Eczema is a lifelong struggle. To all of you out there with all variations of atopic dermatitis or chronic acne (to name but a few chronic skin issues), I feel you. It's frustrating when your skin simply won't cooperate when you're giving it so much attention and care. I can never rid myself of eczema; there's no real cure for it. However, I've learned to manage my flare-ups, from the small ones to the big, persistent ones. Smaller episodes clear up pretty easily with the right care, but there are times that the flare-up is particularly raging and simply won't go away.