August is National Psoriasis Awareness month. I haven’t brought in a collaboration post for a while, so I’m happy to have one that is both relevant and insightful. The author wishes to remain anonymous, so I’ll only tell you that she is an 18 year old female. According to the National Psoriasis Foundation, Psoriasis is an autoimmune disorder that affects more than 8 million Americans, and is often misunderstood or dismissed as a simple skin condition by those who don’t have it. Read more about it in the blog below!
It’s funny, because I quite like the word “Psoriasis” – then again, I’m a sucker for silent “p’s” (Ptolemy, pterodactyl…) – the actual condition, not so much. For those of you who don’t know exactly what it is, psoriasis essentially means my immune system is working too well, sending extra cells to heal nonexistent wounds, causing inflammation and build up of dead skin in the affected areas.
I’m lucky, most of my patches of active psoriasis are easily covered, but every so often my sleeve will slip or my skirt will hitch and people will think I have an STD or a fungal infection instead of an autoimmune disease. It’s mortifying, not to mention itchy and sometimes painful. Even if a whole day goes by without someone averting their eyes and trying to pretend that my knees or elbows look normal, every time I’m simply home relaxing in a t-shirt and shorts and pick up my arm to fill my water glass or do some other nondescript activity, I get an eyeful of red flakey skin just to remind me that I’m special.
Most other people my age also have body image issues, sometimes because of weight, sometimes because of oily or pimply skin. People in my class would always say, “Oh, you’re so lucky you don’t break out,” and I would just smile nervously and pull my sleeve down a little farther. One time as a counselor, I was absently scratching a spot a little below my hem line, and one of my tactful little campers asked if I could stop, cause I was grossing her out. (She was twelve, but that’s a problem for her parents.)
There are treatments. My doctor has prescribed the strongest steroids out there, and they’ve all lessened the effects: the redness stays, but the dry skin, itch, and soreness go away within two weeks of daily application. The real problem is that steroids are skin thinning, so eventually I end up with open swatches of tissue bleeding intermittently, forcing me to stop the cream, wait for the psoriasis to make its comeback, then start treating it from the beginning, sometimes worse than before. This also means that I can’t apply it to the more sensitive areas, like my face and breasts, which can be some of the most painful and “ugly” spots. The next stop we’re gonna try is an injectable remedy, but it will compromise my immune system, so we’re waiting until the-virus-that-must-not-be-named has calmed down a little.
I don’t mean to complain. I know I’m lucky that I don’t have anything incapacitating or life threatening, but it certainly affects my day to day life and self esteem- and I have a relatively mild case. So for anyone out there sharing my experience, whether you’re covered head to toe or have a single spot on your scalp, if you’ve had it for years or are just finding patches for the first time, you are not alone, and whether you find your cure or not, always ignore the little twelve year old nitwits who look down on you.
Today’s tip:
- Go to a dermatologist, even if you have a mild case, then you have an even better chance of totally clear skin. While you’re waiting, if you don’t have prescription ointments, find the oiliest, thickest cream you can find (like Vaseline), and smear it really thickly over the area. If you’re worried it’ll get on your clothes, depending on how sensitive the area is (use your best judgement), you can gently tape a few layers of gauze over the patch to keep in the moisture.
Have a healthy productive week!
Going Against the 'Graine 