Does No Cure Mean No Hope?
My very first psoriasis outbreak appeared on my back shortly after turning 19 years old. I did not care about my health at the time and paid little attention to what I thought was just a rash on my body. I spoke to a Doctor, approximately 6 months after the initial outbreak, and was prescribed a topical cream containing steroid medicines: Taro-Mometasone Cream (Mometasone Furoate, 0.1%). Two years later, I am still using the cream and my psoriasis has not improved significantly.
Today, I have psoriasis located in many areas of my body. It is always a surprise where a new spot will appear next. There are sometimes hidden spots, that appear in areas of my body I used to ignore; in areas such as the back of my ear, or right on the bone of the inner side of my ankle, or the side of my neck. I have found that the level of pain felt from a single spot depends on where it is located. For example, areas that are prone to sweating more cause more irritation to spots that have open wounds. Depending on the severity of one's psoriasis, the skin may crack or may be itched too hard that wounds are created on the surface of the psoriasis spot.
Because there is no cure for psoriasis, anyone who has it can only treat the symptoms. Treatment may be an indicator of hope for eventually being cured in the future. Yet, a disease that has no cure involves a lifetime of treatment, indicating no hope in a sense of freedom from the disease.
For example:
The idea of being cured depends on the severity of one's psoriasis, but also the level of importance one places on prevention vs. treatment. Psoriasis is a disease that appears on the exterior. I believe that psoriasis is a physical demonstration of the emotional outbreaks felt on the inside. If one is not freed from emotional distress on the inside, it will become apparent through their health on the outside. Psoriasis is a chronic disease, and is specifically an autoimmune condition, although the skin cells are affected as a result.
To consider myself cured, I see long term prevention of emotional outbreaks as a whole, to be the closest thing to my freedom from psoriasis. Prevention and treatment work together in health promotion; applying both prevention and treatment can aid in eliminating psoriasis. This is a partial form of freedom from the disease since there is no cure, depending on severity.
Is psoriasis so highly personal due to individual triggers from unique life events, that the healthcare community is struggling to find a cure?
It must be difficult to cure a disease that is triggered through highly personal events. There is no specific trigger to psoriasis outbreaks, rather a set of individual factors that promote stress, leading to outbreaks. These individual factors are difficult to pinpoint in patients since there are a combination of so many stress triggers. As I mentioned above, psoriasis could be thought of as a physical demonstration of inner emotional outbreaks. Due to our differences in personality, we react and cope differently, and therefore express tension within our bodies differently.
For example:
The idea of being cured depends on the severity of one's psoriasis, but also the level of importance one places on prevention vs. treatment. Psoriasis is a disease that appears on the exterior. I believe that psoriasis is a physical demonstration of the emotional outbreaks felt on the inside. If one is not freed from emotional distress on the inside, it will become apparent through their health on the outside. Psoriasis is a chronic disease, and is specifically an autoimmune condition, although the skin cells are affected as a result.
To consider myself cured, I see long term prevention of emotional outbreaks as a whole, to be the closest thing to my freedom from psoriasis. Prevention and treatment work together in health promotion; applying both prevention and treatment can aid in eliminating psoriasis. This is a partial form of freedom from the disease since there is no cure, depending on severity.
Is psoriasis so highly personal due to individual triggers from unique life events, that the healthcare community is struggling to find a cure?
It must be difficult to cure a disease that is triggered through highly personal events. There is no specific trigger to psoriasis outbreaks, rather a set of individual factors that promote stress, leading to outbreaks. These individual factors are difficult to pinpoint in patients since there are a combination of so many stress triggers. As I mentioned above, psoriasis could be thought of as a physical demonstration of inner emotional outbreaks. Due to our differences in personality, we react and cope differently, and therefore express tension within our bodies differently.
The intention of this blog is to raise awareness about psoriasis, and to ask questions related to psoriasis and healthcare. This post is not a prescription product review.
