Home Maryanne's Tales How I Manage my Son’s Eczema

How I Manage my Son’s Eczema

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My two sons have had eczema. Their eczema only appears on the face and behind the ears.

With Kitty, it started when he was just a few weeks old and the first thing I tried was olive oil. It didn’t work. Then we tried Vaseline. Didn’t work. Then Arimi’s. Didn’t work either. By the time he was six weeks old, his eczema was so bad that we saw a doctor who advised us to apply aqueous cream. Even that one didn’t work.

A few weeks later and no progress – we were referred to a dermatologist. She advised us to use oilatum cream on him. Worked like charm. By the second day, the eczema was clearing and by the third day, it was all gone. Just like that. Kitty was three months old then. The eczema disappeared completely. To date. He’s 4 years old.

oiltumjuncream

Then came Ello. I don’t even know where to start.

His eczema showed the same trend as his brother Kitty’s, starting a few weeks after birth. I tried olive oil. Didn’t work. Then I tried Oilatum on him – the one his brother was using. But it didn’t work. At all (I was disappointed because I thought since they are of the same blood si then it will work?). I tried shea butter. Didn’t work. I tried glycerine. Didn’t work either.

Meanwhile, I’d see the dermatologist who would offer him a prescription for some things that they mix at the pharmacy. Immediately I would apply the mixture on Ello, the eczema would disappear in a matter of hours. Gone. Just like that. Like magic. After completing the dose, she advised me to use physiogel lotion on him. It didn’t work. She then told me to use Dove soap – the original one (the one with a navy blue pack). It didn’t work. I then decided to keep trying different things until I found ‘the one’.

physiogel
Physiogel, which works well on some babies with eczema. It just didn’t work on mine.

So I tried aqueous cream. Didn’t work. I tried coconut oil. Zero. Aveeno. Nothing. Epimax. Nope. I tried eliminating different things in his diet -including dairy and protein to check for allergy. I never found it (I’m still trying to find it).

Then one day, in the supermarket, I passed by the aisle that has body lotions. And right there was Ingram’s looking at me. The Ingram’s I have always seen but never paid much attention to. It read: ‘The Skin Doctor’. That definitely enticed me and I decided to try it out. I picked the smallest tub – the green herbal one. If it didn’t work, at least I wouldn’t feel the pinch so much because I had felt so much pinch from some of the costly products I had already bought but which hadn’t worked on Ello. So I tried the green herbal Ingram’s on him. It didn’t work. *Sigh*.

But I didn’t give up on Ingram’s. I decided to try the white one. Again, I picked the small tub. I tried it on Ello. I noticed a change. The eczema began reducing gradually. By day three, his skin was clear and by day five it was smooth. Halleluyah!!! Phewx!!!

So that’s what has been working for him ever since I first tried it on him, and which he continues to use to date. He’s 2 years old.

ingrams3

So the Ingram’s original is what works on Ello. Oilatum is what worked for Kitty. Thankfully, Kitty seems to have outgrown his eczema, but not Ello. Anytime I stop with the Ingram’s, the eczema flares up again. The dermatologist however assured me that eczema goes away with age. I however decided to take that with a pinch of salt because Baba Kitty still battles with his eczema to date. I guess I just have to learn how to manage it.

Lessons I Have Learnt:

  1. Siblings may be of the same blood, but they are different all the same.
  2. Every case of eczema is different – the severity, the flare ups, the remedies etc.
  3. Your child can’t live on prescription meds. You have to find something that works, something that is locally available and which you can afford.
  4. The journey of eczema can be a long and dreary one. For baby and for you. #wiyumiririe

How about you? Have you experienced eczema with your child? What has worked?

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Maryanne W. Waweru is a Kenyan mum raising her two sons in Nairobi. A journalist, Maryanne is passionate about telling stories and hopes that through her writing, her readers learn something new, feel encouraged, inspired, and appreciative of what they have in their lives. Maryanne's writing focuses on motherhood, women and lifestyle. "Telling stories is the only thing I know how to do," she says.

4 COMMENTS

  1. My daughter developed Eczema when she was a few weeks old. (Probably less than a month old). She my first child, I panicked and quickly made an appointment with the pediatrician who broke the news. I am an avid reader so I stayed up for the next few weeks reading about Eczema. I tried all the usual recommended ointments with little relief. Finally I cut all the triggers – diary, gluten and animal protein. Long story short we are Eczema free!

    • Hi! Does that mean you that you don’t take milk product at all or its the baby that doesn’t take milk products??

  2. Am 21 years old and my eczema developed in 2008, well you could say I was a bit older.I totally relate to your story especially the cost of eczema drugs. ..I tried all products that were ‘safe’ but they didnt work on me.I remember even researching on the internet and I avoided fragrances, woolen clothes, scented products…but unfortunately nothing worked on me….aargh..I was so devastated because I was blossoming into a young woman and that limited me so much. I developed rashes and flare ups on my back ,my chest, my neck, my scalp luckily my face was minimally spared.But the rashes would spread to my temporal regions and hairline…at some point I shaved my hair because I was so sensitive to everything I used on my head.I had developed bumps and a bulky type of dandruff.my skin would literally just peel off…i use johnsons acqueous cream which apparently helps me put the flare ups in check but my eczema still comes back from time to time..i will give ingrams a try because am just tired of the skin inflammation from time to time…Thank you for your post .it’s inspiring even though am not a mum yet?

  3. My kids were fine in my home country. When i moved to Nairobi the develooed Eczema. When we would visit home the skin would clear. I realised it was the water. Well they need a bath. I was advised to use Epimax and wow it worked wonders! Even when home i still use it and the skin is healthier. Epimax is it for me. I’ve been forced to use the cream in the hair since its the only part of the body that still has eczema. Looks like its working

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