Dr. Freeman suggests making use of your moisturizer after showering whereas your pores and skin remains to be damp—ideally inside three minutes of hopping out—to assist cease all that hydration from escaping. “Partially dry off and apply a liberal quantity all around the entire physique, daily, ideally twice a day,” she advises.

2. Prescription-strength lotions

Generally OTC moisturizer received’t reduce it, says Dr. Freeman. That’s when a prescription-strength corticosteroid cream—which helps to suppress the inflammatory cells that trigger your pores and skin to bug out—may assist in the quick time period. Simply remember to use these precisely how your physician prescribes them, and to lift a flag if signs appear to worsen.

Generally, although, a steroid cream may not do the trick, or your eczema pops up in a very delicate spot, like your groin, eyelids, or face. Steroid lotions may also trigger pores and skin thinning when used excessively, so your doc ought to go over that potential danger with you in case your eczema hits an already-vulnerable space. If in case you have these considerations, your physician may advocate a distinct class of anti-inflammatory ointments or lotions that aren’t as potent and subsequently can be utilized longer-term, Divya Shokeen, MD, a Los Angeles–primarily based dermatologist, tells SELF. Listed below are the three commonest:

• Topical calcineurin inhibitors (TCIs): They assist to stop your immune system from switching on within the presence of a set off.
• Topical PDE4 inhibitors: These additionally suppress an overactive immune system.²
• JAK inhibitors: This therapy stops your physique from sending out irritation alerts.

These choices could be dearer than steroid lotions, explains Dr. Freeman,³ “however they’re properly tolerated.”

3. Oral drugs

If you happen to’re itching throughout or if lotions simply aren’t slicing it, an oral medicine is likely to be the way in which to go, says Dr. Shokeen. Usually you’ve two varieties to select from: oral steroids (which may calm your immune system and tame irritation to offer speedy reduction throughout flare-ups) and nonsteroidal immunosuppressant oral drugs (which maintain the immune system from repeatedly flipping out over the lengthy haul, explains Dr. Galapati).

Except it’s completely unavoidable, many medical doctors usually attempt to keep away from prescribing oral steroids due to their (typically) uncomfortable unwanted side effects in the event that they’re used long-term. Nonetheless, steroids is likely to be a fast-acting answer to contemplate for those who’re within the throes of a hellish flare-up. However you’ll most likely nonetheless have to see a health care provider repeatedly for lab work if you’re on them, simply to be sure you’re responding properly to the medicine.⁴

Nonsteroidal immunosuppressant oral drugs aren’t at all times freed from unwanted side effects, although. Some individuals who take them report having upset stomachs, complications, and fatigue, amongst others. (Mainly, it’s tremendous essential to take these, like every other prescription therapy for eczema, below the shut supervision of a derm.)

4. Phototherapy

In accordance with Dr. Shokeen, phototherapy (a.ok.a. ultraviolet (UV) mild remedy) is a perfect therapy when your pores and skin can’t actually deal with—or isn’t responding to—topical lotions or oral drugs.⁵ Throughout a therapy session, you—or the particular physique elements affected by eczema—are uncovered to filtered wavelengths of UV mild for a couple of minutes, which can assist settle down immune system cells which can be inflicting irritation. Although you sometimes want regular therapy for a month or two earlier than seeing outcomes, it may be actually constructive, she says. “The most typical danger is sunburn or reddening of the pores and skin,” Dr. Freeman explains. (It’s essential to notice that phototherapy is finished in a dermatologist’s workplace and by no means a tanning mattress!)

5. Biologics

Biologics—injectable drugs that calm the immune system and scale back irritation—are thought of a last-ditch therapy for eczema when different treatments haven’t labored, in keeping with all of the dermatologists SELF spoke with. However for those who’re actually struggling, they will typically be a game-changer on your pores and skin: “Biologics have been a life-changing therapy for sufferers with cussed eczema that’s power and relapsing,”⁶ explains Dr. Freeman. “They maintain the immune system from overreacting, which lowers irritation and reduces the signs of eczema.”