Nighttime Hysteria

You poor thing! I know that it breaks your heart seeing your precious son in agony. Bless his heart. I do hope some of the advice given by the other moms provide a solution for your son's eczema. I don't have any personal experience with a case such as this, but as I read your post, I thought maybe you could try putting on gloves to ease the scratching? He may take them off, but it's worth a try. Keep us posted...your feedback may help another mom. Take care and hang in there.

I have three children that have eczema, the youngest is the worst. The dermatoligist and doctor said it was the worse case they have ever seen! I used to cry, especially at night, because there was nothing I could do! She is 6 now, and this is what I did. First have him allery tested! I noticed "triggers" when she ate certain things( which it turned out she's allrgic to nearly everything), environmental and oral. If you have any animals, dust, anyone who smokes, keep these things away from him! Even playing in the dirt, or grass would inflame my daughter! My daughter no longer gets booster shots. I noticed everytime she did, the symptoms came back with a vengeance. This seems extreme, but when you've walked in our shoes, you'll know where I'm coming from. My doctor and school nurse even agreed with this one after seeing what happened after the shots!Go to the C.D.C website, and they list what they put in these shots. My daughter gets a bleach bath 2 times a week, 1/2 cup of bleach in 1/2 tub of water, this disinfects and aids healing of the sores,lukewarm water, and do not bathe him everyday. Eczema sufferers do not retain moisture in their skin, so they will dry out if you bathe too often. Cut the nails extremely short, and teach him to scratch with his knuckles. Lastly, and probably most important, get a lotion sold at Wal-Greens, and sometimes Target, usually in the ointment section, called "Dermarest Eczema Medicated Lotion", it is in a white box with green and blue striping. I call this our miracle lotion!!! We tried everything, and tried this one day, because nothing was left! 3 years later, I swear by it to anyone.Also, I almost forgot, a dose of Benadryl at night before he goes to sleep, will help alleviate his symptoms and help him rest! Please let me know how he's doing, or if you have anymore questions. Finding a cure for this disorder is one of my passions.

Take him to the doctor and don't take the fact it is just eczema for an answer. He must have relief from the itch. When I had the chicken pox at 14 years old, I itched so bad that it felt like it was burning and it was driving me crazy. The only thing that gave me relief was cool compresses.

I have a child that has eczema(for 9 years) and until we got it under control his hands would itch so bad that he would eat them. With the fact that he is scratching until he bleeds he is a prime canidate for impetego. He most likely needs an antihistamine (Zyrtec or Atarax) to help control the itch. Sure the cause of the eczema and not sleeping through the night may be allergies, but you need to find relief to the suffering while your trying to find the cause. It often takes a lot to find the root of the allergy and unfortuantly, sometimes the doctors/tests aren't much help. A good place to start is your sons favorite food that he eats daily. The body is very strange in that it often craves the very food it is allergic. You are going to have to trust you instincts and be an advocate for you son.

The reason that the cartoon and the music helps when nothing else does, is most likely it is taking his mind off of the itch. Holding him down just makes it worse because it is drawing attention to the itch. Anxiety makes the itch worse. Make sure your son isn't overheating when he sleeps because the sweat can make the itch worse.

One last thing make sure that you are using a fragrance free detergent and double rinsing his sheets and clothing. As far as soap, my son must use Cetraphil antibacterial soap and California Baby Sensitive Shampoo/bodywash. I also have to cream him up with either aquaphor or aveeno fragrance free. He takes his antihistamine nightly. Caking the aquaphor on his hands and then putting socks on them also help. If at all possible make sure your son is sleeping in 100% cotton pjs without the flame retardent. My son reacted to the flame retardent and did better with a looser cotton pj, sometimes it was just better to sleep in an oversize cotton shirt. I know this is dangerous because of the fire hazard, however if the clothes are setting him on fire and harming his health then you have to find another solution.

Good luck.

Could the hysteria be night terrors and something completely different from the eczema? Not sure, just thought that might be something you could check into, though I don't know if that is possible at his age.

My son had mild eczema that was immediately brought under control with a steroid cream the doctor prescribed. It looks like many people have given you ideas to use, I would definitely check with your doctor on ways to control the eczema.

M.

I don't know whether or not you've tried Cetaphil lotion, but that worked well for my kids. Their eczema was not as bad as what you are describing; however, a friend who has very bad eczema herself recommended it to me. I used it EVERY day (after bath if they had a bath - I only bathed them every other day during flare ups - per my pediatrician's instructions). It really seemed to help.
Good luck!

It sounds like he is painfully being bothered by his eczema. Our daughter has eczema and we have a prescription cream (we like the cream version better than the ointment because it rubs in better). This is a skin condition that you have to rigourously attempt to control. The detergent you use for his clothes needs to be for sensitive skin and the soap he uses needs to be very mild also. Use Lubriderm lotion (recommended by our doctor and it's fine for babies) each day after bath and even in the morning to help keep his skin from getting dry. You can apply the prescription cream a couple of times a day. If we do this religiously, it will all but clear her skin up within just week or two. Before her, I wasn't familiar with eczema at all. She too will scratch until it bleeds. If you don't work very hard to control it, it will worsen even more and then scab over and still be very itchy. You will run the risk of a bacterial infection at that time. It's definitely a commitment to control but it can be done and it's SO worth it for their peace and rest.

Not sure abour the hysteria but regarding the eczema my doctor recommended using vaseline all over when the come out of the bath. Do not dry them just while slightly wet put the vaseline on. It really helped my son. I do it now just like once a week or if I see it starting to come back. Originally I was using Aquapor but my childrens dr said vaseline does it better for less.

Our son has eczema too and was doing the same thing as yours. Take your baby to a pediatric allergy doctor. Eczema is an allergy (skin allergy). We have been prescribed various creams and medicines (they do work). It may take a little while and several tests to determine what he is allergic to. Good Luck!

My advice a new doctor there is no way that baby should be scratching and miserable like that still do some research on the internet about ezcema and go see another doctor and get the help your baby need there is better medicine that helps control ezcema.

I don't know if this would be any help, but I have a type of psoriasis on my arms that is also similar to eczema. I take a shower with Aveeno Body Wash and then apply Dermarest lotion and that usually helps me from scratching at all. I know that it may be different for an 18 month old, but if my 14 month old had it, that's what I would use. You may want to try it and keep an eye on him to see if he may be allergic to it. I haven't any idea what to tell you about him waking up in a hysterical way, Sorry!

Here is a website that I use: www.webmd.com

L.

Hmm. My one year old daughter has eczema and she gets really scaley unless I follow our after bathtime routine of rubbing her down in hydrocortisone cream, then covering her in vaseline then put her pj's on her. It really works wonders. We also give her benadryl before bedtime to take care of any extra itching. works pretty good. you could give your baby up to 3/4 of a tsp. of benadryl according to our allergist.

G.,
I have eczema and when I was young it was really bad! I was taken to a dermatologist & put under an ultra violet light. I also had to use prescription ointment, the ointment is MUCH better than the cream, I still use it. I use Elecon Ointment in the generic version. It helps me better than any I've ever used. They have a liquid version for young children also that isnt as strong. I strongly suggest seeing a dermatologist. Until then you could give him about 1/4 teaspoon of Childrens Benedryl to help him sleep at night without as much scratching urge.The bottle says It is not recommended for children that young, but I have a 22 month old that I have given it to for insect bites & (he got into ants) it helped, it did not hurt him. Just be sure not to give him more than that, & if he is a small 18 month old maybe just 1/8 teaspoon, depends on his weight. the dermatologist can give you something for him to take orally until it starts healing up. Yes I know some moms will dispute the Benedryl due to his age, but your baby needs relief. I would also wash all his clothes & bed linens & blankets in dreft, see if that helps. I had allergy test done on me at a young age to see what exactly I was allergic too, trees & grass were one of the 50 or so things. I have outgrown most of it. I would definitely bath him in Aveeno oatmeal bath and not anything else because of the perfumes in other products. Its costly but worth it. You could even try over the counter hydrocortisone until you get him to the Dermatologist.Use it sparingly though, about 3 times a day, especially at bedtime. Many people swear by tea tree oil for many skin conditions, i've never tried it but in your case its worth a shot & all natural. The main thing is keep his skin moisturized, with something & again I suggest Aveeno products. One thing I do is put mineral oil in my bath water. Then blot dry, don't rub. Its a great cheap moisturizer :) A Dr recommended this to a friend that has very dry skin. It only takes a few drops (maybe a teaspoon) and you find it in the pharmacy section at walmart.
Im sure this isnt much help, but hopefully you will find a solution with a Dermatologist. Good luck!

this may sound crazy and some people may not agree. but you may want to explore your options with a chiropractor for the exzema. most chiropractors are "naturalist" and don't really believe in medicians. my son was born 7 weeks premature and we had alot of problems with acid reflux our chiropractor helped alot with that. so if they can help with the exzema then the sleeping through the night may take care of itself.. Just something to think about. Hope this helped and good luck

Now that is a sad situation he probably cannot help it it sounds like 2 me he needs 2 visit some type of specialist.

My friends dad and daughter both had it. The dad said the sunshine always helped him. He would mow the lawn with his shirt off. I think the sun needed to be directly on it. Not real sure though. The daughter who was a baby when diagnosed always had to have special creams from her doctor and took oatmeal baths with severe outbreaks. There is a bath product for itching on store shelves that has oatmeal in it. No perfumes, regular lotions, bubble bath products, maybe even check your laundry detergents and softeners and body soaps and find the mildest ones out there. It is hard to find items without scents or chemicals that might make the itching worse. Keep trying and hang in there.

Eczema is a problem with the immune system. I would take him to an allergist for full testing of inhalents and foods. He should avoid any foods to which he is allergic and then go on a rotation diet. There are many herbs and vitamins that can strengthen his immune system also. The best way to avoid eczema in your next child, would be to totally breast feed for the first year, then introduce the allergenic foods last. Introducing fruits and vegetables first and grains last would ensure less allergies. No dairy should be given as this is a highly allergic food. Grains are the next most allergenic, especially wheat. B. S. RN CCM

I think many children who wake in the night are upset. If you could soothe the eczema better, he might not wake up. If his skin itches, he'll wake. My daughter had eczema, but our pediatrician advised Aveeno oatmeal in the bath to sooth it when I bathed her. Baking soda is also soothing, but tends to dry the skin, so may aggravate the eczema. My whole family have a problem using soap, and I gave up using that. Even now, a grandmother, I only use oatmeal soap, unless I use a body wash. My daughter has never used soap on her babies and they have never had a real problem. She uses wipes for sensitive skin for the diaper area. (Read the label. Some of the wipes for senditive skin contain perfume.) Be very careful of anything you put in his bath or on his skin. Many baby products contain perfumes/dyes and my family cannot use anything with perfumes or dyes. I also am careful to only use perfume and dye free detergents to wash clothes. I also rinse clothes and anything I wash twice.
My granddaughter's skin got very dry last winter and we put Lubriderm moisturizer for sensitive skins on her. You could probably find a cream or moisturizer for babies,but be careful they do not have any perfume (fragrance) or dyes. I bought some baby oil recently, but most of them seem to have fragrance in them.
If my baby woke in the night I might have give her an extra bottle, but never let a baby go to sleep with a bottle as it can decay teeth. Or, maybe you are still nursing, which is easier. My granddaugher liked a pacifier which helped. (Pacifiers are better than thumbs as they are easier to wean away from, but you can't take a thumb away.) My grandson refused pacifiers. I found rocking my baby in my arms and singing lullabies also helped to get them back to sleep. I hope some of this helps.
V.

G. A,
You might try Arbonne for your childs eczema. This company has a baby line and a consultant for this company said her son has this and this is all she has found to help.
R. G.

Hi G.,
I'm sorry to hear that, that can be so hard watching your child be that miserable. Our now three year old suffered quite a bit from that her first year of life and still breaks out here and there.
The good news is it should get better with age. Most children do grow out of it. You didn't mention if or what you are using on his skin. If you haven't been to the dermatologist about that yet, you should be able to get a referral from your doctor to see one. They can prescribe hydrocortisone, which always worked very well on that dry bloody skin. The equivalant face cream starts with an "E"- sorry I can't remember the name, but your doc should know.
Until then, you can try "Aquafor," which you can get at Walmart. It's really greasy, but it can work well.

When we couldn't get our daughter to stop scratching, we had to put socks on her hands. She could easily get the baby mittens off, so we used socks. That should keep your son from hurting his skin too badly. She slept with them every night until she grew out of it a little more. Also, try to use "ALL FREE AND CLEAR" detergent, which is free of dyes and fragrance, or some other equivalant detergent. The strong detergents out there can really irritate their skin.
I hope those suggestions help somwhat. And hang in there, he should grow out of alot of that by his 2nd or 3rd birthday. :) God Bless!
L.

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Gosh, that sounds awful! Although I don't have direct experience with eczema, I do have some recommendations.

A neighbor's daughter had awful eczema. After seeing several types of doctors, they ended up changing her diet with great results. Unfortunately, I don't know the specifics of her new diet, but I do know in general it cut out dairy, anything processed (basically in a box or can), and they went all organic with veggies, fruits and meat. Depending on your lifestyle, it can be tough to adjust, but it did work. I would recommend a holistic healer or nutritionist.

I would put something on his hands at night to alleviate the bloody scratches - lightweight mittens, gloves, socks.

If the music calms him, keep it on. Certainly doesn't hurt in any way. Sometimes if my son has an illness that keeps him up I will let him watch a video as it basically numbs him back to sleep, but I wouldn't use that method consistently as it could become a problem.

I hope you find a solution soon!