I used to get heat rashes from working out in the summer and of course, I get super sweaty and if I scratch my skin rashes will form. I've been experiencing heat rashes for 4 years now. I used to not get them when I was active in sports back in high school. I get rashes when I super work out.
Over time I learned to not scratch my skin after working out so the rashes went away. The weird thing is I know there was a rash in that area because it heals but is a shade or so darker than my normal skin pigment.
Now I get these rashes that form after I scratch my skin till it bleeds. I went to a dermatologist and she "thinks" it's eczema and I used this tropical cream and this anti-biotic cream but it's still there. I have been experiencing this for a few months now.
Sometimes I get small red bumps that eventually combine and become a red patch the size of a nickel (and no, it's not ringworm because I know how that looks like). So for the longest time I thought I had eczema. I even bought Aveeno Eczema Therapy moisturizing cream, cetaphil soap (non-scented, of course), aveeno eczema body wash, etc. I don't even use scented lotions or perfumes or body spray. I tried bio oil for a while but it only dries it up and doesn't improve it.
I try to not take hot showers (I adjust the temperature to keep it warm) but every time I do take a shower, I have the urge to scratch my skin. Lately for the past week, I'd wake up in the middle of the night and sometimes scratch my skin. I learned to moisturize my skin before going to bed but I still wake up at some point with the urge to scratch. My rashes haven't gotten worse but it hasn't gotten better either. It only gets worse when I scratch a new area.
I have these rashes on the back of my legs, my lower back, my neck, shoulder area, underarm area, and forearm. My dad also have a similar rash to me. He told me his dermatologists don't even know what it is but they took a sample of his rash and say it's not contagious. They even gave him shots but his rash is also not going away.
Please help me figure out what it is! If the dermatologist doesn't even know, I don't want to go back to her/him and waste my time going to the dermatologist for something they don't know about.
Another note: I think I might have two different kinds of skin problems going on. I'm confused because sometimes the rashes that look like dots become one big nickel sized one. The rashes that look like dots on my back haven't turned into those nickel sized ones.
------------Pictures Below------------
I couldn't find my camera chord so I took pictures via my iPhone.
You can click on each link individually or go to this to view them all at the same time:
http://img600.images...g/img0448p.jpg/
Neck
http://img600.images.../i/img0448p.jpg
http://img825.images.../i/img0449d.jpg
Still the same part of my neck, just a different angle.
Near my armpit/underarm
http://img109.images.../i/img0450x.jpg
http://img141.images.../i/img0451n.jpg
Shoulder Area
http://img10.imagesh...i/img0452ds.jpg
http://img818.images.../i/img0453v.jpg
My back
http://img35.imagesh...i/img0454rs.jpg