My 18 yr old nephew has been experiencing skin issues for the past 7 months. He has eczema but it has never been this bad and he's never had a flare up last for this long. He currently has this rash on his arm and a similar rash around his neck and his eyes, making it swell up and look red and patchy (although his eyes seem to have gotten slightly better lately). His skin gets dry really quickly and it gets so itchy that he sometimes scratches until blood and a pus-like liquid comes out. The doctor had prescribed him with steroids but they don't seem to have an effective and doesn't seem too bothered to look into alternatives or provide other suggestions. I'm not quite sure this is eczema anymore, does this rash look like it could be anything else? The rashes have affected his mental health a lot. Especially having it on his face, he's grown to be very self conscious. If anyone has any advice, it would be greatly appreciated!!
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This looks like eczema to me, often appears in the elbow and knee fissures. Key to treatment is treating the flares with corticosteroid cream/ointment and always using emollients (non-perfumed moisturisers) which help to manage the dryness of the skin and can help with the itch-scratch-itch eczema cycle. Two support sources for you/him are the National Eczema Society which has a helpline, and Eczema Care Online eczemacareonline.org.uk/
It looks similar to mine. I have used light treatment through a dermatology which helped until an allergy to uv light. But when I get an ichy flare up I find cold (frozen peas wrapped in a tea towel helps. Look at cosi care, cosi-care.com a ball/shark or starfish cold but this helps me my sister and my nice. They are expensive but it does help.
Not been on here for a long time, but I do keep a eye on what's going on here now and again.
Your son's condition looks like the start of something which I started with several years back. Mine developed into a whole body infection, covering me in incredibly itchy, broken, infected rashes and lesions etc.
Docs and hospital left me untreated for months and then only gave me the usual steroid creams etc and told me it was an auto immune response, and lichen planus. Nothing helped, so I looked for natural remedies that might work.
I tried bathing with oats, with tea, and several other things, to try and get any relief... no good. I ended up buying medical grade Sodium Bicarbonate and Epsom salts and put 2 handfuls of each in my baths. Bathing was torture at first, but became easier as the rashes and lesions lessened, dried, and cured!
Don't let it spread!!!
I am convinced that mine was not excema, or lichen planus but an allergic/hypersensitivity response to changes in medication and environmental factors.
I know the pain your son is going through, I still have the scars and some remaining patches years later and lots of horrific images to remind me too.
You can get Medical Grade Sodium Bicarbonate and Epsom salts online (amazon etc) or from health food shops. DO NOT BUY BAKING SODA... this contains bleach and other chemicals.
These minerals are natural, so cannot harm even if they do not work for your son, so they have to be worth a go eh? Just dilute and maybe apply with cotton wool around the face to avoid eyes.
I truly hope your son gets some relief, it's a horrific complaint and I hate to see anyone suffering with it, especially when doctors are clueless on this and very few people really understand what he is going through.
Thank you Zen! I'm glad to hear your condition got better! I'm contemplating getting him an allergy test kit to see if it's anything other eczema and what could be triggering his condition. I will get him to try bath treatment, fingers crossed we will see improvement!
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