Fantastic, I love starting the day with puffy eyes, it's my favourite. Dealing with puffy eyes day to day is simply one of the joys of eczema. I think I've possibly tried every single home remedy for puffiness, all sorts of creams and lotions (which then irritate my skin further). The method I use to de-swell my eyes is by putting 2 tea bags in a bowl of ice water, then placing them on my eyes. The cold bag helps to calm them and the tea bag acts as a little lift. Although beware, do not do this when wearing your chosen outfit of the day, stains aren't pretty.
Puffy eyes are the main reason why going to festivals is an absolute nightmare. I'll spend the evening drinking, listening to my favourite bands, having an amazing time and by morning... BAM puffy eyes galore. And I don't just mean puffy eyes, they are so swollen that my eyes barely open. I'll then spend the whole day in sunglasses, which I have to admit is perfectly acceptable at festivals, but feel like a fish. I get this a lot when I'm blessed with my whole face swelling up in result of drinking large amounts of alcohol. I find if I drink whiskey/rum my whole face would have some sort of reaction to it and I'll spend the next day in a pit of self pitty being an hungover mess.
I must admit, the older I get, the more I understand my skin, living with it for 22 years you do start to notice triggers. Mine is dairy, lack of sleep, bad diet and alcohol. You would of thought knowing these were my triggers I'd completely cut them out of my life, but it's easier said than done.
If you have found any triggers with your eczema please comment below, I'd love to hear from you.
Friday 2 May 2014
Tuesday 29 April 2014
Let's get comfortable
If you're reading this, you've probably read countless amounts of eczema forums, self help websites and the like, but I'm here to write about eczema and the real battles of what it's like to live with.
I'm pretty lucky, I was born with Atopic Eczema, Asthma, along with many allergies. Okay, so I'm not THAT lucky, but the more and more I read other blogs I actually realise I'm not alone. People think that eczema is simply just a little dry skin, or some red patches, but the fact of the matter is just how much the skin disease affects every aspect of our lives. Having to plan outfits that cover the bad flare ups, make up that covers puffy eyes and flakey skin, scratching in public when you're skin is just screaming SCRATCH ME NOW. I've even had to cover body in foundation in the summer just so I could feel normal. It's a real fucking pain.
My main problem is being comfortable around people. Having bad skin lowers your self esteem and makes you feel like a troll that belongs under a bridge. I've never been comfortable around boyfriends in the past as I've been so scarred by comments made by them that i've never fully been able to be open with my eczema instead of hiding whenever I had a flare up. However I'm extremely lucky (i mean it this time) to be in a long term relationship with someone that accepts me for who I am. Even when i'm scratching at night with both legs up in the air and arms flapping all over the place, trust me it's not a pretty sight. Especially when my face decides to flare up so much that my eyes barely open, for them to just give you a cuddle and ask if they can help in anyway is probably the nicest feeling ever. Although I feel extremely sorry for partners with eczema sufferers, we are a pain to be around when we feel irritable.
Biggest hatred in life is when people have a tiny patch of dry skin and they come up to you in a concerned manner "oh I think I might have eczema, what do you think?", I think you're an over dramatic arsehole. I remember when I was at primary school and other children would ask if it was contagious. If it was, i wouldn't even share it with my enemies.
I'm currently on Cyclosporine tablets, which smell like beer and feel like I'm swallowing a mini egg. I've probably been taking them now for around 3 weeks and I still haven't noticed any real changes to my skin. I'm still scratching uncontrollably and now have the hassle of traveling to Basildon Hospital every week for blood tests/blood pressure and visits to the dermatologist. These tablets are my last resort to getting ontop of my eczema, and the long term side affects are just something that have to be dealt with.
Anyway, I hope you have found this post of interest. Now that i've taken a footstep down this road, i'll soon follow along with more posts and updates on how my skin is reacting with the medication, and if i feel the need to moan, because you know, moaning about your skin is okay, right?
I'm pretty lucky, I was born with Atopic Eczema, Asthma, along with many allergies. Okay, so I'm not THAT lucky, but the more and more I read other blogs I actually realise I'm not alone. People think that eczema is simply just a little dry skin, or some red patches, but the fact of the matter is just how much the skin disease affects every aspect of our lives. Having to plan outfits that cover the bad flare ups, make up that covers puffy eyes and flakey skin, scratching in public when you're skin is just screaming SCRATCH ME NOW. I've even had to cover body in foundation in the summer just so I could feel normal. It's a real fucking pain.
My main problem is being comfortable around people. Having bad skin lowers your self esteem and makes you feel like a troll that belongs under a bridge. I've never been comfortable around boyfriends in the past as I've been so scarred by comments made by them that i've never fully been able to be open with my eczema instead of hiding whenever I had a flare up. However I'm extremely lucky (i mean it this time) to be in a long term relationship with someone that accepts me for who I am. Even when i'm scratching at night with both legs up in the air and arms flapping all over the place, trust me it's not a pretty sight. Especially when my face decides to flare up so much that my eyes barely open, for them to just give you a cuddle and ask if they can help in anyway is probably the nicest feeling ever. Although I feel extremely sorry for partners with eczema sufferers, we are a pain to be around when we feel irritable.
Biggest hatred in life is when people have a tiny patch of dry skin and they come up to you in a concerned manner "oh I think I might have eczema, what do you think?", I think you're an over dramatic arsehole. I remember when I was at primary school and other children would ask if it was contagious. If it was, i wouldn't even share it with my enemies.
I'm currently on Cyclosporine tablets, which smell like beer and feel like I'm swallowing a mini egg. I've probably been taking them now for around 3 weeks and I still haven't noticed any real changes to my skin. I'm still scratching uncontrollably and now have the hassle of traveling to Basildon Hospital every week for blood tests/blood pressure and visits to the dermatologist. These tablets are my last resort to getting ontop of my eczema, and the long term side affects are just something that have to be dealt with.
Anyway, I hope you have found this post of interest. Now that i've taken a footstep down this road, i'll soon follow along with more posts and updates on how my skin is reacting with the medication, and if i feel the need to moan, because you know, moaning about your skin is okay, right?
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