7 weeks Postpartum

I think we are finally in the clear! The last visible remnant of rash is gone! I have a mild itch every now and then, but it's more like winter dry skin itch. NOTHING like a PUPPPs itch. I am thankful to be on the other side of my 4th bout with PUPPPs!

But I have on my mind that there of thousands of you out there still in the throws of the worst of it! 

I'm so sorry! I feel your pain! If you haven't already, please check out my posts titled "treatments I've tried" and "Essential Oil Blend: Amazing Relief" for my most helpful itch relief tips! You can find those links on the far right of the blog, under Popular posts. 

(7 week old PUPPPs Baby #4!)

Wishing you all an itch-free Christmas!

~ PUPPPsMom

Thanksgiving

To all my itchy friends, I hope you are finding ways to be thankful this year! 

I am dealing with a new nasty postpartum PUPPPs rash, but I am thankful...

... For a baby to hold that keeps my hands too full to scratch. 

... For essential oils that consistently heal the flare ups. 

... For a husband that serves me while I adjust to being a mom of 4. 

Look at that face! It's pretty hard to think of anything else when this girl wants to visit. 

Postpartum PUPPPs

Well, I'm holding my 1 week old, precious baby girl! We did it! Made it through yet another pregnancy with PUPPPs. 

And guess what? It's back! 

By the end of my pregnancy, it had calmed down again. It was nearly gone. But after a couple days wearing those funky, oh-so-attractive, hospital provided undergarments (you know the ones??), I developed a pretty good rash on my lower belly. In the last few days, I'm back in my PUPPPs-friendly clothes, but it's too late. The damage was done. The rash is spreading. I'm applying my oils like crazy and considering attempting a 7 star hammer treatment. 

It's hard for a picture to capture just how itchy this is!! See the sheen? I had just put my essential oil blend on it. Ahhh, the cooling relief of peppermint!

I wish I could capture those bumps better! 

I know I am not alone. Many of you mommas have had their rash worsen after baby comes. In the past, mine has taken a good 2 months to go away. Hope it's shorter this time!

Nov. 14th, 2014 **UPDATE**

  Once again, my essential oil blend has saved the day again! After treating the rash for a couple days with it, the rash is fading in size and intensity! Hooray!

We made it!

Our tiny little bundle of JOY is here! PUPPPs, it's time to take a hike!!

The story and more details to come later. 

On the home stretch...

Hello, fellow itchy people! 

I know my last post was about how everything was working well. It mostly still is. But something must have shifted hormonally, because one of my pesky patches of rash has flared up again in the last two weeks. It is SO itchy. 

I do wonder if it has so do with the fact that my 1 year old lost my bottle of essential oils for about 3 days. (I found it under her crib, between some toys!) Right after that stretch of having no oils for maintenance, the rash came back! That does seem like quite a coincidence, no?

Anyway, I'm enduring, because my due date is only 12 days away! We're almost there! Pretty soon, I will have a precious newborn in my arms and plenty of distraction from the itch. What a welcome event! 

I'm thinking about all you ladies out there on your own home stretches! Hang in there!

**Fall in my neck of the woods.**

Something Must Be Working

The blog has been quiet lately, hasn't it?

Well, it's because my rash is pretty much under control! It's hard for me to believe! I guess on my 4th pregnancy with this crazy condition, I've finally tweaked my routine to something that helps!

Here's a Link to my current treatment routine, in case you'd like to give it a try. I'm pretty sure my essential oil blend is the key to all, so here's a link to that Recipe. It's worth a try people!

I've got 4 and a half weeks left in this pregnancy, and then probably 2 more months of dealing with the rash. But the end is in sight! I sure hope all that I've learned helps some of you out there!

How often does PUPPPs reoccur??

In my perusal of what PUPPPs mommas are talking about on various sites, I've noticed that lots of us are concerned about getting the horrible rash again if they have more kiddos. It's a big deal! No one wants to face it again! I'm certainly not a good example, since I break all the typical PUPPPs "norms." (This is my 4th bout with PUPPPs for anyone not familiar with my story...)

But what does the research say? How likely is it really that you would get PUPPPs again with your next pregnancy? 

Well, mommas, be encouraged. It's pretty rare. Here's the scoop:

According to this study, they followed 19 patients for 6 years after their PUPPPs pregnancy, and none of them had a recurrence. 

In this study, only 3 out of 57 patients experience a recurrence. 

Those are the only articles I could find that cited actual numbers. However, I did read dozens more that simply stated that recurrence in subsequent pregnancies was rare. Mommas that get it again are the EXCEPTION to the rule. You can even see on the poll on the right side of my page (when viewing the web version, not the mobile version) that only 20% of voters have gotten it more than once. And that's NOT scientific data.

It would be great if we had more data to work with, but for now the research seems to show that you shouldn't be worried about getting it again. For most people, it's a one-time misery.