How do you manage to get decent sleep with an itchy baby?

[Hope54321]

So sleep deprived at the moment due to baby waking frequently due to eczema and he is itchy all over. I’ve tried all sorts of creams and nothing works to completely get rid of the itching. How do you parents of eczema sufferers manage to get decent sleep?

Wet wrapping
Absolute game changer

Push for a referral to paediatric allergy. It may be that there is an easy dietary or environmental trigger that can be eliminated which will sort the problem

Yes definitely consider allergies, and get expert advice. My son was in such a mess with eczema but once we eliminated his allergens it vanished within a couple of weeks.

Scratchsleeves are useful

Dermol500 for the bath.

Regular and thorough application of the creams.

But seriously, eliminating the cause is the key

You have to work out what he's allergic to so you can tackle the root cause of the eczema. Then apply emollient four times a day as a preventative and strong steroid on the eczema to get rid of it - strong steroid for a few days is much better than weak steroid for a long time. Also make sure you put emollient bath additive in his bath. And definitely buy him some scratch sleeves pyjamas or the bolero thing if he's too small for the pyjamas still. They are amazing. It's so awful when they are so itchy, I really feel for you, but it is likely to get better if you can find out what's triggering it. My son was covered in eczema as a baby before we found out his allergies (dairy, eggs, peanuts walnuts and dustmites), but removing allergens and doing proper emollient regime changed everything.

@mswales

You have to work out what he's allergic to so you can tackle the root cause of the eczema. Then apply emollient four times a day as a preventative and strong steroid on the eczema to get rid of it - strong steroid for a few days is much better than weak steroid for a long time. Also make sure you put emollient bath additive in his bath. And definitely buy him some scratch sleeves pyjamas or the bolero thing if he's too small for the pyjamas still. They are amazing. It's so awful when they are so itchy, I really feel for you, but it is likely to get better if you can find out what's triggering it. My son was covered in eczema as a baby before we found out his allergies (dairy, eggs, peanuts walnuts and dustmites), but removing allergens and doing proper emollient regime changed everything.

I moisturise at least 8 times a day with aveeno dermexa. He is still so itchy at night. I myself am doing an elimination diet of all allergens at the moment as I’m breastfeeding. I have a referral for allergy testing, but can’t seem to find an appointment. Last night he was scratching for hours and then I used scratch sleeves and he never woke up as much. Only problem is though in this hot weather it’s difficult to put scratch sleeves on baby.

Speak to your doctor about prescribing baby piriton, that will help the itching at night. You can also be prescribed skinnies which are silk pjs which help keep the emollient in overnight. Might be worth trying a different cream, I found aveeno dermexa quite thin.
I use a beeswax cream on my baby and that helps, a brand called salcura bio skin was also really good but expensive. Are you using steroids? A dermatologist told me that we’re nervous about using steroids but uncontrolled excema will do much more damage to the skin than steroids, like PP says, stringer for shorter but use 2 days after all excema has cleared and wean off it slowly or you’ll get a bounce back flare up. We’re really lucky to have a GP who is also a dermatologist and he’s helped so much with DS’ excema!

We had this. It almost broke us❤️.

It was CMPA&SOYA allergy, I had eliminated for 6+ weeks and he still got it, loved him onto aptamil pepti 1 formula and within 2 days the itching stopped. His face used to leak clear fluid, it was awful.

I don’t know why but maybe the lifetime of dairy I’ve eaten wasn’t clearing out of my system as quickly as the information says.

Emollient regime sounds great plus the work you are doing to find out the allergens - it can be a battle to get the allergy clinic appointment. Are you using a strong steroid cream? The emollient won't make the eczema patches go away, it just acts as a preventative protective barrier to stop them developing in the first place. Strong steroid cream (mometazone, betnovate etc) is the only thing that will make the existing eczema patches go away. I was told at the allergy clinic not to bother with the weaker hydrocortisone, which had never really worked anyway, and just use the strong steroid cream when there were flare ups. It does make it disappear quickly. Latest research on steroid creams show they do not thin the skin which was a previous concern - they only thin the skin if they are used for long periods under skintight dressings.

wildandwooduk.co.uk/shop/organic-oat-blend-accessories/

How old is your baby? Piriton was a game changer for us - we do it as a preventative now rather than when the rash starts. We've recently switched to lacto free milk and noticed a big difference. Also I've recently started doing cool baths with bicarb, but my daughter is 2 and not sure if this would be ok for a little baby, can't imagine why not though. It's so horrible seeing your little baby so uncomfortable and all that comes with it, I really feel for you and hope you all get some relief soon.

Oh and hydrocortisone!

Sorry me again - i see someone posted a link to an oat bath thing, it's a bit cheaper to just put some normal oats into a Muslin and tie it up, put this in the bath for 10 mins before baby goes in x

www.happy-skin.com

HappySkin's clothing has an added coating of technology which acts as a second skin, might be worth a look at their about section. They seem to be a cream alternative & have great reviews from parents. All natural too!