Help me, please?
I've always had a tendency towards calloused feet, which was I thought at least in part to "blame" for the fact that I absolutely LOVE being barefoot and even walk outside barefoot when the weather is warm enough sometimes... in my back yard, and even in city parks.
Lately the problem has become much worse though with skin being not only dry but also scaly with cracks, and the same has appeared on my hands. I am now wondering if a medical condition is responsible and what I can do about this, because it reached the point of being painful.
TIA
I myself experienced this feeling on my hands several times after I had to chip away in concrete with my hands in concrete water. It took a very long time to heal and it was all cracked and it turned out that my open wounds had picked up a fungal infection. And although the skin had growth back I had lightening-like red marks on my fingers and they kept cracking in places. After applying an antifungal cream, it cleared up in a day or three. Then I had it again once or twice and applied the antifungal cream again and it worked like a dream. Obviously I don't know if you have the same affliction but I could recommend that you try this. It really helped me a lot.
My immediate thought when you describe your problem, despite knowing that many different conditions can be at the root cause of this, is Palmoplantar psoriasis. What the above poster describes sounds like a combination of contact dermatitis and fungal infection with a pretty obvious cause, but your issue is long-term. Palmoplantar psoriasis is characterized by thickened and red skin completely with scales and redness. It can be sent into remission with a combination of treatments (smoking, drinking, and obesity can all worsen it) and medications. Would you do am Image search for Palmoplantar psoriasis to see if it looks at all familiar?
Hiya, I don't know what's wrong with your hands and feet obviously and 'cause what you describe sounds awful and like it's really messing with your quality of life and only set to get worse, I'd definitely be seeing my GP right now if it was me going through that. Yeah, the web is awesome for general info and can definitely help you find out what condition you may be dealing with but at the end of the day, yeah, only a doctor can tell you for sure. So, assuming that you do go to the GP and there's nothing wrong with your skin as such, I'd like to recommend O'Keeffe's company products for dry skin and feet. They are absolutely awesome and recommended for people who are in contact with nasty stuff for work or are frequent handwashers, such as plumbers, construction workers, nurses, that kind of thing. It's awesome and well worth looking into.
Hey,
There's a few different things you can do to try to treat that. First off, because these things are often called by underlying fungal infections you may not be aware of, wash your hands and feet with an antibacterial soap twice a day. Make sure to completely dry your feet and hands after that, because moist areas encourage fungal growth. Then, moisturize often and in liberal amounts using something very nourishing like coconut oil, shea butter, or even vaseline. You can also soak your feet in water every day, then remove some of the extra skin with a pumice stone. It may even work for your hands as well, though you may need help from another person there.
Rosie
That thickening and drying of the skin, accompanied by cracks, scales and often itching and pain, is called Hyperkeratosis. Hyperkeratosis can be caused by numerous root factors, including irritating chemicals you may be coming into contact with on a daily basis, exposure to sunlight, underlying inflammation in the body, and underlying infections including fungal infections. With so many different causes of thick skin on hands and feet, treatment is obviously conducted in accordance with the identified underlying cause. In short, if you want this to get better, you really would do well in seeing a doctor.
I suggest you first try and eliminate all products you are using at the moment, and see if there is any improvement in the situation. Then introduce natural products instead which are less likely to contain drying ingredients. Some options here are jojoba oil, or Argan oil, or even almond oil.
But if you continue to have problems maybe you should go and see your family doctor as well maybe it's something completely different causing your dry skin.
I never considered it a problem until it started affecting my hands as well, and until it became so bad that cracking and bleeding started happening. Having looked into some of the conditions mentioned, psoriasis looks quite a lot like what I have.
I thank you for your replies and I do agree that it is now time to see a doctor. Wish me luck!