Several years back, I started having rashes on one side of my foot. It all started, or at least that is what I believe, after I wore a pair of shoes which I had earlier sent to the cobbler for repair work. The strap of the shoe had come off and had to be glued back. So, in the beginning, it was just some rashes on the side of my foot where the skin was in contact with the glued part of the strap. The rashes were not that bad then but they were recurring and actually spreading to the other part of the foot. I went to my family doctor and he prescribed me some cream for skin irritation. The recurring rashes on my foot continued for some time and soon my other foot started having the same kind of rashes too. By then, I had gone to my family doctor several times, every time with renewed hope of finding a permanent cure for this problem. Each time, he gave me a different type of skin cream. Some were effective, some were not, and to my dismay, those that started off good eventually lost their effectiveness.
Over the years, I went to at least two other general practioners in search of a relief from my feet problem. I had the unfortunate opportunity to try out all the different types of skin creams in their clinics. I spent a lot of money on my feet. It was not a bedridden'ing problem but it had me physically and mentally fucked for years. I hated to wear shoes because the itch from the rashes would give me hell. I kept trying to find the right shoes but that didnt help and I ended up with way too many pairs of fugly and so called comfortable shoes. It sucked that even without wearing shoes, like on those days when I didnt have to step out of the house, the rashes would start glowing for no reason. I still remember several months back on one late afternoon, I came back from work and was feeling so crap because my feet was itching so much I was in so much pain. Then the Frisband and I had some kind of an argument. I forgot what the argument was about but anyway, I decided to go out alone and get our dinner from a nearby food place. While on my way to the food place, I walked past the phamacy shop and decided to go in and look for something for my feet because the pain was so unbearable. I didnt know exactly what I was looking for but I just knew that I had to get something that could, in my dream, reduce the pain. Even when I was standing there, my feet were glowing with so much pain. I felt so terrible. I felt like kicking away my feet. I felt like dying. I felt that no one could save me. It didnt help that when the young pharmacist on duty walked past me and I asked her miserably if she had anything, just anything, for my itchy feet, she didnt understand English.
I went back to one of the general practioners some time after that and asked him to refer me to a hospital because I really couldnt take the pain anymore. To my surprise, he was not too keen to do so because like most other doctors I saw, he didnt think it was hospital-serious. However, he told me that I could make an appointment directly with the hospital if I want to. He then gave me a different type of skin cream and he told me that that is possibly their last type of skin cream that I have not tried. Unsurprisingly, like most other creams, it was not effective for long.
About two months back, the Frisband encouraged me to go to the hospital to see a skin specialist. He said it would be of no use to go back to the same general practioner and get skin creams that dont help much. I was with him on this. I felt that it was about time to get serious. So on that day, I booked an appointment with the skin centre at Raffles Hospital and within the same day, I got to meet the dermatologist. She was very nice and after examining my feet, told me what she thought would be the cause of my skin rashes. According to her, it seemed like a genetic problem. She said people with this genetic problem would have experienced asthma, sinus and eczema in different phases of their lives. This, on my feet is eczema. Indeed, I have had childhood asthma, moderately serious sinus since my early adult life, and eczema on my legs since childhood time. All these do not bother me anymore now. Even the eczema on me legs. I remember my legs used to itch a lot and I would scratch them non-stop but not now. The eczema is there and that is why my legs are not smooth but that is all about it. It does not bother me.
She gave me skin moisturizer, steroid cream, and shower wash cream. I followed her steps and used all these LIBERALLY as instructed. I also stopped using other bath products. A week later, all the rashes were under control and a month later, they were all gone! I am still using the skin moisturizer and shower wash cream. I was told that I can skip the steroid cream unless the rashes are back. It has been more than a month since the first visit with my dermatologist and I am very happy with the result.
IT WORKS!
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