My Personal Story: “My skin taught me what I was burying.”

Years ago, I experienced eczema so severe it left me raw — physically and emotionally.

Recently I was reminded of this time when having a conversation with a friend outside the local IGA. I’d recommended a Chinese herbalist who had helped me clear my severe eczema years ago. Her partner’s eczema, once severe, had improved dramatically within a few months of treatment from my recommended practitioner. But occasionally, it still returned.

For me, the herbs helped clear my skin. But the transformation came when I acknowledged what I had buried.
What I had tolerated.
And I’ve seen the same pattern in others:
Treat the surface, and it returns.
Heal the root, and you shift for good.

We both agreed: while the cream helps manage symptoms, the root cause goes deeper. I shared how I no longer get eczema since I started paying attention to the metaphysical root of the condition. 

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, skin conditions are a sign of an overheating liver.  (I still recall Dr Wolffe telling me in his Chinese accent at my first consult, “Internal heat. Internal heat.”) The liver is responsible for eliminating toxins – not just physical toxins, but emotional toxins too. The liver processes or stores anger, rage, and resentment when suppressed.  I likened my eczema to a toasted marshmallow – crusty on the outside, but mushy on the inside.

When I learned to stop suppressing my anger and started honouring it, I noticed major shifts in both my body and my life. Not because I exploded with rage, but because I allowed myself to feel what I’d been trying to avoid. To let it move through me.  

To be honest, I actually didn’t even realise I was suppressing anger because I just got on with life.  This process of unmasking what I’d suppressed after years of toxicity in my past relationship was eye-opening to say the least.  To this day, I rarely ever get eczema and if I do, I treat it through feeling and healing, rarely needing cream.