Actress and reality star Garcelle Beauvais is opening up about battling eczema. The chronic skin condition has been exacerbated, she says, by her time on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
“I was in my 30s when out of the blue I started getting these patches on my skin and they would be really itchy,” Beauvais, 55, told People magazine. “I didn’t know what it was — like, ‘Did something bite me?’ It just kept coming up in different places, and the more I stressed about it, the more they’d come out. I didn’t know what to do.”
Eczema is a chronic inflammatory skin condition that affects more than 31 million Americans. According to NationalExcema.org, the condition can begin in childhood, adolescence or adulthood and is typified by “flare-ups,” which are phases of acute symptoms of prolonged itchiness and patches of extremely dry skin. Moisturizers, antihistamines, topical steroid creams and corticosteroids are among the potential courses of eczema treatments usually recommended by health-care providers, dermatologists, and the American Academy of Dermatology.
Beauvais says that while she has learned to manage her skin condition, last summer was particularly challenging.
“I started getting the patches behind my knees, and I wanted to crawl out of my skin because it’s so irritating,” she says. “I didn’t want to wear halter tops or shorts because you could see the dry, itchy patches.”
The stress of being on the reality show compounds the condition. “Oh, I always have breakouts during filming Housewives!” she told the magazine with a laugh. “But I manage it as best as I can. I have to pick my battles!”
Beauvais noted that she avoids scented lotions and perfumes to help manage her condition.
The former model, NYPD Blue actress, Jamie Foxx Show co-star and mother of twin sons Jax and Jaid released her memoir, Love Me as I Am, two months ago.
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