Genesis
Ok so this isn’t going to be my genesis, genesis - but at least highlights for you to appreciate my story and possibly to relate.
So I was born in the UK to Ghanaian economic migrants. I was the last of 4, my siblings were born in Ghana.
By the time I hit 2 years old, I started showing signs of eczema - my mum was completely oblivious to what it was, why it was, how it was and most importantly how to get rid of it. Mama took me to the doctors and learned for the first time what eczema was…she had never encountered this skin condition with any of her other children who were born and raised in Ghana, she saw the UK as a better environment for her child to be born in.
As I grew older, the eczema got worse. My skin became dry, sensitive and scaly. Every joint on my body was savaged with eczema including my face, neck, all joints and I was itchy.
By the time I was 8 years old, My mum was at a loss and I felt crap. I knew she was disappointed in how I was looking, frustrated and felt helpless. Nothing the doctors were prescribing was helping. We also learned that I had a peanut allergy which was irritating the eczema - another anomaly for my mum, as she never met anybody who was allergic to peanuts -which is a staple for most Africans.
There were so many days I was miserable. I would scratch, then I would be told not to scratch, my skin would scale off. I would see open sores on my skin from the scratching and when it was spring to summertime that was honestly the worse.
Imagine not feeling comfortable in your own skin.
I gained stretch marks by the age of 10 at the back of my legs - initially my mother thought it was the excessive scratching which scared my skin, but we soon learned it was stretch marks. I would be conscious wearing anything which showed them as people would always ask ‘what is that at the back of your legs?’
My dad always used to say, if I was in Ghana all of these problems I am having would not be non-existent.
We gained some control over the eczema by the time I was 14 by applying a steroid ointment. It worked at calming my eczema and preventing the flare ups but… it bleached and thinned my skin. I gained panda eyes!
Cousins, the doctors told me that the ointment was not a long term solution, so my journey began to the best skincare solution. So far, all products in chemists and retail shelves were redundant as they were pumped with synthetic acids, preservatives, perfume and chemicals.
I would trial and go back to the steroids. By the time I reached my 20's I tried Dove soap as it was a cream based, non-perfumed soap which proved to help me immensely.
Note: Eczema/ Dry skin treatment starts with what you use when you’re bathing through to what you apply to your skin afterwards to lock the moisture in
By the time I was 29 I moved to Ghana and started using Shea butter and natural oils - and this was my exodus!
