Products For Eczema

I have suffered from eczema my whole life and although the severity of it changes, I am always either trying to manage it or trying to prevent it from flaring up. I have a couple of prescription creams, the three in the bottom left corner of the photo, from my doctor which I reach for as a last resort, but I've been trying to find alternatives to these.

Especially since blogging, I've discovered a whole range of products that I reach for instead of relying on steroid creams. Unfortunately for me I get eczema flare ups from head to toe so I have different products for different areas.

Body // One of my favourite bath products is L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil as it's incredibly moisturising and I use it as a shower oil, bath oil and to shave my legs. Since my skin is incredibly sensitive, no matter how careful I am, the majority of the time my skin is irritated after shaving but using this has made a huge difference.
Although I don't currently have a tub of Lush Dream Cream, it's still up there as one of my favourite body moisturisers. It soothes and calms the skin and is a dream to apply, hence the name. I also love Dreamwash which is sort of like a shower cream. Again it helps to soothe and hydrate the skin and smells heavenly. It's the perfect pair before bedtime as it smells like lavender and insures I don't scratch my eczema in my sleep.
I only have a sample of Alva Salva Derm Skin Balance Cream at the moment but I've used and finished the full size and loved it. This cream has silver particles in it which is an anti-inflammatory and helps to calm the skin. I mainly applied this to my arms, especially the crease of my elbow, and it really helped to soothe my skin as I tend to itch in my sleep. I really need to repurchase this!
I'm still testing out the African Botanics Marula Intense Skin Repair Body Balm as I only bought it at the start of the year but it's working really well so far. It's expensive so I haven't been using it as an all over body moisturiser. Instead I've been concentrating it on areas where I actually have a flare up of eczema.
Pai Comfrey & Calendula Calming Body Cream is a new product to my eczema arsenal but one that I've fallen in love with pretty quickly. I can't use body moisturisers that are too thick and heavy as they makes my skin itchy which in turn makes my eczema even worse. This is a light cream but still packs a punch and is incredibly moisturising. Also as the name suggests, it's really calming on the skin. I'm not a huge fan of the scent but I can ignore it as the product works.
Weleda Skin Food is a product I can see myself repurchasing over and over again. It's a multi-purpose product as I use it on my face if my skin is visibly flaky, elbows and any other dry patches. Since working in a hospital, I wash my hands a lot more and use hand sanitiser regularly so I've really struggled with the eczema on my hands, especially my knuckles. This cream has really helped though and if I apply it each night before bed it really makes a difference to the condition and dryness of my skin. If the skin on my hands isn't dry, I'm also less likely to itch them in my sleep.

Yu-Be Moisturising Skin Cream is similar to Weleda Skin Food but I don't use this in my face. Instead I use it on my hands and elbows. It's a really thick cream that is incredibly moisturising and I love the camphor scent.  

Another product I don't currently have, but will be buying again soon, is First Aid Beauty Repair Cream. It's a very basic moisturiser, that you can use on your face as well, that just works so well. It doesn't have a fragrance, sinks in incredibly quickly and really helps to prevent eczema flaring up. 

Face // Boiron Homeoplasmine is another multi-purpose product but recently I've mainly been using it on my lips as they been incredibly dry, irritated and chapped. The texture of this reminds me of vaseline so it takes a while to sink it. If I'm going to use it on my body then I tend to use it before bed when I'm wearing my pyjamas.
I couldn't have gotten through winter without using balance Me Stellar Face Balm as the eczema on my face has been especially bad this year. There were days when I had horrible eczema patches on my eyebrows, the weirdest place to have dry skin, and this is the only product that worked. I have the full size tub at home and I carry a mini pot in my bag so I always have this with me. If you suffer from eczema on your face you really need to try this!
A couple of months ago I reacted to a micellar water that I was using to take my eye make- up off and therefore incredibly sore eczema patches flared up around my eyes. Not wanting to make it worse as the flare up was incredibly close to my eyes I randomly tried a mini tube of Caudalie Premier Cru The Eye Cream and it worked. I wouldn't normally spend £50 on an eye cream but I closed my eyes and entered my card details. When it comes to eczema, I've learnt that if something works then ignore the price.
Two products that have really helped to soothe and calm eczema and dry patches on my face are First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Instant Oatmeal Mask and Aveda Intensive Hydrating Mask. The oatmeal in the FAB mask is what makes it perfect for eczema as it soothes the skin. Another thing I like to do it put a cup of oats in a foot processor or blender and then fill up your bath, it's perfect if the eczema on my legs is flaring up.
I forgot to include the Weleda Calendula Face Cream in the photograph but this is the cream I reach for when I have eczema flare ups on my face and all other moisturisers just irritate my skin even more. It's incredibly gentle as it's made for babies and the calendula helps to soothe skin.
I have included Mario Badescu Control Cream in this list of products as I'm still using it occasionally but I am now treating it like a steroid cream from the doctor and only use it sparingly. If you're unaware, apparently unlisted ingredients have been found in Control Cream which is why it was nicknamed "magic cream" as it instantly made my eczema patches disappear after only a couple of uses. The two areas I used this was my eyebrows and cupids bow.
An alternative to the Mario Badescu cream is Trilogy Very Gentle Calming Fluid. It doesn't work in the same way of getting rid of the eczema patches immediately but it really helps to calm the skin, as the name suggests. It's also fragrance free which is something I've struggled to find as more often than not, it's the fragrance in products that will irritate my eczema. This is the old bottle as they've now changed the name to Very Gentle Calming Serum and changed the packaging slightly.
La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5 is the cream I reach for when the eczema on my eyebrows and cupid bow/top lip flares up. It's another good alternative to Control Cream but without the steroid cream addition.

Scalp // I've only had eczema on my scalp for about three years so it's still a pretty new thing for me and I'm still testing out products. The main problem for me is finding a shampoo that doesn't irritate my scalp even more. Pre-scalp eczema I could use any old shampoo from the supermarket, mainly Herbal Essence, but now I have to be really careful.
The main shampoo I use is Philip Kingsley flaky/Itchy Scalps which has completely changed how my scalp is. I still get eczema flare ups and dry flaky patches but compared to what my scalp was like a year or two ago, it's a huge improvement. Other brands I use/used and have worked for me are Ojon, Bedhead, Tara Smith and Barefoot. 
Philip Kingsley Flaky/Itchy Scalp Toner is another product that has changed how my scalp is. When I first bought it, I used it as a once a week treatment all over my scalp which really helped to clear up the eczema patches. Now my eczema is under control I only use a little bit of it along my hair line, which is where my eczema usually flares up, after I've towel dried my hair.

I would just like to add, these products work for me and although I hope they could work for you, everyone's skin is different especially when it comes to a skin conditioner like eczema.

Are there any products you think I'm missing? What's your favourite product to help with eczema?

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