matt`n`shaz

We have the same dilema! Our 5 year old suffers from Excema, Asthma, Hayfever and allergic to all things as well as nuts - after much research from this website and other sources we have decided to stay in the UK. We take the NHS for granted, but if we were in Australia the medical costs for specialist consultants, doctors appointment and perscriptions (which are not free for children!) would be huge.

Our son's skin is now under control and we do not want to take the gamble of it flaring up again -it's a hard decision to make but after years of our son suffering I don't want to put him at any risk again, thanks to this website and honest opinions we feel that staying in the UK with the support of the NHS is the right thing to do.

Good luck with your decision.

Sharon

Fiona&malc

My son has eczema, and we used to have to use the wet wraps on him when he was around 12-18 months old, it was a nightmare. It had got slightly better however in the winter his hands were the worst, his knuckles would be like open sores, it was awful to watch him suffer, we had to give him a really strong antihistime before he went to bed (Vallergan) to help him sleep so he would wake up scratching, we used to have to put my husbands cotton socks over his hands at night to stop him scratching himself raw. Then we found that whenever we went away on holiday, his skin would dramitically improve, and i put it down to the fact he was in the sea a lot playing, and the salt water was helping, so one day when i was in Boots, i noticed the had a Dead Sea salt bar of soap, he started using that and you could see the difference within a few days. Since we moved out to Australia, his skin is heaps better, in the summer he was constantly in my cousins pool (which is salt water) and for a time, his skin was perfect, now its winter here, his hands are a little dry but nothing some Epiderm and a slight amt of hydrocortisone doesnt fix. Where we are in Aus, we dont experience the humidity as bad as some parts do, its more of a dry desert heat, which is perfect for him.... his eczema has def improved, im sure as hes getting a little older thats got something to do with it as well though (he's nearly 5 now)

hope this was of some help to you

Barron

I too have suffered all my life it was bad in the uk but is worse now I have it in all my joints elbows ,behind knees,under arms and last week it appeared on my eyelids have also done the homeopath,several times,changed diet all sorts of oils.creams,lotions but it is still here but do have tubs of cream all over the house so when the skin feels like it will rip into bits,you just lather up.But the weather in Brisbane has not made it any easier and it is unbelievably sore in the heat.
Good luck

Sally

Pollyana

Hey Sally, I know exactly how you feel. A pot of cream in every room ready for that horrible feeling to strike. Getting good at typing with one hand while reaching out for the cream with the other. I now keep a constant watch on the Bureau of Met site, current observations - once the humidity drops below 50% I run for cover. Down to 20% and I just take to my bed and knock myself out for a few hours.
Its hell, isn't it, not just for us, but for our families too. God knows how The Bloke copes with me!
Take care,
Polly

hevs

Because he loves you dearly

Barron

Yup Polly does your other half wake you up during the night because your scratching wakes him up,I have had to move into the spare room some nights because it is unbearable , but with you on watching the humidity its a nightmare.

let me know when you find that miricle cream
sally

Pollyana

Aw Hevs, you'll make me cry!

Sally, yes, I wake him sometimes, fortunately hes a sound sleeper! 2 strong Polaramine and 5 Nurofen seems to keep the itches under control at night
Whichever of us finds the miracle first, we'll share

caleb2003

From the posts about Humidity extremes it does help, whereabouts are you?

caleb2003

From the posts about Humidity extremes it does help, whereabouts are you?

Oh and did you use the dead sea bar as well as the creams etc or instead of?>

Thanks

marie197500

hi
dont know if this helps but apparently i had it real bad when i was a baby used to scratch untill it bled then we moved to africa when i 6 mths old and totally disapeared acme back to uk when i was 2 so not out there that long

marie

Fiona&malc

we are in NW west Victoria/bordering NSW, so its cool and dry and in the winter but in the summer, as we are in the bush, its common to have temps of 40oc plus, but its more bearable because its not humid, dont get me wrong, you can get the odd night where it feels 'sticky' but on the whole its a very dry heat. i have pm'd you.

and i always used the emolient cream as well as the dead sea soap to keep his skin moisturised, you can also buy dead sea salt in packet form to put in the bath as well, Boots have it but its pricey, i used to get it from a Health foods shop, and im damned if i can remember the name of it..its a popular one, sells all sorts of vitamins and health foods, im sure someone will know it ??? its a green shop i think

caleb2003

This is an old thread of mine but it would be interesting to see if any of the people that replied have noticed any changes in the year since.

With my boy now hes 20 months and his eczema has improved naturally so I hope it is just infantile. We do still cream him up every day and he does itch when he;s stressed but generally not half as bad as a year ago.

Still was concerned we were putting chemicals and steroids on him though so I found elenas natural cream and have been using it for a month and his skin has improved amazingly and all natural stuff. The website if anyone is interested is http://www.elenascollection.co.uk/. We have managed to get it on the NHS after talking the Dr round but we are quite concerned when we get to Oz that it will be expensive to import for us privately. Do any prescriptions get refunded on medicare? Can such treatments be claimed back at all?

Any comments would be

Wendy

Hi

My 13 year old has had excema from being born. We have been here for a couple of months and I'd say that it is pretty much under control at the minute, the first time for about a year.

I haven't had to take him to the doctors yet as we went into the chemist when the cream from the UK ran out and they recommended us some cream and also some soap. They really seem to be working for him. It cost us about $20 and the cream has lasted three weeks so far and the soap is still 2/3rds full.

We are in Soth Australia and I'd say it's pretty dry here, in fact the humidity in our house today was 2 percent :scared: So all in all, I'm pretty impressed with just the chemists advice.

I hope that your boy's excema improves too as I know what it's like to live with

kellyjs

Hi there
My daughter has severe eczema since 2 weeks old...shes now 14. She used to get it bad on her face and When she was a baby and I pushed her round in her buggy people would go to smile and then see her face and look at me like I done something or she had something wrong with her. I always remember that. twats. Anyway, she grew up strong and gorgeous and so much nicer and more thoughtful than most kids I know but still suffers especially round her face and has scarring around her feet. I thought it would get better here too but it depends on what type of eczema it is mate and hers is stress induced so not likely to go away only just starting school! Also, it may be made worse by humidity and here theres no air con in alot of schools so when summer gets hot it may be unbearable if your not careful. On the other hand radiators are worse and you won't get them here either! On the flip side, if you aware of all this it can be so much better. Good luck and PM me if you need a chat :-)

KatieStar

I get quite bad eczema on my hands. I used to have it all the time in the UK, for the past few months it is fine most of the time but I have had a few flare ups. I don't know what caused the flare ups though. I think the low humidity maybe. I have also cut back on dairy, so maybe it happened after I had a big piece of cheesecake or something.

I feel fortunate that it just affects my hands. When it is bad it is so painful and itchy. It must be hellish to have it bad and affecting everywhere. :scared: