I Need You to Volunteer

I am one of the millions of people living with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and one in a million with no health insurance for getting the proper treatment for our disease.

I get emails often for medical researchers looking for patients like us to participant in their medical studies for research. I have been a study patient for many psoriasis trials over the past 12 years for the studies on biologics. At this time in my life I was about 70% covered in psoriasis and had never had clear skin in almost 40 years of my life. I would get random emails for these studies, but would always delete them. Trying a medical study was the best decision that I have ever made in my life.

My first clinical trial

I reached out to one of the organizations that were providing this and told them I was interested in being in a study. They asked me a few questions before they told me I qualify for the study. They told me that all the medication would be free. I just needed to go into the doctor’s office once a week for a shot. I really wanted to do this, because they said it would make a big difference in my psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. I had never been clear my whole life so I felt like someone had open up the gates for me. I would do anything possible to see a little clear skin. I was so depressed and in pain at that time. My body was going through pure agony. I didn’t want to suffer anymore. I had been going my whole life without getting the proper treatment. I was tired of this nightmare.

I immediately started doing some research on these so-called biologics. At first, I thought I was being used as a guinea pig. It said I could be put on a placebo, but I wouldn’t know until after 3 months. I didn’t know if I would get better or worse or any of the side effects, but I knew I wanted to take the chance.

I was assigned to a doctor who told me I had the worst case of psoriasis that she had ever seen, but that this was one of the best drugs out there for my condition and I would see a vast improvement in my skin. I was given a series of tests and told to come back in a week to start the process if everything went ok. I was so happy at that moment for what was going on in the medical field.

Everyone has a place

Over the years I have been on a few more studies, because of a job loss, etc., so I always went back to find an organization that needed volunteers. It was years later that I realized that being on this drug was very expensive. I knew that if it wasn’t for these drugs that I would go back to square one with my psoriasis. I knew that in order for me to keep taking these drugs that I needed good health insurance to pay for it. The biologic worked and I wanted to keep taking them. I was also diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis and the medication for PsA was just as expensive. I know that in my mind I never wanted to give this drug up.

So many times, people overlook things that are right there in front of them. I have given this information to a lot of people in the past 10 years. It doesn’t matter if you have insurance or not, there is help out there and you don’t need to suffer alone with this disease. These programs are very informative and I tell a lot of people that we don’t have to suffer. So much has happened in the medical field and medications have got better and better over the years.

I have tried different biologics over the years, for free. Just find the one that works for you. Remember - VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED.