Grammy-winning artist, actress, and Destiny’s Child alum Kelly Rowland spent years misinterpreting her eczema symptoms as just a common rash. In fact, it wasn’t until after the birth of her oldest son, Titan, in 2014 that she received an official diagnosis.
“I learned so much in my pregnancy, especially at the end of my pregnancy. When I found out [about] the diagnosis, it all made sense,” Rowland tells BlackDoctor. “Part of me was wondering what this was in the middle of my arm, or behind my knees, or in the very back of my neck, which was where my mom had hers—so actually, probably where I should have figured it out, to be honest.”
For many, this delayed diagnosis is common. Dr. Camille Howard-Verovic, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City who also lives with eczema, notes that the condition is often misunderstood.
“I feel like I really got interested in eczema when I started residency because of my history of dealing with eczema personally,” Dr. Howard-Verovic says. “So, I’ve focused a lot on educating my patients about eczema because I find that it’s very helpful with compliance, and I’m always interested in educating them and helping them to understand how many options there are for them.”
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As a new mom, Rowland faced the compounding challenges of postpartum life and a flare-up that seemed tied to her stress levels.
“I also got frustrated, which—now that I’m thinking about the moments that I got frustrated—the flare would probably get worse. So, I did realize stress definitely brought it on,” she recalls. “I had to calm down, and when I was able to talk to my doctor about it, it was just a lot more clarity.”
Rowland notes that during those early, difficult days, she was grieving the loss of her mother while trying to find a new balance in life. She found that talking it out with her inner circle—including Tina Knowles, her friends and her husband—was essential.
Dr. Howard-Verovic explains that this cycle of stress-related symptoms is common.
“Imagine if you are interrupted mentally by an itch constantly throughout the day,” she says. “Try to look through the lens of how much you’re thinking of that rash throughout the day … Once you start to really pay attention, objectively, to how much you’re thinking about something that’s bothering you, you start to see that this is something that I may want to talk to my doctor about,” she notes.
One of the biggest hurdles in diagnosis, particularly for patients of color, is that medical education often focuses on how conditions appear on lighter skin.
“Eczema is a rash. It can be very unpredictable,” Dr. Howard-Verovic explains. “On deeper skin tones, what typically is described as erythema, or red, will be more violacious, more copper, or scaly. Eczema can also come in different flavors. You can have some that look circular, you can have a rash in an area like your neck or on your eyelids, you can have small bumps—it can be scaly, it can be weepy.”
Rowland reflects on her own initial confusion: “I thought I was spreading it … So it’s just bringing more awareness to it, and more awareness to ask your healthcare provider or your doctor to be able to have some more knowledge about it.”
Rowland is now partnering with EBGLYSS® to encourage others to take a more active role in their health.
“I’d never shared my journey with eczema,” Rowland says. “I wanted to bring more light to eczema, because I feel like even though people know about it, I think a lot of people fail to ask doctors, ‘What’s going on?’ or ‘What is this?’”
Developing a consistent treatment plan has been transformative for the 45-year-old.
“When I think about those things that create stress, some stuff is like, ‘I don’t know what else to do.’ But it’s also taking me away from time with my kids,” Rowland explains. “The game plan is whatever works best for you, and whatever brings you the most comfort. But for me, it was prioritizing.”
Dr. Howard-Verovic underscores why this proactive approach is vital: “The longer you have that flare, the more you scratch, the more inflammation occurs. And then sometimes that post-inflammatory [hyperpigmentation] is very, very stubborn.”
When living with a chronic condition, both Rowland and Dr. Howard-Verovic urge patients to stop dismissing their symptoms.
“Don’t wait for rashes to be super severe to seek help,” Dr. Howard-Verovic advises. “If you have a rash that you can’t explain, find the help you need. Speak up. I think sometimes, maybe in our community, we deal with certain things—like a rash—like, ‘Oh, I’ve had this rash for a minute, it’s just a rash.’ And we kind of dismiss it. But the first step is just identifying that, hey, this is something that’s persistent.”
For Rowland, managing eczema is about protecting her peace and reclaiming her time.
“I think at one point I thought that I could do everything, and everything was going to be number one,” she says. “But it was having this moment where I said … ‘something’s going to come second,’ which was hard. But I figured it out,” she shares.
Dr. Howard-Verovic suggests that patients should objectively quantify how much their skin is affecting their mental load.
“Try to look through the lens of how much you’re thinking of that rash throughout the day,” she says. “Is it once a day? Is it twice a day? Is it Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday? And also, quantify: Is it a seven out of ten? Once you start to really pay attention, objectively, to how much you’re thinking about something that’s bothering you, you start to see that this is something that I may want to talk to my doctor about,” she explains.
Rowland’s message to others is rooted in self-advocacy. “I’m 45 now, and wellness is on another level to me. So I’m asking all the questions, and I think we [all] should,” she says.
“No one knows yourself like you do,” Rowland concludes. “I’d say that you have to advocate for yourself. Ask the questions. Know when you’re in discomfort, and be able to tell someone … You deserve comfort. You deserve to know what’s going on.”
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