This seems like a never ending battle, not life threatening but extremely debilitating!

Skin, nail and hair health
1

I've had dermatitis for about 11 years now. None of my dermatologists can seem to prescribe an effective treatment. Sure, some will give it a few days of temporary relief but before long the scaling, redness, itchiness and mental anguish returns. It attacks my scalp, resulting in massive hair loss and eyebrows, which are also being thinned out. Some mornings I'll wake up to reptilean like scales throughout my eyebrows. I was told to put P&S lotion on them, to break down the scales, which only seems to make them a liquid clump that when washed away, takes half my eyebrows along with it.

I eventually shaved my head and had microscalp pigmentation done, which is highly recommended if you like to have the appearance of at least stubble on your head. The eyebrows, I sometimes wish I could shave off and do the same thing, but I know that would look nuts, lol. After a while, it seems the best thing is to still realize there are far worse ailments out there, have faith that someone will offer up an effective treatment and focus on the positive things in life. One more thing, does anyone else with dermatitis notice that when sweating heavily, instead of scaling, there's a white mucous substance oozing from the area effected ??? (eyebrows in my case)

Any feedback or helpful tips would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

2

Hi Patrick,

Sorry to hear about your condition, which also affected me in a very similar way on the legs for 20 years. The oozing, inflammation, and scaling prevented my hair from growing back on the affected areas during that time. Thanks to a 6 month treatment with oral St. John's Wort Extract, I have now been completely cured for over 3 years.

Doctors cannot help you at the time because the science behind the disease is only in its infancy and has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, but here is what I found out and you can also easily read about with a few keystrokes in your search engine:

Researchers now believe there are 2 main factors behind dermatitis:

1) A loss of impermeability of the skin caused by either environmental or genetic factors. Usually, this happens because the keratinocytes that make up your skin's protection do not proliferate or differentiate properly.

2) Because your skin has become permeable, it allows external pathogens to colonize it, much like parasites. Usually, the main offender is the common but antibiotic-resistant strain of Staphylococcus Aureus.

To read more about this, simply type "Eczema and Staphylococcus Aureus what's the connection?" in your search engine.

There are many natural substances that can help combat Staphylococcus Aureus on your skin surface: Aloe Vera, Comfrey, Calendula, Turmeric, and St. John's Wort, among many others, You may have already read that patients suffering from various skin ailments have found relief by using creams containing these compounds. Results vary from person to person.

As for St. John's Wort, researchers believe that it can also help repair skin abrasions by stimulating the proliferation and differentiation of keratinocytes. For centuries, St. John's Wort had been used to treat minor skin abrasions and burns. Today, it is widely used to help combat depression and anxiety but science is starting to uncover the reasons why it may also be very helpful against skin disease. There have been small-scale clinical trials that have proven the efficiency of a SJW cream against eczema - just type: "St-John's Wort Eczema Clinical Trial" in your search engine and you should find a few links to read more about this.

I am just an anecdote so my success story does not prove anything, but I do know that after 6 weeks of treatment with oral SJW, most of my oozing, inflammation and scaling were gone. After 6 months, the long-term scarring from 20 years of combat with the disease had dissappeared. New skin and new hair were present and have remained since then... I am disease-free!

I can't promise you anything because each person is unique and science is incomplete. Additionally, some people have or can develop allergies to any substance. Some people can also experience interactions when taking natural substances along with other medication, and SJW is known to produce such interactions. But I do hope that this info may guide you and that if you wish to experiment, you will either find relief or a cure with time in your personal case. I believe patience is an important key.

Good luck,

Greg.

 

3

Hi patrickV, for years I have suffered from a similar condition affecting mainly my scalp and eyebrows. The skin would go through two phases. In the first, my scalp would feel tight and dry like the outer skin of an onion. After that rather large flakes, that stick to the skin would form. In the second phase, the skin would become red and inflamed and very itchy. Scratching and removing the flakes would make everything worse as the wounds would weep a clear liquid.

After many visits to dermatologists and allergy tests, I was left none the wiser. Strangely, medicated shampoos aggravated the condition. One morning I found that the area around my mouth looked like burn marks. After comparing the ingredients of my toothpaste and my shampoo I found one common ingredient: sodium lauryl sulfate. Later, I found out that I am allergic to sulfonated fatty acids that are used in many foaming and degreasing products from shampoo to liquid soap, toothpaste, and even dishwashing soap. 

After sourcing an SLS free shampoo the itching stopped almost instantly after washing my hair. It hardly took more than a week and the scales disappeared as well. 

After so many years of skin problems, I am sure you have been tested for common allergies. 

Even if you are not allergic to SLS I would recommend the use of the mildest shampoo, shaving cream, and soap that you can find. Harsh cleaning products can contribute to increasing the permeability of your skin. Like greg7350 mentioned above, this can lead to a reduced ability of the skin to defend itself against environmental factors like microorganisms (and/or harmful chemicals).  

The following remedies have helped me throughout the years to treat and prevent a flare-up of my dermatitis. They all have antibacterial and antifungal properties. 

1) To remove flakes you could try a medicated shampoo called Ceanel. It has descaling properties and it used for the management of psoriasis and seborrhoeic dermatitis. It is very different from P&S lotion and clears flakes rather well.  

2) You could try Propolis spray. I use a 10 percent solution in ethanol. It leaves a thin layer of resin on your skin that acts as a barrier and promotes healing and reduces itching. Some people are allergic to bee products so if you want to try this I would recommend using it on a small area first.  For me, this has been the best treatment option. 

3) Another thing you can try is zinc pyrithione spray. 

4

Thanks for the advice, Greg! I appreciate your help and actually picked up some St.John's Wort serum in a dropper along with Tumeric. I swear that after applying the SJW, I could feel it taking effect. I'm going to also see an allergerist, to find out if there's anything that I'm currently using that may be a contributing factor to the flare ups.

If the combination of SJW and Tumeric actually does the trick, then I owe you a huge debt of gratitude and will be sure to share this valuable information with others. I hate the idea that all of the dermatologists out there, are suppressing homeopathic remedies and instead prescribing synthetics that doesn't even come close to an effective treatment. Thanks again, greatly appreciate it.

5

Hey Dan,

Thanks for getting back to me. Someone on here suggested Tumeric and St. John's

Wort to combat dermatitis. Hopefully this will be an effective combination, this is the first day that I'm on it. I will ask my doctor about Ceanel and Propolis spray, just in case those damn scales do come back. I really do appreciate the insightful points that you made, its awesome to know there's still people out there willing to take their time to help others.

6

Hi Patrick,

I'm glad that you already took the initiative to experiment in hope of contributing to your own well-being and potentially that of others who are still suffering from this puzzling disease. Please don't jump to conclusions too quickly if you think that you are getting better. It takes time to confirm that a potential solution is truly working. I actually waited over a year after the dissappearance of all my symptoms before posting on the subject; and to this day, I still don't even have an absolute guarantee that I will never suffer from dermatitis again.

The information I am sharing with you is NOT being suppressed as you can indeed verify that it is available to anyone who is willing to search for it; it is also relatively new information. Please understand that dermatologists and health practicioners are overwhelmed with diseases and potential solutions for their patients. It takes time to change habits and to accept new ideas, when possible; and no medication is perfect for everyone as you already know. There is only hope to reduce other people's suffering but there never is an absolute guarantee because there are so many unknowns, so many complex issues surrounding each individual body.

I am (was / will be) just a suffering patient like yourself... Owe your gratitude to all those who have devoted countless hours of their lives and careers in true research, in hope of eventually making our lives in the flesh a bit less miserable! They are all trying within the tough limitations we all experience one day or another in the physical world.

All the best,

Greg.