New to psoriasis
Hi everyone. I've recently discovered I've had psoriasis for awhile. I had these red rashes on my face for years that would flare up and sometimes fade and never put much thought into it when I was a teenager I thought I had bad dandruff and sometimes my scalp would get very itchy it would come and go. Recently I had a throat infection not sure if it was strep but my tonsils felt swollen hurt to swallow and what not. About a week after started getting bumps on my wrist that eventually turned into a rash that covers my arms, legs, and starting to spread to my tummy and trunk all over my butt as well basically head to toe in small red bumps some patchy areas. I went to a primary care who did blood work and nothing showed up as allergic reaction or inflammation everything was normal. After days of online research I've came to the conclusion that I'm having a guttate psoriasis reaction to the throat infection I had. I haven't seen a dermatologist yet I'm unsure if I should just because everything I've read seems that there is no real solution some have had temporary fixes very few permanent. I feel great though but it's a new experience and I feel for everyone on here. Feels like my luck to have a condition that is rare which makes us unique. I've had the whole body rash for 2 weeks now and sounds like it might be around for awhile I'm looking into possible solutions but I want to avoid medications that can cause more serious side effects. Where I live is cold and dry and those nice sunny spring/summer days are not coming anytime soon in the meantime just trying to prevent it from getting worse and relieving the itching and irritation. Ive read there's been pretty high percentage rates of success from having tonsils removed of course it didn't work for everyone and there's little study and research into but of what little info. is that seems to be very effective in eliminating psoriasis for some people anywho I'm open to anything that won't cause longer more serious damage to my body and would like to connect with others experiencing this horrendous condition. At this point just trying to moisturize every day stay positive and have hope that it won't destroy my self esteem. I'm blessed to have a family that loves me and supports me through this. And everyone out there reading this should know that you're not alone and together we can overcome this.
Hi @Jayboi, welcome to our community. We are so glad you are here. Our community is a great place to connect with others and also to get great resources and support. I would suggest that you do make an appointment with a dermatologist just to confirm what you suspect is going on. I understand your concern about side effects of medication, however there are a lot of different treatment options out there. I am glad to hear you have support at home and you certainly have our support in this community. We are here for you. Jill, team member
hello. I also want to welcome you to our community. Jill is right in that you should see a dermatologist so he could do a punch biopsy to determine if it is psoriasis or not. The doctor should also listen to your concerns about medication and be able to guide you to options available. Vickie W., Team Member 
Hi
, welcome to the community!
I'm sorry to read about what you're going through at the moment. Your experiences sound very similar to when I got guttate psoriasis following a throat infection. Of course, as both Jill and Vickie mention, it's a good idea to get confirmation of what's going on from a dermatologist. There are treatment options that aren't systemic medications, so a dermatologist should be able to talk you through these too.
I was initially prescribed a steroid cream to use by my regular doctor. This did seem to calm the guttate spots down but more and more were appearing each day, to the point that it became completely impractical to use a topical treatment. I was then referred to a dermatologist and was prescribed UVB phototherapy. I did this twice a week at the hospital for around three months and it completely cleared up my guttate psoriasis. Here's some information on the various types of light therapy, which I thought may be of interest: https://plaquepsoriasis.com/treatment/light-therapy-phototherapy-how-well-works
I did have another flare around five or six years later, but I seemed to get this under control by taking turmeric (this could have been a coincidence though). If you do consider looking into any supplements, we would encourage you to chat with your doctor first before trying them - some (including turmeric) are not suitable for everyone and can interact with some medications.
I really hope you can get some answers and find some relief. Please don't hesitate to reach out here anytime you have questions or need support. We're all here for you! Warmly, -Catherine, Community ModeratorThank you everyone for you supportive responses. My next step is to see a dermatologist and get confirmation and hopefully get some modern treatments to possibly clear it up. I've ordered some shampoo with salicylic acid for my scalp trying it tonight for first time to see how my scalp responds and have some Vaseline lotion that contains colloidal oatmeal to hopefully relieve the itch which has been difficult to deal with the last couple days skin has felt very irritated even after moisturizing several times a day. I will update you all after I see a dermatologist and glad to be in touch with people who understand what I'm possibly going through. Thank you so much!!!
Hi @Jayboi, I hope you can get some relief. Please do keep us updated. We are here for you. Jill, team member
