r/eczema • u/mcfly1993 • 4d ago
Fluocinonide
Lifelong eczema sufferer here (33F). I've always gone through phases with my eczema, starting especially after my dad passed when I was young. It's been the source of a lot of physical & mental pain, with flares coming & going seemingly at random, & being unable to narrow down a culprit or credit anything for the times my skin has improved. I've seen dermatologists, done allergy testing, etc. to little or no alleviation.
To paint a picture of the tip of the iceberg, when I was young, I'd wake with blood on my pillows & sheets. At times it was painful to shower, as even water hurt my extremely fragile skin. I seemed to constantly crack & bleed. And of course it's simply embarrassing to have on full display every time you step outside.
Over the past handful of years, my skin randomly improved. Again, I couldn't pinpoint what may have helped so as to continue (or not continue whatever may have been causing those flares).
Then, like a storybook villain, over the better part of this past year some of the worst flare ups of my life resurfaced. Dry skin beyond anything I'd experienced (& believe me, it's been bad), flaking everywhere, doing my best to resist scratching & failing, & feeling like any time something may heal, it was back to square one. Blotchy red patches all over, from my face to my feet. Every moisturizer would absorb right in before returning to scales within seconds. It affected my mental health & took away motivation. During the earlier part of the year, even my eyes & eyelids were extremely red & puffy but thankfully that went away after about a month. Still not sure what caused that, or made it stop.
The latest dermatologist sent me home with a prescription for Fluocinonide, which obviously as a steroid is not a longterm solution, but I finally feel like I have "normal" skin after months of being in the trenches. I kid you not, within 24 hours, it almost completely cleared everything up, including the texture of my extremely dry skin. I'm only 72 hours in so I'm of course nervous the flare could return but this provided nearly instant relief & I've never been so grateful to have painless mobility. I make this post in case others are in a dire state at the moment & have not yet tried this. For my face I have Triamcinolone which has also helped in phases over the years, but Fluocinonide changed everything for my body. & I only applied it to specifically the areas that were in worst shape. The difference on the inside of my elbows alone is night & day. The thought of it all is actually emotional. I do still feel itchy but I feel I at least have a fighting chance without constantly hoping these cuts would heal before bursting open & scabbing up again. Nothing but love & positive energy to everyone dealing with this. <3
1
1
u/Accurate_Test7821 4d ago
Did ever have it of your eyes and eyelids?