I have very sensitive skin. I've tried all of the products listed above over the years (except Weleda) and when my skin is in an inflammation state, they are all not helpful.
Four things work for me:
1) Removing sources of skin irritation;
2) Cotton gloves over a heavy moisturizer at night to heal the intense dryness;
3) A lighter moisturizer during the day to maintain a base level of skin moisture throughout the day;
4) And finally, adding moisture internally to help it all out.
First I avoid things that I know irritate my skin, including lanolin, and latex, and I also know to avoid anything with petroleum-based ingredients:
- Sodium myreth sulfate
- Paraffin Wax
- Mineral Oil
- toluene
- Benzene
- Phenoxyethanol
- Anything with PEG (polyethylene glycol)
- Anything ending in ‘eth’ indicates that it required ethylene oxide (a petrochemical) to produce e.g. myreth, oleth, laureth, ceteareth
- Anything with DEA (diethanolamine) or MEA (ethanolamine)
- Butanol and any word with ‘butyl’ – butyl alcohol, butylparaben, butylene glycol
- Ethanol and word with ‘ethyl’ – ethyl alcohol, ethylene glycol, ethylene dichloride, EDTA (ethylene-diamine-tetracetatic acid), ethylhexylglycerin
- Any word with “propyl” – isopropyl alcohol, propylene glycol, propyl alcohol, cocamidopropyl betaine
- Methanol and any word with ‘methyl’ – methyl alcohol, methylparaben, methylcellulose
- Parfum or fragrance – 95% of chemicals used in fragrance are from petroleum
Most commercial hand soaps and dish soaps are petroleum based and you may be inadvertently irritating your skin by just washing your hands. Hand sanitizers can also exacerbate the dryness problem and they often sting when you have dry skin too.
Switch to using warm rather than hot
water to wash your hands. It might also be helpful to wear gloves to avoid as much
hand washing (especially when washing dishes or handling something like
raw meat that would require washing with hot water afterwards), when you wash your hair in the shower, or when you do dishes by hand. Make
sure latex is not an irritant, too. If your gloves have powder in them, put moisturizer on before you put on the gloves. It may feel sweaty at first, but your skin will be soft, not dried out when you take the gloves off. Wear warm gloves every time you go outside into wind or cold, even if it makes it inconvenient to do things with your hands. I wear driving gloves in my car in the winter until the car warms up and a thicker pair for outside.
A heavy moisturizer with cotton gloves at night is key in protecting and revitalizing your skin, and then you can use the non-greasy moisturizer during the day. You can use several things with the cotton gloves, which you put on before you go to bed, then take off in the morning. You may be sensitive enough that Vaseline, which is a petroleum bi-product may irritate your skin too. You can try raw honey (look for a label that says raw or uncooked) first, as it is antibiotic and will take care of any underlying infection or bacteria that may have gotten into your broken skin, it soothes cracked and flaking skin, and it softened and moistens. Initially it is sticky, but it forms a kind of soft shell around your skin after it gets melty from your body heat, and then it goes to work. You can also try food grade coconut oil. If you want to put the coconut oil in a warm place so that it is liquid rather than hard, you can pour a bit into your palm and add a couple of drops of pure lavender essential oil (not an imitation, the real thing), which helps skin heal and will also act to fight off any bacteria that may be in your cracked skin. I offer those first, because they are only one (or two ingredients) and you will know immediately if they help or not. If you are looking for a brand name product, I like Badger Baby Balm (I get it at Whole Foods Market, but I've seen it in the natural section of other stores, too). It has chamomile and calendula to calm irritated skin and forms a protective layer while it soaks in overnight.
I tried a lot of daytime moisturizers before I landed on Shikai Borage Therapy Dry Skin Lotion. I get the unscented. There is specifically a hand cream by them too, which you might prefer because it is lighter, but I like the heavier one named above, which doesn't stay greasy for long after you rub it in. I've seen it at the Bartell's in my area as well as Whole Foods and Fred Myer.
You might want to consider adding fish oil or flax oil as capsules or in liquid form to your diet if you have dry skin in general. Or just make sure you are getting enough healthy fats in your diet and drinking plenty of water to help your body protect your skin.
Hope that helps!