Psoriasis Sufferers - The Itch that Just Won't Stop

I have been suffering from psoriasis since my junior year of highschool, going onto my fourth year now with this annoying, itchy disease. I'm sure that any other person here with psoriasis has spent countless hours and dollars researching any way to make their skin feel and look "normal". I've read peoples' stories online about how they've more than $6,000 on products, books, and treatments that either didn't work or didnt provide the relief they were looking for. I'm sure that you'd like to live a medication, prescription free life - I know I would. If I have to go back on Methotrexate again, I'll need a liver biopsy by the time I'm 22... no thanks. So, for all my fellow people living with psoriasis, I thought I'd share with you the treatments and natural remedies that have given me some relief from the flaky, relentless itch.

I can't even tell you how many hours I've been online hopelessly looking for some kind of miracle lotion, but after all those hours I can safely tell you that it simply doesn't exist. There are, however, a number of natural supplements, lotions, and the like that can reduce your psoriasis over time and make you less reliant on those harsh medications and steroid ointments. I've found that taking an Omega 3.6.9 Supplement daily has made my skin more healthy overall, and my psoriasis patches have been taking longer to reform or flare up since I began this supplement 2 years ago. About 8 months ago, I began taking a Green Tea Extract, because when does a college student have enough time to make and drink 10 cups of green tea a day? I believe that the green tea has improved my overall health, and is possibly even preventing the bad side effects from when I was taking Methotrexate. Recently, I also began taking a Milk Thistle supplement - I'll update you later on how that goes.

Besides the supplements, there are thing you can do on the outside as well. One of my reccomendations is Neem Oil. It doesnt have to be in a lotion; it can be in a soap, moisturizer, or even extract form. This softens your skin, reduces itching, and I find that it makes the inflamations be less severe. You can also try Dead Sea Salts. This also helps to soften the skin, but overtime it has made the redness and inflammation decrease significantly. Applying a good aloe vera to my skin after the shower will increase moisture as well. This is extremely important for psoriasis! Patches are less likely to develop on smooth, soft, moisture filled skin. If you let your skin dry up or crack, that's when a flare up is bound to happen. This might not be true of everyone but it has been true on my skin.

Even with all of these natural remedies, there are still times when I have to use my Protopic or Steroid ointment. I use a lot less of it now than I used to, and apply a lot less to the patches when it's needed. Putting a bandaid over the patch after I apply the ointment will help it absorb more, but be careful not to use a huge gob when you do this.. your skin might thin over time. Needless to say, these non-prescription methods have worked for me. I havent needed to go to my dermatologist in over a year, and I only have about 8 patches on my body right now, none of which are larger than a quarter. Before I started using these remedies, 80% of my lower legs were covered in large, raised, flaky patches of redness and raw skin. I wish that I had taken pictures of my legs then so that I could show you the difference now. I can now walk outside in public in a skirt or shorts and not feel ashamed, as my lower legs look completely normal!