Today is Day 47 working from home for us. Our companies sent us home very early on in the outbreak, well before it reached the western world. Having lived through SARS and MERS, we’re scared here in Asia but many of us are also prepared. Prepared for lifestyle changes that are required to keep healthy. Daily life has somewhat continued up until recently, but it was now a daily life that included wearing surgical masks, hand washing and sanitising, wearing gloves and staying 1.5 metres apart from other individuals. This had become the norm before recent social distancing measures were ramped up this week. I see most people in the city are being very careful and its very noticeable that people are staying apart from each other. For example, people are voluntarily not sitting next to each other on public transport and its every other seat that’s being occupied. Hand hygiene too is a given nowadays; at the table, it’s not “pass me the salt please”, but “pass the hand sanitiser please” before we’ve even ordered. With eczema still on my fingers though, I’ve had to make some more adjustments. Hand sanitisers just don’t work for me with hand eczema. The alcohol in the hand sanitiser burns my fingers and any area with an open wound.
Hand sanitiser stings like crazy on eczema spots
We all know the goodness of hand sanitisers – they kill surface-level germs quickly (but not those that are embedded in your sweat, grease and grime). And it does that because it has over 60% of alcohol (the good stuff does at least). However, that amount of alcohol used on eczema rashes and open wounds burns like heeeell. I know I can’t avoid hand sanitiser entirely – if I’m out in town for a few hours, taking a taxi or the subway, I know I’m touching things and I’ve gotta use it.
Below, I share how I’ve been trying to protect my health and my eczema during this time.
Careful application of hand sanitiser – I usually try to apply it all over the areas that are not infected (so the left hand mostly). Where I’ve got eczema, I’ll do light dabs with small amounts and try to get to all the good skin in between. It’s not the best way or the safest, but its the best I can do without having to enduring searing pain five times a day.
Avoid touching things with the eczema hand when you’re out of the house – my left hand is mostly fine, it’s the right hand and fingers where the skin is broken. I try not to touch things with my right hand as soon as I leave the house – this helps to avoid having to use sanitiser on that hand regularly or leading. I’ll press the elevator with my elbow or try to use my left hand if I really have to.
Hand washing over sanitising – not touching things and avoiding hand sanitising doesn’t mean I don’t keep up with hand hygiene. It’s the alcohol that burns – regular soap and water are just fine and even better for kiling germs (more on that below). I try to wash my hands with soap regularly while I’m out, for example as soon as I enter a restaurant before I even look at the menu, and again before I leave the restaurant.
Hand washing as soon as you get home, before you touch anything else in the house – the first thing I do after I open the door, is take off our shoes in our small entryway (we don’t allow shoes inside the house, ever) and then immediately walk to the sink to wash our hands. We do this before putting down our bags, or taking off our jackets or surgical masks (which we wear every single time we go out, by the way). We’re currently using antibacterial soap because it’s what we’ve always used in the kitchen for dealing with raw meat, but I’ve recently learned that actually any soap will do as long as you wash for 20 seconds (thanks Vox for always putting out easy to digest and informative videos!). Soap stings waaaaaay less on my hands than sanitiser. I’ll be honest, I never washed my hands for more than 20 seconds in the past, it always felt like a heck of a long time. But now I know, the soap is made up of stuff that actually disintegrates virus molecules (seriously that video was pretty cool and visualised it so well), and then you just wash it down the sink. I always count to 20 now or hum the alphabet song as per Vox’s recommendation. Once my hands are washed and dried, I’ll go back to take off my jacket and set down my belongings.
Moisturise after every hand wash – soap not only disintegrates viruses and bacterias, but they also strip your skin of its natural oils. It’s essential for your skin to moisturise – both the good skin and the eczema. After a thorough washing with soap, pat mostly dry, leaving your hands a bit damp. Then apply moisturiser right away to lock in the hydration you’ve just given it. My preferred hand cream is still Aveeno’s Hand Cream. It’s thick with no scent and leaves my hands feeling comfortable.
How have you been managing your eczema during this time? Sending positive vibes out to the world, stay healthy, stay home and apart if you have to go outside <3.
five hundred home 