Post: #1

I've dealt with eczema for about 8 years now, mostly the main culprit being my hands. I play competitive baseball and year-round my hands are beat up from throwing thousands of baseballs and taking thousands of swings. I've tried so many lotions and different remedies that it's almost ridiculous. During one particular summer's week-long tournament, every single one of my fingers had cracks on them. It's so incredibly annoying but I think I've come down with a decent routine if it ever bothered me again.

With it being winter I thought someone might be dealing with this problem and may be looking for some answers. Obviously, this is not life changing but it's something that can be a nuisance and can even prevent you from doing certain physical activities if it gets bad enough.

Prevention
Before even starting on 'cures', you've gotta stop the problem from snowballing or starting in the first place.
So:
- Don't wash your hands so goddamn much. Soap and water can really dry your hands out, especially in the winter months. Now, obviously, you have to keep your hygiene right, but you need to find other methods to clean your hands. My doctor used this sort of foamy hand sanitizer that wouldn't dry out his hands. That's where I got the idea. Experiment with other methods and see what works for your skin.
- If you're doing some sort of physical activity that involves objects to rotate very quickly inside your hands, wear some sort of protection. I had to start wearing batting gloves or my hands would start to look like a horror movie. During games, I would put athletic tape over the tips of my fingers. You may even want to consider this while lifting if it's bad enough.
- This is a direct counter to the point above, but you need to develop some calluses. There's a difference between some minor cracks on your hands and a reoccurring problem. In some cases, I'd recommend just toughing it out. You need to generate some resilience so the problem won't keep coming back. I've gotten to the point where I just need to spot check this stuff because my hands have been ripped apart so many times.

Remedies
There are different levels to these remedies so you'll have to take it on a case to case basis.
1. Smaller cracks, nuisances that flair up from time to time.
- Right after your shower, put on some lotion to the affected area. I've found this to be a pretty good spot check method. Doing this allows your skin to hold in the moisture from your shower (This works with chapped lips as well, but use chap stick of course).
- Apply lotion throughout the day as desired.
As for lotion, I recommend this brand:
https://www.amazon.com/OKeeffes-Working-...B00121UVU0

No other brand has come close to the effectiveness of this one. Use Okeeffe's, your hands will thank you.

2. Big cracks, stuff that just won't easily go away.
- You're going to need cotton gloves for this. Just plain old cotton gloves that you have in your closet. If you don't have any you can get them for cheap almost anywhere.
- Before you go to sleep at night, put your lotion (Okeeffe's) on the affected areas and make sure you have everything covered. Now, put those cotton gloves on. This prevents the lotion from being smeared away at night. Take them off in the morning and your hands will have improved.
- You can even supplement this with the first method. If you have a lot of affected areas on your hands you may even want to put those cotton gloves on after a shower. Up to you.
- Experiment with over the counter steroid creams if you want.

3. For the love of God, nothing is working.
- Go to a dermatologist. I'm just a rando on RVF, no one will know what's going as well as a physician.
- Even then, your dermatologist will probably just throw you a prescription for a steroid cream. This stuff can't really be 'cured'. Personally, the dermatologist I went to gave me two different tubes: one steroid cream for the morning and one at night. Steroid creams are more effective than any lotion but supposedly you're not supposed to use them all the time or else your skin will be negatively affected.
- With those steroid creams, use the cotton glove method.

If you're stuck in a pinch with cracked fingers and need a really quick fix, you may want to consider super glue. I've done this before games and it's actually worked.

That's my advice, I'd like to hear any recommendations from others.

Post: #2

I never had a problem while I had heavy calluses from playing music -- It wasn't 'til I stopped that dry winters would wreak havoc on my fingers. Feels like giant paper cuts. not good.

I use "New Skin" liquid bandage on cracks and try to toughen up fingertips with an emery board.

Post: #3

For mild dryness I can't say enough good about Jojoba oil. That stuff is fantastic for both hands and face.

Supposedly it's one of the closest plant oils to the natural oil your skin produces.

Post: #4

Post: #5

Macadamia nut oil

Post: #6

(01-10-2017 12:11 AM)Sombro Wrote:  I never had a problem while I had heavy calluses from playing music -- It wasn't 'til I stopped that dry winters would wreak havoc on my fingers. Feels like giant paper cuts. not good.

I use "New Skin" liquid bandage on cracks and try to toughen up fingertips with an emery board.

Yes! That's the stuff. That New Skin stuff is great to use.

Post: #7

What's the steroid cream you used to use? I've heard of something called Gormel cream (not a prescription item), but I don't think it has any steroids. That works ok; plain vaseline actually works a bit better as it's a good barrier. Lotions get absorbed into the skin and don't seem to last as long.

A dermatologist told me to avoid soaps with too much fragrances (Irish Spring, Zest, etc.) if possible as they dry out your skin. Some of the shower gels are better than others - anything with shea butter is good, whatever the hell that is.

Never heard of that stuff your doc was using but I hope it isn't ordinary alcohol based hand sanitizer - that shit will suck the moisture right out of your hands. Also, if you live in an area with hard water it's even worse. Water softeners can get rid of that, at least if it's an option for where you live.

Post: #8

(01-10-2017 06:19 PM)SlickyBoy Wrote:  What's the steroid cream you used to use? I've heard of something called Gormel cream (not a prescription item), but I don't think it has any steroids. That works ok; plain vaseline actually works a bit better as it's a good barrier. Lotions get absorbed into the skin and don't seem to last as long.

A dermatologist told me to avoid soaps with too much fragrances (Irish Spring, Zest, etc.) if possible as they dry out your skin. Some of the shower gels are better than others - anything with shea butter is good, whatever the hell that is.

Never heard of that stuff your doc was using but I hope it isn't ordinary alcohol based hand sanitizer - that shit will suck the moisture right out of your hands. Also, if you live in an area with hard water it's even worse. Water softeners can get rid of that, at least if it's an option for where you live.

I wish I could tell you what specific steroid cream it was but I can't remember. It's been awhile since I've used it. I do know it was prescription and I think it was what dermatologists usually give out to non-specific skin irritations.

It seems for health products that simpler is better. No fruity bullshit.

I would have to assume it wasn't ordinary alcohol-based hand sanitizer because he specifically said he used it because his hands would dry out from washing them so much throughout the day. Not much of a big help am I

Post: #9

(01-10-2017 12:36 AM)RexImperator Wrote:  For mild dryness I can't say enough good about Jojoba oil. That stuff is fantastic for both hands and face.

Supposedly it's one of the closest plant oils to the natural oil your skin produces.

Do you just throw a couple drops onto your hands and rub it in? Do you not feel oily after using it?

Post: #10

Quote:Do you just throw a couple drops onto your hands and rub it in? Do you not feel oily after using it?

Yes, more than a few drops. Actually the interesting thing about it is that it doesn't feel too oily to me. Sure it feels oily at first, but it's kind of thin and quickly dissipates and it seems to be absorbed into the skin. It feels very different than other oils (i.e. coconut) in that way.

Also great for the hair in small amounts. And chapped lips.

I buy a small bottle of it and then I pour some into a tiny bottle with an eye dropper for dispensing.

Post: #11

i don't have exema or anything, just normal dry skin, so cowcream work fine. it might be called udderly smooth now. couple of bucks at the drugstore.

Post: #12

Avon's silicone glove works great for me in the dry winter:



It really does dry into a "glove" on top of your skin.

Post: #13

Found it - Gormel Creme. No steroids, but dermatologist recommended it. Thing is, if you want developed callouses for weight lifting you should avoid putting this all over your hands - just the parts that are cracked at the fingertips. This creme will diminish all hard and rough skin, which actually protects you while lifting.

Post: #14

(01-11-2017 10:47 AM)DJ-Matt Wrote:  Avon's silicone glove works great for me in the dry winter:



It really does dry into a "glove" on top of your skin.

Been using this since I first saw it on this thread - thanks, I bought some on Amazon. It's pretty amazing stuff!

Who'd have thought I'd ever be buying a product from Avon....
...but wait, I didn't even get to rate the Avon lady - there was none!