Madeleine Edwards, a Melbourne-based content creator, can’t think of a time in her life when she didn’t deal with eczema. “I remember my mom would put eczema cream on my body because I was too young to do it myself,” she tells Popsugar.
In high school, she’d try to apply self-tanners like the rest of her classmates, only for her skin to look “like a disease” thanks to her eczema, she says. And it culminated in extreme flare-ups after graduation, when she grew more intolerant to triggers like dogs and cats — and the black mold in her apartment.
Thankfully, that was around the time that her online presence was taking off. She was already posting about acne and skin care, so when her eczema flared up badly, it just made sense to open up about that, too. “I got a lot of people reaching out going, I have this too, I’m allergic to this, I get flare-ups,” she says, adding that she didn’t necessarily anticipate it would balloon into the community it has. “That was definitely nice that that was an added bonus.”
Indeed, eczema affects more than 31 million people in America alone, and in recent years, more high-profile celebrities and influencers have, like Edwards, opened up about their day-to-day realities with the skin condition. Edwards is no stranger to this type of online vulnerability, but we wanted to know how she builds self-confidence, what’s actually soothed with her eczema flare-ups, and if she’s ever tried something really wacky to help. Read it all below.
PS: When you started posting about your eczema online, was it hard to speak so openly about something vulnerable? Were you self-conscious about it?
ME: Not really self-conscious. I’d say depressed. It’s confronting, being that vulnerable. When you’re going through something, it’s quite easy to gaslight yourself into thinking it’s not that bad, it’s fine, it’ll get better. But when you talk so vulnerably to people, you actually realize how heavy of an issue it is.
I always say this: as someone who’s had eczema and acne, eczema is way harder to deal with mentally, in my experience. It just takes such a toll on you. Some days I just can’t even move, my skin’s so sore and so tight in my joints.
PS: And how did your online community help you through that?
ME: It wasn’t necessarily people that I talked to, but people that my algorithm served me who were making that content — and seeing that those people were still living their lives. I was like, okay, I can do this. There was a time where I didn’t think I could.
My partner went on a work trip to London and Europe, and I wasn’t going to go because my skin was so sore. But then I saw other people with eczema flare-ups still living their lives, so I was like, maybe I should do it. I decided last minute, yeah, let’s do it. And thank god I did, because my eczema actually cleared up, because I was away from that moldy apartment. But I love following people who continue to live a full life, and that’s what I really want to put forward now as well. Yes, I get eczema, yes, I get acne, but I really, really do my best not to let it make decisions for me.
PS: You mentioned environmental triggers, but is there anything else that you’ve incorporated into your routine that you think has really helped with flare-ups?
ME: I actually spent fat stacks — it was over $10,000 — on a functional medicine doctor to do heaps of testing. Food testing, allergy testing, testing hormones. And I hate to say how helpful that was, because I know it’s not accessible for everyone, but that was really, really helpful because I could learn how to control my flare-ups. If I avoid certain foods or environments, I know I can be pretty much flare-up free. Just understanding it makes it so much easier, because that was just the most exhausting part — waking up with a flare-up and being like, I didn’t feel like I did anything yesterday, why did I flare up?
“You’re here, you’re alive, do the best that you can to not let your skin condition control your life, because you are so much more than your skin.”
In terms of my daily routine, I just have to make sure my skin is always hydrated. If I skip any kind of moisturizer, I get flare-ups pretty much immediately. The second my skin gets dry, I’ll get eczema, so that’s a big one. I also save perfumes for special occasions, because that can trigger it. I also just make sure I eat as low histamine as I can, because sugar was a big one for me, and I freaking love chocolate, so I just restrict myself to having a little bit after dinner.
PS: Has there been anything super wacky that you tried?
ME: I did a bone broth cleanse for three days and didn’t eat anything. And then I found out that bone broth is actually high histamine, so it only made it worse. That was pretty wacky. The most interesting thing is that I just had a baby five months ago, and when I was pregnant, my eczema just disappeared — like fully disappeared. That was a nice bonus.
PS: That worked out! And then in terms of people who are in the midst of their eczema journeys right now, what’s your message to them?
ME: I would say, be real with yourself. The feelings and emotions you’re going through right now are so valid. It is debilitating. But in saying that, you’re here, you’re alive, do the best that you can to not let your skin condition control your life, because you are so much more than your skin. You’ve got a lot going for you. You’re still in control — you can say yes to things, you can say no to things. Whatever you feel like is the best way of dealing with it is the best way of dealing with it for you.
You’re also not alone. Even though eczema is common, it’s quite isolating because I didn’t really know anyone in person who had been through the same thing I had. So definitely find a community online.
And another thing that’s really helped me is just telling myself that I’m more than this skin disorder. It’s the first thing I see when I look in the mirror and look down at skin, but I have much more to offer. I would try to find things about myself that I liked or that I’d look for in a friend — I make people laugh, or I make people feel heard, I give good hugs. Try to find things that aren’t tied to the way that you look that you like.
Lena Felton (she/her) is a senior director of special projects at PS, where she oversees sponsored packages, tentpole projects, and editorial partnerships. Previously, she was an editor at The Washington Post, where she led a team covering issues of gender and identity. She has been working in journalism since 2017, during which time her focus has been feature writing and editing and elevating historically underrepresented voices. Lena has worked for The Atlantic, InStyle, So It Goes, and more.
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