Dear Mummies,
I'd like to share with you my story of my daughter who has had eczema for more than 2 years. Recently, I have found the 'solution' to ease her itch and her pain. I won't be here sharing the story if I havent 'tested' it out myself and I know all the pain you go through.
My daughter had a red outbreak on her neck when she was about 5 mths old. Since then, there had been no return. The red patch spread from her neck to her face and eventually her body. I saw how my daughter turned from a smooth-faced pretty baby to one who was constantly itchy. It was heartbreaking.
This happened when we were in UK. We saw the PD faithfully each time we had an outbreak. We met doctors who used steroid to control the flares and doctors who recommended alternative treatment mentioned here - aloe vera. We tried everything possible but I'm pretty stoic about avoiding steroid. The eczema happened when baby was in UK and when it was time to wean the baby, we also found that she had wheat and milk allergies. However, baby all along was on bf, so it was not an issue on the milk but definitely one on food. We also tried giving her kiwi fruit which ended in disaster. Her allergies to kiwi fruit and milk was acute and milder for wheat.
When we were back in Singapore, our daughter suffered the most. She had major outbreaks and flares in the sultry heat and humid weather. Nothing we did could appease the red, fiery skin and our daughter really suffered with broken red skin. When we brought her to the PD, she was diagnosed with acute eczema (what else is new?) I was with my daughter most of the time and I, too, suffered all the finger-pointing from everyone and anyone. I met people who made me feel that I had been the worst mother and I also met those who gave me geniune advice which simply didn't and wouldn't work. No one understood what I went through, what I tried, and how hard I tried. Most of all, all the sleepless nights and of course, helping the baby to overcome all the itch and discomfort. It was an equally bad time for our baby. The itch would wake her up and we were adivsed to give her anti-histamine when she has a flare to quell the itch and let her have a good night rest. I avoided all form of medication as far as possible unless she has an allergic reaction, which can be quite common. It was a desperate situation for me and my daughter. I generally avoided most people who didn't understand what I was doing and I quit explaining to anyone who made me feel really lousy.
My daughter's eczema is evidently shown on the redness of her skin. One day, we were on holiday in Ireland and one of the staff in the resort spotted my daughhter's red skin and how we kept her busy, distracting her. She told me her friend's daughter had a similar situation and a doctor in Ireland recommended her something that worked and she told me she'd find out and let me know what it was. It was called, Dream Cream and Dream Wash, from LUSH.
When we returned to UK, we bought dream cream to apply on my daughter. It was truly good. It controlled her itch and we gradually saw that the itch she suffers from has considerably subsided. Furthermore, she no longer needs to scratch with a vengence. Our daughter has also acquired the habit of scratching when she is tired/bored/needed attention, on top of her eczema. As you know, once the scratch begins, it becomes a vicious cycle of more scratching, broken skin, and if crying, heat, more itch and the horrors go on. With the use of dream cream, it has dramatically decreased the itch and with that, a lot of other problems. I was so happy with the result of the Dream Cream, I forgot about the Dream Wash. In August, we made a trip to Shanhgai and at the humid weather of 35-38degree, I knew that she was not going to make it. I went to LUSH and requested for a sample of the Dream Wash. I never looked back. My daughter still had redness on her skin but she did not need to scratch (probably the itch was gone) and she was and is still fabulous looking.
Today, my daughter is a smooth-faced, happy and has 'controlled eczema'. There will be occasion flares from sudden weather changes but with the use of dream wash and dream cream, she really has such a dramatic change. I strongly encourage all parents who are going through what I have gone through with an eczema baby to try dream cream and dream wash from LUSH. I remember there used to the a LUSH shop at Suntec City but I cannot seem to find the Singapore shop online. Look at what is says on the website about dream cream :
http://www.lush.co.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=28_33&products_id=231
Dream wash :
http://www.lush.co.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=13
You will find the ingredients to be mostly natural. You do not need to slap loads on to use them. A good 250g of dreamwash has lasted for more than a month and although it is not cheap (about S$18), it is wellworth the money spent. I strongly recommend that you use dream wash and dream cream. I started with dream cream because I was skeptical that any other wash (we had been using balenum for soooo long) would work but I have never looked back since I started on dreamwash.
I'd like to share in short, some of the issues discussed by all the parents here and my personal experience :
1) baths - use tepid water, no bubble baths or normal baby shower foam. use balenum or oilatum (expensive) but can seriously keep baby's skin moist.
2) powder - told to avoid as it dries the skin. never used since birth till now; daughter is over 2 yrs old.
3) steroid - i avoided it as far as possible and was recommended other creams with non-steroid for long term use but with other possible side effects (cancer); used steroid (hydrocortisonne) for a very short time but decided to be determined and gave it up. Proved to doctor that without the use of steroid, the condition improved (doc thought I used the steroid perscribed to control the eczema). However, I'm a full time mom and I spent all my waking hours with my dauhter. So, I understood her totally and did everything within my possible mean to help her overcome her itch (bf is very calming; distracting; teaching her to control, esp when she got older). I know it will be very hard for caretakers and believe me, it is NOT the easy way but well worth a try if you can mange the time. I did not use any creams that would have any long term effects and stuck to moisturzing creams like epaderm (worked best for my daughter; oil based, very oily and doesn't work very well in hot weather, but ok in aircon), E45 and oilatum cream.
4) Food - I did not find out if any food intake of mine affected the baby. My baby was bf till she was 2 and now, she is on soya milk. Her allergies has moved from mild for wheat to acute for everything and she is also now diagnosed to be allergic to eggs. If your bb has allergies, best to avoid all of the food and have the allergies properly diagnosed. I think my daughter has the worst combination of allgeries possible but we have survived the food intake part. It used to be a struggle but food preparation gets easier as they grow.
5) chinese medicine - tried no oral medication cos bb was too young. was recommended 'jing ying hau' for showers and tea leaves. either didnt work or didnt stick to it long enough.
6) Clothes - yes, use cotton and dont keep babies with eczema warm. keep as cool as possible. my baby's eczema did get to a point where I used tubifast (a cotton 'bandage' of sort that covers her arms so that she wont think and wont scratch). it really helped.
7) Fish oil - a natural therapist who saw my daughter's dry skin when we were out told me to give her fish oil. i gave her and it did help and with a daily capsule (not take in capsule but squeezed) of fish oil, she no longer suffered from dry broken skin. Fish oil helps to keep the dryness and broken skin at bay but not the itch. Uptil today, we keep up with the daily intake of fish oil.
Most IMPORTANT - Mothers - pls dont feel discouraged when dealing with eczema babies. I have been through it and i know what is it like. i had the worst time ever and all mothers need to be strong in order to help bb go through it. i know how it feels like to get the blame and made to feel that u havent been a good enough mother. it's not your fault. keep trying. distract the baby. teach from young (i taught me daughter when she was abt one) that they need to control (think of a sign for control; mine was 2 fists moving up and down by the side) and keep telling them that. it works miracles. keep them busy. distract, distract, distract. always have some 'new' toys hidden in the cupboard, if really cannot distract anymore, take out something new to distract. if babies have allergies, always bring anti-histamine in your bag. you wil never know when bb has a flare/allergic reaction. ask pd in this area. they can advise. most of all, dont give up hope. and dont worry, eczema is not your fault at all. both my husband and i do not have any forms of allergies or asthma but baby has everything!!! until today, my MIL is still thinking perhaps i had durians during my pregnancy, etc...... to me, it is not impt and they are irrelevant. just focus on helping your child. it is more important. eczema babies/children go through a lot of pain themselves and their quality of lives is also affected, as well as the parents. i personally feel if parents learn to deal with it, they will be able to help their children. Most of all, don't give up. it gets easier when they grow older.
today, my daughter still has eczema with red skin but definitely controlled. she no longer scratches often and is not in great discomfort. she understands the meaning of control and she often tells us to rub for her when there is a need. my daughter has a lot of empathy for people with pain, we figure, from her own pain of dealing with eczema and allergies.
So, go try Dream Cream and Dream Wash! and maybe give fish oil (do be careful to give the right type for the right age!!! i started from a yr plus).
And im most willing to share any information or any questions you have in the course of helping your child to deal with eczema.
My heart goes to you and your child in dealing with the problem but remember, every cloud has a silver lining.
