Having a positive mindset when going through an Eczema flare up sometimes feels impossible, especially when my skin was burning, itching and keeping me up all night.
I remember the days where I struggled with keeping positive during these dark times.
I remember the days where I hated myself, hated the journey, and often questioned whether healing was actually happening.
I remember the nights where I cried asking why this was happening to me. Why my body and skin was against me.
I felt like I had no life – because my life revolved around my Eczema.
I avoided going out, leaving the house, and attending events because I was ashamed of myself and my skin. I thought everyone was judging me for how I looked.
After years of battling with my mind and my Eczema, I realized I needed to start changing the way I thought of myself.
I needed to change the way I feel about my Eczema and the words I was using to describe myself and my journey.
It is common as an eczema warrior to have negative thoughts during the healing journey, but we have to learn how to shift some of these thoughts to positive ones so we don’t get trapped within ourselves and our minds. Our thoughts have the ability to create our reality. When I started being more conscious of my thoughts, I started to see more and more healing.
I was no longer a victim of my Eczema.
I no longer hated the journey and myself, because I started to gain trust that my Eczema was happening for me, instead of against me.
I started to have a better relationship with myself and my Eczema. I know I can’t always control my flares, but I can control how I react to them. If I reacted negatively and with anger, the more angry my flares felt. If I reacted with compassion, the less debilitating and painful my flares were.
We are incredibly hard on ourselves when it comes to healing. We want things to go well, we want to desperately heal. We constantly look for ways to heal our skin because we want to live life normally again.
But sometimes, it’s not about doing all the things to heal or being desperate for healing.
Sometimes, it’s about reflecting on your healing journey, how you perceive it, and taking a step back.
By changing how you think of yourself and your Eczema, it can create more space for healing because you are no longer trapped as a victim of your Eczema, nor does your Eczema define you.
You are a separate entity from your Eczema. Your Eczema may come and go, but it does not mean anything about you when it is here.
When I started thinking about my journey this way, I stopped making excuses for my Eczema. Although I still had small flares, I didn’t let them prevent me from going out and enjoying my life because I knew I was in control of my own life, not my Eczema.
You will have days when you feel like curling up in a blanket, drinking a warm tea, and being upset, angry, and uncomfortable because of the pain from your Eczema.
But we have to not let those emotions consume us for longer than we need them to.
We have to learn how to control our thoughts.
We have to learn how to create a better relationship with our mind, body and Eczema.
Changing your mindset when healing eczema is challenging, but we have more control than we think.
You have more power than you think.
