Hi Mamas!
I need some help. I am about 4 weeks or so out from my EDD and with each of my other 2 pregnancies, I ended up with "strange" rashes or itches. Since it is wintertime, it seems that this pregnancy, the "symptom" is WINTER ITCH - in mega overdrive!! I am so desperate to get help.
I am already doing the humidifer thing, running 24 hours a day. Our heat settings are 66F (day) and 64F (nights) so the house is not hot (IMO). I use a moisturizing body wash from Dove. Have been avoiding my Ivory bar soap. Nothing seems to be working! So, let me have it.... What is your secret to controlling winter itch?
Thanks in advance!
~C.
Thanks for the advice. I am going to go out and try a few different products including the baby oil gel and possibly the coconut oil. The itches are ALL over the place - from my ubber tender breasts through the nape of my neck to my thighs and ankles... you name it!
I know this is not PUPPPS. I just seems to get strange rashes with my pregnancies. With my first one, my daughter, I got a rash on my inner thighs that we thought was from the pool chemicals (which we had opened less than a week before her birthday) and with my second, my son, I got a belly and arm rash that we thought was poison ivy since I had been gardening. That lasted about 2 weeks! None of these rashes were diagnosed as PUPPPS so I am fairly certain this is just a pregnancy thing for me.
Thanks for all the ideas. Keep 'em coming.
Aquaphor! It's thick and messy so I put it on right before I go to bed, but in the morning there is a huge difference in my skin.
I am not a huge fan of commercial beauty products. And many moisturizers can sit on your skin and feel greasy while not alleviating the problem. Recently I threw away all my commercial products and just started using coconut oil. I just rub myself down with it every day. It sinks in pretty quickly, and the best organic stuff is about $10 for 16 ounces. That will last you a long time if you just use it for your skin. You can of course eat it too. I have also recently switched back to full fat everything, whole milk, whole yogurt, no reduced fat anything. I eat lots of avocado and salmon. I have noticed that my skin is better this year.
Good luck!! I am sure the symptoms will pass soon!
Udderly Smooth cream. Really nice.
And drink LOTS of water!
Hi C.- I always used to get itchy and dry in the winter drove me nuts!! And I always moisturized and even changed to thicker ones during the winter to no avail. Then I switched to baby oil GEL. Either the Johnsons and Johnsons or CVS brand. Before I get out of shower I slather it on and pat dry. The gel is a mircle because it doesn't slip and slide down your legs into the tub so no accidents. It literally saved my life. I would scratch and my skin would flake, so irritating. Hope this helps, good luck with baby #3!!
Make your own lotions and creams. Apply right after you shower or bathe. In the winter shorten your shower and bathing times because the longer you spend in the water the more it strips your skin of its natural moisture. Drink tons of water and eat plenty of fresh colorful fruit and vegetables (think rainbow).
Olive oil, Coconut oil, Raw Organic Shea Butter, Jojoba Oil, and Almond Oil with drops of essential oils for scent. You can find out what mix works best for your skin. You can use all or any of the combinations. Just mix with a mixer in a bowl. Shea Butter will give your mix a thick consistency and all of the other oils will thin out the shea butter.
Coconut oil in its natural state is solid but if it gets warmed it becomes a liquid.
Congratulations on your coming bundle of love and I hope this really helps.
Try Palmer's Oil. It sprays on and smells nice and it was the only thing that worked for me. Spray it on before you dry off after showering.
My husband has winter itch and so does my son. They are in agony. They do like the Olay body butter ribbons body wash. And my husband swears by skin so soft body creme.
With my first pregancy I got PUPPPS. A horrible horrible rash on my stomach that itched sooooooo bad. The only way to get rif of it was delivery. It was miserable. I hope that is not what you have!!!
I had it with my pregnancies. Try drinking double the water - you have increased your blood supply by 50%, which is mostly water.
Eucerin Daily Replenishing Lotion-no alpha hydroxy. I use it constantly-much more in the winter because I have suffered from dry skin my whole life and have tried lots of different lotions. I also put it on my belly every day when I was pregnant and avoided stretch marks! Hooray! I hope you find something that works . Its an awful feeling...good luck!
I have a water softener that helps a lot and I also use Gold Bond Medicated lotion. I also use the Gold Bond intensive healing cream for my hands.
Hi C.,
This may sound extreme, but I use straight castor oil on my skin for any skin problem. It is an emollient and very healing. Yes, it can be messy, but it's worth it.
Good luck!
"Grams"
from the Pocono Mts. of PA
I agree with Amanda about it possibly being PUPPPS. I had it with my first pregnancy during the last 2-3 months. It was absolutely miserable. I remember while I was in labor and after I had the epidural, my ankles were itching something terrible. I asked my mom to scratch my ankles for me but I couldn't feel her scratching because the epidural had also numbed my legs. As soon as I delivered, the itching was gone.
You may want to ask your doctor because I think now they have a medicine they can prescribe to help with the itching. I had it 13 years ago and all I was allowed to do was baking soda baths. I hated baths so I put baking soda in a rubbermaid container with some water and used a wash cloth to put it on my skin. I would get up several times a night to do that. I would wake up in the morning all white from the baking soda.
I just ordered some organic extra virgin coconut oil (http://www.amazon.com/Nutiva-Organic-Virgin-Coconut-15-Ou...) which I found out about from another board I read. It is supposed to be a great moisturizer and have many other benefits (read the reviews).
I had PUPPS and the midwife and hospital had me taking benedryl and using hydrocortizone cream. I doubt I would have been able to sleep before the baby was born without the benedryl. It was the last 2 weeks of the pregnancy and then took 2 more weeks to fully clear up. This was also with a February baby so at about this same time of year. I've used olive oil on my skin as well with good results.
Olive oil. It's cheap and it really works! Plus, you're less likely to have a reaction than to many lotions, and it contains no alcohol (which is found in many lotions even though it is a drying agent). I use olive oil for all my moisturizing except for my hair. Good luck.
Sounds like a PUPPS rash --ask your doctor about it. Benadryl may help a little. If it is just very dry skin, keep drinking lots of water and after showering, don't towel dry off; rub baby oil into your skin instead.
