Eczema

At Skye Herbals, we are committed to supporting those with eczema. We as a company were originally founded because my wife, Carrie, had Eczema over 90% of her body. I wanted to help in any way that I could and Milk Thistle was a big part of her healing. But Milk Thistle was only one part. Through our journey of working with her body, while at the same time studying Traditional Chinese Medicine to become licenced primary care physicians, we were brought through the worlds of Chinese Herbalism, Naturopathy, Western Herbology, Diet as Medicine, Western Pharmacology, Cleansing, and the list goes on. Through the journey we held strong to our truth, that life is changing, and as life changes so can our health, both possitive and negative. Through this journey we have aquired many tools that can help all of those suffering from this horrible disease. There is a solution, and although it is not instant it is possible to find holistic, lasting relief.

What is Eczema? (By Carrie Skye Fischer)

Eczema can sometimes be a confusing topic because there are many, slightly varying skin conditions that are labeled as eczema.  Likewise, eczema is also often called by other names, such as chronic dermatitis.  This skin condition can present with several different types of symptoms.  Some patient’s have all of them, and some patients only have a few, which may not even be present at all times.

Symptoms can be any and all of the following:  dry, itchy, flaky, cracking, skin, red, inflamed, swollen, bleeding skin, weepy, oozing skin, and thickening skin.  It can be slightly itchy, or it can be insanely itchy.  There may be a foul, burnt, rancid, or metallic odor detected on the skin. Patient often presents with other symptoms such as restlessness, irritability, insomnia, severe agitation, forgetfulness, increasing allergies to foods, pollens, animals, etc.  

It is difficult to answer the question of what eczema is.  Let us start by saying that it can be many things and stem from many things; but first and foremost, eczema is a sign that the body is imbalanced, overworked, undernourished, and unhealthy.  Without getting too scientific about it, and speaking from experience, eczema is a distress signal from the body, mind, or emotions to you.  It is asking that something be changed.  Maybe it is manifesting as a visible illness because that’s what you need in order to acknowledge it.  Eczema is an uncomfortable, even debilitating, condition that asks a lot of us through the healing process.  It usually requires many things:  a change of diet, a change of heart, learning to love terrible tasting herbs, surrendering to the process of boiling the terrible tasting herbs, cleansing the body, cleansing the mind.  It requires investigation and observation.  It requires some level of discipline.  It requires that we learn to love ourselves through the healing process.

Perhaps a better question to ask than “What is Eczema?” is “What is health and healing?”  I believe that the healing process of any disease is the opening of a door.  If we chose to walk through that door, the healing process can hold many enriching gifts.  It may be a door into a deeper spiritual experience of life.  It may be a time of great reflection, of self-examination.  It may be a time for us to slow down, listen to our bodies, and listen to that still small voice that we often ignore.  It can be a time to clean up everything from loose ends to bad habits.  It may simply be a time to go through a challenging or dark passage and glean the wisdom from it.  It may be a chaotic period where our entire lives are re-directed to the path that we were meant for all along.

Any healing crisis can be, and usually is, a period in our lives when we are stretched to our limits…of physicality, of emotion, of our minds.  We labor within the minefield of self-doubt, fear, anger, frustration, over-analysis, and shock that we are experiencing a drastic decline in health.  And somehow, within this intensity, we are also asked to shine the light of consciousness through our entire life.  We enter the forest of the healing process and here we must confront the illness and the healing of our bodies, minds, and souls. 

 So, to ask what Eczema is, can yield a very different answer for each individual.  Some may experience a severe level of pain and itching, some a greater mental agitation, some may have more pronounced food allergies.  Some may have bodies that require more dedication in dietary changes, and still others may transform easily after receiving several treatments of acupuncture.  All of us are given opportunities to wake up, take more responsibility, transform, let go, shine brighter, and to become equanamous with all experiences.  Life naturally takes each of us to different limits within ourselves, and these are the boundaries that we are working with as we proceed through a health challenge.  We are being asked to stretch, soften, expand, to go inward, to reflect, adjust, strengthen, become flexible, become disciplined, to surrender.  We realize through the healing journey that ultimately we don’t have to change at all, but that if we do, we are able to avoid future wake up calls that come from not acting on the messages we receive to change and heal.

Some things that you can examine if you are going through a difficult time with a skin disorder are:  Need for stress reducing, soul connecting, quiet time; a change of diet or shift in lifestyle; a new job that resonates with your soul; some proper vitamins and minerals that your body can actually absorb; healthy, organic foods, and herbs from a qualified herbalist.  If you are overwhelmed and need some ideas to give you a nudge in the right direction, here are a few: acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine, naturopathic medicine, homeopathy, aruvedic medicine, qi gong, tai qi, yoga, marital arts, meditation, therapy (art, music, movement, psychological, nutritional), journaling, energy work.