never use cetaphil. My little grandchildren were fine with it but I reacted almost immediately to it with fiery red sore itchy skin. The burning is the worst.

Are you taking any medications OP? In NZ you might be getting a different brand?

i take quite few medications and some years ago they changed the formulation in one and I reacted. My allergist told me how to go about finding the excipient ingredients In all my medications - and by listing them and cross referencing I was able to discover it was the new medication - more correctly it was a particular chemical used to stabilise the pill. It was what is called an excipient ingredient. I was able to replace it with a generic version of the med that didn’t have that particular excipient.

Asking the obvious perhaps, but have you got air purifiers? Not a whole lot of use if you're mostly outdoors, but things like dust mites and mould spores are naturally more concentrated indoors.

If your home has aircon, it doesn't replace the function of an air purifier (unless it's a $$$ top-spec system) and can make things worse if not thoroughly cleaned on schedule.

A dehumidifier helps with indoor mould. Combi dehumidifier/purifiers aren't great, but separate mid-range appliances are pretty good.

Also nodding along to @BrittleVeneers's comment about different formulations of familiar products - not just meds, though they're a good starting point.

Not in NZ but my skin reacts the way you describe to some pollen (I've only been to NZ in the cooler seasons so no experience) & hard water (I'm used to extremely soft Scottish water & any slightly hard water makes my skin go bonkers - I know NZ is mostly soft water but I think there are some areas that have harder water from groundwater sources)

I hope you can find a solution that level of skin irritation is exhausting.