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Getting Through the 'Danger Zone' This Fall with the Help of #AveenoEczemaTherapy! #MC
I participated in an Influencer Activation Program on behalf of Influence-Central for #AveenoEczemaTherapy. I received a sample to facilitate my review and a thank you item for participating.
Everyone has something they are insecure or self-conscious about. For me, it's my eczema. I've had eczema since I was a child. In fact, I can't remember a time when I didn't have it on some part of my body. I remember that it wasn't until I was 9 or 10 years old that I started to feel embarrassed about having patches of eczema on my arms, legs, neck, hands, or feet. As an adult, thanks to an increased level of self-control, I mostly only have eczema on my left hand. As an adult, I feel self-conscious about having unsightly eczema on a part of me that I can't cover up easily. After all these years, I'm 95% certain that my husband doesn't think about pulling away when I touch him with that hand, but I often wonder about what other people are thinking when they see my oddly textured and discolored skin.
Did you know that October is National Eczema Awareness Month? How fitting, considering I believe October to be the beginning of the danger zone when it comes to my eczema. Everyone's eczema is different. For me, if I do not get a handle on mine during the fall, I am in for a winter full of painful cracks and splits on my hand's eczema patches. It may sound pessimistic, but I have lost all hopes that my eczema will ever completely disappear. When October rolls around, my hope is for my eczema to remain minimal and not get worse, so that I can survive the cold, dry winter air without too much discomfort.
In addition to the dry and frigid New England winters, two other things contribute to my eczema flare ups . . . stress and puppies! Part of my feeling itchy on my eczema patches is psychological. It has been clear since I was a child that when I seriously get stressed out, I start to itch and scratch. The puppies don't actually cause my eczema to get worse, but cleaning up after them and washing my hands more times than I can count everyday definitely causes the eczema on my hands to grow dry and irritated.
Since the beginning of October, I have been using Aveeno Active Naturals Eczema Therapy products to keep my eczema under control. I have to say that I have been using my over-the-counter treatment for so long that I think I might have grown immune to it. That's why I was open to trying new Aveeno Eczema Therapy products. All the products contain ACTIVE NATURALS® Colloidal Oatmeal and are steroid-free.
Since my affected areas are only on my left hand, I soaked my hand in the Aveeno Eczema Therapy Bath Treatment in the bathroom sink for about 10 minutes at a time. I was truly shocked at how 'normal' my hand felt after soaking in this milky bath. I am usually at least mildly aware of the tightness and roughness on certain parts of my hand, but after a soak I did not feel any tightness at all. If I was not looking at or touching the surface of my hand, it actually felt like a normal hand. I wish I had time to soak my hand everyday.
The Aveeno Eczema Therapy Moisturizing Cream was something I would use on both my hands when they were feeling dry in general. The Aveeno Eczema Therapy Hand Cream, however, was perfect for only applying to the affected areas. The tip of the tube is narrow and dispenses just the right amount of cream to apply on my eczema patches for instant relief when they are feeling irritated.
After 3 weeks of using Aveeno Eczema Therapy products, my eczema has not worsened despite the dryer weather, the repeated hand washing, and daily stress. That is a huge win to me! I'm definitely going to stick with these Aveeno products throughout the fall and winter. Maybe it is possible to get through the winter without developing dry, cracked, bleeding skin on my hand!
If you haven't tried Aveeno Eczema Therapy products yet, you can find them nationwide at your local grocery, drug, and mass merchandise stores, as well as on AVEENO.com.