National Psoriasis Foundation Mentor

I am excited to announce that I am officially a mentor for the National Psoriasis Foundation. It's mission is to find a cure for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and eliminate their devastating effects through research, advocacy and education.

My role as a mentor is to provide disease and treatment education to mentees and to encourage and support them through their initial diagnosis, major flares or during a difficult time.

I have to say, I love this opportunity NPF has created. I have had psoriasis going on 10 years and I honestly wish I had these resources: education, event information, treatment availability and other people going through what I was going through. It can be an embarrassing thing to deal with if you don't know what's going on with your body and much less how to explain it to others.

I first became involved with NPF last August when I participated in their National Psoriasis Awareness Challenge— we had challenges every day of the month of August. I learned a lot about myself (I have accepted having psoriasis and want to educate those around me); find a lot more resources I didn't know were out there and now I'm able to help out others.

I am also excited to incorporate my love for nutrition to this aspect of my life. Eating healthy plays a big part in someone living with psoriasis.

I look forward to this next step in my life and I hope that I am able to help others going through the same thing as I am.

To learn more about psoriasis or how to help find a cure, visit the National Psoriasis Foundation

Thanks for reading!

Psoriasis Doesn't Define How I Live My Life

One of the challenges for National Psoriasis Awareness month which ended yesterday, was to come up with a way to express/raise awareness about psoriasis. We could write a song, poem etc. This is what I came up with. I hope it raises awareness about some of the major aspects of psoriasis and gives those of us living with it, a sense of confidence.

Psoriasis Doesn't Define How I Live My Life....

I define how I live my life.
Sure, psoriasis can be irritating, itchy, annoying and embarrassing
But why wouldn't we want to find a way to live our life without having to worry about what we have to wear next.

Psoriasis wont define how I live my life, I define how I live my life.

Life and daily activities can cause stress; Stress can cause a flare up; psoriasis can cause stress
Lets find a way to end this never-ending circle.

Psoriasis doesn't define how I live my life, I define how I live my life.

We need support and funding from local leaders, representatives and mayors.
Let's show them and the world that "psoriasis is a serious health issue—one that demands more national attention, research dollars and public understanding."

Psoriasis wont define how I live my life, I define how I live my life

Life is about loving the gifts we're given, the obstacles we over come, the milestones we reach, being confident about who we are and the impact we have on this world.
Psoriasis is only a little speed bump in the game of life.

Psoriasis doesn't define how I live my life, I define how I live my life

August is National Psoriasis Awareness Month

I am so glad to learn that August (my birthday month) is National Psoriasis Month. For those who don't know here is a little breakdown as to what Psoriasis is from www.psoraisis.org (to learn more!)

Psoriasis is a chronic, autoimmune disease that appears on the skin. It occurs when the immune system sends out faulty signals that speed up the growth cycle of skin cells. Psoriasis is not contagious.

There are five types of psoriasis: plaque, guttate, inverse, pustular and erythrodermic. The most common form, plaque psoriasis, appears as raised, red patches or lesions covered with a silvery white buildup of dead skin cells, called scale. Psoriasis can occur on any part of the body and is associated with other serious health conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and depression.

According to the National Institutes of Health, as many as 7.5 million Americans have psoriasis.

I have lived with Psoriasis since 2000 and it hasn't been easy. I use to have it on about 90% of my body including: scalp, arms, stomach and legs. I was miserable for a long time. We didn't know what to do. Then we heard about the Photo Light Therapy treatment. My insurance covered it completely (thank God!) and this was a blessing! Within a couple of weeks I was almost 100 % clear.

Still to this day, I have it on my elbows and scalp. Bad thing about the scalp: it's super itchy and kind of flaky. Good thing: it's not visible. Bad thing about elbows: it's visible; makes me self-conscience; super itchy and flaky; irritating. Good thing: NOTHING. I have tried everything under the sun: topicals, steriods, creams. Nothing works at all. I actually tried the Humira injections and they worked great. With in one week, I was cleared! The day I woke up and didn't see anything on my elbows, I literally started crying. It was such a relief. But anyone who has Psoriasis knows that it's a chronic disease and there is no cure for it. I got off Humira because I thought my Psoriasis would stay away - but it didn't. Then I switched insurance and here I am - present day - still living with visible Psoriasis. Possible side effects of Humira is a lower immune system and contracting TB.

I am going to the Dermatologist on Thursday and hopefully will get some relief for what I have now, maybe get back on Humira. Seeing as how my wedding is in 52 days (ahhhh!!) I would like to be clear of my Psoriasis, even if it just means for the wedding day. So I will write later to let you know what my derm says.

I am writing about this to bring awareness and light to this chronic disease that 7.5 million people live with. I get asked "What's wrong with your elbows?" "What happened?" Even when I tell them I have Psoraisis, they have no idea what it is. I wantto get to a point where people KNOW about it and can even explain it to other people. Psoriasis isn't contagious, Awareness is.

Ever since I got diagnosed (it's also genetic, and my mom had it for a really long time), I am trying to do my best to educate myself and bring awareness and light to this disease. Next time, you see someone with what might look like Eczema or dry skin (even me!) ASK! And don't be scared. The more people who know about it the better. No one knows the causes or the best treatments, so the more people who know, the better.

The National Psoriasis Foundation has a challenge every day for the month of August to bring awareness. My goal is do as many as I can. I have done eight out of the 10 I can do. I will hopefully do more! Keep track here on my blog and click here to learn more!

Psoraisis isn't going to define how I live my life - I define how I live my life.