Liam’s Eczema Story

Liam Cowl, age 10

“We live in Kansas. It’s hot and cold, dry and a tough environment for a 10-year-old boy who has eczema and loves sports. Heat and sweat trigger reactions and we are always fighting to keep his skin hydrated after a football game.

Liam’s eczema appeared when he was less than a month old. We didn’t know what to do with his dry, irritated skin so we just coated him with Johnson’s Baby lotion. We saw a dermatologist when he was 3 months old, but there was no follow up and it felt like we were on our own. Meanwhile we struggled with multiple food allergies, asthma and finding the least symptomatic diet.  

Still, Liam’s eczema worsened. Our frustrated allergist accused us of not following his directions closely enough and referred us again to a dermatologist. Turns out, Liam had a serious skin infection, MRSA, that no steroids or creams were going to help!

We continued using every cream imaginable, but his condition went from bad to worse. Finally, when Liam was 4, we drove to National Jewish Hospital in Denver for a two-week assessment and treatment plan in their eczema program. It was a life changing experience for our family.  Of course, the hospital had no cure for Liam’s eczema.  But they did give us the tools to manage it. We learned how to wrap him like a mummy with wet gauze, and what bathing frequency, emollient and prednisone creams would keep his skin in check. 

Still, this is a disease with frequent flare-ups no matter how well managed. We tried whatever seemed promising. Twice a week before work for a year I drove Liam 40 minutes each way to get phototherapy treatments that resulted in only a slight improvement. 

Fortunately, Liam seems to have weathered the emotional toll that eczema often exacts on kids. He has a sunny disposition, is happy in school and, because of his love of sports, has lots of friends. We’ve been really lucky that his school has been exceptionally good about educating his teachers and classmates about the condition.  The school nurse created a power point presentation on eczema for the school that blew me away.

Our early years with eczema were tough, no doubt about it.  We felt as if we were doing all our own research with very little support. Eczema is still a part of Liam’s life, but we feel like we have the tools to handle it, and so does he.”

-Missy Cowl, GPER parent

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