Anyone who knows eczema at all knows how hard it is to stop the itching at night time, but anyone with a child with eczema will also probably agree that managing the daytime itching and scratching can sometimes be even harder, especially if your child is spending time away from you at daycare, with other carers or has reached the age where they need to attend kindergarten and school.

The good news is that we’ve found 5 great ways to help manage day time itching and distract from the itch!

1. Eczema Mitten Sleeves

The unique opening and closing mitten on the Eczema Mitten Sleeves means you can easily dress your child in these and have them wear them comfortably all day long without having to take them on and off every time you want to stop the scratching or when they need access to their hands to eat, go to the toilet, play etc.

Carers at daycare or kindergartens and schools are all busy making sure all the children’s needs are met, so Eczema Mitten Sleeves give parents so much peace of mind when they are used for children attending these. They know they can be worn all day and that carers can quickly and easily flip them closed when they notice the scratching start.The great benefit of thet Sleeves is that they can be used by children of all ages right from birth through to 6 years of age.

2. Encourage Fine Motor Skills in Babies/Toddlers

Having your child engage in age appropriate activities that help develop fine motor skills is a great itch-distraction technique. It not only helps stop the day time itches, but also is great for their overall physical and intellectual development too.

One of the best ways we found to do this once our bub was at the age where he could sit upright on his own, was through use of an Exersaucer which he would sit in, happily surrounded my attached toys and games to keep him distracted and help tire him out at the same time. It was a winning combo, especially as it can easily be moved from room to room and for quite some time was the ONLY way I was able to get a shower once a day knowing that he was distracted from the scratching while playing in this and still be able to be visible to me while in the bathroom!

Making some  sensitive skin friendly play doh like the one in this recipe

is also another great option that can provide hours of scratch-free fun.

However a quick google search will also give you a multitude of other great fine motor skill activities for kids that can include simple activities with items you probably already have at home, like the great ones here at  The Imagination Tree.

3. Encourage Fine Motor Skills in Older Children

We’ve found as kids get older that finding ways to keep scratching fingers busy is quite a lot easier the older the get as more play options become more easily doable! Activities like learning origami together from a book, colouring in, doing word searches or dot-to-dot puzzles are all great options and what child doesn’t LOVE Lego??!

4. Fidget Spinners

We’ve also recently used the popularity of the fidget spinner craze to help distract from the itches in our household and these are a great option for them to use during ‘quiet times’ like while watching TV or while listening to reading to give their hands something to do other than scratching.Even more exciting was when we found  this link to making our own fidget spinners from Lego, which added some extra scratch-free time while building them, plus there’s no end to the different variations you can spend time making once you’ve done one!

5. Engaging in music, dance or the arts

Whether it's just putting on some music and dancing around your own lounge room together or taking your child to some structured music or art lessons, these are skills that will not only stay with them providing long term benefits, but will also help short term in distracting from the itch too. Not to mention the added benefits these activities provide in helping kids with anxiety and to help build their self-esteem!