Eczema - we can't go for more than three days without steroids. I am worried about this. Anyone else in the same boat?

[HumphreyCobbler]

The last time we tried a two week break DS ended up with a massive infection that needed antibiotics and a whole tube of eumovate.

We try to limit it as much as possible to hydrocortisone and use the heavy stuff only when we have to.

I am just so worried about what this might be doing to his overall health.

Does anyone have experience with this? DS is three and a half.

thanks, it helps to know that

I hope DS grows out of it too!

Could I ask if you think it's anything to do with the weather at present? (muggy, humid, and warm here)
DS has been terrible last couple of months- we have been using steroid cream for longer than recommended a while now- just once a day keeps it under control (his is milder than it used to be) but as soon as I stop using it flares up hideously.

It was horribly infected around mid-june, but we seem to be on top of infection now with the steroid use.

Sorry- no help I know, but just sympathising. It is worrying.

It is helpful just to talk to other people in the same situation. You are right, it is probably the weather making it so bad atm, but we have to use the steroids pretty much continuously whatever the weather

No - did you try it? we avoid oranges and tomatoes as much as possible

what sort of testing should we go for?

thank you very much - I will certainly do that.

I might try excluding cows milk for a while too. We did give him goats milk for a while, but it made no difference but we have never tried removing milk altogether.

We have been in this situation many times, cobbler, and unfortunately the answer has been to use a stronger steroid cream for a while so that the skin becomes good enough to settle for a while.

dd2 is now 11 and we have been using steroid creams since she was a few weeks old. No health effects so far so that might givce you a little reassurance.

pointy- do you know how 'strong' a steroid timodene is please?
V good to hear about longterm use though.
Poor DS' is right where his shoes fasten, so it just never goes... he is too young to manage flipflops yet, and if I leave his feet bare he just scratches his skin off- it's just awful, the whole surface becomes a bloody mess.

His other patch is up under his hairline at the back of his neck where his 'storkpatch' is/was... that is a real mess atm as he is a v sweaty child, so its always damp there.

I stopped using steroid creams. I went the natural way, took longer, but it worked, worth trying?

We've used steroids on DS since he was 6 months, now he's 4. I did used to really worry but our dermatologist pointed out that it would be more detrimental to his health if he keep getting recurrent infections and needing more antibiotics, and distress that goes with it.

She also says it is better to use a more potent steroid for a short peroid of time to get on top of it, rather than a less potent one for longer. We use eumovate (closbethasone) or fucibet for flare ups and tacrolimus in between (tacrolimus in not a steroid but topical immunosuppressant, sounds scary but idea is to reduce long use of steroids). Need to be under dermatologist to be prescribed it, may be worth asking for referral if concerned?
Hope this helps

my DS is now 8yo and has grown out of his eczema too.
we were using fucibet daily for a long time and wet wrap bandages [these were brilliant for him] when his skin was really sore and/or he had scratched until it bled .
the consultant/doctors keep telling you that the skin works on a 7yr cycle and it was true for us.
he does have an occasional sore patch but it is nothing like it was before.
we used creams for 6years and DS has no problems from this.

I have suffered from excema since I was 8 years old (I'm now over 40). During most of my childhood and adulthood I've used steriod creams of different strengths and in different ways almost continually even on my eyelids at times and have never suffered any side effects/skin thinning etc. HTH

kittywise- what did you have in mind/ would you suggest using please? (and nice to 'see' you! Don't often see you around these days- hope your beautiful brood are all well)

Hi montmatre, thanks, yes we are al well. They are driving me mental of course, well some of them are, the ones that are arguing!!
Well what I have been using is a salve I made myself. I know there are ones you can buy on the market in health food shops. Like this one theorganicskinstore.com/purepotions. But they are hideously over priced. I have no idea how the makers of these slaves can purport to be interested in helping people whilst taking so much money from them. This lot for example, supposedly invented by a mother to help her child with eczema. If I were her I would hate that my name was involved in the day light robbery of susceptible mothers. There is nothing ethical about that brand, shame on her. Anyway, rant over.
The salve I make is very very easy to make and very very cheap to make too and I know what ingredients are in it. And they are more potent than the ones you can buy in the shops. However, as with all these things different ingredients work for different people. I read as much as I could on using herbs for eczema and experiment with different herbal combinations.

What I do when there are flare ups bad enough to be scratched until blood is drawn and the area is raised and scabby, is to apply the salve and sometimes a healing powder of dried herbs, cover with a tubi bandage. I bought a HUGE roll from ebay and I just cut of sections.
My daughters tend to get it in the crook of their arms and behind the knees the worst.
It is not as immediate as steroids, but the salve and powder stop the itching, especially at night. the bandage helps to keep the products on the skin, keep the moisture in and protect the skin from scratching. It buys enough time whilst they are on to help the skin heal. Often I can put on the salve etc at night to red rawskin and in the morning there is very little damage left.
It's not as simple as that of course as they still scratch during the day. My middle dd(6) will wear the bandages at school when it is bad. It makes all the difference.

Anyway if you want any info on how to make the salves, I'm happy to give it

God thank you so much all of you, this is tremendously interesting and reassuring.

I have already tried cutting out cows milk, I will ask for allergy testing and a referral to a dermatologist.

Kittywise, what route did you go down? I was looking at chinese herbal medicine but the lack of regulation put me right off.

sorry, haven't had timodene

Thanks pointy.

Kittywise- yes, I would be very interested actually! Mainly because it can't actually be any worse than it already is... he can't even use Aveeno- makes him worse whereas with DD's it really helps. I presume it's with things I can get hold of fairly easily (ie I don't have to grow it myself, or need industrial equipment to make it?)

Kittywise - I also would be very interested, DD is having a flare up that is all over her front and back and don't want to start down the steroids route having managed this far with only emollients.

i would be very interested too, please. dh suffers very badly.

, OK then here goes:
My most successful combinations so far are using dried comfrey (root or leaf)(cgi.ebay.co.uk/50G-DRIED-COMFREY-LEAF-Symphytum-Officinale-/360280900941?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Health_B eautyNaturalAlternativeTherapies&hash=item53e26a454d#ht2097wt1139) and calendula9cgi.ebay.co.uk/100g-DRIED-CALENDULA-MARIGOLD-PETALS-FLOWERS-/190424906992?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Crafts_ FloralSuppliesSM&hash=item2c56357cf0#ht1959wt_1139). I have used this seller many times.
Comfrey is an incredible skin healer and marigold a soother. If any of you have any fresh comfrey in your gardens then use that on cuts and grazes, it's brilliant. Another excellent soother of inflamed skin is fresh chickweed.
Put say a handful of each in a heat proof bowl and sit this on top of a pan of simmering water (baine marie) or even better in a slow cooker. Pour on a enough oil (olive or sunflower are good) to cover. If using a slow cooker put on the lowest setting and leave mixture to cook for 8 hours. If using a baine marie, leave a s long as you can be bothered to keep checking on the water level, but at least 4 hours.
Strain off the herbs, the oil will be be green.
If you have any essential oils you can add some. I use geranium.
Now this will be liquid so what you need is some beeswax pellets cgi.ebay.co.uk/240g-Yellow-Beeswax-Pellets-Candles-Lip-Balm-Making-/150473146381?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_ CarftsCandleSoapMakingEH&hash=item2308e6000d#ht2346wt_913.
I will chuck in about a large handful of wax, melt and then pour into jars.
When the mixture cools if it is too soft, reheat and add a little more wax. If too hard then reheat and add more oil.
It's all quite approximate. Don't get hung up on exact amounts and methods.
As you can see this isn't costly. It will make masses of salve for next to nothing.
The herbs are from a wonderful book called 10 essential herbs.www.exoticindiaart.com/book/details/IDL048/ She makes up something called people paste' which is a mixture of equal amounts of slippery elm, myrrh and goldenseal root. I keep pots of this around the house and use it as a first aid on say cuts and burns. But for the eczema what I do is apply the salve and then sprinkle the dried powder on top then put on the tubi bandage.
This is handy when the eczema can be easily bandaged. I suppose if the eczema is in a more awkward place then one wold have to be a little more inventive, but mothers are inventive aren't they?!!

Anyway, if you have the inclination... please don't expect miracle cures, give it some time. What I have found is that it keeps it at bay enough to stop the itching.

Also another thing you might like to try is aloe vera gel. best to use it straight from a plant if you have on, if not try shops like Holland and Barratt. If you can get your dc to take aloe internally , mixed with juice then even better.

Thank you so much. I have comfrey and chickweed in my garden at this very moment.

Thank you Kittywise- think I'm going to give it a go.. it's not very expensive, just finding time We use a nappy cream with calendula, and his nappy area never has any issues (eczema nor nappy rash), so his skin obviously likes it.

DS is complaining to me atm even when I put his emollient on that it hurts, which just seems awful to me, poor little boy.

I really thought that because it was so much better over winter, he had outgrown it... bah!