Avoiding showering
Hello everyone. This is an especially vulnerable topic, as I've never shared it with anyone, fearing people will call me unhygienic and not even doctors, fearing that they'd refuse to validate my motives. Basically I can't shower more than once every week because it gives me awful rashes. My eczema has been super stable for the past year so only now I'm able to notice how much of a trigger showering is. My skin can be smooth, rash free, normal looking, and as soon as I take a shower I get rashes all over my legs (mostly) and arms and spend the rest of the week itching. It's not because of any of the following reasons: temperature (I haven't taken a hot shower in years), duration (I still get rashes from shower under a minute), soap (even of I don't use any soap I still get it), hardness of the water (I use a filtered shower head), nor lack of moisturizer after (I have enough years of this to know it's a must). I get along very well just by washing my privates, armpits, feet, hands, and any crevices of my body and avoiding washing my body in the shower and my face. I don't feel my skin dirty since it's quite dry so nothing really sticks to it nor do I sweat much. I have absolutely stopped washing my face because the flare ups were tremendous, as it is the most sensitive part of my skin. For the body, I still try to shower once every week out of insecurity for feeling unhygienic to societal parameters although it completely destroys my newly healed skin every time I do it.
I hate feeling this. I know that the more I spend without showering the better my skin feels, but the worst I feel about myself. Like not showering is the epitome of lack of hygiene and because of that I don't feel comfortable being intimate with people because I know they'd be disgusted if they'd knew I barely shower. For that reason I spend all days thinking about I can smell better, clean myself better in ways that don't involve showering and it's becoming obsessive.
I apologize for this rant but I just want to know if there's someone out there who has experienced the same because I can't find one single post about it online. And if you have did you find a solution? Does anyone have any other suggestion on why these rashes might happen? Thank you so much
I can't put water on my face as it nips and is very red and sore after. Showering I'm fine . Do what you need to , to keep your skin under control xx
thank you for so vulnerably sharing. You might want to look into NMT(No Moisturizing Treatment) that was specifically created for the TSW(Topical Steroid Withdrawal) Community. I know that Eczema and TSW are two different beasts, but I do believe there is also some overlap here and there. Just want you to know that I know there are MANY people having a similar experience to you and I bet it has something to do with our weakened skin barrier and the delicate balance of our microbiome. Please remember that our skin harbors both good and bad bacteria, so I strongly believe that overcleansing can actually cause our skin LOTS of problems. I myself have seen so much progress from keeping showers to an absolute minimum(I can tell you more if you DM me on Instagram @ linettero) and really listening to my body. Keeping showers to a minimum might seem counterintuitive at first, but look at your own experience and learn to trust your gut instinct! In my own experience, (and again, that of many warriors) I have found much success with fragrance free baby wipes(from Costco!) and focusing on the basics like sleep and diet. I think many people overlook the basics hoping for a quicker fix(I know I have) but I strongly believe that if people just put more effort into the basics, they might find more desireable results with their skin! Anyways I hope this helped a little bit or at least brought you some peace of mind. Remember that our bodies were meant to heal themselves and sometimes, doing less is more! Wishing you the best in finding what is right for YOU! – Linette Roungchun 
fragrance free baby wipes are seriously LIFE in TSW and during bad flare ups when I can't shower. I literally always have to have extra on hand! No shame in the game - haha.
Is there any mould in your bathroom? that is the only thing that I think could trigger it from everything you have tried? is it whilst you are showering or once you start drying?
Thank you for sharing your story, as I think some water treatments may be a cause to irritate the skin. My 3 year old is struggling at the moment and it's only been since we moved into our own house using mains water. ( Used to be well water when we were living with my parents)... I've done a food allergy testing came back negative but Dr said more likely to be contact dermatitis.... He gets patches under neck behind ear, arms, thighs, tummy and back... so sorry to hear your son is struggling with this as well. Have you tried a shower/bath filter? I have had one for many years now, I do feel it helps at least a tiny bit. -Nina (AtopicDermatitis.net Team Member)
