Wijvenweek: my red swollen eyes

Today's theme for Wijvenweek is "our wijvenlijf" (our body). Generally I am quite happy with my body. No frustrations on my boobs (and I just tested Eve's post and apparently I do wear the correct bra size...very important to check that now and then ;) ). I'd like to lose some kilo's that I've gained over the last years, especially when I was living in hotels all of the time. But so far it clearly hasn't bothered me enough to really do the effort of weight watchign for a while, but it's still on the to do list. Not because I feel bad about my weight, but I'd rather stop the trend before it does get out of hand in the coming years (3-4 kg a year cannot continue like that).

The thing I do get frustrated about is my skin. I have such a problem skin: too dry, too many allergic reactions causing red itchy cracked skin, ... The best part of that is: it is always first shows in my face...on my eyelids first. As if they knew that I wanted to write about my body today, I got up with nice swollen red eyes again. Lately they seem to come and go in waves of every 10 days.

I put Elidel creme on them , take my Cetirizine antihistamine pills almost non-stop, ...yet I seem to be stuck with it chronically. Well hey, I'm allergic to the dust of house mites (there is no way that I can make my house totally mite free without turning into a cleaning freak), to grasseeds (hurray for me all spring/summer...) and to nickel (ok..this should be easier to avoid). So I have to air our bedroom as much as I can but not in the morning as then there is a boom in grasdust in the air. I should not touch the first water coming out of the tap in mornings as it might contain nickle, ...I have to be careful in chosing make-up as the cheap ones add nickle to give it a metal look, I should only have leather sofa's in the house, I should vacuum my mattras weekly with a dust mask, ... The more I read about allergies, the more I feel helpless in battling them. I can't start living in a sterile environment , right?

On top of it all, my face skin is too greasy in the T above my eyebrows to my chin. Oily skin produces a yeast which triggers seborrhoeic excema which looks extremely dry. But "feeding cremes" , after sun, body lotions, ...are forbidden as they turn my face in an itchy chapped madness. Nope, only the hydratating Aquatain (R) is allowed until my menopause, according to my dermatologist.

But I seem to suffer from it ever my frequently. I wonder if it could be following a hormonal cycle as well? I think I need to go to a new dermatologist to check up whether I am still having the correct treatments. After all, I loose track of which type of "dry skin" I am having again.

So next time you meet me: nope I did not forget to put pink eyeshadow on my left eye. And I didn't get into a fight as well. It's my all natural face you see :).

PS: anyone interested in some Garnier Ultralift daycreme? I got too tempted last year in the nice packaging and could not resist buying it. But after one week use, I had to put it idle on the shelf again.