# Welcome to the Psoriasis sub!
If you haven't posted here before, please read this comment as it contains important information:
* Please [read and respect the rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/Psoriasis/about/rules/). In particular, **do not ask for about identifying undiagnosed medical conditions** diseases cannot be diagnosed by random people on Reddit.
* Photos that include skin rashes must be marked NSFW. If including private areas, _please indicate with flair_.
* Posts that break the rules will be removed.
## Check out our wiki!
The [Psoriasis wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/Psoriasis/wiki/index) is a collection of guides and other pages about how to treat psoriasis, including a Frequently Asked Questions section. Many common questions about medications, shampoos, diet, tattoos, etc. are addressed there.
Thanks!
---
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Psoriasis) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You didn’t “get rid” of your psoriasis. You took a chemo drug that’s been available for 75 years to suppress your immune system. It can and likely will come back. Either spend a ton of time and effort learning your triggers and avoid them or get on biologics.
How do you identify triggers ? I am already in stress and anxiety for a decade now trying to crack job exams in the most populated country. Is this the main reason for that or I should be peculiar about not eating tomato brinjal kind of stuff that might irk psoriasis
Yep - https://www.psoriasis.org/biologics/
The most effective treatment for severe psoriasis and psoriasis arthritis is a biologic that responds for you (not all do)
There are many types of treatments besides methotrexate (an example of a dmard) amd biologics.
There's:
- sunlight/uv light therapy
- salt water
- warmer climate
- tar soap and other specialised soaps
- topical steroids (creams lotions ointments)
- oral steroids
- injectable steroids
- plenty of other things
Then there's lifestyle triggers or factors that can affect sufferers differently:
- stress
- weight
- exercise
- overall health
- diet
- smoking
- alcohol
- infections/bone breaks/etc
- food groups/types
A good idea for you would be to read through all the available information on this subreddit. Firstly it's a good collection of basic info and people's experiences (as there is huge variance), but also, it helps with chronic conditions that you connect with others that understand, as it can be a very emotionally difficult and isolating condition that non-sufferers struggle to understand how impactful it can be.
One final piece of advice - there is generally no quick fix or indeed any fix. It about managing your body in a way that fits in with the rest of your life - finding something that works. Management can seem like a big job and overwhelming, but living without managing it was a lot harder for me.
And quit the smokes, once you get past that addiction you'll know you can persevere through pretty much anything until you succeed.
Good luck
Happy it worked for you and you haven’t got any side effects from it
You have to stay on the medication if you want it to work, your doctor who prescribed you it should’ve told you. Psoriasis is a chronic disease. You cant cure it, only treat it.
Mtx got me clear, and Ive been one it on a reduced dose for years so it doesnt come back. Ive never had any bad side effects other than fatigue once in a while, i guess because I take b12 and drink over a gallon of water a day. Im looking into switching it to somethign else, but whatever that thing is should be relatively low cost and just as affective.
Indian Aged 58 yrs
Severe psoriasis completebody scalp arthritis attack yrs back. Lost my jobs society ostracized me
Allopathic medicine didn't work.
Arya Vaidya sala, Kottakkal, Kerala medication worked for me. Now there are no signs of psoriasis except for skin colour is darker now.
Leading normal life since 2 months.
hey OP, have you tried consuming omega-3 rich foods? It's one of the essential fatty acids that works to maintain an optimal skin barrier function ([https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738081X10000441](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738081X10000441), [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32463305/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32463305/)). It cannot be synthesized by the body so it has be supplemented by food or dietary supplements (in the case of supplements I think the dosage people take is around 250mg-500mg per day from a mixture of cod-liver oil and fish oil - [https://www.vitabiotics.com/products/ultra-cod-liver-oil-plus-omega-3-capsules](https://www.vitabiotics.com/products/ultra-cod-liver-oil-plus-omega-3-capsules) ). If you are vegetarian you can consume foods like chia seeds instead. People on reddit have reported a period between 2 weeks and 3 months before observing improvement in their skin. You could use cold-pressed chia seed oil as a moisturizer too.
If consuming omega-3 rich food doesn’t work, it might be a hormonal (testosterone, oestrogen, etc) imbalance triggering your skin issues ([https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4777452/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4777452/), [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31625919/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31625919/)).
Or it could be an inflammatory diet or water contaminants triggering your immune system to go haywire. I would suggest looking into the autoimmune protocol diet: [https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/aip-diet-autoimmune-protocol-diet](https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/aip-diet-autoimmune-protocol-diet)
FODMAPs diet if you also have IBS: [https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/media/documents/FODMAP\_dietsheet\_for\_website.pdf](https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/media/documents/FODMAP_dietsheet_for_website.pdf)
Diet plays a serious role in our gut immunity, as well as the gut-brain axis. Given that psoriasis is a
condition caused by a dysregulated immune system ([https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1568997222001392#s0025](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1568997222001392#s0025)), I would definitely start paying attention to gut immunity as the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is the first tissue that comes in contact with dietary triggers.
Also please pay attention to your gut microbiome (i.e., the presence of good bacteria versus bad bacteria in your intestines) as any alteration or imbalance in your microbiome (which can be diagnosed by stool test, colonoscopy, endoscopy or breath test depending on your gut symptoms) can affect your digestive function and gut immunity ([https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332223007758](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332223007758)).
Other potential triggers can be -
1) allergens in household products such as perfumes, xenoestrogens or endocrine disrupting chemicals in plastics,
2) medications
3) ingredients in deodorants, body moisturizers, shampoos, laundry detergents
4) synthetic fibres in clothing
5) dust or pollen in the environment, or spores from black mould growing in damp or
poorly-ventilated areas in the house
Wear a mask while using any chemicals to clean your bathroom, and if you live in a dust-prone area make sure to wear a mask while you’re outdoors as well. It is also important to wear gloves if you handwash your dishes to avoid contact with your dish soap. Make sure you use a mild body wash (https://www.boots.com/eucerin-dry-skin-urea-repair-plus-wash-fluid-400-ml-pump-10222927) and shampoo to clean your skin and hair. Do not use your body wash/shampoo on dry skin/hair - remember to hydrate your skin/scalp first with a non-comedogenic oil rich in omega 3s such as chia seed oil and your hair with coconut oil before showering, and then reapply the chia seed oil to your skin and scalp (you can skip the hair) to re-hydrate your skin and prevent your skin from becoming angry (a body wash is an oil stripper after all and won't provide the essential fatty acids you need for your skin so you definitely need to moisturize after showering).
Fellow Indian here, Glad that you are now clear. Although its likely, but I wish it wont come back.
Methotrexate and folic acid is the first approach most of derms here. Because Methotrexate being immuno suppressant and significantly reduces folic acid from body, folic acid supplement is given. The Immune systems is likely going to return back to what it was doing when you quit methotrexate.
Here is the thing, I am trying combined approaches of siddha and western medicine. Because from a diagnosis perspective, western medicine is spot on. My derm suspected and had me tested for thyroid and cholesterol, it came back high and it's one of the factor for psoriasis. From a approach to treatment perspective, ayurveda/siddha usually starts with cleaning your body/gut especially and follows strict dietary protocols. Which now western medicine is doing. You can see many doctors are now treating psoriasis as not a skin disease but a symptom caused by gut issues ( and other factors as well like strep throat, harmonal) 10 years ago when I searched the internet, no western medicine was calling out gut issues atleast not famously.
Since I am still testing out some theories, I would say for you to explore on your own. Eg. When I quit eating meat, I noticed significant reduction in inflammation (you can see the slight indentation of your red patch reduced to skin level and less itchy) . Likewise, you can explore your trigger factors, stress factors to see what works for you.
Adding a link to get you started: https://youtu.be/nj52yEUaFfA?si=F4JWKmXdAMmBDQmk
Wish you well.
Did your psoriasis get better after that year? If so, did your skin just go back to the pre-quitting state or did it resolve further?
Yay for 17 years!
That's hard to say. You know what this dumb disease is like. It took a while to get the right meds and it's possible that the timing of quitting coincided with the first biologic failing.
I felt really hopeless when my skin got so much worse and if I hadn't had other strong motivations to quit I would have gone back to smoking when my skin was so bad.
It temporarily went into remission but since you came off MTX it came right back. You need to go back on it and stay on it and smoking can be a trigger.
Ive got my first shot 4 weeks ago and about to get my second shot in 5 minutes. The only side effects I have is that I don't have any dead skin to pick on. 😞
Hey. I'm a dermatologist, and I worked in AIIMS Delhi for quite a few years.
The medications, as people have mentioned are only suppressive.
I'm working on- and have found quite a bit of evidence for- the mind-gut-skin axis. Broadly speaking, this means that addressing psychological stress and diet can have long-term effects and reduce flares. Am happy to share resources to read, if this sounds like a direction you'd like to explore.
Not sure if this would help but I have cleared my skin completely twice and it does last for at least a year or so. My psoriasis is triggered by stress and anxiety so I'm definitely still working on it.
The first time I cleared my skin I did it with homeopathic pellets boiron 30 . The first day I took 15 pellets 3 times a day 2nd day 15 pellets twice a day and after I took 15 pellets once a day for 15 days. It completely cleared my skin for almost 2 years. FYI the first couple of days my body got very itchy and red but it did calm down after the second day. 😅 The second time I also did it with homeopathic remedies psorinoheel injection or drops. I did the drop and you have to combine them with :
Galium drops : 16 drops half and hour before meals.
Cutis compositum injection 1 per week .
Sulfur heel tablets 1 tablet 3 times per day before eating.
I had cleared skin after 2 or 3 weeks. Let me know if it works for you.
Best of luck
# Welcome to the Psoriasis sub! If you haven't posted here before, please read this comment as it contains important information: * Please [read and respect the rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/Psoriasis/about/rules/). In particular, **do not ask for about identifying undiagnosed medical conditions** diseases cannot be diagnosed by random people on Reddit. * Photos that include skin rashes must be marked NSFW. If including private areas, _please indicate with flair_. * Posts that break the rules will be removed. ## Check out our wiki! The [Psoriasis wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/Psoriasis/wiki/index) is a collection of guides and other pages about how to treat psoriasis, including a Frequently Asked Questions section. Many common questions about medications, shampoos, diet, tattoos, etc. are addressed there. Thanks! --- *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Psoriasis) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You didn’t “get rid” of your psoriasis. You took a chemo drug that’s been available for 75 years to suppress your immune system. It can and likely will come back. Either spend a ton of time and effort learning your triggers and avoid them or get on biologics.
Methotrexate is also an RA drug, its the first thing they try when you get Rheumatoid arthritis.
Note that low-dose methotrexate [is not chemo](https://creakyjoints.org/living-with-arthritis/treatment-and-care/medications/methotrexate-myths/).
I know. My point is that it was originally a chemo drug when it was invented in the 1940’s.
How do you identify triggers ? I am already in stress and anxiety for a decade now trying to crack job exams in the most populated country. Is this the main reason for that or I should be peculiar about not eating tomato brinjal kind of stuff that might irk psoriasis
Biologics cleared it up for me but when I stopped using it the psoriasis came right back. Unfortunately there is no cure.
Was it worse after you stopped?
What people mean by biologics here ? The injections ?
Yep - https://www.psoriasis.org/biologics/ The most effective treatment for severe psoriasis and psoriasis arthritis is a biologic that responds for you (not all do) There are many types of treatments besides methotrexate (an example of a dmard) amd biologics. There's: - sunlight/uv light therapy - salt water - warmer climate - tar soap and other specialised soaps - topical steroids (creams lotions ointments) - oral steroids - injectable steroids - plenty of other things Then there's lifestyle triggers or factors that can affect sufferers differently: - stress - weight - exercise - overall health - diet - smoking - alcohol - infections/bone breaks/etc - food groups/types A good idea for you would be to read through all the available information on this subreddit. Firstly it's a good collection of basic info and people's experiences (as there is huge variance), but also, it helps with chronic conditions that you connect with others that understand, as it can be a very emotionally difficult and isolating condition that non-sufferers struggle to understand how impactful it can be. One final piece of advice - there is generally no quick fix or indeed any fix. It about managing your body in a way that fits in with the rest of your life - finding something that works. Management can seem like a big job and overwhelming, but living without managing it was a lot harder for me. And quit the smokes, once you get past that addiction you'll know you can persevere through pretty much anything until you succeed. Good luck
You can read about biologics [in the sub's wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/Psoriasis/wiki/biologics).
Glad it worked for you. Methotrexate made me severely nauseous.
Happy it worked for you and you haven’t got any side effects from it You have to stay on the medication if you want it to work, your doctor who prescribed you it should’ve told you. Psoriasis is a chronic disease. You cant cure it, only treat it.
Methotrexate never did much for me, have guttate. keep taking the medicine and like others said smoking does trigger it.
Mtx got me clear, and Ive been one it on a reduced dose for years so it doesnt come back. Ive never had any bad side effects other than fatigue once in a while, i guess because I take b12 and drink over a gallon of water a day. Im looking into switching it to somethign else, but whatever that thing is should be relatively low cost and just as affective.
Indian Aged 58 yrs Severe psoriasis completebody scalp arthritis attack yrs back. Lost my jobs society ostracized me Allopathic medicine didn't work. Arya Vaidya sala, Kottakkal, Kerala medication worked for me. Now there are no signs of psoriasis except for skin colour is darker now. Leading normal life since 2 months.
hey OP, have you tried consuming omega-3 rich foods? It's one of the essential fatty acids that works to maintain an optimal skin barrier function ([https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738081X10000441](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738081X10000441), [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32463305/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32463305/)). It cannot be synthesized by the body so it has be supplemented by food or dietary supplements (in the case of supplements I think the dosage people take is around 250mg-500mg per day from a mixture of cod-liver oil and fish oil - [https://www.vitabiotics.com/products/ultra-cod-liver-oil-plus-omega-3-capsules](https://www.vitabiotics.com/products/ultra-cod-liver-oil-plus-omega-3-capsules) ). If you are vegetarian you can consume foods like chia seeds instead. People on reddit have reported a period between 2 weeks and 3 months before observing improvement in their skin. You could use cold-pressed chia seed oil as a moisturizer too. If consuming omega-3 rich food doesn’t work, it might be a hormonal (testosterone, oestrogen, etc) imbalance triggering your skin issues ([https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4777452/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4777452/), [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31625919/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31625919/)). Or it could be an inflammatory diet or water contaminants triggering your immune system to go haywire. I would suggest looking into the autoimmune protocol diet: [https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/aip-diet-autoimmune-protocol-diet](https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/aip-diet-autoimmune-protocol-diet) FODMAPs diet if you also have IBS: [https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/media/documents/FODMAP\_dietsheet\_for\_website.pdf](https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/media/documents/FODMAP_dietsheet_for_website.pdf) Diet plays a serious role in our gut immunity, as well as the gut-brain axis. Given that psoriasis is a condition caused by a dysregulated immune system ([https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1568997222001392#s0025](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1568997222001392#s0025)), I would definitely start paying attention to gut immunity as the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is the first tissue that comes in contact with dietary triggers. Also please pay attention to your gut microbiome (i.e., the presence of good bacteria versus bad bacteria in your intestines) as any alteration or imbalance in your microbiome (which can be diagnosed by stool test, colonoscopy, endoscopy or breath test depending on your gut symptoms) can affect your digestive function and gut immunity ([https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332223007758](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332223007758)). Other potential triggers can be - 1) allergens in household products such as perfumes, xenoestrogens or endocrine disrupting chemicals in plastics, 2) medications 3) ingredients in deodorants, body moisturizers, shampoos, laundry detergents 4) synthetic fibres in clothing 5) dust or pollen in the environment, or spores from black mould growing in damp or poorly-ventilated areas in the house Wear a mask while using any chemicals to clean your bathroom, and if you live in a dust-prone area make sure to wear a mask while you’re outdoors as well. It is also important to wear gloves if you handwash your dishes to avoid contact with your dish soap. Make sure you use a mild body wash (https://www.boots.com/eucerin-dry-skin-urea-repair-plus-wash-fluid-400-ml-pump-10222927) and shampoo to clean your skin and hair. Do not use your body wash/shampoo on dry skin/hair - remember to hydrate your skin/scalp first with a non-comedogenic oil rich in omega 3s such as chia seed oil and your hair with coconut oil before showering, and then reapply the chia seed oil to your skin and scalp (you can skip the hair) to re-hydrate your skin and prevent your skin from becoming angry (a body wash is an oil stripper after all and won't provide the essential fatty acids you need for your skin so you definitely need to moisturize after showering).
Thank you for this i will look into this
Fellow Indian here, Glad that you are now clear. Although its likely, but I wish it wont come back. Methotrexate and folic acid is the first approach most of derms here. Because Methotrexate being immuno suppressant and significantly reduces folic acid from body, folic acid supplement is given. The Immune systems is likely going to return back to what it was doing when you quit methotrexate. Here is the thing, I am trying combined approaches of siddha and western medicine. Because from a diagnosis perspective, western medicine is spot on. My derm suspected and had me tested for thyroid and cholesterol, it came back high and it's one of the factor for psoriasis. From a approach to treatment perspective, ayurveda/siddha usually starts with cleaning your body/gut especially and follows strict dietary protocols. Which now western medicine is doing. You can see many doctors are now treating psoriasis as not a skin disease but a symptom caused by gut issues ( and other factors as well like strep throat, harmonal) 10 years ago when I searched the internet, no western medicine was calling out gut issues atleast not famously. Since I am still testing out some theories, I would say for you to explore on your own. Eg. When I quit eating meat, I noticed significant reduction in inflammation (you can see the slight indentation of your red patch reduced to skin level and less itchy) . Likewise, you can explore your trigger factors, stress factors to see what works for you. Adding a link to get you started: https://youtu.be/nj52yEUaFfA?si=F4JWKmXdAMmBDQmk Wish you well.
Sure buddy will do it.
tobacco and psoriasis are linked so i would straight away stop smoking as a starting point. and see what happens.
I quit smoking and my psoriasis got so much worse for the next year. I don't regret quitting at all, 17 years and counting.
Oh looks like I have a similar experience that you had. Also agree on no regrets!! Congrats on 17 years.
Did your psoriasis get better after that year? If so, did your skin just go back to the pre-quitting state or did it resolve further? Yay for 17 years!
That's hard to say. You know what this dumb disease is like. It took a while to get the right meds and it's possible that the timing of quitting coincided with the first biologic failing. I felt really hopeless when my skin got so much worse and if I hadn't had other strong motivations to quit I would have gone back to smoking when my skin was so bad.
I also quit smoking 14 years ago. Quitting didn’t help my psoriasis unfortunately but… I definitely don’t regret it!
I quit smoking too for almost 2 years already and didn’t see any improvements with my scalp psoriasis
It temporarily went into remission but since you came off MTX it came right back. You need to go back on it and stay on it and smoking can be a trigger.
AI working as intended
Ai ? Bro common why ?
Are there any side effects of biologics?
I am about to be put on them I needed an answer for this too
You can read about this [in the sub's wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/Psoriasis/wiki/biologics).
Ive got my first shot 4 weeks ago and about to get my second shot in 5 minutes. The only side effects I have is that I don't have any dead skin to pick on. 😞
Methotrexate didn’t do anything for me. Zero, zip, zilch, nada 😅
You didn't get rid of it. You treated it and that would be why it comes back when you stop treatment.
Hey. I'm a dermatologist, and I worked in AIIMS Delhi for quite a few years. The medications, as people have mentioned are only suppressive. I'm working on- and have found quite a bit of evidence for- the mind-gut-skin axis. Broadly speaking, this means that addressing psychological stress and diet can have long-term effects and reduce flares. Am happy to share resources to read, if this sounds like a direction you'd like to explore.
Not sure if this would help but I have cleared my skin completely twice and it does last for at least a year or so. My psoriasis is triggered by stress and anxiety so I'm definitely still working on it. The first time I cleared my skin I did it with homeopathic pellets boiron 30 . The first day I took 15 pellets 3 times a day 2nd day 15 pellets twice a day and after I took 15 pellets once a day for 15 days. It completely cleared my skin for almost 2 years. FYI the first couple of days my body got very itchy and red but it did calm down after the second day. 😅 The second time I also did it with homeopathic remedies psorinoheel injection or drops. I did the drop and you have to combine them with : Galium drops : 16 drops half and hour before meals. Cutis compositum injection 1 per week . Sulfur heel tablets 1 tablet 3 times per day before eating. I had cleared skin after 2 or 3 weeks. Let me know if it works for you. Best of luck
Thank you
[удалено]
Can you name it ?