Does My Baby Girl Have Psoriasis?

As soon as my daughter turned two months old, I noticed she had developed a skin rash on both of her cheeks. She also had extremely dry skin on her back and arms. I even noticed dry flakes in her scalp.

Is it my fault that my daughter could have psoriasis?

As a first time mother, I was terrified. I found myself wondering if my daughter was also destined to live with psoriasis too? How could this be? Is this my fault? As a mother, these kinds of thoughts raced through my mind almost every day.

I didn’t know what to do to help her dry skin and every remedy I could think of did not appear to be working. I knew how to treat my dry skin but I didn't feel that same confidence when it came to my baby.

Dry skin in children and babies

I started doing lots of research on dry skin in newborns and infants. I found an abundance of information on cradle cap and baby eczema. However, I didn’t find any information on whether a baby could have psoriasis. I started thinking of natural remedies that I like to use for my dry skin like coconut oil, olive oil, and cocoa butter.

I used these products on her skin since they were natural and unscented, but still, some days that did not seem like the answer.  Her scalp was still flaky and that bothered me.

After two weeks of trying home remedies for my daughter's dry skin and scalp, I found that nothing was working. My husband and I decided to make her a doctor's appointment. At her appointment, the doctor fully examined her skin and her scalp. I remember being so nervous about what the doctor might say.

The fear of a psoriasis diagnosis

Honestly, the thought of her having psoriasis scared me. I was diagnosed as a child and I remember how hard it was battling psoriatic disease as a kid. I didn't want this for my child. I wouldn't wish this on anyone honestly.

As I waited for the final report from her doctor, I remember having a sudden realization. A sudden feeling of hope came over me. Maybe a psoriasis diagnosis wouldn't be the worst. If she was diagnosed, I knew could be her biggest support! Through my own personal experience, I could help her cope, help her find a treatment and most of all be her confidant through it all.

Finding treatment and relief

After my daughter's skin examination, her doctor came back into the room and told us to only use unscented soap and unscented detergent. She also told us to only use cotton clothing and sheets. Since my dermatologist has told me all the same things in the past, I felt prompted to ask the burning question: Does she have psoriasis?

To my relief, her doctor told me no. She told me some infants suffer from extremely dry skin after birth due to eczema and other factors. She explained that if she was going to develop psoriasis, it wouldn't appear this soon in her life. Hearing this made me feel so relieved! Of course, I was still frustrated about her dry skin but I was happy to know she didn't have psoriasis.

Information is power!

Today my daughter is four months old. Her skin has greatly improved! She still suffers from the occasional dry patches on her skin and scalp. We are learning her triggers and we feel better prepared on how to help her when they appear.

We understand this is a work in progress and my husband and I are doing our very best to keep her hair and skin as healthy as we can. This experience has definitely been difficult especially when those stubborn patches or flakes appear but after educating myself on dry skin in infancy, I feel more knowledgeable about how to treat it.