5 Ways Psoriasis Impacted my Day-to-Day Life

I don't think people without psoriasis truly understand how this disease can impact a person on a day-to-day basis. I've had psoriasis for over two decades, and at one point it played a role in every aspect of my life. I didn't do anything without considering how my psoriasis would play a role. Now that I'm older and have learned to manage the symptoms a bit better, it's a little easier, but psoriasis STILL impacts my life significantly. Check out these 5 ways psoriasis impacted my life over the years and how I managed to overcome. As you read each issue, think about how psoriasis effects these areas of your own life. From a scale 1-10 how much does psoriasis impact your life, with 1 being "no impact" to 10 being "greatly impacted."

Dating

I didn't think I would ever find someone who would love me with my psoriasis. I was always afraid to show it. I didn't think anyone would accept it because it was so severe. I found that these thoughts were false. I was once in love with a man who saw my psoriasis at its very worst, and he always loved me despite my disease. Although it didn't work out between us, he did show me that I was capable of being loved. In the area of dating, I would rate the impact of psoriasis a 5. My issues really weren't going on a date, it was the intimacy part.

Sex/Intimacy

This was one of the hardest parts of living with psoriasis; the ability to be intimate with someone and show them the full extent of my disease. one night stands and meaningless sex was never apart of my life. I hardly trusted anyone to engage in sex with. I had to be sure that they accepted my disease. Oddly enough, there were times I had sex and I wouldn't allow the person to see my skin by keeping the lights out at all times or wearing clothing that covered me (So embarrassing to admit, lol). In the area of sex and intimacy psoriasis impacted my life with a score of a 10.

Work

One of my first couple of jobs was in a fast food restaurant. Luckily, I could cover my skin with long sleeves, but I always felt odd being the only one with a long sleeve shirt under my uniform. Other times when I worked in an office, I remember how the flakes from my scalp would end up on my seat and around my desk. It was very embarrassing, and I was constantly trying to clean my area to conceal my flakes. At one point I was teaching sexual health to students from the 6th to 12th grade. I feared encountering their lack of understanding and so I covered my disease as much as I could. The impact of psoriasis on my work life was a 6. I tried my best to work jobs that allowed me to cover my disease.

Sleep

At my worse, psoriasis impacted my sleep by a rate of 10. It was very uncomfortable and I scratched all through the night. I would wake up to blood spots all over my sheets from scratching and breaking the skin. I tried wearing gloves to bed to decrease the effects of the scratching, but often times I would ripe the gloves off during the night and get to work on my legs. Other times I took a Benadryl before bed just so I could get a peaceful night of sleep.

Fashion

I covered my psoriasis by any means necessary, even if that meant long sleeves and pants in the summer. I found ways to dress cute while having psoriasis but oftentimes going shopping with psoriasis gave me anxiety. I envied other girls who could put on clothes and not have to think twice about how their skin would impact responses of those around them. Psoriasis impacted my fashion by a score of 10. My choice of clothing was greatly impacted due to my disease.

There are a variety of ways psoriasis impacts all of our lives, and everyone is different. For the sake of time, I didn't even begin to list ALL the ways psoriasis has had an impact on my life. Now, I want to hear from you. What are the top 5 things in your life psoriasis impacts significantly? What about the things I personally listed? Can you relate?