u/satrongcha

I was basically eczema-free for a couple years after cutting out dietary triggers like dairy... And then I decided I wanted to learn how to apply makeup. Turns out micellar water is a trigger for me :(

So I've been dealing with red, scaley, flakey patches around my eyes for the past three weeks. The only positive thing is that, while they are sore, they are not itchy.

I've tried so many things, including 1% hydrocortisone after a visit to the GP. It was helping a bit, but I stopped using it after five days because I was too worried about the consequences of using steroids on and near my eyes. And then I very cleverly ate some cheesy tagliatelle and caused the flare-up to get even worse...

One of the many things I bought to try out was the extremely popular LPR Cicaplast Baume B5+. It wasn't entirely ineffective, but what I've found to work even better for me is something I added to my basket on a whim while buying the LPR Cicaplast: E45 Dermatitis Relief Cream. I wasn't very confident in this one (especially because I had already tried regular E45 and it hadn't worked) but decided to give it a go because of the positive reviews on Amazon (especially this one).

And I am so glad I did!!! Not only did the flaking and scaliness go away in one day, the redness is FINALLY reducing some!!! I've been using it for three days now. My skin barrier isn't entirely healed, not yet, but I believe it's well on track.

I mention a bicycle lane while speaking to my manager at work and she immediately starts complaining about cyclists, about how they hold traffic up and don't pay road tax... I didn't agree, so she started speaking to the site supervisor instead, and he not only agreed, he said cyclists "should all be shot".

I'm sure he'd say he was only joking, but this man is about as funny as a concussion after getting hit by a car.

Only a reminder, and I say "can be", because I know that slugging (i.e. putting an occlusive like Vaseline on over your moisturiser to lock in moisture overnight) has been discussed to death, and I'm aware it won't work for everyone/everything.

The skin around my eyes has been red and scaley the past couple of days due to my stupidly scrubbing at it with micellar water. Last night I put a layer of Aveeno Dermexa Daily Emollient Cream all over my face, and then a layer of Aveeno Skin Relief Repairing Ointment (which I prefer over Vaseline because it doesn't feel quite as thick and greasy; CeraVe and Aquaphor are popular alternatives) over that.

This morning I woke up and the redness had completely disappeared! And the texture of the skin wasn't nearly so crocodilian as it was before 😁

It also seems to work with E45—I put that on my face this morning beneath an occlusive layer before heading out for the day, and my skin was only the tiniest bit flakey by mid-afternoon 👍