Simple Routines to Prevent Psoriasis Flare-Ups
Filed Under: Eyes, Face, Organic, Skin on October 28, 2009
By Adriana Noton
While your doctor will be able to recommend a number of treatments for your psoriasis, that doesn’t mean you can’t do more to help quell those flare-ups. They can be horribly unpleasant to deal with, so the more ways you have to keep them to a minimum, the better.
Stay healthy. Eating a well-balanced diet and drinking 8 glasses of water a day to stay hydrated is key to managing skin conditions like psoriasis. It’s important to keep your immune system strong so it can fight back, so eat well, avoid sugar which can drastically inhibit the immune system and make sure you get enough sleep. If you aren’t fighting off other diseases, such as a cold or flu, your body will be better prepared to keep those flare-ups under control.
Figure out what your triggers are. And then avoid them. Many people have discovered that their flare-ups occur after specific things, such as smoking, stress, dry weather or any number of other factors.
Keeping a journal of when your psoriasis acts up is a good way to figure out what is triggering it. In many cases, more than one things will cause it, but it’s good to know, since you can then eliminate or avoid the issue that is causing episodes.
Relax. Stress is one of the most common factors in flare-ups. While you probably can’t avoid it completely, you can certainly learn how to control it. Take steps to reduce your stress levels with meditation, yoga, walking, or counseling. You should also be sure to get enough sleep, since sleep deprivation can actually aggravate stressful situations and make you feel worse.
Moisturize your skin. Don’t just focus on the areas that are currently affected. Your entire body, specially face and eyes should be carefully moisturized. Not only is rubbing a natural lotion like coconut oil, shea butter into your skin and eye creams relaxing, it will also help prevent psoriasis from affecting you as much.Make it a habit to do this after each bath or shower.
Hands off. It’s very tempting to pick at the lesions and scales caused by the condition, but this can only cause more problems, as can scratching. By scratching, you’ll end up spreading the bacteria, and if you scratch deeply, it will spread deeper, as well, making the condition worse. Try to avoid touching the affected areas and apply medicine or a cool compress to help control the itching.
Wear appropriate clothing. Many people find that clothing can be quite irritating on affected areas, causing more itching and even irritating the skin so much that a flare-up occurs. To avoid this, you’ll want to avoid synthetic blends and stick to natural fabrics, like cotton, which let the skin breathe and keep it cooler. Cotton is also non-irritating and can be the best way to go when you are suffering from a skin condition.
Get rid of medications. In many cases, medications can cause skin problems to get worse. If you think that the meds you’re on are causing your flare-ups, then you should talk to your doctor about an alternative treatment for other conditions, to see if it will help. Your doctor should be able to help you figure out what is causing the breakouts and help you discover a method of keeping them under control by switching medications where needed.
Psoriasis can be devastating to a person’s self-esteem, particularly in young people where the condition appears in obvious places such as the hands or face. Keeping the disease in check can be difficult, though there are medications to help control it. To avoid uncomfortable flare-ups and other problems, you may want to try some of the options offered here or read many of the skin and eye cream review sites available online and help keep your skin smooth and itch free.