There are so many things you can do for your eczema and because of that, you don’t know where to start.
It’s so overwhelming, you don’t even want to start.
This is why you need to create your own eczema action plan.
Yes, your very own eczema action plan.
You know yourself best. You know what you will most likely be consistent with.
And if you don’t know yourself, that’s okay too!
You can tweak the plan as you go along.
But the main thing you need to do is create a system. Some sort of framework. Something you can easily follow
And something that’s easily configurable.
Something that is easy to move the pieces around like a puzzle.
Step 1: Let’s Start Your Eczema Action Plan, Now
This all starts with your first habit. Something easy. Something simple.
Take out a pen and paper or open your notes app. Use the layout below and fill in the details: I’ll give you an example:
- Habit
- Examples: walking, taking a dead sea salt bath, getting sunlight, reading, juicing, meditating, eating one piece of fruit, meat-free Mondays, sugar-free Sundays, journaling, spending time in nature, drawing, colouring, painting, yoga, etc.
- Frequency
- How often do you want to do this habit (daily, every other day, weekly, bi-weekly)
- Duration
- How long do you want to do this habit for (15mins, 30mins, 45mins, 60mins)
- Benefit
- How will this habit benefit you, your skin, and your overall wellbeing
My Example:
- Habit: Dead Sea Salt Bath
- Frequency: Once a week (or more if needed)
- Duration: 20mins
- Benefits:
- dead sea salt is excellent for eczema because it helps dry, itchy, red skin due to its mineral composition.
- it also helps me de-stress and gives me 20mins to myself
BOOM. DONE!
See, that was easy.
Step 2: Choose 3 Habits
Your first habit should be around your nutrition. Either increase your fruit and/or vegetable intake. Or decrease meat consumption. Or decreasing your sugar. Or decreasing fast food. You get the point.
Your second habit should be around movement (yoga, walking, stretching). I know it can be hard to move most days when you are in a midst of a horrible flare-up or topical steroid withdrawal.
On those days, be gentle with yourself. Take a break. But if you can muster up even a little bit of energy to move, try it. You can always tweak the habit.
Your third habit should be around your mental well-being. Do something that makes you happy. Do something that gets you out of your head somethings. Or do something that helps you process what’s going on in your head.
Here’s an example:
- Habit 1: Have one piece of fruit to start the day, daily
- Habit 2: Go for a 15min walk, or step outside to get sunlight, daily
- Habit 3: Weekly dead sea salt baths to de-stress and skin benefits
If you haven’t already, stop here and chose your 3 habits!
Step 3: Schedule Your Eczema Action Plan
Taking care of my eczema was not my number one focus. It was in my top 5.
When I started scheduling these habits in my calendar as reminders, it became my number one focus.
My only advice for you is, don’t be so strict with yourself around these habits.
If you miss a day or two, that’s okay. Eczema can really disrupt your flow. Topical steroid withdrawal can really knock you down.
You don’t need to knock yourself even more.
The main thing is, you have your own action plan to follow.
Even if you follow this 50% of the time, that is waaaaaaaay better than doing nothing at all.
Don’t aim to be perfect. Aim at trying every day.
If you missed it, it’s okay. Remember, it’s called a new day because you can try again.
Oh and don’t forget to reward yourself at the end of each week!
Make it fun!
If you want to dive deeper into habit building, rewards, and the psychology behind it, check out this book by Charles Duhigg: The Power of Habit.
Step 4: Start with One Habit
Maybe that’s cutting out dairy products for 3 months and seeing the changes.
Maybe it’s taking salt baths once a week or having freshly squeezed juice every morning.
Start with one. Master it. Stay consistent.
Once you have the hang of it. Once it comes naturally to you. Stack the next habit. Start habit 2.
If you are tired of just getting by because of your eczema, then it’s time to change your lifestyle.
This way, you won’t feel overwhelmed with overhauling your lifestyle.
We are taking it one step at a time.
If nothing positive happened, try something else because the next thing you might try might make all the difference.
Don’t give up!
Let these small habit changes become a long-term eczema cure that has no side effects like dealing with TSW.
Ask yourself, what is one simple thing I can do on a daily or weekly basis?
This is how you create your own eczema action plan.
If you are curious, this is what my eczema action plan looks like:
- Habit 1: Weekly dead sea salt baths
- Habit 2: Meat once a week
- Habit 3: Daily 15min walks (when my skin allows for it)
- Habit 4: Reduce dairy consumption (okay when going out with friends/family)
- Habit 5: Eat one piece of fruit a day
All these habits over time will do more for your skin than creams, diets and supplements will ever do.
Still feeling overwhelmed?
I feel you. Even creating an eczema action plan can be daunting.
Figuring out what will work. How these habits will benefit you?
Or even the fear that something will cause you to flare up.
Healing ain’t easy. It’s a lot of work.
I wish I didn’t have to figure this out all on my own. I wish you don’t have to either.
That’s why I created the XZMA Healing Program.
I’ve taken everything I know and put it into a 1:1 coaching program. It’s uniquely tailed for you, by me.
You don’t have to heal all by yourself. You don’t have to figure it out all by yourself.
