October dermatologist appointment update =)

Warm hello to all of my awesomely amazing fellow psoriasisers!!! 😍😊

As always, I hope all of you are moving forward and holding up and/or at least trying your sincere best to. 

October 13, I had my follow-up appointment and not much has changed from my August appointment that I shared with all of you on the "What's new?" post. I have been told by my dermatologist to manage my mtx doses according to my needs - how I feel, flare-ups, and my skin overall. Depending on all of those factors, I am told to take 3-5 pills or 7.5-12.5 mg of mtx and to not exceed 6 pills/15 mg which I was prescribed at the very beginning. Also, with mtx I still use dovobet gel. Thankfully, now I just apply the dovobet on some areas of my scalp, a little on the sides of my tummy, on my lower back , and my thighs. As I have previously mentioned, my plaques are nothing like how it was a year ago. And, thankfully it is no longer plaques, just small spots on the areas that I just mentioned. Along with managing both mtx and dovobet, there's the usual keeping up on blood work. Personally, due to my iron being a little low (nothing concerning), it's either monthly or every 6 weeks. My next appointment is on January 5th, and this time it is just a little over 2 months from my last follow-up. 

In terms of my psoriasis, I am recovering thankfully. As I just mentioned above the size is really small, more like tiny spots, and nothing compared to how it was before. The biggest relief is after I started taking mtx there aren't any new growth(s) at all. What I have left are pretty much tinier versions of the ones from before just on few areas of my body. And, I know with time these too would disappear. 

Fellow psoriasisers, I try my sincere best to follow the same advice that I share with all of you here...

It is difficult and challenging, I truly understand and do empathize. Some days are bearable and manageable - those are good days - and other days not so much. Those not so 'good days' are more frequent and on-going, but as I always say whatever the circumstances or situations we try our best to keep moving forward, and to not let anything falter our positivity as well as our strength. 

We all have it in ourselves to weather the worst of storms, we do indeed. It may be hard to believe, but it is true! 😍

Remember, you are all amazing and awesome!!! Best wishes and warmest regards 😊


Much love, appreciation, and respect always,

💖

Welcome autumn!

Happy October to my amazingly awesome fellow psoriasisers!!! Also, sending warm wishes and kind regards to all 😍

How is everyone adjusting to the weather changes around the world? Or, maybe not if some of you generally live in hot or humid country(s). Whatever the circumstances and/or situations we will try our best to keep moving forward, as always I hope so 😊

And, most importantly try our sincere best to minimize stress in our lives. I understand and genuinely do empathize that it is difficult, as stress is a huge part of all of our lives. But, for the sake of our health especially for us psoriasisers we have to try that much harder to minimize our stress. Why? Because stress is one of the biggest triggers of psoriasis. So, for the sake of our health and well-being we can at least try 😊

In two weeks, I will have my regular follow-up appointment with my dermatologist. Definitely, I will keep all of you updated.

I regularly see my page views as well as keep track of my audiences, and it is not lost on me that so many of you are finding my blog beneficial in some way. This makes me really happy. I honestly cannot express how touched I am by this. My heart-felt, genuine, and sincerest appreciation as well as gratitude to each and everyone 😍 (virtual hugs 😊).

Keep staying positive and no matter how difficult don't lose hope that we will recover and get through this. My best wishes and regards to all of you.


Much love, respect, and appreciation always,

💞

What's new?

The biggest and the warmest virtually possible hello to all! 💗

Why the "biggest and the warmest" hello, you might ask? I thought it'd be nice to send the most genuine greeting possible for posting just a little late :P  My awesome and amazing fellow psoriasisers as always I hope each and everyone of you are trying your sincere best to keep moving forward patiently & positively, just as I have been and I still am to this moment.

Just two weeks ago, I had my routine appointment with my dermatologist. If you are wondering how often I have my follow-ups: since April it has been every 2 months that I visit my dermatologist. Thankfully, there's more good news. On my previous post (i.e., "2 months update"), I shared that my mtx dose has been reduced to 4 pills/10mg from 6 pills/15mg. I can contently say that since my recent follow-up I can now take 3 pills or 7.5mg of mtx. Yes, my dosage has been reduced even more! =) My dermatologist also seems to be happy with my progress. As for my plaques and spots they are disappearing very well. As I have mentioned previously the spots now are extremely weak and fragile. There aren't any hard and stiff dry patches any more. My most aggressive/severest area was my belly and now it has cleared up extremely well, with just a few tiny spots present on both sides of my belly. Compared to the big chunks of my plaque psoriasis that I had before on most areas of my body, what I currently have are just really fine tiny spots on very few areas. Instead of patches/plaques that are simultaneously elevated, what I am seeing is discolouration of skin on areas of my body that was previously affected. The discolouration closely resembles burned skin marks. I have been told by my dermatologist to not worry about the discolouration, since it will heal on its own and it doesn't require any topical ointments. 

Overall, in terms of my psoriasis, after 6-7 weeks of starting mtx, my psoriasis has been under control and it has drastically improved. The biggest storm has ebbed away, but some cloudy days of dizziness, bad headaches, fatigue, and lethargy remain. In comparison to the severity of the storm these cloudy days don't seem that bad and feels much more bearable. My fellow psoriasisers, it is extremely important to understand that we all react differently to medications as well as treatment, and the effects that these have on us varies from one individual to another. 

I started off today's post with the biggest and warmest hello, and now I'd love to end this post with a much bigger and warmer thank you from my heart to each and everyone of my awesome and amazing fellow psoriasisers who continue to read my blog and hopefully find some benefit in it 😍


Much love, appreciation, and respect as always

❤

2 months update =)

A warm hello to all my awesome & amazing readers!!!

Just this Tuesday, June 7th, I had a routine appointment with my dermatologist.

My good news to all of you: I am improving and my dermatologist is happy with my progress. It is a huge relief 😄 Hopefully, by next month I can also lower my methotrexate dose. I am still taking 6 pills/15 mg of mtx every Friday, and by next month I can cut down to 4 pills or 10mg 😊

At this moment, just getting my mobility and my sleep back was really enough for me (I genuinely & sincerely mean that). I have not fully recovered/healed from my psoriasis yet, but the improvement is huge - it is visible & I can feel it. The plaques & the dry skin patches are really small. Thankfully, there are no new growth at all. Itching has gone and discomfort is almost non-existent. I have noticed that the only time I may experience slight discomfort is when I sweat a lot & also when the temperature is really really hot. But, the discomfort is nothing compared to just 4 months back, when I was in a lot of pain due to the flare up. I am deeply grateful for everyone's well-wishes 😍

So, my fellow psoriasisers as I usually tell you: to stay strong, be positive, & continue moving forward no matter how hard it may be; I too am trying my best as I have all along to follow the same advice. Along with, trying my best to stay active, eating healthy, & avoiding stress. 

On another note, I don't know about all of you, but ever since psoriasis, I have now become extra mindful of the products that I use on my face & body. Not that I wasn't before as I've always had sensitive skin, it's just that I have recently become extremely cautious. For people, who can relate, I have found a really useful & helpful website - a tool so to speak: https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/

This website was featured in David Suzuki's research on toxic chemicals that are hidden on cosmetics, if you are interested in reading more about the research, here are the links:

1) http://www.davidsuzuki.org/publications/reports/2010/whats-inside-that-counts-a-survey-of-toxic-ingredients-in-our-cosmetics/

2) http://www.davidsuzuki.org/issues/health/science/toxics/what-you-need-to-know-about-toxics-in-your-cosmetic-products/

3) http://davidsuzuki.org/issues/health/science/toxics/dirty-dozen-cosmetic-chemicals/

4) http://www.davidsuzuki.org/issues/health/science/toxics/faqs-about-chemicals-cosmetics/

P.S. EWG website now includes: food, home cleaning products, & more - http://www.ewg.org/

I hope you find the website beneficial, just as I found it to be =)

Lots & lots of love and respect always!

❤

More on medications

A warm hello to all!

As always, I hope fellow psoriasisers are keeping strong =)

Today's post will be about the medications (i.e., topical & oral) that I have mentioned in my earlier posts. 

I'll start by dovobet gel and emo-cort lotion. Firstly, one gram of dovobet gel contains 50 micrograms of calcipotriol and 0.5 mg of betamethasone. It is extremely important to know that dovobet gel cannot be used on the face, sensitive areas, groin, and skin folds. Personally, what I have noticed with using dovobet is that even when I have used the gel regularly for 1 week straight, if I missed just 1 day my plaques would go back to how it was prior to using the dovobet gel. This may be an individual thing. Every medicine, as it is known, reacts differently for everyone. 

Secondly, the emo-cort lotion is used on areas that we can't apply the dovobet gel on. The smell might be a tad bit annoying and I have also felt a slight burning sensation on areas that I have itched just right before applying the lotion. However, this burning sensation goes away after some time; especially applying cold air or just standing in front of the fan really helps. The common name of emo-cort is hydrocortisone. I have used the 2.5% version of emo-cort hydrocortisone lotion. 

The clobex spray is powerful than the dovobet gel and should be treated just like the dovobet gel, which means not to be used on sensitive areas, face, or skin folds. The spray contains 0.05% of clobetasol propionate solution. The instruction sheet clearly states that the most common sensation is burning and it burns really bad. The up side is that the burning sensation only lingers on for about 30 seconds or less than a minute to be exact. Personally, I noticed that after 5 uses the burning sensation disappeared; however, my pharmacist told me it would take 3-4 uses...So, I guess it is & will be different for everyone.

As for the homeopathic medicines please use it to your discretion and under the supervision of a licensed or registered homeopathy doctor. For homeopathic medications it is extremely important to understand that healing times as well as reactions vary from one individual to another. With homeopathy recovery takes very long. Homeopathic medicines go to the very root of the problem and also address all other problems inside our body, for this reason, it can aggravate the psoriasis, which has happened to me. For severe psoriasis it is best to start systemic treatment as soon as possible. If it is mild then looking at homeopathy may prove beneficial. I have stopped using my homeopathic medications specifically for psoriasis for a month now; however, I have completed my homeopathic medicines for controlling body heat as well as itching. 

Now moving forward to the methotrexate/mtx: 

Dose/amount: 15 mg once a week (6 pills to be taken all together and each pill contains 2.5 mg). It is a ratio-methotrexate that is prescribed for me, i.e., I have 4 weeks worth of dosage only.

I take 6 mtx pills every week after lunch. It is important to note that mtx needs to be taken with food and with plenty of fluids. Emphasis on the plenty of fluids, it is extremely important that you do. The other 6 days except the day I take my mtx, I have to take folic acid. The folic acid is prescribed with the mtx. I have been prescribed 5 mg of folic acid for all other days except the day of mtx.

Aside from these prescribed medications, I am also taking vitamin D pill - nothing fancy just an over-the-counter one. It's the Jameison Vitamin D with 1,000 IU but the chewable kind 😛

So, readers that is all for the medications!

One last information that I'd like to share, which was shared by my dermatologist - with taking methotrexate our psoriasis will appear & re-appear, and this is absolutely normal. You need at least 6 doses of mtx to notice any changes at all. You are also under lab monitoring/blood work initially it is weekly and after some time it is monthly, for doctors/dermatologists to see how well your body is handling mtx. 

Fellow psoriasisers, we have battled the worst of storms & the darkest of nights, but as always there is hope that the next storm will be much lighter than the first and soon it will all disappear. 

I am certain that I will fully recover, my skin will be healed, and I will never have to deal with psoriasis again in my life...hopefully. It will take time, but it will happen!

I am moving forward and staying strong, and fellow readers/psoriasisers so should you! 😍

Lots of love and much respect,

❤

Recent flare up...

Dear readers,

It has been a while since my last post. I have been healing for the past two weeks from my recent flare up. The dry skin and scaling that got a bit better prior to the flare up, all filled up again. And, this time it was worse than ever. I was in a lot of pain, as the dry skin was a lot harder and stiff. Day-to-day things like: sleeping, sitting, bending, stretching, turning, etc was all difficult...

I mentioned on my second post that my treatment would begin in March, but as of February 22nd my treatment has started. That's how bad my psoriasis got this time around...

Initially, I used dovobet which helped to soften up the really dry & hard skin. I am now using clobex spray (clobetasol propionate) for two weeks now and it is helping a lot. It has significantly healed the scaling and dry skin. I have also started methotrexate, so far thankfully I am coping well amidst all the medications =)

It was difficult to maintain patience & strength, but I didn't falter. This is my deepest wish for fellow psoriasisers that no matter how painful, dark, and miserable it gets, don't let anything take away your positivity, smile, and resilience...yes it is difficult at times but never stop trying and moving forward. And, I am saying this sincerely from personal experience. Oh & don't forget the bright side (yes there is one), which is, the more positive we try to be = lower stress level. And, less stress = improving psoriasis =)

Much love and much respect always!

❤

Well wishes!!!

Hello fellow psoriasisers,

I know I haven't written for a while now, but I'm just sending some well wishes your way!
Keep taking care of yourself and keep moving forward =)

I hope that you stay happy & be happy. 
I know it can be difficult at times, but don't stop finding comfort with yourself.

♡

Best regards,
Farhin