The setback continues - or tries to
I've had a couple of posts now where I've talked about my setback, and then how I've allegedly solved it but have later found it didn't solve it. First, I thought that Hydrogen Peroxide was the answer. It worked for a little while, but later became less effective. Then I was convinced that Manuka Honey was the answer. It later turned out not to be the case, by the way. I awoke the following morning to an almost unbearable itch. I put some on during the day, and the itch I felt was as though I hadn't put anything on at all. Out of desperation, I tried Tea Tree Oil... no joy there either. I was really getting quite worried at this point. Here I was with a relapse of my BXO symptoms, that had come at me out of nowhere and appeared resistant to virtually every kind of treatment I had used in the past. All of a sudden I almost felt like I did when I realised what I had, but with the previous knowledge of having tried everything unsuccessfully. It was a pretty low day. I was actually beginning to contemplate the fact that I may have to go back to my doctor and face very hard decisions.
Then, on the way home, I decided I would try Clobetasol. One theory I had was that perhaps this was a relapse because I didn't taper off the steroid. Admittedly, it would have been a very late relapse as I stopped it about a month and a half ago, but it had to be worth a shot. Clobetasol felt like it was working, and (like many other treatments I had tried) it had me convinced that I was on my way back to normal. And then I remember this wildcard as a potential dark horse in all of this confusion. Recall that I was sick with a cold and was beginning to get itchy, and took a late afternoon nap then woke up with no itching. I thought about that story, then how tired I felt before I had that nap, then I actually began to realise how incredibly tired I am at the moment. It's the end of the year, work is stressful and seems busier than usual, and I've been having relationship issues at home pretty much all year. I've also been stressing myself out over BXO (I'm sure you can all relate to that). The more I thought, the more tired I got, so I decided I'd have a very early night. And yet as I'm lying there trying to get to sleep, I felt the itch creep back slowly, then quite quickly. It eventually reached the point where I wouldn't be able to get to sleep because of it. Great... Clobetasol had just joined the scores of other treatments that appeared to work initially, but later were proven ineffective. So I got up, cleaned my skin, and applied Manuka Honey hoping that the temporary calming would be enough to allow me to get to sleep, and it did.
Long story short, I woke up the next morning with very little itching and far less inflamed skin. Today I've used no Clobetasol, and had only tiny hints of itching at times, but the look is continuing to resolve back to normal. Now, the 'fix' could well be Clobetasol. It's a very powerful steroid, and it's conceivable that it has done its thing. But if it's Clobetasol, it's also to be expected that I will experience a return of the inflammation over time if I don't use it again. However, given I have resolved these exact symptoms in the past just by getting a decent amount of sleep, I'm prepared to go out on a limb and say that the 'cure' is sleep, not Clobetasol.
It makes sense. I said in the first posts mentioning itching that I had noticed it creeping in slowly. This would coincide with fatigue. The time I thought it was sexual fluid that had caused the irritation the next morning, it was probably from the fact that I had been up late. When I actually think about it, the times when it has been at its worst are the days after I've had far less sleep.
BXO clearly has a much bigger 'internal' component than I first thought. When you Google a lot of illnesses, you are frequently given the same advice to how to manage it - Lots of sleep, eat the right foods, get regular exercise, and live a healthy lifestyle (with low stress). There's a reason for that.
So, let's assume that a lack of sleep and excess of stress can aggravate BXO, can the opposite help it heal? You'd think so, wouldn't you? I guess it's a good thing we're coming up to Christmas, where the world slows down and many of us get a chance to unwind and recharge.
I'm really glad to have that worry out of the way and to be on the mend again. The itch was horrible, but knowing what it meant was even worse. Once again, I was reminded of how alone you can feel with this disease, because western medicine simply has no explanation nor answer. They acknowledge it's existence, and provide a treatment for the symptoms, but that's really it.
Another thing I'm glad to see is a regular number of hits to this blog. It's great to know I might be making a difference for some sufferers out there. A big shout out to you, wherever you are in the world. Stay strong, and don't give up. One way or another, we can beat this.
Then, on the way home, I decided I would try Clobetasol. One theory I had was that perhaps this was a relapse because I didn't taper off the steroid. Admittedly, it would have been a very late relapse as I stopped it about a month and a half ago, but it had to be worth a shot. Clobetasol felt like it was working, and (like many other treatments I had tried) it had me convinced that I was on my way back to normal. And then I remember this wildcard as a potential dark horse in all of this confusion. Recall that I was sick with a cold and was beginning to get itchy, and took a late afternoon nap then woke up with no itching. I thought about that story, then how tired I felt before I had that nap, then I actually began to realise how incredibly tired I am at the moment. It's the end of the year, work is stressful and seems busier than usual, and I've been having relationship issues at home pretty much all year. I've also been stressing myself out over BXO (I'm sure you can all relate to that). The more I thought, the more tired I got, so I decided I'd have a very early night. And yet as I'm lying there trying to get to sleep, I felt the itch creep back slowly, then quite quickly. It eventually reached the point where I wouldn't be able to get to sleep because of it. Great... Clobetasol had just joined the scores of other treatments that appeared to work initially, but later were proven ineffective. So I got up, cleaned my skin, and applied Manuka Honey hoping that the temporary calming would be enough to allow me to get to sleep, and it did.
Long story short, I woke up the next morning with very little itching and far less inflamed skin. Today I've used no Clobetasol, and had only tiny hints of itching at times, but the look is continuing to resolve back to normal. Now, the 'fix' could well be Clobetasol. It's a very powerful steroid, and it's conceivable that it has done its thing. But if it's Clobetasol, it's also to be expected that I will experience a return of the inflammation over time if I don't use it again. However, given I have resolved these exact symptoms in the past just by getting a decent amount of sleep, I'm prepared to go out on a limb and say that the 'cure' is sleep, not Clobetasol.
It makes sense. I said in the first posts mentioning itching that I had noticed it creeping in slowly. This would coincide with fatigue. The time I thought it was sexual fluid that had caused the irritation the next morning, it was probably from the fact that I had been up late. When I actually think about it, the times when it has been at its worst are the days after I've had far less sleep.
BXO clearly has a much bigger 'internal' component than I first thought. When you Google a lot of illnesses, you are frequently given the same advice to how to manage it - Lots of sleep, eat the right foods, get regular exercise, and live a healthy lifestyle (with low stress). There's a reason for that.
So, let's assume that a lack of sleep and excess of stress can aggravate BXO, can the opposite help it heal? You'd think so, wouldn't you? I guess it's a good thing we're coming up to Christmas, where the world slows down and many of us get a chance to unwind and recharge.
I'm really glad to have that worry out of the way and to be on the mend again. The itch was horrible, but knowing what it meant was even worse. Once again, I was reminded of how alone you can feel with this disease, because western medicine simply has no explanation nor answer. They acknowledge it's existence, and provide a treatment for the symptoms, but that's really it.
Another thing I'm glad to see is a regular number of hits to this blog. It's great to know I might be making a difference for some sufferers out there. A big shout out to you, wherever you are in the world. Stay strong, and don't give up. One way or another, we can beat this.
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