Why have a management plan? Psoriasis is a very individual disease With no two sufferers
having the same symptoms or response to treatment. There is no cure and unlikely to be one due to the variability of symptoms and responses. A management plan -is about having adequate control of symptoms to provide a good quality of life.
Step by Step.
1. Acceptance that you have a chronic incurable illness that can be controlled
2. Determining what level of symptoms that allow you to maintain a good quality of life.
3. Finding the means to achieve this level of control of symptoms.
4. Managing your Psoriasis will lead to a further reduction in your symptoms.
This sounds easy but in practice can be difficult. Having an incurable and disfiguring illness creates its own anxiety and this anxiety further exacerbates your symptoms. This negative feedback loop has to be broken. The media surrounds you with images of perfect people and you subconsciously strive to achieve these looks. Look around you and observe that perfect people do not exist, the human race is imperfect and looks do not make the person. The question is does psoriasis make you a lesser individual and the answer is NO.
There are a number of ways to break the negative feed back cycle of Psoriasis. One
way is to visualize yourself as being the most perfect person of your dreams. Creative visualization has been shown to improve sporting and work performance and will also change the way that you see yourself. It can also reduce your Psoriasis symptoms. If you are depressed about your psoriasis (a perfectly normal state) it is worth discussing your thoughts with other people or seeking professional help. Antidepressants can be helpful in this context as well. Alternative treatments like St. Johns wart can also help on two scores as it can
modify your depression and act as sun sensitizes that can also help reduce symptoms. Acceptance of suffering an incurable and disfiguring illness will often change the way you look at your symptoms. What seemed like an impossible symptom can become quite acceptable. You need to look at your symptoms and decide if they interfere too much with your enjoyment of life. Make no mistake, regardless of your religious or other beliefs you are meant to enjoy living.
If using over the counter or prescription drugs to control your symptoms you need to have 3-5 products to use to maintain life long control. We believe that no matter how good a product is at controlling your symptoms you will become resistant over time. Once resistance develops to a product it will no longer work.
Thus you use a product till you observe no further improvement in your symptoms then change to another product. Generally we have observed that around 30 days is the optimal time to use one particular product before changing to another but this may vary according to individual manufacturers instructions. This regime should provide control of symptoms for the rest of your life. In the context of your management plan, evaluate each product in terms of cost how it improves your symptoms and how inconvenient it is to use. Consider high-powered drugs like Cyclosporin or Methatrexate as drugs of last resort as once taken you have no further treatment options if you develop resistance. If seeking help from
the medical profession, your treatment is a co-operative venture between you and the practitioner, it's your body and you need to be well informed about any drugs being prescribed. Evaluate benefits against side effects and long term treatment outcomes in the context of your management plan, Controlling symptoms can be a lifelong search.
Many Psoriasis sufferers have decided that they cannot be bothered. Surprisingly this often leads to a reduction of symptoms. This emphasizes the importance of empowering yourself to control your illness. Accepting your illness and having personal control of your illness will lead to a reduction of symptoms.