Psoriasis and me

I often am bugged by this skin condition called psoriasis. I wont say I’m a sufferer, as I’m not suffering… as yet. But what is psoriasis?

Psoriasis is a chronic (long-lasting) skin disease characterized by scaling and inflammation. Scaling occurs when cells in the outer layer of skin reproduce faster than normal and pile up on the skin's surface. On me, it appears like I’ve got pimples, or sometimes lesions on my skin. If you see a red blotch on my face, it’s most likely psoriasis.

But it doesn’t only appear on my face. I’ve got it on my knuckles, toes, back, elbow. It may sound horrific.. like my whole body is covered in lesions. But actually it’s not. My condition is actually quite mild. Some people’s get really bad. That’s why they’re termed sufferers.

When psoriasis develops, patches of skin thicken, redden, and become covered with silvery scales. These patches are sometimes referred to as plaques. They may itch or burn. The skin at joints may crack. Psoriasis most often occurs on the elbows, knees, scalp, lower back, face, palms, and soles of the feet. The disease also may affect the fingernails, toenails, and the soft tissues inside the mouth and genitalia. About 10 percent of people with psoriasis have joint inflammation that produces symptoms of arthritis. This condition is called psoriatic arthritis. Thankfully, I have very mild ones, and not nearly as horrible as what’s written here. I think my condition is helped by the fact that the weather where I live is humid. We don’t live in dry weather. Plus I sweat a lot. So the skin is helped by being moist! Maybe I should suggest that to the medical people to counter effects of psoriasis! Sweat more! Haha. I say this not without reason. I did notice that the lesions would get worse if I’m exposed to cold dry air for too long. It just gets tight and dry, causing the skin to crack. Yup. It’s as painful as it sounds.

I’m still discovering more about it and the medical relief I can find. More to come about that next time.