Rosalind - Perioral Dermatitis, Radiotherapy

Rosalind's feedback actually led us to create the Zinc and Calendula Cream that has become one of our best sellers. Sadly Rosalind, who became a great friend of Lyonsleaf, is no longer with us.

The story below was told by the lovely lady herself about a year before she died and as she always said she wanted others to benefit from the information, we have kept it live. She is sadly missed but definitely not forgotten. 

 

Rosalind's Story…

It’s now been about five years or slightly more since I had perioral dermatitis, and when it first started I had no idea what it was or what to do about it. I suffered from an ugly red rash all around my mouth area, that not only looked dreadful, but stung at all times. It stung even more if I was in a warm room.

First stop was my GP, who diagnosed perioral dermatitis, and prescribed a steroid cream. I came home with the prescription, but was dubious about using a steroid cream, so did a bit of Googling, found a perioral dermatitis group on Facebook, and joined to see if I could get any more information. The first thing I learned was never to use steroid cream, because apparently it would make it better, but as soon as you stopped using it, the rash would return, only worse, so I tore my prescription up.

 

What could I do though? There were all sorts of suggestions, including weird and wonderful diets, and various moisturisers. I checked the moisturisers and other lotions and make-up that I had been using for years, and when I Googled the ingredients, I was shocked at what I had been putting on my face. I decided that I was going to look for something that didn’t have all those chemicals in it. It took a while to find what I was looking for, and in the meantime the perioral dermatitis spread to around my eyes and down the top of my nose, so I had periocular dermatitis as well.

Someone in the Facebook group recommended zinc, which I thought might help, but what could I use that had zinc in it? I decided to try a baby nappy rash cream, so I bought some Sudocrem, and started to put that on the rash at night. It made my face white, so I didn’t want to use it during the day. The zinc did soothe the rash, but also made my skin very dry, so now I was looking for a good natural moisturiser. In the course of a lot more Googling, I came across Lyonsleaf, and what I read about them impressed me. I especially liked the idea of their Calendula Cream, and decided to contact Vicky Lyons [Lyonsleaf Founder] and ask questions. Vicky answered my email very quickly, and was most helpful, telling me a lot about the products and how they were made. I liked what I heard, no chemicals, all natural, not even a preservative because the products didn’t contain water. I ordered the Calendula Cream.

My routine then became Calendula Cream during the day with Sudocrem at night, and I started to notice improvement on my face. Vicky in the meantime had tried mixing zinc into her Calendula Cream, and as I had been a bit uneasy about some of the ingredients in Sudocrem, I ordered some pure zinc powder and did the same. It worked! My perioral dermatitis was a thing of the past within about four weeks, and the even better news was that Lyonsleaf had developed a new Zinc & Calendula Cream. That cream was the answer to many prayers!

Since my perioral dermatitis I have stopped using anything except Lyonsleaf products. I started to use the Beauty Balm first for hot cloth cleansing, haven’t washed my face since I started to use it, my skin never felt so soft or looked so good. I moved on to the Calendula & Marshmallow Balm when it became available, and that is now my night cream. During the day I use the Marshmallow Soften and Rejuvenate Facial Oil, which I love because with the smallest amount my skin feels hydrated without feeling in the slightest greasy. The Body Butter goes on my heels and elbows, and the Zinc & Calendula Cream is used if I get a spot, banishing it quickly. My daughter lives in Indonesia and swears by the Zinc & Calendula Cream for mosquito bites.

My skin is better than it ever was, I’ve even stopped using make-up, and I would never have left the house before Lyonsleaf without my make-up on. I think of the money I used to spend on all sorts of lotions and potions, and what the chemicals in them were doing to my face, and shudder. Now I spend a very small percentage of what I used to spend, and know what I put on my skin is actually nourishing it. One pot of a Lyonsleaf product lasts for ages because you need to use so little of it at any one time, so it’s a lot easier on the bank account too.

Almost two years ago I was diagnosed with cancer in my throat. The tumour was in the left tonsil area and base of tongue, and my treatment was a course of radiotherapy. Thankfully the treatment was successful, and at this moment I am cancer free. Radiotherapy, especially it seems for head and neck cancer, has many side effects, and one of them is the effect it has on the skin in the treated area.

The hospital gave me a paraffin based cream to use on the skin of my neck, and I took one look at it and decided it wouldn’t be used. Instead I used Lyonsleaf’s Calendula and Marshmallow Balm, and every time I saw my oncologist she examined the skin of my neck and commented on how well it was doing. This went on till the final few days of my treatment, when I saw my oncologist again. She was talking about the condition of my skin and said that the cream seemed to have done a good job. I told her then that I had never used the cream I was given, and told her what I had been using. She asked if I would change to their cream for the last few days of my treatment, and I reluctantly agreed.

Within two days, my neck was a mess, and I lost most of the skin on my neck. They actually had to cover my neck with cling film when I went for my radiotherapy so that the horrible stuff that was leaking from my skin wouldn’t get on the mask I had to wear over my head and shoulders to ensure that I couldn’t make the slightest movement during the treatment. It took almost two months of painful dressings twice daily and having to wear a large dressing all round my neck like a collar before it finally healed, and my neck shows the scars to prove it.

I received treatment that was absolutely wonderful, from everyone involved. My oncologist was superb, doctors, nurses, radiographers, dieticians, speech and language therapists, just everyone, they couldn’t have been better, and I don’t intend this as any sort of criticism, however I just wanted to share my positive experience using Lyonsleaf’s Calendula and Marshmallow Balm for keeping my skin safe during radiotherapy. However, I know you should always listen to your doctors!

Links

https://www.lyonsleaf.co.uk/perioral-dermatitis-cream

https://www.lyonsleaf.co.uk/Perioral-dermatitis-cream/perioral-dermatitis-rosacea-acne

https://www.lyonsleaf.co.uk/natural-perioral-dermatitis-treatment