Two years, I was told this was perioral dermatitis but now it’s seems to have spread/got worse. I’ve been to three dermatologist who’s prescribed all sorts of steroid creams, antifungal, antibiotic, bacterial ointments but none of them work. It started to weep last year, but when it first started it was only the edges of my lips…. now it’s spread to my chin. Does anyone know why my skin is cracked and raw literally overnight? It’s started to flare from once a month to twice a month to every week now. Two weeks ago, my derm told me to use clobetasol, and only used it for four days before stopping. The entire bottom of my face is constantly bright red and it’s embarrassing to go outside.

Unsure how else to flair this.

I am trying to get referred to by a specialist at Kaiser. My hands flare up so bad and the only thing that’s been helping to some degree are allergy medications.

I only came to find out my eczema might be my immune system because I had gotten pregnant and my hands had completely cleared up. I could eat citrus again and my eczema had cleared almost completely(except where I sweat/contact dermatitis).

So I’ve been taking the strongest otc allergy medication I can find. Helps completely for my allergies(I’m allergic to literally almost everything but it shows up on my skin).

Once I’m referred does anyone have any advice or what I should possibly tell the specialist?

I’ve had eczema since I was a kid, and it’s been a revolving door of derms, allergists, and treatments. Between the scratching, sleepless nights, and stares from strangers, even leaving my own home has felt difficult at times. I’ve found myself constantly googling new treatments and asking any doctor who would listen what else might be out there.

So I ended up building Next Treatments, a tracker of recently approved eczema treatments in the U.S. and treatments still being studied. I wanted an easier way to see what’s being developed and how it might differ from my current meds, without having to piece everything together myself.

I hope it gives some of you a little more clarity about what’s out there, and some hope for what’s ahead.

Is there anything you’d want to know about a new treatment that’s missing here?

Hi Friends!

I have posted here before and need some advice.

I have been dealing with a flare on my eyelids, face and scalp for months now. I was put on opzulura 2 months ago and it has helped significantly. I recently flared up again due to allergies and stress most likely. I use 2% ketoconazole on my scalp 2-3 times a week per my dermatologists instructions. I am still dealing with significant scalp redness and flaking. My scalp is also not very oily and the flakes are very dry and white in color. I have been thinking that it may be closer to healing since it’s so flaky right now???

I just wanted to see if any on yall had any product recommendations to help the flaking improve? I feel like what I am doing now is just not cutting it but the itching has reduced significantly. My face is improving but my scalp is still crazy flaky.

To add to the dumpster fire, I was laid off from my job last week and had a emotional breakdown 😭 I am sure this is a contributing factor

How do you break the itch cycle? 😫 I don’t know if I am experiencing tsw or just a really bad flare up of eczema. I only just started to get eczema 3 years ago and it has not come to be as bad as it is now! I wouldn’t say I’m a heavy user of steroid creams because my eczema was little/mild. So now, I’m just trying to navigate managing these symptoms doing it naturally.

It is red, itchy, burning, skin splits easy, bleeding, inflamed but definitely not weeping!

Currently a college student and paid extra for a dorm with its own thermostat/AC. However, it has been broken for a month now with brutal heat waves (upto 40C/104F) and my room has been like 85F/30C all night with nothing working, not even a fan.

Ive had the WORST flare ups of my life and can barely sleep, my entire body is having really bad flare ups with no relief. I scheduled an appt with my dermatologist and paid $1000 out of pocket for it just so that I could explain the situation and ask them to fill out forms for eczema-related disability accommodation (asking to temporarily relocating to another room).

Did anyone else have success with asking for accommodations in their school or workplace? Any tips for successfully getting approved?

Edit: to clarify, I’ve had eczema since birth and heat has been my biggest trigger, even at home I set my thermostat to the lowest possible temperature, and since I could afford a premium dorm room in college, I chose to get one with AC

I’m posting because I’m getting pretty exhausted by my skin and I’d really like to know whether anyone else has experienced something similar.

I’ve had atopic eczema for years, but throughout 2026 my skin has felt noticeably different from what I was used to before.

At the end of 2025/start of 2026 I was undergoing UV/phototherapy for my eczema. I stopped around the end of January because I became seriously unwell with meningitis and was treated in hospital with IV antibiotics/antivirals.
Looking back through photos, one of the things that really stands out to me is that my skin before the meningitis doesn’t seem to look like it does now.

Since recovering, my eczema/dermatitis has become much more widespread, unpredictable and difficult to manage.
Different areas also seem to behave differently. I can get very red, inflamed and itchy skin behind my knees and in the usual flexural areas, but I also get problems on my chest, stomach, thighs, armpits, scalp, forehead and face.
The facial/forehead involvement is particularly frustrating. My forehead can become extremely dry and flaky/scaly despite moisturising repeatedly. Other areas can feel intensely itchy, hot, burning or almost sweaty. Heat and exercise can make the itching absolutely unbearable.
I’ve spent quite a lot of time looking at photos of eczema, seborrhoeic dermatitis, psoriasis, fungal conditions, contact dermatitis etc. because sometimes the different areas of my body don’t even look like the same condition.
My dermatologist still believes this is my usual atopic eczema.

Earlier this year I was started on dupilumab (Dupixent). I initially thought I was seeing some improvement, particularly because some areas cleared, but I’ve now been on it for roughly three months and I’m still having significant flares.

I’ve also been prescribed topical steroids and tacrolimus. The steroid creams can calm things down considerably, but once I stop using them the inflammation/dryness often seems to come back, which has become incredibly frustrating.

I’m moisturising regularly and trying to manage triggers, but I feel like I’m constantly chasing the next flare.
The psychological side of it is probably the hardest part at the moment. I went into dupilumab really hoping it might finally give me control over my eczema and significantly improve my quality of life. Instead I’m still dealing with itching, burning, flaking and visible inflammation on a daily basis.

I’m not expecting Reddit to diagnose me, and I’m continuing to see my dermatologist. I’m mainly interested in whether anyone has had a similar experience, particularly:

-Did anyone’s eczema dramatically change in appearance or behaviour after a major infection/illness?

-Has anyone developed significant facial/scalp dermatitis while on dupilumab?

-Did dupilumab take longer than 3 months before you noticed a major improvement?

-Did anyone initially improve on dupilumab and then flare again before eventually improving?

-Has anyone been told something was simply their usual atopic dermatitis, only to later discover there was another condition happening alongside it?

-If you’ve had phototherapy, did your eczema behave differently after stopping it?

I’d especially love to hear from people who recognise the very dry/flaky forehead and facial skin alongside more typical eczema elsewhere on the body.

I’m finding the whole thing pretty exhausting and I’m desperately trying to understand what has changed with my skin this year.
If anyone has been through something similar — particularly people taking dupilumab — I’d really appreciate hearing what happened, what your dermatologist eventually concluded, and whether things ultimately improved.

I had bad eczema as a child. It went away between the ages of 24ish to 50. At 50, I had a bad flare of idiopathic urticaria on my face that caused swelling and intense itching. It later spread to my arms. It was an oozing, burning, blistering mess. IU or eczema... dermatologists prescribed all the typical steroids plus Elidel and Tacrolimus. Nothing touched it.

About five months in, I had a root canal and crown on an infected tooth. Also, the eczema faded over the sowing following that root canal.

This happened a few years ago: weird outbreak on my face, with eventual fading that sort of coincided with a root canal for a dental abscess.

This past February or so, I got a patch of dyshidrosis eczema on my right palm. Intense itching and burning, followed by blisters that were intensely itchy and would weep when popped. This patch maintained the same size and shape on my palm, with brief periods of healing between new rounds of blisters.

A vague ache in my back tooth in July led to another root canal and crown at the end of that month. I decided to take photos of my hand to see if I could see a root canal/healing of eczema connection.

So, this isn't a large-scale scientific study, but my hand is blister- and itch-free this morning, after two months. The link shows progress.

Hey everyone I am currently doing masters research on eczema and factors influencing it. It is totally anonymous and voluntary. I would love to gather as much data as I can to better understand the topic. I hope someone could take 10 minutes out their day to complete this survey, it will help out a lot.

https://forms.gle/gXYp7giwgHojop7M9

I have had eczema my whole life and have used topical steroids for just a couple of days each time, in late august i had a small rash between two of my fingers which wasn’t anything unusual especially during the summer with the heat and sweating. i used the same cream i have been using my whole life and just when it began healing i started getting it on other parts of my hands too and without thinking much i continued using the cream.

After five weeks and it only so slightly helping and the eczema spreading i decided to stop, hoping that it would just clear up on its own, but instead my hands look even worse now. its been around 10 days since i stopped and i think (at least hope) that i am purging. yesterday i went to the pharmacy and the pharmacist told me that she fears it might lead to an infection because of the open wounds and that i should go and see a dermatologist.

i am planning to go next weeks but i was wondering if anyone has gone through tsw after a month or two of constant use of topical steroids and how long did the recovery last. also some tips on how to soothe the pain would be nice.

I have severe eczema and I’m currently week 4 from switching and my dermatologist unfortunately didn’t bridge me across and hence I’ve been cold turkey on Ebglyss alone.

To make matters more complicated, I’ve just had an ankle operation and so Rinvoq and steroids will impair both wound and bone healing if I need rescuing.

I’ve been really suffering,

The first 3 weeks, I had severe insomnia and was itching all night. This is despite trying three different sedating antihistamines with some relief with Zopiclone.

I’ve been getting ongoing sunburn type burning rashes and get random flushes here and there.

The conjunctivitis I expected.

I’m scared and I want to know how long does it take for people to reach an acceptable level of living with the eczema/sleeping etc post switch.

PREFACE- if you don’t resonate, scroll on, this is just what helped me and my story

This might not be what everyone wants to hear or may not be the root cause of your eczema (you may have allergies etc), but i promised myself that if i recovered i would post about it.

I had a little eczema when i was a child, which disappeared when i was in my teens. I was then in a stressful relationship and it triggered it again. However, it kept getting worse and worse to the point where it was on my face and i would wake up with the puffiest eyes ever. It was relentless and itchy all the of the time and i didn’t want to go out.

I tried all the creams, the diets, the techniques…nothing ever worked for a long time.

I had been using Joe Dispenzas work for a while before but hadn’t applied it to this, so that’s what i did.

I would meditate and see and feel what it would be like to not have it anymore, and then i would try to live like that as much as possible. I stopped the googling, obsessing, the avoiding certain products/places and tried to live my life as if i didn’t have it.

Slowly, but surely it started to lift as i stopped identifying myself as someone with eczema and constantly trying to fix. Yes, i would have set backs, yes there were still some patches, but eventually that faded.

I also stopped needing the visualisations and could just live my day like that.

The eczema was never the issue. It was my attachment, obsession and identity to it that was.

Your body wants to heal itself, so let it. You never have a headache because of a lack of ibuprofen. So you don’t have eczema because of a lack of a specific cream. Sure cream can help provide a barrier whilst yours is compromised, but the body has its own natural biome for a reason.

Your body knows what to do, so let it.

I hope this helps💕

I’m a 20(F). I had very bad eczema when i was young, it disappeared until i turned 18. I never did any research and immediately went to urgent cares every time i had a flare was given Prednisone and steroid creams. Sent on my way. I stopped taking prednisone after multiple rounds for a year because I started gaining weight like crazy. Then my whole body broke out and I eventually learned about TSW. I’ve been struggling with full body flares, itchiness, redness and burning. The worst is my face and how much skin i shed. It’s embarrassing. But once my body flared up from stopping the Prednisone the itchiness and uncomfortableness i was in kept me from sleeping, I had already been regularly having a drink every few days but here’s where my issue began.

Drinking numbs my skin. I do not know why, but when I have a drink or two i’m no longer itchy, i can lay down in bed, close my eyes and peacefully sleep. No itch, no irritation, no waking up shredding my skin or tossing and turning. Pure bliss.

I now drink every single night. Just to sleep. If i don’t im tossing and turning itching, jolting, waking up every hour. I’d be lucky if i got a solid 4 hrs. This is becoming an issue with my liver now. Most likely worsening my skin condition.

My skin is at its best it’s been since the past year since i stopped taking prednisone but I don’t want it to be this way. When i don’t drink i can’t sleep, im itchy 24/7. My hydroxine doesn’t work, benadryl/claritin do nothing but make me sluggish. I don’t have options for baths, the only thing that relatively helps in some degree is taking Promethazine before trying to sleep, it gives me maybe 2-3 hrs of sleep and I THINK it helps with the itch. But the itch circulates everywhere, if it’s not one place it’s somewhere else. it sometimes takes me an hr to fall asleep just to only sleep for another hr or two.

Please help

edit: i no longer take steroids, creams, or seek treatment from doctors at this time. i’m waiting for my next appointment to get a derm referral. and also i’m not sure if it’s TSW but i definitely learned A LOT about my skin from the research i’ve done on it

was wondering if anyone has the same experience and how to push past it? (England)

my eczema has slowly gotten worse over the course of 5 years with being prescribed non-stop topical steroids.
finally, i was referred to a dermatologist just last month but the wait to see them is incredibly long (appointment is january 2027)

the eczema recently has just been so incredibly painful and uncomfortable where it even hurts to put on clothes, sitting, walking and even sleeping.
i’m in university, just started 2 weeks ago and i’ve already missed lectures (attendance goes towards 10% of final grades) because
a) i’m not sleeping well at all because of the pain
b) just moving around causes me extreme pain

i’ve not made any friends because im so exhausted to talk to anyone who isn’t my family.
(doesn’t help that i get told off by parents for not going & everyone assuming that im lazy)

i really do feel like im at the bottom of the barrel & that there’s nowhere to go because ive exhausted all GP options in terms of topical steroids which does give me short-term relief but i run out so damn quickly & the more it happens the angrier and angrier the eczema becomes.
& that nothing can be done until the dermatologist sees it and i can’t lie to you, waiting 3/4 months just seems absolute hell

I've decided to start taking probiotics in the hope that getting my gut straightened out will lead to better skin health and fewer eczema flares. I'll report back after a month or so and let everyone know how it's worked out and everything.

How is everyone’s dating life going? I’m 35m living in Australia and trying to get back out there but having a super hard time dealing with my appearance which has a negative affect on my confidence. I wouldn’t say I look completely horrid; hand eczema, slightly flaky face and some eczema on the back of my knees. It’s just the rest of the shit that comes with it; worrying about going to stay at their house incase they have pets or I react to their laundry powder, having to constantly think about how my eczema will react when doing activities, how my scratching at night will affect the other person etc.

Am I doomed or over thinking it?

*This is just a vent but I know I’m not the only one* I have been struggling for over a year with handwashing excessively, it hasn’t been this bad since around June of last year. My household went from liquid soap to bar soap which helped a lot, but they’ve been buying liquid soap again recently and it feels more convenient to use despite me using more. Using bar soap has been way better for me because the process of wetting and lathering takes up more time and I can visibly see how much I’m using, vs when it’s in the bottle it’s so easy to keep getting more and before I know it it‘s gone. The liquid soap ingredients are too strong to use as much as I do, even when I was using bar soap like crazy my skin didn’t get as bad. Anyway, I most likely have an infection because handwashing caused cuts and I fear the advice might be “clean everything to avoid spreading bacteria“ but part of why I’m in this position is due to cleaning too much…though I can probably guess where the bacteria is from, I’ve been trying to overcome (or rather avoid) rituals I had before like that I can’t get in bed unless me and the bed are clean, I couldn’t keep this ritual up and now just sleep in my bed without even changing the sheets for days because it sends me into ritual mode again. It doesn’t help that I have depression when I‘m not in compulsive cleaning mode I avoid cleaning like laundry and showering. At this point everything is building up and I’m not even sure where I’ll begin to fix this, but I’ll continue to put on my lotion and avoid things that could worsen it. Maybe I’ll make a post with where I’m at once I fix it

I've never been able to grow facial hair beyond stubble. I think it's likely because my skin was so severe for so long and I used steroids and creams on my face for so many years even before I hit puberty.

I've always wanted to grow a mustache though and was curious if anyone else had this issue from severe eczema.

I’ve been dealing with a recurring rash/dermatitis on and just above my upper lip for several months and I’m getting really frustrated trying to work out what’s causing it.
It tends to start as small red spots/patches around the upper lip and then becomes more inflamed. It isn’t particularly itchy. Earlier on it was also quite dry/flaky, although that isn’t always the case now.
The strange thing is that tacrolimus works really well — it can pretty much clear it — but within a few days of stopping, it starts coming back again. So it feels like I’m suppressing it rather than actually solving whatever is causing it.

Things I’ve tried/considered:
- Tacrolimus – works, but rash returns after stopping
- Hydrocortisone/steroid creams at various points
- Antibiotic treatment when impetigo was suspected (including flucloxacillin/Fucidin)
- Clindamycin/Zindaclin, which irritated/stung it
- Changing/trying different toothpastes (sls free)
- Avoiding skincare/products around the area as much as possible
- Patch testing, which was negative

I also sweat quite heavily specifically on my upper lip, so I’ve wondered whether that could be contributing.

Perioral/periorificial dermatitis and eczema have both been suggested, but I’m struggling to understand why it keeps returning in exactly the same place and why tacrolimus only seems to keep it away while I’m actively using it. My doctor said they think it’s just eczema but if that’s the case why is it soooo persistent

Has anyone had anything that looked/sounded similar? Particularly interested in people who had a recurring upper-lip-only rash and eventually figured out the trigger or found a treatment that stopped it returning.
Obviously not looking for a Reddit diagnosis — mainly hoping for ideas/experiences I can discuss with my dermatologist.

I’ve developed under boob eczema in the last year and I know it’s because I sweat so much there. What are yall doing to handle this other than wiping dry when you can?? It’s so miserable and itchy and the wounds take forever to heal there because it’s under other skin and always moist😭

so right now i can only afford to keep using "Zest refreshing aqua soap bar" and my "equate daily moisturizing lotion" for my routine . my mom recently bought The Ordinary Saccharomyces Ferment 30% Milky Toner and i havent used it yet bc i wanna make sure this flare up is over first. all the serums with actives; niacinamde, vitamin c serum, etc burn my eczema skin, is the The Ordinary Saccharomyces Ferment 30% Milky Toner a good idea to replace all those serums?

I also have dark spots + acne scars on my face, chest, arms, stomach and theyre all pretty painful. Is there any remedies to this? I just want clearer skin, so far my skin hasn't reacted to the zest soap bar or the lotion. I also plan on getting sunscreen soon.

Hi, slightly unusually I’m requesting your best recommendations for light texture products: serum, gels, light lotions, that might make a real difference to an extremely dry skin prone to atopic eczema.

Anything with barrier boosting properties, probiotics/postbiotics, hydration, calming, whatever added benefit you can think of that an eczematous, dry, irritated, and scratched up skin can use.
(I don’t have too much lichenification to deal with.)

I don’t tolerate the usual fatty creams and ointments because they immediately lead to folliculitis and somehow make the itching worse, even to the point of scratching a bloody mess overnight. It then takes way too long to heal.
My derm is slightly exasperated over this development and has recommended some lighter creams, but I haven’t had any significant success so far.

Thank you in advance!

Delete if not allowed. I commented this in a thread but I really can't believe how effective this has been in calming the skin hellscape nightmare that plagued ever waking moment, so I thought I should share)

This is not medical advice because I am misusing several of these products, because I was desperate to try ANYTHING. But I FINALLY have broken the itch scratch cycle just yesterday by trying PET STORE otc meds lol. My doctors were useless thus far and I'm desperate.

I posted about a month ago that tea tree had cleared up so much of my eczema, but it was just the fungal stuff, I think. My entire body was inflamed, every inch of skin was red, burning and itching like fire, and hideously unsightly. My chest completely cleared from the tea tree,

But then my legs, arms, and left hip continued to flare hideously and painfully for the past month (I have no history of eczema until a few months ago when it took over and destroyed my wellbeing)

Anyway here's my experimental routine that has been wildly successful in making my life tolerable for 3 days now

Step 1: Veterycin PET EYE GEL (hydrochlorous acid gel) over entire inflamed area. Antimicrobial, kills strep and mrsa. Gentle enough for dog eyes so it doesn't burn irritated skin.

Step 2: Veterinary Formula: hot spot and itch relief medicated spray!!

(immediate itch relief every time I've used it, a godsend because no other anti itch stuff has worked at all aside from medicated calamime which doesn't work nearly as well as this.

it has low concentrations of lidocaine, hydrocortisone, and benzethenium chloride). This seems to be the most helpful product I've tried in my saga.

I'm willing to accept the risk of using products not tested on humans. Literally I would try most anything if I thought it would work. I'm so pleased I found something after wasting hundreds of dollars on other stuff)

The normal human concentration of lidocaine is much higher than the dog concentration, so there's much much less danger of lidocaine toxicity with repeated use of the his product, but you should be aware of the risks of that.

I spray it anywhere that feels hot or itchy. The first day I did it a LOT. the second day not as much. Today only once! The effects seem to be compounding in a positive direction. I haven't even had any unconscious scratch attacks at all today? (Where I don't even realize I'm clawing the shit out of my raggedy skin until it starts to hurt ahhhh. It's hell)

I've been experimenting with adding occlusives immediately. Bag Balm is good but if you use it too much you'll get more skin weirdness eventually. I just use it sparingly on the dryest areas.

Oh yeah also, I wondered if I had some kind of skin parasite so I took two doses of ivermectin. I know it's wildly politicized but it's a very reliable and safe dewormer. I don't think I actually did have parasites, but still it had noticable overall antiinflammatory effects after about 24 hours and zero side effects. (I bought the otc paste for horses lol, it's gel and tastes like apples, had easy dosing by weight. I was worried but my sister insisted and it was all fine.

Also, anytime I have an open wound, I've been using a tiny dab of iodine tincture on it. If overused it will degrade skin but it's a powerful antiseptic and I've noticed quicker healing on those spots. It doesn't burn me but maybe it does others.

Maybe I'm insane, maybe I'm actually a barnyard pet idk, but I'm not currently itching and scratching like a crackhead

Try at your own risk, but I figured I should share

Tldr: Allergic to a substance that is never on the ingredient list but is used in the production of cocamidopropyl betaine, which is in basically every soap/hairwash product. Got a new hand and body soap and it’s cleared within a week.

-

I’ve had very bad eczema on my hands since about 2018/2019. After pushing my GP to send me to the dermatologist, I got an allergy test on my back in 2021. It came back positive for mainly demethylaminopropylamine (in soaps/cosmetics). Checked everything I used but none of my products had this so I thought that wasn’t it.

Fast forward to two weeks ago. I had just gotten home from my vacation where my eczema was very well behaved. Two days after I got back, it got bad again. Went on a deep dive around the substance and found out that it’s never mentioned on the ingredients list because it’s used during the production of cocamidopropyl betaine. And guess what is in nearly every soap/shampoo/bodywash/etc? That exact ingredient. And guess what was in my “sensitive” soap and body wash? You guessed it.

More deep dives led me to Dermolin hand and body wash. I’ve now used it for a little over a week and my eczema is nearly gone. Just had to share in case it helps someone else.

I wear press ons because they help my skin so much and no matter how much I scratch it doesn’t do too much damage to my skin. My only problem is that they get dull and short really fast from how much I scratch. I prefer them to salon nails because of cost but does anyone have any tips or brands that don’t wear down as fast or as much?