When my youngest daughter Tesla was about three months old she was itching very bad and her body was looking all red. She also had her days and nights confused, so it was a tough time to try to get her back on a day and night schedule. A lot of people were telling me it looked a lot like eczema. I took her in to the doctor right away and they gave her a prescription, which didn’t work. Finally they sent her to see a dermatologist. The dermatologist knew right away that she had eczema and prescribed her some medicine. It also turned out that she had staff infection, so they made sure she got treated right away. Luckily nothing bad happened from the infection and it cleared up quick. They also tested her to see if she had any allergies, because it’s common for kids with eczema to have allergies. It was a struggle for us to take her to see the dermatologist all the time because they wanted to see her so often and it was about 1 1/2 hours just to get there. We were very happy with the dermatologist though, so we had no problems having to drive that far.
Thankfully with all of her medicine, it started to clear up. Of course she was still very itchy, so I had to make sure to keep her names trimmed and filed down. I felt so bad that this poor baby couldn’t stop itching and there wasn’t much I could do about it. It was harder to control her itching as she started to grow up. When she was a baby I would usually put socks on her hands to help her stop itching. I kept her in onsies as long as I could and had her wear pants so that it was harder for her to get to places where she could itch.
Once those test results came back for my daughter and allergies, they told let us know what she was allergic to. It turned out that she was allergic to dairy, whey, nuts, eggs, dogs and cats. I was breastfeeding at the time, which meant I would have to cut out all of these foods from my diet until she was one and could start drinking soy milk. It became very hard for me, and I thought soy formula was going to be our best option. It turns out that it worked best for both of us, so I stopped breastfeeding and had her on the soy formula. About a year later I had her tested again, and it turned out that she wasn’t allergic to nuts or eggs anymore. That was a huge relief for my husband and I. That meant we could slowly introduce those foods to her…and she loved them!
My daughter is now 4 years old and she’ll turn 5 in November. She has had allergy tests each year, and just recently (about a month ago) we took her in for one of the scratch tests. It had turned out that it said she was still allergic to dairy. Since I told the doctor she has had some dairy by accident and nothing happened, she wanted to see her again in a month for what’s called a baked milk challenge. This is just where she eats a cupcake with dairy in it. I had to make the cupcakes and make sure I used 2% dairy milk. I brought them in for the test, which was just yesterday. (8/11/15) She had 5 pieces of the cupcake every 15 minutes. Each time she had a piece it was a bigger piece until she had the whole cupcake. Luckily nothing happened after each of the 15 minutes. We had to wait another 45 minutes after the test was done just in case something may have happened. I had my father come with me since my husband was working, so we all walked around the hospital til the 45 minutes was up. We were so excited to see that nothing had happened! The doctor told us how happy she was for us and that we could now start Tesla on some dairy products. As long as the dairy ingredient wasn’t 1st or 2nd on the list of ingredients, she was good to try them out. Now for 6 months we continue to let her have some products like that with dairy in them and then she’ll come back for another test. In six months she’s going to have another challenge where she will actually drink dairy milk. If all goes well she’ll be able to have all dairy products.
My husband and I are so thrilled that she can start having some products with dairy in them. She’ll be starting preschool in September, so we are still going to have her bring in her own lunch for the first six months. We are hoping that the next test goes over well and that she will completely grow out of this milk allergy. Those of you with children that have any allergies know how tough this can be on a child. My daughter knows exactly what she can and can’t have, so I’m very thankful for how smart she is about it all. She’s so excited to be able to try out some products with dairy in them. Her eyes lit up when she passed the test and was told she can start trying out some products that had dairy in them. We’re excited for her next test to see how that goes. I will definitely keep you all updated on how she does with the dairy in the next six months and when her next test comes as well.
Aww, poor girl. That really sucks. Eczema is hard on adults, I can’t imagine having it as a baby.
Eczema is terrible! The poor girl itches all the time and there is really nothing I can do about it. I just hope it’s not as bad when she gets older and she can control her itching more.
My hubby has Eczema too. It is SO frustrating because you can’t quite figure out what causes it. I am glad you daughter is doing so well! Good luck with the Dairy! 😉
Thank you so much! She’s so excited to start eating other foods now. We’re all so happy for her. Eczema certainly sucks too! It definitely is very frustrating, especially when it’s so itchy for them.
I knew allergies could start later in life, but I never realized they could stop as well. How great for her that she gets to enjoy some dairy!
Yes, they can stop at any time. I know kids with eczema usually have allergies and a lot of the times they do outgrow them. I’m so happy for my daughter!
I have severe allergies and asthma. I’d much rather have that than eczema. I had a friend with that, and it was super painful.
Eczema is definitely terrible. I’ve seen my daughter itch so much and there is nothing I can do. We actually give her a bleach bath once a week to help with it and prevent from getting any infections.
Thanks for sharing your journey. I am so glad it is going well. I have just begun to realize that milk may not be agreeing with my son so I am going to try to keep him off dairy for awhile and it is hard to get used to.
I hope he’s not allergic to it. It could be lactose intolerant as well. I actually believe that’s what I have and I plan to talk to the doctor about it the next time I go in.
Oh wow. She has to suffer with that condition, but she still has such a huge smile on her face. What a trooper!
Yep! She’s always such a happy child!
Aww, poor baby! Breaks my hearts to see her with that rash! I am glad her allergies are getting a little better now.
Thanks! The eczema is still pretty bad at times and other times it’s good. Right now it’s actually gotten pretty bad. I just hope it gets better when she grows up.
Awww, the poor thing. I remember having allergies as a kid, but I have outgrown most of them now.
That’s good to hear that you’ve outgrown a lot of yours! My daughter is so happy about being able to try other foods now.
Isn’t it interesting how kids can grow out of allergies? Do you follow Food Awakenings on twitter? She has such a strong conviction about how our food is produced and it being linked to higher rates of allergies. 2 of my kids have dairy issues, no scratching, but they definitely don’t feel good when they have certain dairy products. It sure does make life a little easier when you can have one less thing to worry about as a mom.
No I don’t, but I’ll check her out on Twitter. Thanks! It definitely is a lot easier when there are less things to worry about with kids.
Beautiful child. My daughter and Son have severe eczema too. It’s a very frustrating health condition and there is no cure
It certainly is terrible. I wish they had a cure for it. It’s hard to see them scratch and not be able to do anything about it.
My son got a medicine cream when he was a baby for eczema and luckily it cleared it up. I had no idea allergies were associated with eczema. My daughter is due in 4 weeks so this is something I’ll keep a close eye on.
Our first dermatologist that we had said that allergies are very common with eczema. The cream they gave my daughter really helped as well. Right now she uses what’s called derma smooth and that’s about it. Of course we do those bleach baths as well. That helps out a lot.
My daughter has eczema as well, but not at all to this degree. What a trooper your daughter is!
Thanks! She sure has been through a lot. She does have it pretty bad again and I’m hoping it gets better again. Some days it’s terrible and others it’s hardly noticeable.
I’ve heard of Eczema but didn’t really have much knowledge of it. Thank you for sharing the story.
No problem. I’m glad to share a bit about eczema and allergies. 🙂
What a relief that she can start having dairy, especially with school starting. My daughter has a very mild case of eczema now, but when she was two it was super-bad… 🙁
It definitely is horrible for kids to have eczema. I’m still going to be packing my daughters own lunches for school depending on what they’re having for lunch..I would rather be safe until the six months is up and she gets her next test.
Oh I hope that she will get the green light soon! That will be so nice for you and her!
Definitely! It’s already really nice because we are still slowly introducing her to some foods with dairy. So far everything is going great.
I did not know that allergies had any connection to eczema! I need to share this with my sister, because her son has allergies and eczema.
Yep! A lot of kids with eczema usually have some form of allergy. That’s what my dermatologist told us, which is why he tested her for allergies.
It is always helpless when the ones you love the most are hurting! At least your daughter was diagnosed and you know what you are dealing with!
Definitely! It’s very hard. I’m very glad we know what it is though.
Wow that’s such an awesome surprise! I have a slight dairy allergy but I can still enjoy a lot of meals that have some dairy in them.
Yes, it was a wonderful surprise! I also can’t have some items with milk..mainly yogurt and milk..I mean I can but they make my stomach upset. I have to talk to the doctor about it because I think I’m lactose intolerant.
My daughter also has Eczema. We’ve have had a lot of sleepless nights in the house and a lot of days and nights mixed up, too. I can totally relate!
It can be so terrible! My daughter can sleep well throughout the night now with no issues..back when she was a baby it was a whole different story.
That is great that she can reintroduce milk! I hope the next six months go well for her!
Thank you so much! I really hope all goes well too.
Eczema is so painful and itchy. I hope you are able to get some relief for your little one.
Thanks! So far things are going well with the dairy allergies…just trying things with dairy in them daily…as for the eczema, it’s pretty bad right now and I hope it clears up soon.
My daughter has Eczema as well! It can be horrible and frustrating at times.
It certainly can. It’s hard to not be able to do anything either.
She is absolutely adorable. I hope the next six months are smooth sailing for her! I look forward to her update.
Thank you! We’re all hoping for the best. Right now we just give her some foods with dairy and hope it all goes well for the next six months.
I hope she has out grown the dairy allergy! Eczema is so hard and its worse when the kids can’t understand why not to itch.
I certainly hope she gets over the dairy allergy completely as well. She’s already excited to be trying new foods. The eczema is definitely pretty bad, especially right now. She had to stop her medicine for a bit before she had the last allergy test, so now that she’s back on the medicine she she get better again.
I cannot imagine a baby to have to go through with eczema. The discomfort would be so much and the thing is, they can’t tell you how they feel because they can’t talk yet. I hope she overcomes her allergies and grow up to be a pretty girl. Hugs!
Thank you! She’s doing very well now. Things were pretty bad when she was a baby. She still gets some break out spots all over, but not as bad as it use to be. Some days are worse then others.
One of my kids had rashes all over their body for months! We tried everything we could do to fix it – changed diet, detergent, started using a specialized moisturizing oil, cut down on bath time – finally, the rashes went away, but we still have no idea which one of those factors was causing it!
There are so many things that can cause rashes as well. We had to switch our laundry detergent for my daughter because of the eczema. She even had to wear 100% cotton clothing because others would irritate her skin.
Allergies are no fun. I’m glad she is starting to get over it.
We’re all so glad too! She is extremely happy that she gets to try some new foods.
The poor thing looks so itchy when she was little. I certainly hope that she continues to outgrow her food allergies.
She was extremely itchy when she was little. It was horrible. There are still days today where it can get really bad.
I have mild eczema and it’s terrible. What more with a small girl like Kathy? I hope all goes well.
Thank you! It’s terrible to watch her itch and not be able to help her. I hope it gets better as she gets older.
She ios a darling and I love her middle name! When my daughter was a baby, she got an allergic reaction with soy milk.
Thank you! We thought the middle name went so well with her first name. Is your daughter still allergic to soy milk?
Yay!! I am so glad that her allergies seem to be leaving as she gets older. Having food allergies can be so difficult for kids (and parents too!). My daughter has awful eczema during the colder months and has since she was a baby as well. It is so sad seeing little ones be so itchy and in pain and not being able to do anything about it
It really does suck not being able to help them when they itch. I do believe that the bleach baths help a lot with her eczema as well. Keeps her from getting infections too.
Poor girly. I’ve never had to deal with this before but my sister in law and her kiddos do so I’ve heard a bit about it!
It’s definitely very tough, especially for her. Allergies and eczema together are just terrible.
I bet she was happy to participate in the cupcake test 🙂 I am glad things are getting better for her, allergies are the worst!
She certainly was! Although I think she got sick of eating it after a while…haha
Poor thing!! i’m glad her allergies are under control and she passed the big milk challenge!!
We’re all so glad as well. My daughter is so excited about it! I’m so glad to see her so happy.
That breaks my heart. I hope her test will go well and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that she can have products with dairy soon.
Thank you! She’s already starting on some products with dairy in them. So far things are going good. Lets hope it stays that way.
What sweet photo’s! That is awesome that she can have products now with dairy in them, I bet she is excited!
She’s very excited! Each day she gets to have something with dairy in it and she’s loving it.
So happy you maneuver through the allergyland and it is starting to look better
Thanks! We’re all very happy for her.
Aww, poor baby! I’ve never heard of Eczema before so thank you so much for sharing your story,
No problem. Eczema is so terrible, especially for kids since they don’t know why they shouldn’t be itching.
My oldest son has eczema. He only had it on the back of his legs and creases on arms. We control it with cream directly. Thankfully, it is relatively mild. I’m sorry your daughter struggles with horrible eczema.
She gets it bad at some times and other days it’s just fine. I guess it all depends on the weather and many other things. Right now we’re trying to control it again since she had to stop medicines for a while.
She’s adorable! Someone suggested epimax to me, it works well. Not sure if you get it in your country though.
I’ve never heard of it. I’ll have to check in to that. Thanks.
Oh no! I couldn’t even imagine my poor baby suffering like that!!! How do you tell a child to not itch??
I have to tell her every day to try not to itch. Of course she does it anyways. I try to keep lotion on her a few times a day and make sure she’s gets all her medicine. Not much else I can really do.
Kiddo had a battle with Eczema; although I am still not convinced that is what she had/has. She, for the most part, has outgrown it, and once in a very blue moon she will get a small patch of it on her face. Strangest thing.
It’s so terrible! Trying to get your kid to not itch is the worse. I’m hoping when she gets older she won’t have it as bad as she does now.
I literally had no idea that allergies and eczema were connected at all. I need to share this info with some friends of mine!
I never knew it til the dermatologist told me. I actually didn’t know a whole lot about eczema at the time either.
It is great you guys are finding ways to get dairy back in and to treat her excema. My middle daughter has allergies bad and we cut milk out completely for 2 years.
Does she have dairy allergies? I think it’s so hard for kids with allergies. I wish there were a cure to end all allergies.
My little one has sensitive skin. It is hard to treat excema and we have always tried new things.
It really is hard. I feel so bad that we can’t do much but try to get them to stop itching.
She’s adorable! It break my heart when children who have eczema have to go through this. I have a couple of nephews that have it really bad!
It really is terrible! I wouldn’t want any child to have to go through it. It’s very hard to see them itch and not be able to do anything about it.
Oh she’s such a cutie! I’m glad she’s able to have a more varied diet now that she’s older! It;s hard enough to get picky kids to eat, but when there are allergies too I don’t envy those parents (or kids!)
Thanks! She is loving being able to try out some new foods now. So far things are going well. I hope with the next test things go well too.
Eczema is a terrible thing to deal with. My daughter had a breakout and it was really bad. She’s better now, but you can still see the darkened rashes on her skin. I hope all goes well with your daughter.
Thank you very much. Eczema is very tough to deal with in kids. I just hope my daughter gets better the older she gets.
Two of my kiddos have eczema and one has it really bad. I’m so happy to hear that your daughter is able to have dairy now. =)
Thank you! It’s definitely tough with eczema.
It is so heartbreaking to hear about a child who has to live life fighting things like this. kids should have to be happy and carefree.
I completely agree! I wish kids didn’t have to go through some of the things they do.
Eczema can be terrible! I had a bestie who’s daughter had eczema and it just pained me to watch what her daughter went threw :-/
It really is hard to deal with. I feel awful all the time just seeing her itch at times. I have to keep reminding her to stop itching.
Ohhh, I feel so bad for any lil’ one that has a skin condition – it’s really hard to get them to not scratch and irritate the symptoms. Very glad to hear that your daughter lost some of her allergies.
Thank you. Eczema is really hard to deal with. It’s hard watching her itch, but we’re glad some allergies are going away.
Eczema really sounds terrible! I must admit I didn’t now a lot about before I read your post, I really hope your little girl will be just fine! 🙂
Thank you! She’s doing well with everything. The eczema can get bad at times but we’re doing our best to control it.
She is adorable! I feel poor Tesla’s pain, as I too am allergic to dairy. )o: I’ve given up milk and yogurt but sometimes I can get away with ice cream – yay! I’m so grateful for dairy free products!
The dairy free products are amazing! Some of them are really good too. I stay away from dairy milk and yogurt myself as I’m pretty sure I’m lactose intolerant.