MY AD JOURNEY - NOW

For quite some time I would try to think of a way in which I could share with others what it’s like to live with AD (Atopic Dermatitis), a form of eczema. The amount of special moisturizers, shampoos, conditioners, treatments in all the various forms that they come in it’s far more complex than finding a good moisturizer. While I will add that having a moisturizer and using it daily is a great starting place, there’s more to it than that. 

Finding the right treatment, whether it means getting access to it, knowing how and when to use it, is a journey filled with many twists and turns, many on and off ramps. And what works for one individual may yield very different results for someone else on what superficially seems like a similar journey. So about two and a half years ago, I finally had a vision to take all the various products and treatments I use, and spell out a message something that would show some of the products I use and rely on. Well, I finally got it, and as fate would have it my sister is a talented newborn and family photographer. We had planned to visit for Thanksgiving, so I packed up all the products as I normally would do for any trip (although I don’t usually bring my Sharps bin with old used syringes) and got to work. Together she helped shape my vision into a reality, forming the letters “MY AD JOURNEY.” 

Now that it’s Eczema Awareness Month, I wanted to reshare the image, but it dawned on me that while the general idea and message are still relevant, in the last two years, there have been so many new things that are part of my routine now. Treating eczema is an ever-evolving journey. Even as I sit here and write, it just dawned on me that I could have included a few more things like the BOUNCE FORWARD fitness app, the 10% Happier Podcast and Meditation app, or my Five Minute Journal. One that is hard to capture in a single item is the National Eczema Association. Each one of these aspects of life helps me live a life that better manages my skin. Does it mean that the products I showed in the original photo are no longer being used? No. It’s just that at different times, different things have become available, and each one helps. 

Pictured above are items that in the last two years have become available, like the CeraVe shampoo & conditioner, a newer biologic, PDE-4 inhibitor in foam and cream applicators, Tower 28 SOS spray, MagSkin deodorant, and they are part of my routine, "NOW." However, some of the most notable changes that have occurred are not even in this photo, and that is the community that I have found through the National Eczema Association, as well as brands like CeraVe, Tower 28, and MagSkin that are not only developing products for those with sensitive skin but also meeting the community where they are!

Through NEA I have come to understand certain treatment safety and efficacy, giving me peace of mind to try certain medications, the support that I get from meeting others who understand and find it normal to pack my own towels and linen, soaps and shampoos and I don’t have to give a single explanation - they get it, because they live(d) with it too! Lastly, being able to be a patient advocate, to help others who are experiencing what I have, or a parent who cares for a child living with what I have, and perhaps can’t fully understand or appreciate what it means to be uncomfortable in your own skin, and the tremendous impact and improvement in quality of life that can be found, when they keep an open mind, and keep trying until they find relief.