Almost 3Yr Old with Eczema, HATES Lotion?

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a good treatment for eczema. Chinese herbal medicine is helpful too. Also, an evaluation of her diet can make a difference as well. In Chinese medicine all these things are related. (I am a licensed acupuncturist and would love to help her)
Another, simpler way to get her to put on the cream is make it fun for her. Maybe make a game out of it and let her put it on. This works for my kids when we put sunblock on them. They hate putting it on their faces but we make it fun. I will "draw" face paintings with the lotion and then they rub it in.
Hope this helps a bit!

My son has eczema as well. He is 2 1/2. To make putting lotion on more fun, we make it a game. He gets some in his hand and I teach him how to put it on his arms and belly. I put some on his legs while he does that and then I help him rub in any lotion he has missed. It takes a little extra time but we don't fight about it anymore. We use Cetaphil lotion, which seems to work well on his overly sensitive skin. I also let him play in an Aveeno oatmeal bath when his eczema starts acting up. You can find it in the bath soaps at the store. Good Luck!

I myself recently had a run in with eczema and I still have to watch what I do with my hand. I went to a dermatologist and he said it was from the baby wipes (I was using huggies brand) That said there was only one lotion that felt good and actually relieved the itching and pain on my finger - Cetaphil Therapeutic - Its not the regular kind it has a purple cap and stripe across the middle. Most lotions actually caused me more irratation and pain and itching so it could be that whatever you are using is not relieving it. If you go to a dermatologist they usually have all kinds of free samples and you could walk in without an appt even and try some. They had a light topical steriod as well. Since mine was an allergic reaction and I had never had eczema, I did a lot of reading and I dont know much about kids and allergies and when they are born with it or anything like that...so I cant give advice there, except to read and take her to a doctor and see if you can isolate what aggrevates it for her...which I am sure you probably have done all that.

So if you have a handle on the health things and it is more a matter of being 3 - maybe she could learn to put it on. That would be my only other thing.

The point I really wanted to make was the lotion....good luck.

I have a couple of suggestions for you to try, but since each kid is different, I don't know if they will work for you. Sounds like anything is worth a try at this point. First, let her decorate the container that the lotion is in with stickers or whatever she wants. If it isn't a container she can decorate, maybe you can buy a cosmetic container she can decorate and transfer the lotion into it. (This may also work better if she already has a negative association with the original container). Also, have you tried letting her put the lotion on herself? My son will willingly do it himself, but if you try to do it, he will fight you the whole time. It is all about control with him. Also, if she is into girly things, to get her warmed up to the idea, you can pretend to do a whole spa experience with her, painting fingernail or toenails, and whatever other treatments you think she might enjoy, and including in that the lotion application. Another suggestion is allowing her to first apply lotion to you or another family member, or even a washable doll. Again, this is about control. I'm not sure if any of these will work for you, but they are worth a shot since right now nothing seems to be working for you.

I just wanted to make sure that you were cutting out anything that might be causing the eczema. THings like the laundry detergent, dryer sheets, soap or shampoo used at bathtime. My son had it from the moment he was born we used to use a lotion that didn't seem to help. We finally found out that his grandpa (my husband's dad) was allergic to the lotion we were using. When we stopped, a lot of the eczema went away. Just some thoughts to help out. He eventually outgrew it since a lot of it was due to teething. good luck!

HI J.,
I have 7 kids and every other kid has eczema. My third is my worst. First finding her allergies is important. You need to eliminate as much as you can. Second, she doesn't need a bath very often. Mine gets a bath twice a week. Water really drys the skin. She may need a prescription cortisone to get it under control. See a dermatologist. Finally for the lotion, my daughter still hates it. We have switched to aquafore. It is more of a salve and doesn't sting on the open areas as much.
YOu had advice from an accupuncturist. TRY IT. Many of my daughter's allergies have been cured from this. I was also reminded recently that eczema can be flaired up by emotions.
Hope this helps.

My sons get very dry skin, slight eczema, during the winter months. I put a humidifier in their bedrooms, limit their baths to every other night,no bubbles in the bathtub and make sure I use "free & clear" laundry detergent.

Hope that helps.

No cure that I have heard of. My little one has it as well. Not sure how it can be done but her being 3 she is probably old enough to apply it herself. Maybe it can be a game somehow. Or maybe you can apply lotion to yourself as she watches and applies her own.