Raising a child with severe eczema, offering insights, strategies, and hope for families.
As a parent, you go about your daily life, trying to keep up with its constant busyness, until a wave of guilt hits when you realize the impact eczema has had on your child. Read Marizen’s story about caring for a child with severe eczema and the lessons she learned along the way.
“It is heartbreaking to see your child suffer every day. You don’t realize the intensity and the impact eczema can have on your child. It was obvious when washing his bloody bed sheets or sitting up with him in the middle of the night to support him, not scratching, but you don’t realize the small moments. Like when Will didn’t want to go to taekwondo practice. It wasn’t because he would rather play video games; it was because there were times when he was so uncomfortable during training. The sweat from training would aggravate his skin, and he would then be in so much discomfort. He suffered because the eczema became a barrier to training.
I also remember our doctor saying, ‘How come we waited so long for the skin to get so bad?’ We didn’t know. Three people in our family have eczema, and the traditional topical creams were effective for my husband and daughter. Sadly, Will’s was the most severe.
It is also hard for me to think about Will’s mental and emotional well-being – especially those teenage years. Most people didn’t understand his eczema. Will’s hands were all covered with sores and open wounds, and he would take a box of Band-Aids and try to cover up everywhere there was an open wound. He would wear hoodies in the warmer months because he didn’t want to show his skin, and he suffered. He suffered a lot.
As a parent, I would want to have equal access to doctors and treatments that can help my child. When the treatments weren’t working, my husband went into advocacy mode. Noel always encourages our family to ask a lot of questions. He can easily engage in productive dialogue and meaningful conversations while remaining open to different perspectives and treatments. Noel’s persistence and openness led us to a biological treatment option. And now, being on a biologic has transformed our child into a new person.
Will is incredible. With taekwondo, Will went from not training as often because of his skin to training almost every day, which led to a spot on the Canadian Taekwondo Team at the 2025 ICTF Open World Taekwondo. He won one gold and two silver medals! He is now confident and continues to be a wonderful son, brother, and friend. We love him so much. We’re so proud of how he didn’t let his eczema get him down, and now he’s living out his dreams – pursuing a college education towards a career in firefighting.
I encourage parents not to be afraid to ask questions and to explore different medications. Eczema can be a challenging condition with many trials, but being open and honest with your doctor or dermatologist about your experiences with other treatments helps them identify the best options for you or your child.
We want to share our family’s story to show that no one should have to suffer with eczema. Support and help are out there.”
ESC sincerely thanks Marizen for sharing her story. If you or your child is struggling with eczema and needs urgent care, go to your nearest emergency department. If you need support, email ESC at info@eczemahelp.ca or connect with us through our social media channels.
September 2025
