Sleepless Nights

The persistent itching from eczema can lead to many sleepless nights. Sometimes the itch seems worse at night than during the day. This could be because the mind has nothing else to occupy itself with while lying in bed and focuses on the itch. Research has found, though, that cortisol levels are lowest while sleeping and that low cortisol levels is associated with more inflammation. So there might be more to nighttime itching than just a mind focused on the discomfort.

I remember reading somewhere that eczema patients often get an hour to two less sleep a night due to inability to fall asleep and waking up in the night from the itching. Lack of sleep can make you irritable and lead to frustration and anxiety -- I know, I've been there. And lack of sleep can make the itching and the flare-ups even worse. So finding ways to get a good night's sleep are especially important for eczema patients.

I've found the best way to try and get sleep is to take an anti-histamine before bed. I haven't found the anti-histamine to do anything for the itch, but some make me really drowsy - enough to fall asleep despite the itch. I used to take over-the-counter benadryl but often the itch would outmatch any drowsiness induced by the benadryl. My doctor then prescribed hydroxyzine HCL in 25 mg tablets. One tablet can put me to sleep on most nights despite chronic itch. It does make me groggy in the morning, but I much prefer grogginess and 8 hours of sleep to tossing and turning and scratching all night.