Leesh on tue 22 feb 05
Hi,
I'm just a beginner and have been lurking here for a while. It has
been very inspirational to read the posts.
I have eczema on my hands which frequently causes cracks that can open
up and bleed (typically in the joint of a finger). I'm concerned about
whether there is any danger in handling clay or glazes when my hands
are cracked.
Has anyone experienced this? What do you do to protect your hands. I
don't like the idea of trying to use gloves when throwing, and I doubt
bandaids would help much. I wondered about the use of some kind of
liquid bandaid.
Thanks,
Leesh
Marek & Pauline Drzazga-Donaldson on wed 23 feb 05
Dear Leesh,
I used to suffer very severely from cracked hands - bleeding etc. I =
tried all sorts of creams to no effect. The best defence I have come =
across and use constantly (for over 20 years) is to rinse my hands in =
stinky water, water in a bucket used and reused for this purpose, old =
throwing water etc, and when it becomes very stinky (the enzymes doing =
the things that enzymes do results in the stink) use it in your =
reclamation liquid for brilliantly soured clay.
After a days work, rinsing my hands constantly - I have very hot hands =
and they dry the clay rapidly so I have to keep on moistening them - =
results now with baby soft skin, no eczema, bleeding or itchiness, no =
problems for over twenty years. I have encouraged my students to do =
similarly with beneficient results, so it is not just my skin.
Happy potting Marek www.no9uk.com www.moley.uk.com
David Berg on wed 23 feb 05
I have the same issue and my doctor told me to use superglue to seal the
small cracks. Liquid bandage works too but superglue does not sting when
applied.
The clay is not a hazard (except for drying out already dry skin) but you
should be careful not to expose yourself to some chemicals you might be
using in your glazes. Read the MSDS that comes with the chemicals to know
hazards of skin and inhalation exposure.
David
Leesh wrote:
> Hi,
> I'm just a beginner and have been lurking here for a while. It has
> been very inspirational to read the posts.
>
> I have eczema on my hands which frequently causes cracks that can open
> up and bleed (typically in the joint of a finger). I'm concerned about
> whether there is any danger in handling clay or glazes when my hands
> are cracked.
>
> Has anyone experienced this? What do you do to protect your hands. I
> don't like the idea of trying to use gloves when throwing, and I doubt
> bandaids would help much. I wondered about the use of some kind of
> liquid bandaid.
>
> Thanks,
> Leesh
>
>
Jennifer Boyer on wed 23 feb 05
Hi Leesh,
A good way to protect an excema patch when working with clay is to
bandaid it and then use a finger cot, available at the drug store in
packets of 3 sizes. I use cortizone cream under the bandaid. The cot
can pull a bit when throwing, but you can throw with a sponge in that
hand to help with the pulling. This is better than wearing gloves.
For cuts I've had great luck with Bandaid Advanced Healing bandaids.
They are made to stick onto the cut(holding it closed) and stay there
for a number of days. They provide good padding and are water proof.
Expensive, but they make work tolerable when you have a cut in a
critical place. I'm using one this week with a cot as well. No more
blood dripping into my pots! Yuck....
Jennifer
On Feb 22, 2005, at 9:45 PM, Leesh wrote:
> Hi,
> I'm just a beginner and have been lurking here for a while. It has
> been very inspirational to read the posts.
>
> I have eczema on my hands which frequently causes cracks that can open
> up and bleed (typically in the joint of a finger). I'm concerned about
> whether there is any danger in handling clay or glazes when my hands
> are cracked.
>
> Has anyone experienced this? What do you do to protect your hands. I
> don't like the idea of trying to use gloves when throwing, and I doubt
> bandaids would help much. I wondered about the use of some kind of
> liquid bandaid.
>
> Thanks,
> Leesh
>
************************
Jennifer Boyer
Thistle Hill Pottery
Montpelier, VT
http://thistlehillpottery.com
Rhonda Kale on wed 23 feb 05
Leesh:
My hands have been where you are and (ouch) I sympathize with you... I regularly use a liquid bandaid-have tried several brands-if I was doing Consumer rating would throw all away and keep only one as being actually worth anything.One actually hurts more than the cut itself-has a lot of camphor or something in it and makes you cry-also doesn't seal the cut. I have found only Bandaid brand liquid bandaid held up for wheel work or extended time of handbuilding with hands in/out of water. If you have really deep cut/crevice it will not be enough but for paper cuts,minor cut from chopping onions the night before, or in my case a 7 1/2 month old cat named Bubba J. Stinkypants who views my hands as wiggly monsters, small scratches. The stuff is not cheap but does help.
The bigger issue is hand care. That is something I began to take serious after I did clay work for a while. There is also a bigger issue with me that I have a family history of diabetes. That was one of the factors in the recent death of father. I know that caring for your limbs is a big deal. I know that having my hands in muck also exposes me to any critter that might be living in clay buckets. So I take extra care with my hands so that if anything happens/develops down the road, I will have that to my advantage. Make sure you keep fingernails short and clean when they aren't in clay. EVERY NIGHT use a good heavy duty cream on your hands right before you go to bed-Nuetrogena makes a heavy duty handcream that they advertise was developed for Artic fisherman. Have been using it for years-it works.Also an old brand but great for this called Eucerin-not cheap but works well also.Consciously put on a more lightweight lotion(just about any brand will do-personal preference) when you
aren't working in clay. It won't take long before you notice a difference and it will make throwing a much more comfortable experience-pain should NOT be a part of it. Part of the solution is to stop i
t before it happens.
Hope that helps.
On the rest of the journey........
Rhonda Kale
31.23595 N, 85.40529 W
Potters Council Member
qndivauniv@earthlink.net
Leesh on wed 23 feb 05
Hi Marek,
Wow! I'll have to the stinky water. If it works, you should market it
as a remedy for eczema sufferers. I was thinking that clay should be
healing if you can avoid the drying effects, since mud baths are
supposed to draw toxins out of the skin. I'm fascinated by that
possibility.
Leesh
On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 11:14:32 -0000, Marek & Pauline Drzazga-Donaldson
wrote:
> Dear Leesh,
>
> I used to suffer very severely from cracked hands - bleeding etc. I tried all sorts of creams to no effect. The best defence I have come across and use constantly (for over 20 years) is to rinse my hands in stinky water, water in a bucket used and reused for this purpose, old throwing water etc, and when it becomes very stinky (the enzymes doing the things that enzymes do results in the stink) use it in your reclamation liquid for brilliantly soured clay.
> After a days work, rinsing my hands constantly - I have very hot hands and they dry the clay rapidly so I have to keep on moistening them - results now with baby soft skin, no eczema, bleeding or itchiness, no problems for over twenty years. I have encouraged my students to do similarly with beneficient results, so it is not just my skin.
>
> Happy potting Marek www.no9uk.com www.moley.uk.com
>
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>
mailtoandrew@FSMAIL.NET on wed 23 feb 05
Hi Leesh,
For those of us blessed with trouble free skin long periods of wet hands
may lead to nothing more sever than a little bit of soreness, however for
eczema suffers regular and prolonged contact with clays and glazes can
inflame the condition.
A former colleague of mine suffered from eczema, who, after his symptoms
worsened consulted a dermatologist. He was advised to minimise contact
with clay; although long periods with hands being wet was certainly not
beneficial the major problem apparently was the abrasive nature of the
clay body.
Also your hands as you described, cracked and bleeding, are open to
infection so take great care about possible sources of viruses, bacteria
etc
Although you may only have a mild case, and which never worsen, eczema is
not a condition to be treated lightly. I would very strongly recommend you
consult a dermatologist.
Take care, and best of luck,
Andrew
bonnie staffel on thu 24 feb 05
This story about the healing of stinky water brought back a memory of one of
my apprentices who came to work with me with warts on her fingers. She
started my lessons and it wasn't long before she noticed that her warts had
disappeared. We talked about bottling the water!!! This was long ago back
in the early 70's.
>Hi Marek,
>Wow! I'll have to the stinky water. If it works, you should market it
>as a remedy for eczema sufferers. I was thinking that clay should be
>healing if you can avoid the drying effects, since mud baths are
>supposed to draw toxins out of the skin. I'm fascinated by that
>possibility.
>Leesh
Good luck,
Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/
http://vasefinder.com/bstaffelgallery1.html
Charter Member Potters Council
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