Living with psoriasis really changes your life. You don’t realize how much you miss the “everyday things” until you can’t do it anymore.
I used to spend a lot of time gardening, I love watching all the flowers in bloom. I loved cooking as well, I really enjoyed throwing dinner parties. It just made me happy, and it made my family and friends happy.
But I can’t do those things anymore, as it irritates my skin too much.
I don’t exactly know when it actually started, maybe around 35 years ago. My hands would get itchy, and sometimes it would swell up after I did some gardening or housework. Back then, I thought that I was sensitive to the chemicals in the cleaning detergents and insecticides. I would apply some calamine lotion on my hands, and it worked most of the time, except for when I was really stressed out.
I was a full-time teacher and when I got home after a long day, I still had to mark papers. I was also giving tuition six days a week, and I had two young children to look after. It wasn't easy and I was always trying to juggle my life.
There were so many times that I wanted to see a skin specialist, but money was tight, and I had other priorities. There are always things that came up and as a mother, you always put your children first. The plan of visiting a skin specialist always got pushed back.
Around five years ago, my condition was at its worst. My hands would swell up to twice the size and my skin would crack and bleed. I had to wrap my hands in plastic bags to take a shower. Sometimes the water would seep in, and it would sting so much. It was unbearable.
I couldn’t straighten my fingers., my hands were curled up like claws, and it was so hard to do anything. Even something as simple as picking up a spoon to eat was challenging.
When I finally visited a doctor, he told me that I have both psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. I was so confused, as I have never heard of the condition before. I didn’t know anyone else who had it and I didn’t understand why all this was happening.
The doctor gave me some oral medications and a cream to apply to my hands. It worked for a while, and my hands got better. However, the itchiness kept coming back from time to time.
I decided to seek advice from a dietician to improve my health. I also started exercising by walking the dogs every day. Since I started to take better care of myself, my overall health and psoriasis condition improved overtime.
I decided to seek advice from a dietician to improve my health. I also started exercising by walking the dogs every day. Since I started to take better care of myself, my overall health and psoriasis condition improved overtime.
It takes a lot of discipline, but I’m a 75-year-old grandma now, I have to be extra careful when it comes to my health. I want to live much longer so I can see my grandchildren grow up.”
Lucy
CTX.PsO.01/MY2108099800
