I'm at the end of my rope

[cheryle]

Hi everyone: I am new to this forum and could really use some help. Mine is a long story beginning 9 years ago. I developed a severe rash all over my face (including eyes); it looking like I had stuck it in a deep fryer, and all over my body, except for my stomach. I went to a dermatologist who said that she thought I had lupus. She sent me to an internist who said that my testing was all negative. Nothing was ever followed up. Five years ago, I went to see an opthamologist for a routine eye exam and he said that I had ocular rosacea. I asked my GP what he thought and he said that it made sense to him. He prescribed Metrogel for my face which is always red and it has helped that. Three weeks ago I had a major flare-up in my left eye. At one point it was swollen shut. I went to see the GP. He prescribed an oral antibiotic and a eye cream. At first it seemed to help but I am now off the antibiotics (took the full course) and my eye is still swollen and very sore. I am getting so depressed, I just want to lay in my bed all day. I can't go out because I am embarrassed for my family. I have two boys and husband. Any suggestions. I go to see the GP again on Wednesday for results on an abdominal unltrasound. Yes, I have stomach problems too. Any relation? I could sure use anyone's advise.

[Brady Barrows]

Hi everyone: I am new to this forum and could really use some help. Mine is a long story beginning 9 years ago. I developed a severe rash all over my face (including eyes); it looking like I had stuck it in a deep fryer, and all over my body, except for my stomach. I went to a dermatologist who said that she thought I had lupus. She sent me to an internist who said that my testing was all negative. Nothing was ever followed up. Five years ago, I went to see an opthamologist for a routine eye exam and he said that I had ocular rosacea. I asked my GP what he thought and he said that it made sense to him. He prescribed Metrogel for my face which is always red and it has helped that. Three weeks ago I had a major flare-up in my left eye. At one point it was swollen shut. I went to see the GP. He prescribed an oral antibiotic and a eye cream. At first it seemed to help but I am now off the antibiotics (took the full course) and my eye is still swollen and very sore. I am getting so depressed, I just want to lay in my bed all day. I can't go out because I am embarrassed for my family. I have two boys and husband. Any suggestions. I go to see the GP again on Wednesday for results on an abdominal unltrasound. Yes, I have stomach problems too. Any relation? I could sure use anyone's advise.

You should read up on ocular rosacea and also type in 'SIBO in rosacea' at Google or at the rosacea archive search engine:

http://rosacea-archive.com/

[GuyinLA]

A few suggestions:

1. I would seek the advice of a different dermatologist. You definitely have issues with your skin and a dermatologist is the right doctor to see.
2. The antibiotics seemed to be effective for you. Look into Oracea, which is an antibiotic especially for rosaceans. Do a search on this board - lots of positive feedback. Here is a link to the manufacturer's website: http://www.oracea.com/Default.asp
3. Here is another excellent website: http://rosacea-support.org/ Lots of info. Another useful link on treatments: http://rosacea-research.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
4. Could your stomach issues affect your skin/eyes? Personally, I think the answer is "yes." The skin is a bodily organ (the largest) and if you have stomach issues, you may not be digesting food properly. You weren't very specific about your stomach ailments. I discovered that I had some food intolerances (lactose intolerance particularly) that caused stomach upset. Once I minimized intake of food intolerances, my stomach improved greatly. You could also look into probiotics and digestive enzymes (lots of info on this board if you do a search).

Lastly, I think you have to realize that improvement will likely be incremental. Don't expect overnight results. Steady improvement is the goal. Good luck.

[cheryle]

Thank you both for your input and I will look into the suggestions that you have made. My stomach problems have yet to be diagnosed but what happens is that I have severe pain in the pit of my stomach lasting for about 6-12 hours. It almost feels like I have built up gas that won't release. My ultrasound done last Wednesday was to check to see if it was possibly gallbladder related, yet the tech didn't seem to think so because of the long duration between attacks. I have read in the forums about the possible connection of H. Pylori bacteria and rosacea. What I have read seems to make a lot of sense to me. I do realize that improvement to my condition will take time but I also realize that something is not quite right with me and I am trying to get to the bottom of it. I will continue to research all avenues and I will let you know how things go.

[GuyinLA]

Cheryle, in addition to what you are doing with your stomach: Look into the possibility that you could be suffering from a food intolerance. It is possible. You could consult with a gastroenterologist to find out. But, the way an intolerance is usually identified is though an elimination diet, e.g. if you are looking into whether you have a lactose intolerance you eliminate dairy products and see how your stomach feels after a couple weeks.

Here is one account of someone discovering their problem was food intolerance: http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disor...rudy-mcculloch

By all means, continue what you're doing but also consider food intolerances. Lots of info on this website (as a search you could input "intolerance", "enzymes", or "probiotics" and get lots of hits). Or, just google.