Originally Posted By LadyKluck Just a warning - this is going to be pretty long - but I'm pretty much at my wits end so I have a lot to say! Wyatt (my 10 month old) started developing a really weird rash starting around Christmas time. It started on his cheeks and around his eyes. Well, the further we got into winter, the worse and worse it got until it covered his entire body except a few spots, like where his diaper covers him, his nose, & his neck were the main spots he didn't have it. The pediatrician diagnosed it as ecxema and told us there really wasn't much we could do, he would just eventually grow out of it. Well, as winter here got worse, so did the eczema. Poor Wyatt couldn't sleep through the night because he was so itchy he would literally scratch himself bloody. I'd wake up in the middle of the night to him screaming, only to find him completely covered in blood from him scratching his face so bad. I wasn't embarassed to take him out into public, but after the 400th time of having to explain to a total stranger that he had eczema and that NO I hadn't burned my baby or beat him to a bloody pulp I was so irritated with people in general for having the audacity to acuse me of doing something to my baby. I finally convinced the pediatrician to prescribe something to try and help poor Wyatt with the itching. He had me try a topical ointment and also told me to give Wyatt liquid Benadryl to help with the itching and help him sleep. This helped for about 24 hours and then we were right back where we started. To make this already long story short - we had been through 3 different prescription ointments before I finally decided my pediatrician was a moron and made an appointment with a dermatologist. This guy and the nurse he works with are FANTASTIC! They really understand the condition and put Wyatt on a 2 week regiment of antibiotics, oral steroids, and topical gel with steroids. It was amazing - for these 2 weeks, it was like having a totally different baby! Wyatt was active, he slept through the night, he was laughing and jabbering about 10x more than before - it was awesome - not to mention the eczema was probably 85% gone - he just had a few tiny spots left on his elbows and lower back!! Then the 2 weeks were up and we stopped the antibiotics and oral steroids but continued the topical gel. Well, its not back to the way it was before the 2 week round of meds, but its close. His face has stayed pretty clear, but his body is still covered in it & he has gone back to itching himself awake several times in the middle of the night. Unfortunately for everyone, because he scratches himself so bad, he's still sleeping in bed with DH and I so that I can keep him from scratching himself bloody on a nightly basis. We've tried putting socks on his hands, even putting tape around his wrists to keep him from pulling them off but he still figures it out. We've done everything we can think of: all of his & our clothes are cotton, no synthetic fabrics, we wash clothes in "free" detergent (no perfumes, dyes, etc.), he gets slathered with lotion from head to toe several times a day, we've tried oatmeal baths, Aveeno ecxema body wash in the bath, no soaps at all - I don't even use soap to wash his hair - I use the body wash, I mean EVERYTHING that ANYONE has suggested to us, we've tried. I've got a drawer in my bathroom FULL of any type of over the counter topical cream and lotion you can think of and none of it has worked for longer than maybe a few days. Another thing is that he's just started crawling and now his knees are covered in it too from his reaction to the carpet (which we've had cleaned 3 times - twice before we moved in and once after - and we moved here in February). So, if any of you parents out there are anything like the truckloads of people that I run into at every place I've ever been to with him, I'm hoping you have a home remedy or something that I could try. I am really tired of turning my little boy into a lab rat but there's GOT to be something out there that will help him! The over the counter stuff just isn't working and I am just hoping to find something that WILL work. Thanks again for reading through the novel of an explination that I had - but I am just at the end of my rope with this and I just want my little dude to be better!!
Originally Posted By peeaanuut WOW. I have no suggestions as I have no experience in this. But I feel for you. that just cant be fun for either of you. Im sorry you are going through this. Lets hope you can find something that will work.
Originally Posted By Mrs ElderP I'm so sorry Lady Kluck... I have eczema my self, but a much much milder case than you have discribed. Mostly mine shows up when I'm stressed, in places like the back of my knees and my hands. YoungerP had inherited his momma's skin and also has a mild case of eczema, mostly the odd rough patch on his belly and back. They don't seem to bother him, and he doesn't scratch (thank goodness!). For us, hydrocortizen (sp?) cream at a .5% concentration seems to clear it up. I'm not saying that's what you should do, obviously your poor little baby has a much much tougher case. Good luck advocating for your baby with your doctor. Remember, tell yourself over and over, that doctor may know his text books, but *I* know my baby!! My baby sister had a skin condition when she was 6 months old that was driving her nuts. My parents went to rounds of doctors, numbers of treatments, nothing seemed to work for long. Eventually a different new doctor took one look and said, oh, that's scabies, prescribed the right medication and zip zoop, a week later it was completely gone for good. It can happen, you can beat this thing!
Originally Posted By LadyKluck I've read a lot of different sites on the internet recommend blueberry leaf extract or lotion. Has anyone tried this at all for themselves? We've got blueberry bushes in our back yard - I wonder if I could try them!
Originally Posted By Mickeymouseclub My niece had this severe problem with her child and started using cod liver oil and it has helped. I know the health store has a lemon flavored variety. I would research the childrens medical guide at the health store first. They publish an adult and childrens version. Good luck I also know of an alternative pharmacy that accepts prescriptions worldwide but uses only "Healthy" methods. The www.obrienrx.com located near me in Kansas. I have started using this company. They are excellent and about as sterile a facility as all hospitals are supposed to be. The phone # is 913-322-0001. Obviously they are more expensive for this individual service. Good Luck.
Originally Posted By nevadarebel If you lather him in vaseline (just the plain basic kind) before he goes to bed and put long jammas with long sleeves on him, that will help keep his skin soft and it won't itch as much. Have you taken him to an allergist? My youngest has it (not as bad as your little man) but after doing allergy testing and figuring out what he was allergic too, it has helped his out alot because he was having issues with wheat something or other and once we changed his diet, the eczema got better. I would give him a bath with no type of bath wash except the aveeno oatmeal seemed to work well and then put the vaseline on right before he went to bed and would give him a dose of either claritin d or benydrl.
Originally Posted By LadyKluck I haven't taken him to the alergist yet - that was my next step - especially now that he's started crawling and getting it on his knees. We have a followup appointment with the dermatologist in a couple of weeks, depending on how that goes, I may take him to an alergist then.
Originally Posted By gottaluvdavillains Allery testing is a very good suggestion - you can do this through a blood draw now and not through the scratch testing - I would ask about it - or rather insist upon it!
Originally Posted By nevadarebel yes, the allergy testing is much easier than when i had to go through the millions (no not really) of scratch tests. There is some stuff at the health food store that works really well too but I cannot remember the name of it...
Originally Posted By LuLu Your poor little baby! And you too. :-( Is there a chance this started when he started on some type of food or formula? I've had great success eliminating eczema thru diet control. I believe it can be caused by internal yeast or even a fungus on the skin. Similar to cradle cap or thrush. I don't know what you're using as far as lotions but the only thing I use on my skin now is pure coconut oil (you can get it at the health food store). You know it's safe b/c you could eat it! No chemicals. Plus, coconut oil is naturally anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. I wish you a quick resolution to this. Hope you can avoid going the drug route, but sometimes it's necessary for quick results. Good luck!
Originally Posted By chickendumpling Klucky!!! SO nice to see you! Only have a second will try to come back later R U using Eucerin cleanser? We'll get this figured out for your little guy! *fingers crossed*
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 Hugs for you and your sweet baby LadyKluck! We just had food allergy testing done on our grandson. It's a finger prick and then they "stain" swabs of "paper." Took about 3 minutes. We took him to a Homeopathic Dr. and the test was for hundreds of foods. Amazing what came back. Who knew there were so many forms of "Dairy" alone? OH, I say "we" as in my husband and I because we volunteered to be the "mean guys". His parents were fully involved Good luck and please let us know how he is doing.
Originally Posted By SoThisIsLove Dittos on getting the allergy thing done. Our now 25 yr old DD had eczema as a newborn and back then the "cure" was: slather with Eucerin on a still-moist-from-the-tub skin. It helped somewhat. She hardly ever slept; screamed all the time. I certainly feel for you, Lady Kluck. Could your new doc prescribe the same regimen again since it helped so much before? At least to tide your DS (and you) over until the tests are completed with the other doc(s)....
Originally Posted By LVBelle Awww, don't have any advice but I feel so bad for you guys! Give that baby extra hugs for me!
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 >> I wasn't embarassed to take him out into public, but after the 400th time of having to explain to a total stranger that he had eczema and that NO I hadn't burned my baby or beat him to a bloody pulp I was so irritated with people in general for having the audacity to acuse me of doing something to my baby<< ^^Big hugs for this. Our now 26 year old was born with alternating crossed eyes. Until he was old enough for surgery we put an eye patch daily on alternating eyes to strengthen them. I could never decide whether to take him to the grocery store with out the patch and have people ask me if I knew my baby had crossed eyes or have him wear the patch and have people ask if he had an eye. If people looked and smiled it made my day Not the same as what you and your baby are going through by any means, just brought me back to a moment in my life as a young mother.
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x LadyKluck, I'm so sorry for you and your baby! My 3 year old had it pretty bad when she was younger and still gets outbreaks now and then. I use the hydrocotisone cream (like MrsElderP suggested) that was prescribed by the doctor on the outbreaks. Between outbreaks, I use Walmart's version of Equate Balm. It's much much thicker than the lotion and comes in a tub (it's the same as teh Eucerine, but half the price). The director at her preschool suggested this. Much like nevadarebel said, slather it on, then put on long jammies. After 2 days, her worst outbreak cleared up. As for soap, I got a bar of Johnson's Baby Bar Soap with Oatmeal. I got that at Target. It was cheaper than the Aveeno, but did the same thing. Kept her skin hydrated and soft. So, I did the baby soap, then the eucerine. If she had dry patches, I put on the hydorcortisone. She still gets patches now and then, mostly on the inside of her elbows and on her legs. I go through that regiment and they get cleared up. I would also say go to the allergist, because it could be brought on by something he's eating. My ex's nephew was allergic to milk and citrus and would break out bad when he would eat those.
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb I had it as a kid and my skin is still sensitive. We discovered that I am allergic to sweat, my own included (so much fun, not). A humididfier might not be a bad idea if your area is dry, or a de-humidifier if you live in a humid area. One cure I don't recommend because I remember how awful it was for me, is putting thick lotion or salve on and wrapping arms and legs (I had it worst in my joints) in plastic food wrap. I think it was supposed to help the lotion/salve stay on and soak in, but because I'm allergic to sweat it made it worse. Good luck!
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x oh, yeah, plastic wrap doesn't sound fun. nice long sleeve and long pants jammies will do just fine
Originally Posted By LadyKluck Thanks everyone for the ideas and well-wishes! We still have a couple of weeks to go until the next appt. with the dermatologist but the good news is that Little Dude seems to be improving for the most part (I really hope I'm not jinxing it by saying that). I was going to wait to see how that appointment went before taking him to an allergist. I think this gel they gave us is finally starting to work long term. His face stays clear for several days now in a row instead of just one or two! His body still has a few bad patches, but its mostly his elbows and just above his waistband area on his sides. He also is eating a little tiny bit better but still isn't interested in baby food hardly at all - he would much prefer a bottle to anything, except whatever his sister is eating!! Its frustrating because when Catey was this age she was already down to only 2 bottles a day - one first thing it the morning & one before bed, while Wyatt gets mostly bottles and maybe just a half jar of baby food twice a day. This week he actually slept in his crib for 3 nights in a row!! He slept all night long the first night, waking up at his normal time of about 7 am. The second night he woke up a couple of times, but I just went in, rubbed his back for a minute or two and he was back out again, and then last night, he made it until just after 4 am - then needed a bottle to go back to sleep. James says it was most likely because when he tried to give him a bottle before he went to bed he was too sleepy to take it! It's progress though, and I'll take it!! He's even been taking his naps in his crib the last 2 days!! Thanks again everyone, and I'm definitely going to try a couple of things suggested - especially on the bad spots on his elbows - those seem to be the ones that just WON'T go away no matter what we try!
