Climbing Kilimanjaro After Years of Eczema Flares: Jenna’s Story

Jenna still remembers the itching most vividly from her worst eczema flare, when patches covered much of her body and face. “It was just constant,” she said. The itching sometimes kept her up at night, making it nearly impossible to escape, and despite knowing she shouldn’t scratch at her patches, she said she “generally couldn’t stop myself.” The visible patches, especially on her face and neck, made her deeply self-conscious during that period of her life. By that point, she had already tried a wide range of topical treatments without finding anything that offered lasting relief. After she and her dermatologist had exhausted the available topical options, her dermatologist recommended switching to a biologic, a shift that would ultimately change the course of her treatment.

Training for Kilimanjaro With Controlled Skin

By the time Jenna left to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, her eczema was nearly clear, and she had transitioned to a less frequent dosing schedule that eliminated two major logistical worries: keeping her medication refrigerated or missing a dose while on a mountain far from home.

That alone removed a significant source of stress from the trip. The mountain’s harsh conditions still took a physical toll: Her lips and knuckles cracked, and her skin grew dry as she approached the summit, but she attributes that to the weather and altitude rather than an eczema flare. “I didn’t think that my eczema was going to stop me from achieving this goal,” she said, adding that having her skin under control meant she could focus on the genuine physical challenges of the climb rather than carrying an additional layer of stress about her condition.

When “Controlled” Still Meant Breakthrough Symptoms

Jenna said her first biologic brought real, meaningful improvement compared with what she had experienced before. But over time, breakthrough symptoms began appearing in the days leading up to each dose. At the time, she was on a two-week dosing schedule, which meant she was effectively experiencing flares every two weeks, more manageable than her worst period, but still a source of ongoing frustration. “It was so frustrating,” she said, particularly because she felt she had finally found something that worked, only to find herself managing symptoms and reaching for topicals as coverage again less than a year in. She has been on her current treatment, Ebglyss (lebrikizumab-lbkz), for about a year and a half without experiencing breakthrough symptoms, a shift she describes as life-changing.

Reflecting on why persistent, breakthrough symptoms often go unaddressed rather than treated as a problem worth solving, Jenna, who noted she isn’t a doctor and can only speak from her own experience, said many patients grow discouraged after a long, exhausting search for something that works. “I imagine that a lot of people are just defeated,” she said, and may come to accept symptom relief that’s merely “OK” rather than continuing to push for the quality of life they want, often because they feel too stuck or defeated to keep advocating for themselves.

The Toll of Visible Symptoms

Living with flares on her face, neck, jaw and eyelids, areas she couldn’t cover with clothing and struggled to conceal even with makeup, took a real toll on Jenna’s confidence, particularly given her active, outdoor-focused lifestyle in Texas, where she regularly participates in run clubs and group fitness in the heat. “I was always worried. Like, are people noticing? Are people judging?” she said. No one ever said anything to her directly, but the worry was constant. Despite knowing intellectually that there was nothing to be embarrassed about, she said the self-consciousness never fully went away during that period.

Life Now, and Advice for Other Patients

Today, Jenna said she mostly forgets she has eczema until her phone reminds her it’s time for her next dose. “It’s so nice to not have to worry about it anymore,” she said, describing the shift as freeing after years of assuming her symptoms were simply something she’d have to live with indefinitely. Her advice to other patients: Advocate for yourself, find a dermatologist willing to do the same and stay open to different treatment options, even ones that feel intimidating at first, like self-injection. “It’s so beyond worth it for me,” she said.