When Evan was born we were renting a home. It worked out in our favor because when we were ready to buy, we bought a house with Evan in mind. From purchasing a leather couch to make Aquaphor smears easier to clean, to putting in hardwood floors to avoid carpeting that Aquaphor would just destroy, we also kept the bathroom necessities at the top of our list. We knew a bathroom overhaul was the only possibility in the house we purchased. Though I was thinking more "new, fresh & clean" was what Evan needed, my mother in-law was thinking "we need to find a tub that Evan will benefit from". She did some research and found the MicroSilk tub.
While working closely with a woman named Cindy, at a local bath retailer, she provided me with a lot of information about the tub. Cindy was able to connect us with some representatives from the company who gave us the opportunity to set up a "tub test" for Evan. We wanted to make sure it was safe for him to use and had a positive effect on his skin. So one day, two representatives came to our home with a utility sink sized MicroSilk tub. Evan was only 7-8 months old at the time but once we placed him in the tub you could see it working it's magic. His thinner scales were easily coming off with minimal rubbing.
A MicroSilk tub is similar to a jet tub but does not force strong air through the jets. The special design emits millions and millions of oxygen rich bubbles which are so tiny they can get into your pores for deep cleaning. For Evan, these little bubbles get underneath his scales and gently exfoliate without the harsh rubbing. We still put in some effort to exfoliate, usually with our hands rather than a wash cloth. We do not nearly put in the effort we would with a traditional bath. Not only does this type of tub help with exfoliation, we have not felt the need to use baking soda in these baths. We will usually put in a splash of bleach for a piece of mind. Even though something looks clean and I just cleaned it doesnt mean it is clean. You can never be too safe with cleanliness and HI.
The water of every bath Evan takes looks as if you shook a snow globe. But the amount of skin left over in the MircoSilk tub is almost unbelievable. It is obvious this type of tub is beneficial for scale removal. We have to use a (clean) fish net to scoop out the skin. I'm honestly worried about what skin and Aquaphor residue are doing to our plumbing.
I hope you are not eating! And this is a 5"x 3" fish net.
I'd say the size, width, depth, weight comparison would be a candy bar.. Baby Ruth!
The craziest part is that this is not nearly all of the skin in the tub. And it's not the most I have ever scooped out either. Keep in mind that Evan is only 21 pounds & the size/length of a skinny 18 month old. I can't imagine how much more skin will be left over when he's 10!
I just wish someone with Ichthyosis who is older (or can at least talk) would take a couple long MicroSilks and give me their input! Any takers??
I was worried about what the skin and creams were doing to my plumbing at home too - my shower ended up leaking into the shower ceiling in the flat below me. A new shower was installed and the landlord said there was a lot of build up.
ReplyDeleteThe bath looks gr
Great!
ReplyDeleteI honestly don't lose that much skin in the bath. I lose the most in bed. I haven't heard of a Microsilk bath here but my parents bought a spa - I rarely used it when I lived with them
I have a almost 2 year old and the highlight of he day is the Microsilk tub. She usually gets 2 baths a day one morning one night. Just recently she takes double baths while she is in there which increases the release of her skin. She starts the tub by herself. The lighter flakes come off on the first bath but the second bath I have noticed she now has bigger peels coming off her skin. The only problem is the water gets warmer with each restart so you have to watch that.
ReplyDeleteDo not use any bleach it is deadly. The original intent was for earthquake preparedness. One cap for a tub of water, it was considered poison. We knew that most people had bleach in their homes, and the benefits outweighed the risks.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your concern. Unfortunately since Evan's condition is life threatening, bleach is a necessity to kill deadly bacteria. A risk we have to take in order to save his life and keep him free of infections.
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