Dry, flakey skin.....

I always used to have really good skin. However, over the past year or so I’ve started to get small flakey patches which, when I scratch them (I know I shouldn’t but it’s difficult not to) seem to blister and then they take forever to heal. Is it an age thing ? I was going to ask for a blood test before the pandemic but I’m not going near anywhere medical unless it’s really necessary. I do moisturise my skin with E45 and stuff like that and only bathe using gentle bath wash: olive oil soap,Aveeno or oil atom a lot but that doesn’t seem to help. It isn’t all over my body, but currently on the tops of my arms and round my neck. I might take some antihistamine tablets for a while to see if that helps. Might also be a bit of stress due to the pandemic perhaps.