Influencer Madeleine Edwards on Understanding Her Eczema

Madeleine Edwardscontent creator from Melbourne, can't remember a time in her life when she hasn't encountered eczema. “I remember my mom putting eczema cream on me because I was too young to do it myself,” she tells POPSUGAR.

In high school she tried to apply self tanning like the rest of her classmates, only her skin began to look “diseased” due to eczema, she says. And this led to severe flare-ups after graduation, when she became more intolerant of pathogens such as dogs and cats, as well as black mold in her apartment.

Luckily, this was around the time her online presence started to take off. She's written about acne and skin care before, so when her eczema got really bad, it made sense to cover that as well. “I get a lot of people reaching out to me, I have it too, I’m allergic to it, I have flare-ups,” she says, adding that she didn’t expect it to spread to the existing community. “It was definitely nice to have that as an added bonus.”

Indeed, more than 31 million people suffer from eczema in America alone, and in recent years, more famous celebrities and influencers like Edwards, talked about their daily realities with skin condition. Edwards is no stranger to this kind of online vulnerability, but we wanted to know how she gains self-confidence, what actually calms her eczema flare-ups, and whether she's ever tried anything really wacky to help. Read it all below.

PS: When you started posting about your eczema online, did you find it difficult to be so open about something vulnerable? Were you embarrassed by this?

TO ME: Not exactly shy. I would say depressed. Being so vulnerable is confrontational. When you're going through something, it's quite easy to trick yourself into thinking that it's not that bad, that everything is fine, that it will get better. But when you talk to people in such a vulnerable way, you really understand how serious an issue it is.

I always say this: as someone who has had eczema and acne, eczema is way In my experience, this is more difficult to deal with mentally. It just bores you. Sometimes I just can’t even move, my skin hurts so much and my joints are tight.

PS: And how has your online community helped you with this?

TO ME: It wasn't necessarily the people I was talking to, but the people my algorithm was serving me, who were creating this content—and seeing that these people were still living their lives. I thought, “OK, I can do this.” There was a time when I didn't think I could.

My partner went on a work trip to London and Europe, but I wasn't planning on going because my skin was so sore. But then I saw that other people with eczema flare-ups were still living their lives, so I thought maybe I should do it. At the last minute I decided: yes, let's do it. And thank God I did because my eczema actually went away because I was away from that moldy apartment. But I love following people who go on to live fulfilling lives, and that's something I really want to push now. Yes, I have eczema, yes, I have acne, but I try really, really hard not to let that make my decisions for me.

PS: You mentioned environmental triggers, but is there anything else you've incorporated into your routine that you've found has really helped with flare-ups?

TO ME: I actually spent a ton of money—it was over $10,000—on a functional medicine doctor who ran a ton of tests. Food tests, allergy tests, hormone tests. And I hate to say how helpful it was because I know it's not for everyone, but it was very, very helpful because I was able to learn how to control my seizures. If I avoid certain foods or environments, I know I can virtually avoid flare-ups. Just understanding that makes everything so much easier because that was the most tiring part, waking up in a rage and thinking, “I didn’t feel like I did anything yesterday, why did I lose my temper?”

“You are here, you are alive, do everything you can to not let your skin condition control your life because you are so much more than your skin.”

As for my daily routine, I just need to make sure my skin is always hydrated. If I skip any moisturizer, I experience flare-ups almost immediately. As soon as my skin gets dry I get eczema and it's a serious problem. I also save perfume for special occasions because it can trigger them. I also just try to eat as little histamine as possible because sugar is very important to me and I freaking love chocolate, so I just limit myself to eating a little after dinner.

PS: Anything super stupid you've tried?

TO ME: I did a bone broth cleanse for three days and didn’t eat anything. And then I found out that bone broth actually has high levels of histamine, so it just made things worse. It was quite strange. The most interesting thing is that five months ago I just gave birth to a child, and when I was pregnant, my eczema simply disappeared – as if it had completely disappeared. This was a nice bonus.

PS: Everything worked out! What can you say to people who are currently suffering from eczema?

TO ME: I would say be honest with yourself. The feelings and emotions you are experiencing right now are very relevant. It's exhausting. But having said that, you are here, you are alive, do your best to not let your skin condition control your life because you are so much more than your skin. You have a lot to do. You are still in control: you can say yes to things, you can say no. Whatever you're feeling, the best way to deal with it is the best way for you to deal with it.

You are also not alone. Even though eczema is common, it is quite isolating because I didn't really know anyone personally who had experienced the same thing as me. So be sure to find a community online.

And the other thing that really helped me was just telling myself that I am more than this skin condition. This is the first thing I see when I look in the mirror and look at my skin, but I have so much more to offer. I tried to find things in myself that I liked or that I would like to find in a friend: I make people laugh or I make people feel heard, I give big hugs. Try to find things that don't relate to your appearance that you like.

Lena Felton (she/her) is the Senior Director of Special Projects at PS, where she oversees sponsored packages, large-scale projects, and editorial partnerships. She was previously 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 on writing and editing feature stories and elevating historically underrepresented voices. Lena has worked for The Atlantic, InStyle, So It Goes and others.