Reader Blogs – Eczema Sense

How We Finally Won the Battle Against Eczema

March 9, 2016/5 Comments/in Topical Steroids /by Keri

November 2013 – the tops of his feet became our hot spots that never really cleared. You can see the skin was raw and oozing here.

Many of you already know the numerous things we as parents will try to find, eliminate or treat our kid’s eczema triggers. I am part of a wonderful community of parents who offered advice on how to heal the skin naturally including essential oils, coconut oil, goat soap, elimination diets, detergents, probiotics, changing bath soaps, and all the best lotions. I appreciated every suggestion and sample thrown our way.

I hated the thought of using steroids on my infant and agreed that masking the symptoms of eczema was not the best way to solve our problems. We needed to find the problem causing the eczema. Callen was diagnosed with eczema at his 2 month appointment prior to receiving any vaccinations. I know some people question that. He was also exclusively breastfed. He had some red splotches on his belly and back that had been there a couple of weeks so I think it started around 6 weeks. Callen turned 1 in July 2013 and two months later we had our first blood tests with these results. Results: Moderate IGE for Eggs (.75) & Peanuts (3.28) and Low for Sesame Seed (.45)

November 2013

During this flare, spots spread further up his legs and on his face. His diaper area was the worst. He had never had diaper rash before so I was struggling to figure out if we were dealing with typical diaper rash or if the eczema was taking over.

November 2013

This happened while I was sitting in the bank drive-thru. We went to urgent care from there.

The next step was to see a dermatologist who prescribed the same steroids our pediatrician had us on except she directed us to use them more often. She didn’t believe in a link between food allergies and eczema. I came away from that appointment feeling disheartened that we were left to keep medicating without finding a reason for all the problems our little boy was having. Soon after, we had our first appointment with a highly recommended allergist for our first skin test. The appointment lasted over 4 hours. I hugged my son as they administered all the tiny pricks into his back with my husband behind me to hold my son’s arms. They both had tears. It was pretty hard.

Our first skin test with our allergist on 3/13/2014.

The results of the skin test confirmed a suspected peanut allergy (35 IGE). Callen had a Reese’s cup at Halloween 4 ½ months earlier and he vomited 20-30 minutes after. He was 16 months old. We assumed he got sick from something else that day but I knew vomiting was a sign of food allergy. We knew peanut was on the blood test but I had read about false positives and didn’t know for certain how much a food would really affect him. I guess he had to have had peanut sometime prior to Halloween in order for his body to show the reaction it did to the test but Halloween was the first time I know of and the first time he’d ever vomited.

Results: Peanut and Avocado were high with several other things like walnut, almond, horse, dust mites, dog dander and pollens from pecan, cedar, cottonwood, oak and Bermuda getting ranks too.

We assumed we were still missing a food allergy or other trigger. I got an app on my phone to help me track his skin and the allergy forecasts for that day to try to link something. We returned to the allergist for more skin testing. This time my husband and I traded places with him hugging my son and I held his arms. I was in tears this time around.

Our 2nd skin test, July 17, 2014

SKIN TEST RESULTS***
After this test, we removed even more food from Callen’s diet. Beef, chicken, and his favorite breakfast, oatmeal. We also assumed the creek and trees behind our house must be harboring one of the molds he had such a high reaction to. The eczema had always been a part of our lives but it was really starting to affect the whole family’s sleep. During the summer of 2014, we pulled out all the stops. Our last ditch efforts included removing what little carpet we had in our house which was only in the bedrooms. I took my son to my grandma’s house for a weekend while my husband laid laminate flooring so that my son was not even around when things got stirred up. We also sent our dog to live with my parents. I had her before I even started dating my husband! I spent over $100 on a chiropractor who didn’t accept insurance in the hopes he would have something new to offer. I purchased dust mite casing for our bedding which was $150.

We explored the idea that maybe eczema wasn’t the whole story. We were homebound, unable to drive anywhere because he’d remove his shoes and socks and start scratching while I was driving. Our neighbor drove us to the lab for more blood work to test Vitamin D and Zinc levels which both came back normal. I was far into my 2^nd pregnancy and restraining my son as they drew blood. I couldn’t help but sob. The poor tech probably had no idea how to respond to a desperate pregnant woman with a miserable toddler.

We were using wet wraps for 2 weeks and steroids and I saw no improvement. I decided to stop using them. I had a new Rx for Protopic…well, it wasn’t new. I’d had it for a while but had delayed trying it because it is an immunosuppressant. I used Protopic at the same time I stopped steroids. I didn’t realize it at the time but that was the absolute wrong way to go about it! Callen’s whole body flared up like never before.

I was on Facebook and found a group for TSW or Topical Steroid Withdrawal. I decided to give it a try and see if Callen could pull out of this vicious cycle on his own through persistence and really narrowing down his diet. Even the parts of his body that weren’t red felt like a reptile. This TSW period lasted about 2 months (August – September 2014) and it was the most depressing and tormenting time in our lives. He was eating only turkey and fruits and veggies. We removed the known allergies plus more including dairy, nightshades and citrus just to be extra cautious. And no sweets. His skin continued to deteriorate. I could not stop the tears from flowing. I was falling into some depressive thoughts feeling hopeless. I wondered how on earth my son would survive in life if his body’s largest organ, the skin, wasn’t functioning properly to protect him from his environment. We were running on very little sleep night after night for months. I started having visions of a funeral. I sobbed and sobbed and prayed and prayed. I quit my contract job earlier than planned to be his caregiver full-time. I told my boss there was no way around it. My son needed me more. Eczema was fully controlling every minute of our lives.

Raw feet

Eczema was in new places on his body that hadn’t really been problems before.

His back felt like a reptile. It broke my heart.

These pictures are so hard to look at.

Meal times were awful. We could hardly leave him alone in the high chair. His feet would be “scissoring” or “cricketing” as we called it. And here he is scratching with his fork.

During our “Topical Steroid Withdrawal” period, we contacted National Jewish Health in Denver, CO and got scheduled for a 2-week outpatient program starting roughly 2 weeks after our daughter was born. This was tricky to plan seeing how we didn’t know exactly when she’d be born and decided flying my husband and son would be the best option so that Callen wouldn’t be subjected to such a long road trip while fighting the itch seeing how we couldn’t even drive 5 miles from home. I recruited a friend to help me make the drive in order to keep our newborn out of the airports and other public spaces. This was my first night away from Callen and I worried out of my mind how Phil could manage a night on his own. Once Ada was born, she and I slept in another room so her waking wouldn’t set Callen off. Phil would text me to come help him in our room to apply more cream or just to go to the bathroom. I knew NJH would use steroids so the two nights prior to their flight, Phil used them and got by. Our trip to NJH was a lifesaver in helping us get a grasp on his skin. We started with an intensive program of soak and seal also known as wet wrapping. I was floored when my husband, Phil, sent me a picture of our son wrapped from head to toe while I was away getting us checked out of our hotel so we could move into the Ronald McDonald House. Callen’s skin started healing and they conducted more skin tests.

A total body wet wrap at National Jewish Health.

I was so glad to see different results and watch Callen pass the oral food challenges! This meant we could regain some normalcy in our lives like eating out. We were educated on sleep cycles and also found out that Callen had low iron which correlate with troubled sleep. We left NJH with a sense of cautious confidence. I cried tears of appreciation when we left. The NJH program costs around $17K. Thankfully, insurance covered most of it and our dear friends and family rallied with a Go Fund Me account which helped cover our portion. This relieved a lot of stress so that we could just focus on getting the training we needed to help our little guy heal. We returned home with a plan. We did two baths a day which required almost an hour each counting getting him fully creamed and dressed after a minimum soak of 20 minutes. This included medicated shampoo in the mornings and steroid on his scalp for the night bath. We also did nasal rinses which felt like waterboarding. He took Zyrtec and iron in his OJ every morning and Singulair and Atarax/Hydroxizine with melatonin every night. It doesn’t sound like a lot but it was pretty rigorous.

This was our set up of ointments and layers of clothing after each bath. This continued for 4 months post-NJH at home while I cared for a newborn at the same time and we did this twice a day everyday.

The proper way to get off of steroids is to taper off very slowly. NJH explained how to do this but I was really struggling to step down to anything less than daily applications which discouraged me. Just before we went to Denver, I started following a FB page for Dr. Aron. I decided it was time to register for Dr. Aron’s treatment. I was getting burnt out doing 2 baths/day after 5 months. If there was a better way, I wanted to check it out. Our first batch of cream was mixed by me at home. I thought I did a thorough job but after a conversation with a fellow dad in MO, decided I should give the professional compounders a shot because I wasn’t seeing results after about 2 weeks. Phil was asking to return to our previous steroid. I needed to know we were giving it a fair shot before we gave up. I picked up the new batch on Thur, Jan 29, 2015. I applied it once that evening but noticed the consistency wasn’t what I expected. The pharmacy didn’t get the mix exactly right. They used ointment for one of the components rather than cream. This isn’t what Dr. Aron prefers but our local pharmacies wouldn’t have a compounder in again until the following Monday so we used what we had.

Callen slept great that night. Was it a fluke? Was it because he’d had a cough and maybe he was just super tired from being sick? The next night Callen didn’t want to wear socks. Socks and full 100% cotton pajamas have been mandatory to help protect his skin. We decided it was fine and that if he started itching later, we’d put socks on then. Another night of great sleep. He was only waking at night during coughing fits. The next night he chose shorts to sleep in and we obliged thinking maybe it keeps him cooler at night. A full week later, and he slept great every single night! I weaned him off the small dose of melatonin he’d been getting during the first week and Atarax the second week. He’s taken that nightly since before our Denver trip in October…probably since August. We have 2 months behind us and are currently tapering successfully!

It’s hard to see but he had dry patches near his tear ducts.

We are 7 months into treatment and with summer being a hard season for us, we increased to two apps/day but only on a handful of very tiny places like two mid-fingers, two toes and the occasional place by his eye or under his nose. Outside of that, no additional lotions, creams or ointments!

So, if your child is showing allergies to every food they eat, don’t settle that that is permanent. If you are struggling to decrease steroid use, consider the power of diluting like Dr Aron does along with antibiotic to attack the staph. If you are making crazy Excel charts to help you remember where you last put which medicine, choose Aron Regime. It’s affordable and also the most simple and incredibly effective!

Just a quick update as of July 2016 – Callen’s feet had some issues by the end of June. Typical season for him. With a little medication under cling wrap on the bottom of his toes, his feet were healing up after a week. Too bad we waited a couple weeks thinking it was athlete’s foot. He’s back on track and we apply our Aron cream 1-2 x/daily on his feet and occasionally on his scalp. We are now 18 mo into treatment and still doing fabulous. Callen is growing well, eating well and has even started a food allergy treatment called Oral Immunotherapy that would not have been an option if his eczema was still out of control.

Eczema and Staph

December 4, 2015/0 Comments/in Topical Steroids /by admin

Staphylococcus aureus, often referred to as “staph,” is a very common bacteria. Approximately 25-30% of healthy people carry this organism on their skin or in their nose.

There is an important distinction to be made between staph colonization and infection.

Colonization = the presence of the bacteria, but no signs of illness or infection. Staph thrives in warm, moist places; common sites of colonization include the nostrils, belly button, underarms, groin, etc.

Infection = clinical signs of illness or inflammation (e.g., localized pain/tenderness, redness, warmth, swelling; pus; fever). These are due to tissue damage caused by invasion by the bacteria. Infection requires treatment – various treatment options exist. Treatment does not always require the use of an antibiotic.

Colonization of staph does not require treatment. Most individuals are unaware if they are colonized as the bacteria presents no symptoms.

The Relationship to Eczema

The role that staph plays in eczema is just now becoming widely known and it’s changing the way eczema is being treated. A 2013 published medical study brings to light the role that staph plays in eczema – revealing that “more than 90% of AD patients are colonized with Staphylococcus aureus in the lesional skin whereas most healthy individuals do not harbor the pathogen”.

If colonization doesn’t require a treatment, and “healthy” individuals routinely carry staph on their skin, should we be concerned that the incidence of bacterial colonization is this high for individuals suffering with atopic eczema?

In a newly published 2015 medical journal title “How bacterial pathogens colonize their hosts and invade deeper tissues“, we are presented with a detailed look of when some bacteria – the aforementioned Staphylococcus aureus in particular, are able to penetrate the skin, creating infection for the host.

The human body harbors a large number of bacteria but their localization in healthy individuals is normally restricted to certain body areas such as the skin, the mucosae of buccal and nasal cavities, vagina and, most importantly, the gastrointestinal tract. The internal tissues are normally sterile. In some circumstances, however, some opportunistic pathogens are able to enter the host by taking advantage of injuries or breaches in one of the different host barriers. In addition, bona fide pathogens have evolved mechanisms to cross host barriers and reach deeper organs where they proliferate and lead to severe disease for their host.

In short, it’s not “normal” to have staph outside of the places it’s typically found – and we know that eczema lesions can be found in every area of the body. When this happens, we run the risk of colonization turning into infection – and that infection can even spread internally.

As the paper continues, we are again reassured that “some bacteria are able to enter and to proliferate inside host cells.”

In the conclusion of the journal (section 5), we are informed that “whereas most pathogens are unable to cross the skin barrier, they can however access the underlying tissues via ruptures in the skin, such as cuts, microlesions or bites (in particular for pathogens transmitted via arthropod vectors).”

While the discussion of arthropod vectors (fleas, mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, etc) are a topic for a different conversation, we find that open skin ruptures and microlesions (common with eczema) will both allow the colonization of bacteria to enter the cells and create infection.

However, increasing evidence now shows that bacteria initially thought to remain strictly extracellular can indeed be found inside host cells as exemplified by the case of Staphylococcus aureus.

In summarizing our pathogen puzzle, we now know that over 90% of eczema lesions are colonized with Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. This colonization can turn to infection at any time – whereas most people carrying staph in the usual places staph is found may never have an issue. These individuals are low risk while eczema sufferers have an extremely high risk of bacterial infection. These medical facts might well explain why a short “burst” of antibiotics does little for ongoing eczema treatments. This conventional approach may work temporarily but so long as there are open wounds and the eczema is untreated, the colonization of staph bacteria remains or returns – and thus, the risk of infection increases.

This understanding gives further insight to the success of Dr. Aron’s treatment for atopic eczema, the “Aron Regime”. Dr. Aron insists that conventional antibiotic prescriptions are not appropriate for atopic eczema, and neither are topical steroids alone. By prescribing a longer term dose of antibiotics in a heavily diluted moisturizer along with a topical steroid, the bacterial element of atopic eczema is properly addressed while inflammation is reduced and the skin continues to be moisturized. Healing can finally happen.

Dr. Aron’s is the good news we’ve been waiting to hear, for the world of eczema and red skin sufferers.

Are you curious if you have staph bacteria that puts you at risk of infection? Talk to your doctor and request a skin swab of the eczema lesion.

From the Avene Clinic to Dr. Aron

October 27, 2015/1 Comment/in Testimonial /by Vanessa

My daughter (9 yrs old) has had eczema since she was a few weeks old. We initially held it at bay with diet/breastfeeding and moisturising daily. She had a major flare following contact with raw egg and she was subsequently diagnosed with egg, milk, and dust mite allergy. She has always tested negative for coeliac disease and tolerates gluten well. We reduced/avoided all triggers and her eczema was managed well except for a few flare ups that were easily managed by short term low potency steroid until she was about 5.

Within a week of starting school Phoebe was covered with inflamed infected eczema. We diligently followed all the medical advice and finally reached a point where we could manage but not control her eczema with daily bleach baths, wet wrapping, steroids and topical antibiotic when needed. In 2014, Phoebe’s condition deteriorated again and so we saved and saved and sent her to the Avene Clinic for treatment. That treatment was amazing and it was the first relief she had experienced for years. When we returned home to Australia her skin almost immediately flared again. She had picked up another infection during our travels. We managed to get her skin back under control but it slowly deteriorated until we decided to return to Avene in September 2015.

We were extremely hopeful that with the second trip to Avene her skin would strengthen and this time she would be able to keep it clear and smooth. This time around even Avene didn’t work. Phoebe seemed to be allergic to Staph bacteria and nothing seemed to be able to control it.

Out of desperation I had posted a Facebook photo of Phoebe and a friend of a friend pointed me to Dr Aron. I was hugely sceptical. I did the research and the theory of the Aron Regime stood up, so I signed up. I am one week into treatment and its the first time Phoebe’s eczema has been under control for years.

SO, if you are doing everything; topical steroids, topical antibiotic, antihistamine, bleach baths, wet wrapping, oral antibiotics, probiotics, moisturising several times a day, and are still struggling with controlling your child’s eczema then you are where I was on 7th September this year.

Picture #1 is of Phoebe with an overwhelming staph infection. We were doing steroid, topical antibiotic, compresses/wet wraps, antihistamine, bleach baths and moisturising several times a day.

Picture #2 is of Phoebe on 23rd September after weeks of two different oral antibiotics in addition to all the treatment listed above.

Picture #3 is of Phoebe the night she return after 3 weeks of intensive hydrotherapy at Avene, France. There they had to continue oral antibiotic after she flared again in week 1 of treatment.

Picture#4 is of Phoebe after 1 week of the Dr. Aron creme. We are now doing 5 apps of the creme on her body and 3 apps on her face. No wet wraps, no oral antibiotic, no bleach baths, no additional moisturiser.

The most amazing thing is that Phoebe is no longer itchy.

You can find out more about Dr. Aron’s eczema treatment by visiting his Dr. Aron website or the Dr. Aron Eczema Treatment Discussion page.

Contemplating Dr. Aron’s Treatment

October 16, 2015/1 Comment/in Testimonial /by Kristy

I am a registered nurse.I have 3 children. My daughter, who is my last child, was born w eczema.

This was our life…

Go to the dr get some hydrocortisone.. Use it often.. Keeps coming back.. People start giving recommendation for creams.. Use Aquaphor, Eucerin, Cetaphil. Some work but only for a little while. Back to the doctor. Here’s another steroid that’s a little stronger.. Yay – it worked. But not for long. So we use aveeno baths, oatmeal baths some more creams. Use free and clear they say.. Free and clear – everything is bought. No help. Trip back to the doctor. Go to the allergist and get a list of allergies. Avoid gluten, avoid dairy and you will see improvement. Yay – but not for long.

So you buy some books.. The eczema diet, how to cure eczema. You feed your baby papaya because it’s great for the skin the book says.. But she hates it along with the bone broth so you’re feeling defeated yet again.

Let me try some Vaseline with the steroid or maybe Cervae. Oh what the hell – slap on the coconut oil too. No help.

Let’s see the dermatologist..

Here’s 3 meds.. 2 are steroids… Yay – some relief but not for long. So what’s next? More steroids but let’s try a bleach bath or a vinegar one. That will work they say. Hey wrap that baby up in wet pajamas filled with creams and put her to bed. Tomorrow will be better – but tomorrow is Zyrtec in the morning, Benadryl in the afternoon and don’t forget the nightly Atarax. All day long – apply, apply the meds.. The foam steroid and the cream. Oh no – the ointment topical is better they say.

We are still covered in this awful disease so it’s back to the doctor.

Try some immunosuppressant creams. “It’s ok the black box warning was only tested on rats no cancer in kids” they say.

So you’re home and helpless and hesitantly applying the cream hoping for a miracle but relief is short lived. Here’s some oral steroids..

“I’m sorry honey. You don’t like the taste. I will go to pharmacy and have it flavored. I will put it in juice, milk, even soda if you will just drink it. I’m sorry my precious girl! I am trying my best to help you. After you’re wrapped like a mummy, I will search the Internet for the answers.

And then you stumble upon Dr. Aron…

And you wonder and contemplate, but the internet is a scary place. How can you be sure? You ask your doctor and the answer is that “steroids and antibiotic use is not meant long term.” You sit and suddenly it dawns on you..

I have been applying steroids for 5 years straight. Each time a new one or a new combo of multiple meds. How can you say what you have been doing isn’t long term???? They say “Eczema is a chronic condition and should b treated w steroids no more than a week or 2.” A diabetic, an asthmatic, a person with high blood pressure are people treated long term because it’s considered “chronic” – as it should be for eczema sufferers.

So I contemplated..

What’s 6 more months of giving this a try??? It’s heavily diluted. What do I have to lose? It’s been 5 years of long term steroid use. So I did it.. I bit the bullet.. I tried Dr. Aron.

5 months later my baby is unwrapped and healthy and happy. We no longer use the cream even daily!!! We were given our lives back.. And I would never spend another minute giving any doctor the time of day to tell me about long term steroid use because in reality, that’s what they are doing to our children anyway!!!

Very thankful to Dr. Aron and the Dr. Aron Facebook group.

Before and after pic of topical steroid withdrawal

Leaving Topical Steroid Withdrawal Behind and Finding Healing

September 11, 2015/3 Comments/in Testimonial /by Kasey

I’ve had eczema since around the age of 7. In the past few months, I can only understand that it was an emotional trauma that set it off. With help from my therapist (yes I got so ill I had to see a therapist) we went back through the years and found that to be the only likely trigger. So… between the age of 7 to around 9 months ago I’ve had a long eczema journey. I don’t remember it that much as a child, just a lot of doctors visits and sleeping in gloves and waking up in a bed of my own blood. For my mum I think it was pretty tough on her. Doctors wouldn’t send me to a dermatologist (got to love the NHS) and so each time we would be sent home with a new cream and it was always the same process; tears, pain, progress and then eczema again. Nothing ever really worked. Finally at 13 I was sent to a dermatologist. The awkward self conscious teen seemed to win them over. I was prescribed Eumovate, Elecon and Doublebase. It worked so much better than anything else I’d had and the end seemed to be in sight. It then became very sporadic. Months of just double base apps several times a day, always a mild itch and a flare every few months. I do always remember that this got worse at university. I have recently discovered my skins intolerance to alcohol so anybody who went to university can clearly understand why the flare ups got so bad and came much more often than usual.

At times it would get me down but I always considered myself to have mild eczema. I still complained a lot but I distinctly remember seeing a boy of about 7 in the dermatologists waiting room, red raw and seeping and couldn’t believe how bad some children had it.

Around November/December last year I had my drink spiked, badly, and I was ill for around 3 or 4 days. My skin reacted very, very badly. Knowing that after a lot of alcohol my flares were bad I put it down to that. I plopped on some steroids but it didn’t seem to go away as fast as it usually. This is where it all began.

I was advised by a work colleague to go about it the natural way and to “clear” the eczema from my body. At this time I had no idea that TSW (topical steroid withdrawal) was actually a ‘thing’. I just thought of it as a body cleanse. So I stopped all creams and started using organic oils and started drinking green clay. By the first week of January it had begun. I came out of the shower one morning and my face was burning hot and bright red. I thought I’d just had the shower on too hot. (Anyone with eczema knows the relief of hot water on itchy skin). This continued through the day and the next and the next…

3 weeks in and it was worse, much worse. I had at this point stopped all meat and alcohol and am relying on oils and green clay water mix for relief. The dryness began and the redness developed into a constant, deep intense pain. My skin got tight, it ripped, it seeped, and clothes and human contact felt like burns to the touch. I had never experienced anything like this before. Later my eyes swelled everyday and I’d wake up in the morning and they’d be glued shut. At night time itching was the worst and I’d become accustomed to 3 hours sleep a night. I was in hell.

I went through almost 8 months of TSW and they were without a doubt, the worst 8 months of my entire life. Quite frankly I didn’t have a life. I stopped speaking to all my friends and family, my relationship with my boyfriend was getting worse day by day. Imagine someone you love touching you and it feels like they’re burning you. Every sexual desire no longer existed. I was so repulsed by myself I couldn’t understand why he would still want to be intimate with me. The only time we spent close to one another was when he was applying oil to my elephant like dry skin or when he’d have to hold me so tight to bring me down from one of my panic attacks. For him too, it was hell and it tore us apart.

I cried every single day and would have to rock myself to sleep wrapped in bandages and layers because my own skin was nauseating to the touch. I’ve had poison leak out of my face, every day (at least 3 times) I’d have to sweep up piles of my own dead skin, I’ve vomited from the pain and passed out from the pain. I developed anxiety and panic attacks. I became so terrified to shower. I’ve torn my own skin open from scratching because it became so thin and weak and lost I lost about 2 and a half stone (in 2 months or maybe even less) at sheer repulsion of myself that it destroyed my appetite – not to mention I didn’t sleep through the night. Ever.

Then the paranoia set in. I became obsessed. I lived on rice and veg as I was too scared to put anything else in my body in case it would affect my skin more. I became terrified of steroids, and almost anything pharmaceutical. I even refused to take paracetamol at one stage as I was convinced all medicine was made to give me and other people cancer. My body and now my brain became my a prison. I was in a dark, bad place. My GP wanted to put me on anti depressants, and I’m not sure if I would have ever done anything but I thought numerous times about suicide. I just wanted it to all go away. I wanted to live in the dark and never see or speak to anyone ever again.

In May 2015 a man approached me in the park on day while I was working. He clearly saw me scratching and I was so annoyed that he asked as it made me so self conscious. He told me about a man named Dr Aron who had saved his leg from a spider bite infection and had treated his wife for eczema. I thought this man was crazy. He gave me Dr Arons number and told me to call him that day and said that once I had the cream, within a week I’d have my life back. What?! how could I believe that? All this time and someone could make me normal in a week… I didn’t believe it.

I joined the Dr. Aron page on Facebook, looked at Dr. Aron’s website and was still in disbelief. The state I was in I don’t think I wanted to believe it. I had gone through the worst period of my life and I felt like it had counted for nothing.

One day I was lying on my floor in tears watching the liquid just seep out of my skin and it couldn’t take a day more so I sent off my payment and waited…

The second night of cream I slept through the entire night – the first time in 8 months. I don’t think I can describe that feeling. The words don’t exist. I went back home to start the first week of treatment and rest so my mum could help and I called her in and sat and cried in her arms at the prospect that this all might be over.

I’m now 6 weeks in and I have my life back! I’m happy, positive, and so excited to get up in the morning. My world has changed. I had really forgotten what happiness was. Parts of my skin are perfect but my arms calves and feet are proving to be a bit stubborn, but this isn’t even 1% of what I went through before. The tough parts still itch and aren’t very attractive but I know I’ve suffered for a while and the healing will take time. Dr Aron has saved my life!

If you told me taking this cream would work but would knock 20 years off my life I’d still take! I never want to go through what I have this past year.

My skin is healing so fast but the psychological scars are still there. I think they are the ones that take the longest to heal.

Before and After using steroids for eczema

The Best Eczema Treatment In The World

June 18, 2015/1 Comment/in Topical Steroids /by Chris

Thought I’d share my story in a nutshell for both sufferers and parents. I am an adult, age 26 on Dr. Aron’s Regime.

Last year, I did TSW (topical steroid withdrawal) and I Went through hell – intense flakes, oozing, incessant itch, bacterial infections and debilitation. I lost my job, confidence, social life… almost my wife.

I Learned about Dr. Aron and with insights from members of this Dr. Aron Facebook page, I learned more about overcoming my irrational fear of steroids that I built over weeks of self-diagnosing.

I decided to reach out to Dr. Aron and he even helped facilitate getting my prescription here in Toronto, Canada. I received my cream within 24 hours of first contact.

Within 48 hours from first application, I felt like I had my life back! I’ve been on his regime since March of 2015 and I am now in the process of tapering use. After checkup, there appears to be no systemic effects or issues with thyroid, adrenals, cortisol levels thus far.

To boot, Dr. Aron’s support and custom-tailored treatment has been consistent over the months. His genius mixture is the only thing that has been able to really keep my skin under control long-term… you can bet I’ve practically tried everything before finding this guy!

Like holy smokes… I still can’t believe this.

These photos were taken earlier this year when I started his regime and still going strong.

Bath Time is Fun Again!

May 21, 2015/0 Comments/in Testimonial /by Stephanie Mundell

Before Dr. Aron, bath time involved stripping our little one while he screamed that he wasn’t dirty and ripped his skin open when we weren’t looking. It involved adding bleach to his bath, and having bandages for his arms and legs on stand by, along with a steroid and Vaseline. It always involved screaming, tears…and promises to be good if we’d just end the bath. Heart wrenching in ways that folks who don’t deal with eczema in their little ones don’t even realize.

Today…rather than prying footie jammies off of a screaming 3 year old who has so many strong opinions about the way things should work…he stripped down and hopped in the bath with glee! He played with toys and even did the hair washing thing with laughing….He’s been running a low grade fever for 4 days…its viral (which is eh…as he’s allergic to so many antibiotics anyway), so we’re in symptom treating and wait and see….but he’s so gosh darn cheerful and isn’t ripping his flesh open just because his nose is running. We have a minor flare but its endurable.
To say that I am grateful is a gross understatement. Dr. Aron gave us our life back.

Seeing is Believing

April 9, 2015/0 Comments/in Testimonial /by Jennifer Roblin

This is my 2 week update, using Dr. Aron’s treatment for my child’s eczema.

They say that seeing is believing and if that is the case, then my daughter Elizabeth should certainly help many of you see what a difference this past 2 weeks has made. 14 days of Dr Aron and I don’t recognize this happy, cheerful, playful, smiley child. Before 2 weeks ago, she was always crying, itchy, screaming, miserable, not sleeping and it made all of us stressed to the max and downright sad. Her life revolved around wet wraps, gauze, bandages, anti itch creams, Atarax and daily baths that made her scream bloody murder. To say I was a prisoner in my own home is an understatement. I’d take her to the grocery store sometimes and I’d get asked if she had measles. Not now. 2 weeks ago I told her that we were no longer wet wrapping and that we were going to make her better. Part of me thought I was lying to her. Most of me knew I was lying to myself because I really thought, like every other treatment, that this wasn’t going to work. Well, the joke is on me. Not only has it been working, it has worked in a way I can’t even comprehend.

We started out at 5 applications a day and are now down to 3. I’ll be contacting Dr Aron in a couple of more days, as he requested, and I’m hoping to drop it down even further. I’ll do another update in a week. That should be a good one because she will see our family doctor and he hasn’t seen her since a week before this treatment started and I’d taken her in because she’d torn her arm open again. Last time he saw her, it looked like she was attacked by a cheese grater.

For moderate cases of eczema too!

March 18, 2015/0 Comments/in Testimonial /by Sheila Murray

I used to think that Dr Aron wasn’t right for us because our daughter Anna’s eczema wasn’t “bad” enough.

Yes, Anna was seen by hospital dermatology (even though they were trying their best to discharge her). Yes, we were applying strong, neat steroids all over her body every week (to not particularly good effect). And yes, her eczema had a huge impact on our family life and was probably the thing that was stressing me out the most (much more than her brother’s type 1 diabetes, which is quite saying something since managing diabetes is a 24-hour job and can be life-threatening if things go badly wrong).

But Anna wasn’t missing school, she wasn’t being hospitalised for infections and she was even sleeping ok (albeit scratching while she slept). Anna’s eczema didn’t have nearly the same devastating impact as many of Dr Aron’s other patients I read about and, in my head at least, doing an online consultation with a dermatologist half way around the world was the sort of thing that only a very desperate person would do.

In July 2014, after reading about more and more happy eczema-turns-good stories in the ‘Dr Aron eczema treatment discussion group’ (and there were only about 100 members in the group at that time compared to over 2000 now), I decided that enough was enough and I wanted Anna to enjoy the benefits of the Aron regime too. A few days later, our first pot of cream arrived and we haven’t looked back. She has been practically eczema-symptom-free ever since and life is great. My one regret, which is a common one amongst Dr Aron patients, is that we didn’t start sooner.

However mild, moderate or severe you think you or your child’s eczema is, the fact that you are reading this means that the eczema is an issue for you (normal people don’t read eczema websites for fun!). So I say to you, why not give Dr Aron a go? What have you got to lose? I have heard so many people say it is the best decision they ever made!