This is NOT eczema, woman tells doctors

BATTLE TO GET AGONISING SYMPTOMS OF 'STEROID CREAM WITHDRAWAL' RECOGNISED

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A YOUNG woman says she would “do anything” to have her eczema return after a suspected extreme withdrawal from steroid creams made her “burning” skin so painful she had to quit university.

Bethany Gamble, 20, from Birmingham, has been putting topical corticosteroid cream on her face and body since she was two years old to relieve her eczema symptoms, which caused “itching” and “bleeding”.

As she got older the creams became less effective and after turning 18 Bethany suddenly experienced extreme flare-ups, causing a burning itchiness “deep inside the nerves”, “oozing” wounds and hair loss - forcing her to shave her head.

She eventually had to drop out of university in 2023 because of her symptoms, which also left her bed-bound and struggling with insomnia.

Desperate for a diagnosis, she found others on TikTok speaking about topical steroid withdrawal (TSW) thought to be an extreme withdrawal response to the prolonged use of steroid cream.

Bethany is convinced this is the cause of her pain, but says doctors have refused to officially diagnose her and instead state the condition is just extreme eczema.

She recently joined a group of TSW sufferers to deliver a petition to Downing Street, calling on the medical community to “acknowledge” the condition - for which experts say needs “urgent, high-quality research”.

"It burns a lot; it feels like your skin is on fire, like hundreds of pieces of glass are sticking into your skin," Bethany said.