Eczema : The Nightmare of Central Heating

 

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Over the past couple of weeks or so we've all started to notice the definite cold in the air. Some parts of the country are even getting snow, but none here as of yet. By now I would think everyone has begun putting their central heating on, wearing warmer clothes, wearing more layers to bed and putting an extra blanket on the bed to sleep in.

 

For me this is definitely the case, because my radiator is not switched on AT ALL throughout the entire year. Regardless of how cold it gets. It is horrible, believe me.

 

Why do I do this you may ask?
 

Well the answer to that is, that I noticed that my eczema flares up a lot more when i've been in areas with a lot of central heating. So if i'm near a radiator too long then I will start to scratch. Or if I just feel it in the air it will start to affect me. You may not think something so simple as central heating may be affecting your eczema, but it can, as studies have shown. So I made the horrible decision, as of last year, to switch my radiator off in my bedroom completely. However, it still remains on in every other area of the house, as the rest of my family don't suffer with eczema and don't want to switch it off, quite frankly, who would right?

 

Has it made a difference?

Yes I can definitely say that it has. I don't scratch nearly as much when i'm in my bedroom. I do feel it affecting my eczema when I leave my room, but I can't help that I just have to put up with it. So if you suffer with eczema, i'd suggest to switch your radiator off in your room for a few nights and see how it works. To counteract the coldness, put more blankets on your bed and maybe wear warmer pyjamas.

 

Getting out of bed in the morning to a cold room is not an inviting prospect, but it's worth it if it will help you to stop scratching during the night. I used to wake up in the morning and have horrible scratch marks all over the place where i've scratched myself in my sleep, that's when I knew things had to stop.

 

As a footnote to that I would suggest if you have young children who scratch in their sleep,  perhaps you may want to try putting mittens or gloves on then for them to sleep in. My parents never had to resort to that when I was younger, but if that is the case maybe try it if you haven't already.

 

 

Any comments/questions please leave in the comments below.

 
 

Love

Amy

xxx