Oh Psoriasis, Not My Hands Again!

One of the hardest things about psoriasis is how bad it looks. It takes a strong-willed person to not let it affect them. When I first broke out with psoriasis it spread quickly and took over my hands.

It's a pretty common response to want to cover up your psoriasis skin. However, there are two areas of your body that you just can't hide: your face and your hands.

I mean I guess I could have covered up my hands with gloves but in Louisiana, in the summer that idea really didn't appeal to me. The hotter the day, the more it stings when I sweat, so gloves were not an option. So with that being said, I had no option but to deal with it.

The pains of hand psoriasis

When I got put on my first biologic I just knew it would be my wonder drug. It was going to cure me completely. I would have no more psoriasis and no more worries. Boy, was I wrong? If I had known then, what I know now, I would have not thought like that.

Six months into taking this biologic the only clearance I saw was in my hands. Don't get me wrong, I was very blessed for this handy success. It meant no more staring or avoiding questions. For example, I had a lady ask me if my hands were chemically burned. I remember it so clearly even after all these years later.

Psoriasis treatment troubles

While that first biologic cleared my hands, it did not improve the rest of my psoriasis symptoms. You see, the rest of me that was 70% covered in plaque psoriasis. My doctor was not satisfied with the results six months later and I wasn't either.

I was grateful for clear hands but I knew he was right when he suggested I switch to another biologic. That is always a scary time when you have to switch. Not knowing what the future holds or if my hands would get bad again. Lucky for me they have stayed clear all this time.

When biologics stop working

The last biologic I was on actually worked. My body healed to about 10% coverage. However, there is nothing like having a new medical condition to make you have to stop taking something that works.

Long story short, the biologic was known for making the condition worse. What made matters even worse was that it took months to get to the new diagnosis. So while I was waiting on a test to confirm the condition, my psoriasis was being left untreated. Can you guess what happened? You got it, my hand psoriasis came right back.

The hope of starting a new treatment

I have started taking my fifth biologic. It is still in the loading dose phase with one more loading dose to go. I believe it is working but I do not want to get too far ahead of myself. Some of the results I am seeing is with my hands. With that being said, no matter the outcome, I will push forward until I get the results that I am looking for.

A result in which my hands are clear and my body as well. I am too stubborn not to look for a solution that will give me that result. It happened once so I know it can happen again. This is my resolve and I give each person reading this article the right to hold me to it. When the day comes that my hands are clean again I will be coming back here to tell you of my success.

Do you have a biologic story you'd like to share? How do you cope with psoriasis on your hands?