I am 20 years old and I am suffering from what I think is vulvar eczema. I have had atopic eczema since I was young, but it gradually went away as I entered elementary school. However, it reappeared when I was in high school. My eczema wasn't too bad during high school, but it was then that I began to experience itchiness, redness, intermittent rawness due to scratching, and patches of dry, discolored, irritated skin near the groin area. Back then, my eczema wasn't too bad and didn't give me much grief. Once I entered college, however, everything changed. During my freshman year, my eczema came back with a vengeance. I was itchy everywhere- especially under my arms near the armpit, underneath my breasts, the folds behind my knees and elbows, and near the groin. I went to a dermatologist and she prescribed me locoid lipocream. I also started to get rid of the irritants that many people with eczema suffer from- mainly perfumed detergents and soaps- and started to use Cetaphil to moisturize my dry skin. After two weeks or so, I noticed a drastic change as my skin began to heal.

I thought all was well as I stopped the use of the locoid cream except for occasional minor flare-ups and became somewhat lax with my use of moisturizers and lotions. Perhaps partly because of that, recently, my eczema has flared up again, with a similar intensity to the one that occurred during my freshman year except worse because the eczema near the groin area has spread to the vulvar and between my buttocks, not to mention my arms and inner thighs. Now, all of this is very embarrassing to talk about, to say the least. And I am DESPERATE for some relief because I am so sick and tired of the itching-bleeding-raw and weeping skin cycle. It has gotten so bad that I can't even sleep for fear of ripping my skin open again...Please I need help!

Since my eczema flare-up, I have returned to the daily use of Cetaphil lotion and moisturizing cream after showering. For a time, I tried using Cetaphil Gentle Cleansing Bar for my soap since it is known as being very mild, but it didn't improve my ezcema; so I returned back to the use of Dove soap for Sensitive skin. I've tried taking Benadryl so that I would stop itching at night, but that didn't really help, so I stopped taking it. On and off, I tried using the locoid lipocream to treat my eczema, but it just seemed to dry out my skin so much that my skin would crack easily. (I have heard that long term potent steroid use can result in thinning of the skin. Maybe it's because of that?). Sometimes, it takes away the itch, but it's not really healing my skin so I try not to use it at all. Next, I used 1% hydrocortisone cream of various brands including Cortaid and generic store brands to stop the itch. Cortaid somewhat helped heal my eczema on different parts of my body except for my vulva/groin area . I use Neosporin to treat the raw areas of skin that occur because of scratching. It seems to help a bit with the pain and partial healing of the skin. I've tried using ice-packs to numb the itch, but its effect is temporary.

Just last week, I started taking Evening Primrose Oil 500mg softgells twice daily because I read online that it might help with the itch. I am trying to make changes in my diet because I read that certain foods may exacerbate eczema. The only problem is that I don't have any known allergies, and there seems to be contradicting lists of food to avoid online. I guess I can try to eat a more balanced and healthy Diet including fruits and vegetables, no caffeinated drinks or alcohol, avoid high sugar, high fat, high salt, and highly processed foods, and I think I am going to focus on a regular exercise regimen to reduce my stress level. I don't know what else to do. How much moisture do I want to maintain in the groin area? because sometimes when I use the moisturizing cream, I find my underwear damp and uncomfortable.

I'd really like to find a way to treat my eczema on my own before going to the doctor since I know that there is no cure for eczema and it is something that I have to learn how to deal with. What should I do??? Help would be much appreciated.