Making treatment times easier

Most families can sometimes find it difficult to put creams on their child or to get their child to put their creams on themselves. Your child may dislike the creams or find that having them put on is boring or frustrating. They may not understand how important the creams are for looking after their skin. Sometimes, the whole thing can turn into a battleground or “cream wars” and can be a drain for all involved.

The good news is that there are many things you can do to try to make treatment times better for you and your child.

Finding what works for you and your child

There is no one right way to make treatment times easier - every child is different. You may find that different things work better at different ages.

Here are some things that other families have found helpful:

• Making cream times fun with games and toys
• Encouraging and involving your child in putting the creams on
• Finding a cream they like
• Rewarding your child for having the creams put on, or for putting creams on themselves
• Building it into your child's routine so that it becomes part of their usual activities
• Explaining eczema and the creams to your child – you can find out more about this in the ‘teaching your child how to care for their eczema’ section. You can get to this section from the ‘help your child manage eczema’ menu above.

Make treatment times fun with special toys

One thing most families find helpful is to make treatment times more fun so that your child does not feel bored or frustrated.

Some families have a special toy their child is only allowed to play with while their cream is being put on.

Make treatment times fun with games

Some families try to sing or play games whilst putting on the creams to keep their child interested.

Involve your child in the treatment

It can help to involve your child in their treatment.

Some families have a doll or action figure that their child can put cream on at the same time as their creams are being done. This can be a pretend moisturising cream if you want to avoid the mess!

As your child gets older they can start putting on their own moisturising cream to parts of their own skin. If you have other children you can get them involved too so that everyone is a part of treatment!

What if my child refuses treatment?

Firstly look at the moisturising or flare control cream you are using. If your child doesn’t like it, talk to your doctor, pharmacist or nurse about trying a different one.

There are lots of different moisturising creams available, so it’s worth trying different ones until you find one that suits you and your child. You can find out more about choosing a different moisturising cream in the ‘moisturising creams’ section, which you can get to from the menu above.

There are also different types of flare control creams. You can learn more about the different types in the ‘flare control creams’ section, which you can get to from the menu above.

These two sections also give you advice on what to do if the creams sting.

Reward your child for doing their treatments

Another thing that can be helpful is to reward your child for having their moisturising cream put on or for putting it on themselves.

This could be watching their favourite DVD or playing with a special game or toy after putting on treatment.

It is important to always make sure you give them the reward right away, or it might not work next time!

Making moisturising creams part of their routine

It can be helpful to make putting on moisturising creams a normal part of your child’s routine from when they are young. This will help them remember and keep going with this in the long run. You could try having set times or parts of the day they should use them. For example, as part of their wake-up and bedtime routine.

If you have an older child who keeps forgetting to do their creams, you could try to talk to them about how to fit their creams better into their routine or set reminders.

Using a reward chart

Some families find it helpful to use a reward chart when their child helps with putting cream on. This may include staying still or putting it on themselves.

To make it more fun you could let your child put stickers on the chart each day they do their creams. It can also help to give them a reward when they have followed the routine you have agreed.

Older children may prefer a calendar they like instead of a reward chart. 

Click on one of the reward charts below to download a printable version of it:

You can also involve your child in the 2 week challenge so they can see for themselves the difference using treatments regularly can make. You can get to the 2 week challenge from the menu in the top right corner of the screen.

Looking after you!

Many families can find it frustrating or stressful getting their child to stay still to have their creams put on, or getting them to put them on themselves. These feelings are normal.

You may find it helpful to look at the ‘managing stress for parents’ section, which will give you some ways to help you deal with stress. You can get to this section from the ‘itch, stress and sleep’ menu above.