Friday, June 14, 2013

Not So Comfy in My Skin

I've had eczema all my life.  Eczema is sort of a catch all term for crappy skin.  Anyway, sometimes it goes away.  Sometimes it's hella bad.  A couple of months ago I noticed the rashes seemed to be spreading and occurring with greater frequency, but after I started drinking my berry/spinach smoothies with kefir and chia seeds it seemed that the rashes on my arms were clearing up some.  I don't know if the smoothies deserve the credit, but it was enough to encourage me to keep drinking them.

Starting a few days ago, though, the rash on my arms came back with a vengeance.  I was disappointed because I thought the smoothies were helping, but apparently something else was going on.  Then Wednesday night I was so severely itchy that not even a dose of Benedryl could knock me out and make the itch go away.  I became convinced that my sheets were evil and I wanted to rip them off the bed, but I didn't because that would have disturbed my sweet sleeping hubby.

My husband bought new sheets in the beginning of the week, and although we washed them I thought maybe they needed more washing.  Yesterday morning I stripped the bed and checked the tag on the sheets.  Mystery solved!  They are 47% polyester.  Polyester is not such a great thing on my bare skin.  My husband went out and got 100% cotton sheets yesterday, and I slept much better last night. Now I'm looking at my clothes and see that so many of my t-shirts are cotton-poly blends.  No wonder I itch all the time. I'm not sure what to do about it because I can't go out and buy a whole new wardrobe, but at least I don't have to sleep in polyester anymore.

Anyway, I'm hoping that eating better, exercising, drinking more water and reducing stress will not only help me lose weight and relieve my depression but will also have a positive impact on my skin. 

Speaking of eating, today is grocery shopping day.  My menu for the week:

6 comments:

  1. Hi Siddaleah, I get eczema very occasionally, and the two things that most affect me are eating too much dairy, and washing powder. I've always avoided polyester, though, so maybe if I hadn't that would be on my list, too :)
    Good to see you're sticking to your grocery shopping plan, and interested to hear that the shakes have been helping with your skin - great to have foods that multi-task :D

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    1. I've tried giving up dairy. It doesn't usually last long for me though. I just love cheese! lol! I didn't notice much improvement when I was off of it, though. There are some foods I avoid like eggs and nuts. I can count on a breakout if I eat those 2 days or more in a row. Tomatoes are another one. Once in a while is fine, but 2 days in a row and I have hives all over my face.

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    2. Good that you know those things about yourself! I avoid tomato, too, though more for hayfever than eczema. And my DH gets eczema whether he eats dairy or not. So, finding your own triggers is key, I guess :)

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    3. Just reading your post made me itchy. :) I have had hives lately, but mine are always related to hayfever. This time of year gets me.

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    4. Okay, no more talk of itchy things. lol! (I have horrible hayfever too, though. It gets me several times a year in this weird rainy place that grows a lot of mold and stuff that makes me sneeze and itch.)

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    5. Oh! but this reminds me that last year around this time I discovered that staying well hydrated made me have fewer and less severe allergic reactions. Grabbing some water!

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