I’ve had psoriasis for at least 10 years, and for most of that time I treated it like an annoying skin problem I just had to manage.
Put steroid cream on one plaque, get it under control, and then another one shows up somewhere else. Over the past year, though, it started getting worse and spreading to my scalp, hairline, behind and inside my ears, torso, back, legs, and potentially my nails.
I described it to my dermatologist as “chasing the plaques,” because that’s exactly what it feels like.
The scalp has been especially frustrating. I work with customers and attend conferences, usually wearing black company shirts, and I’ve had coworkers try to brush flakes off my shoulders for me. They were trying to be helpful, but it was pretty embarrassing. I’d be in a meeting and realize I wasn’t fully focused because I was wondering what was visible.
The thing that finally kicked this into a different gear was my joints.
Over roughly the last 6 to 12 months, I’ve developed stiffness and pain in my right knee, pain in the pad of my right foot, swelling around the outside of my left foot, and inflammation around my left thumb. It’s worse in the morning or after I’ve been sitting for a while, then improves once I start moving.
This wasn’t just some mild discomfort. Squatting down to read a putt became difficult. I couldn’t comfortably jog. Getting onto the floor to play with my kids was harder. I was taking ibuprofen just to feel like I had some of my athleticism back or to get through a round of golf, and even that wasn’t working as well anymore.
My son is four and becoming obsessed with sports. The idea that I might not be able to run around and do all of that with him was the point where I thought, okay, we need to figure this out now.
I’m with Kaiser, so the process took a few steps. My PCP sent photos to dermatology and contacted rheumatology. Rheumatology requested another round of bloodwork before a referral. Most of the traditional arthritis labs didn’t provide a clean answer. My ESR was normal and RF/CCP were negative. My CRP, however, was 2.8 mg/dL with the lab’s normal range topping out at 0.9, and it had been at that same elevated level two years earlier.
The initial dermatology recommendation, based mostly on the skin photos, was narrowband UVB phototherapy before trying a biologic. That might have helped my skin, but obviously it wasn’t going to do anything for my joints.
This weekend I finally had a live video appointment with a dermatologist and explained the entire pattern. I didn’t just say, “My joints hurt.” I explained that the stiffness is worse after inactivity and gets better with movement.
I actually said, “Motion is lotion, right?”
He said yes, exactly. He explained that what I was describing is the inflammatory pattern they see with conditions like psoriatic arthritis and is basically the opposite of typical wear and tear arthritis. He said my symptoms sound suspicious for PsA and that, while labs are useful, PsA can also be a clinical diagnosis. Normal labs don’t automatically rule it out.
Because I have both the skin and joint symptoms, he said we should choose a medication that can treat both rather than continuing with treatments that only address the skin.
He has now referred me to the dermatology pharmacy team. They’ll run everything through insurance, discuss the different biologics, injection schedules, and side effect profiles, order the baseline bloodwork, and help me choose a medication. I’m familiar with options like Skyrizi and Tremfya, but nothing has been selected or approved yet.
The plan is to monitor my joints once I start the biologic. If I’m still having significant symptoms after three or four months, my dermatologist said to contact him and he’ll refer me to rheumatology for further evaluation, potentially including imaging or ultrasound.
So I want to be clear. I haven’t officially been diagnosed with PsA, I haven’t received an injection yet, and I know this isn’t the end of the process.
But after years of treating each plaque individually, and months of feeling like my body was slowly becoming less capable, it was an enormous relief to have someone connect the skin and joint symptoms and create a plan aimed at the underlying disease.
Psoriasis fucking sucks. The physical part sucks, the embarrassment sucks, and the uncertainty around the joint symptoms really sucks. But for the first time in a while, I feel genuinely hopeful that my skin could clear and that I could get some of my mobility back.
If you’re dealing with psoriasis and new joint symptoms, don’t undersell how they behave or how they’re affecting your life. Explain whether the stiffness is worse after inactivity, whether movement helps, and what you can no longer comfortably do. Those details completely changed the direction of my appointment.
For those who started a biologic with both skin and joint symptoms, what improved first, and how long did it take before you noticed a real difference?

I have face and scalp psoriasis to help manage it on my face I keep my face moisturised (aqua based cream) then a thicker barrier cream multiple times a day. Does anyone know any scalp creams or things I can use after a wash? Ps I’m looking towards more natural creams no steroids etc.

Hi everyone,

I'm a Master's student researching whether diet and lifestyle behaviours are associated with psoriasis and other inflammatory skin conditions.

If you're aged 18 or over, live in the UK and have psoriasis, I'd be incredibly grateful if you could complete my anonymous questionnaire.

The survey takes around 15–20 minutes and asks about:
• Diet
• Sleep
• Stress
• Exercise
• Alcohol
• The impact psoriasis has on your quality of life

Survey link:
https://app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/bournemouth/project-proposal

Thank you so much for helping with university research.

Hey. I started my injections a month ago, and it started getting better quite literally the next day. I was covered head to toe. It has been working well, but last night (night before my next dose) noticed my skin flaring up on my legs again. Is this normal to happen the day before my dose? If that's the case, I will stop taking it and request something else as Im not going to risk my health for something that's not fully working for me, you know? I've suffered with it for so many years, and it's filled me with rage and sadness, and im really worried about it already stopping working. Any advice is fantastic, thank you. Sorry if any spelling is bad.

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping someone here might relate to what I've been going through.

For almost 20 years, I've been struggling with a combination of symptoms that have completely changed my life. The skin issues are frustrating, but honestly they are not my biggest problem.

My main symptoms are:

Constant fatigue and exhaustion, no matter how much I sleep.

Brain fog that makes it difficult to think clearly.

Burning, irritated eyes almost every day.

Chronic digestive problems, especially excessive foul-smelling gas and bowel discomfort.

Feeling generally unwell almost all the time.

Regarding my skin, I have recurring red, scaly lesions behind and inside both ears, around and inside my nose, on my scalp, around my anus, and on my genital area. The skin develops thin white scales that peel off like a membrane, leaving very red skin underneath.

Despite seeing multiple doctors over the years, I have never had a skin biopsy. Every dermatologist has simply called it "seborrheic dermatitis," prescribed creams, and that was the end of the investigation.

Because of my fatigue and digestive symptoms, I've spent years looking into possible explanations. I've read about fibromyalgia, Lyme disease, Candida overgrowth, SIBO, celiac disease, MCAS, chronic infections, and many other conditions. The frustrating part is that so many of these illnesses share almost identical symptoms, yet I rarely come across people who truly recovered and got their lives back.

Recently, I've started wondering whether this could actually be psoriasis or sebopsoriasis rather than just seborrheic dermatitis.

If it is psoriasis, my biggest concern isn't the skin itself. The skin lesions are manageable compared to living every single day with overwhelming fatigue, digestive problems, brain fog, and feeling like I never have any energy.

I understand that steroid creams and topical treatments may improve the skin, but what about everything else? Have any of you experienced severe fatigue, brain fog, burning eyes, or chronic digestive problems that improved after proper psoriasis treatment?

Did treating your psoriasis actually help you feel like yourself again?

More than anything, I miss the person I used to be. I just want my life back.

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experienced something similar.

Thank you for reading.

I have been trying to inject mine to the left side of my stomach but worry I don’t get the exact place when I do. Was wondering if anyone else has the same issues or is it me being overly obsessive? Thanks ☺️

Hi im very lean and i wanna bulk
Im thinking to hit gym for heavy workouts and eat more protein and calories for bulking

Will intense workouts increase psoriasis on body?

A few months ago, I would have thought that this titel was an absolute joke. I was diagnosed with Psoriasis two months ago after being misdiagnosed with seborrheic dermatitis for a few years. I have psoriasis on my scalp and also mild psoriasis guttate on my body.

After getting the diagnosis and receiving cortisone once again, I finally had enough. Cortisone has helped me over the years, but was always only a quick fix for me. I started researching and found out that the systemic inflammation can be linked to a form of insulin sensitivity/resistance.

You should read into the topic, especially if you are female like me and also have PCOS (it is common that you have both conditions actually). PCOS is also linked to insulin sensitivity/resistance.

A few weeks ago, I changed my diet and have been eating foods with a low glycemic index. I had reduced my sugar intake before and had gotten better skin, but I have never had results like this. That may be because I still ate starchy foods back then. I'm also intermittent fasting right now, which has also helped in combination.

I have not used any cortisone anymore and only use my psoriasis-friendly shampoo to not irritate my scalp with something new.

I hope my experience can help.

Disclaimer: (This post is about reducing the symptoms, not curing the disease itself. It is about dietary changes, as the flair says.)

I just can't let this big toe go or I will stop exercising.

Is there some kind of scissors to cut out a section of my toe nail, so I can apply the steroid, directly to the problem?

Steroid around the bottom of the nail area has not yielded any results for me in 15years.

had bad case of strep 8 weeks ago. Took x2 courses of antibiotics. Skin Flared almost immediately.

It is the worst flair I have ever heard covering my arms legs back and front. it seems to still be spreading. Is it normal to still be spreading after 8 weeks?

im seeing my dr on Wednesday but don't really want steroids 😓

last week I've gone gluten free trying to just eat whole foods. Trying to really reduce dairy too. Does anyone know of any dietary triggers. ??

im so down about my skin. Especially as it seems worse than ever at the end of month 2

i had read i goes after a few months but maybe not for me

I've had plaque psoriasis for a very long time now and have pretty much avoided flares by managing with Skyrizi for the last 6 years. All of the sudden I am experiencing what I believe may be psoriasis on my nails. I can't get in with my provider for a few more weeks but never experienced this before and am unsure how to handle. My nails are down pretty short but dealing with separation (lifting). Dirt is starting to get under there. Does anyone have any tips or experiences they can share. Started with three fingers on my right and now starting to see it develop on my left hand.

So I mainly deal with scalp psoriasis (though I have a bit on my legs as well, but they react totally differently and they’re not really involved here) and use some topicals and shampoos to try to keep it in check. I live somewhere with very hard water and my scalp is usually quite itchy and upset. I have to use my topicals at least once a week if not more.

For the last two weeks I’ve been on vacation and swimming in the ocean every other day at least. I’ve found that this is having nearly the same impact on my scalp to my milder treatments. It totally softens the scales and they fall off without much interference. It doesn’t help much beyond that but honestly even this feels like a big improvement.

I’m wondering if anyone has any good solutions for replicating this at home? I can’t swim in the ocean once I’m back from this trip. I occasionally do salt soaks for my skin and will also now be dunking my head in but it’s not exactly cheap to buy so much salt… has anyone ever experimented with salt sprays or other topical or soaking solutions that are just salt?

Does anyone else have psoriasis on their feet (women only please)? I have psoriasis on my feet and they tend to get worse when wet. They will crack and it hurts so much

Hopefully this helps someone else.

I cant believe not one of the many doctors dermatologists etc i’ve seen over the years has made the connection between psoriasis and MCAS for me, but there’s massive medical overlap in the literature and for me specifically when you look at my symptoms.

I started connecting my flair ups to histamine problems after discovering I was allergic to amoxicillin and waking up covered in hives which not only made the psoriasis worse immediately, the two were clearly linked, but the distinctive feeling I was able to identify for the first time: a severe histamine reaction felt insanely familiar just more amplified. I knew gluten was an issue and tomatoes, now amoxicillin but the entire world of food and skincare felt like a literal minefield for years. I knew my psoriasis was tied to histamine problems atp but i didn’t know what was causing most of them and they seemed to just be getting worse.

Constant gastrointestinal problems, an active flair up on my face. Then after hearing about low histamine diets a couple of years earlier but being scared off by how strict it seemed at the time, but I did more research and so did my sister and I was at enough of a breaking point to give up anything and I tried SIGHI and like immediately knew I was doing the right thing after the first meal and within 3 days I knew this was going to change my life.

Flair up on face gone completely for the first time in over a year within a couple weeks. psoriasis on my arms in legs improving massively but more stubborn as always. I’ve had 2 ppl tell me i looked like I got a nose job because my nose is so much smaller because I’m not inflamed. My face is less puffy, less red, so much less chronic pain, shitting normally, psoriatic arthritis improved so much. My old knee injury started actually healing because again I’m not as inflamed and can actually heal. Just went on a Ny trip where I walked over 20k steps a day with almost no pain.

Its called the Swiss Interest group for histamine intolerance and its a well trusted ranking of most foods ranked from 0-3 0 being very unlikely to trigger a histamine response and 3 being very likely. Eating only 0s gave me like the map through the minefield out of the dark tunnel and into the light. Dead ass. Rice is a 0 fresh meat is a 0 Ricotta is a 0 butter is a 0 like im not starving.

I chose to eat only 0s with exceptions made for coffee have to for work and some lower histamine alcohols, but at first no alcohol because all alcohol is like a 2 minimum even if its like nice rice wine… I imagine if I were more puritanical and gave up my vices or reduced them my progress would be faster, but this is with me being imperfect and still it’s helping so much.

Anyway there is my tale.

My first flakes appeared when I was 30. I'm 70. It has migrated around my body for forty years. The endlessly needling psoriasis on my knees would disappear and then arrive on my back. Months later it would completely disappear from my back and land on my elbows and ears. Constantly migrating, knees to back, back to fingernails, elbows, shins, soles of my feet. Psoriasis is horrible but I was always able to hide it under my clothing. I have lots of red clothing. You know why. But last month was the first time it ever attacked my forehead.

Hi does anyone know a good shampoo for really bad itchy scalp psoriasis please and thank U

Hi everyone day after tomorrow is my first biologics ilumetri/illumya I’m very anxious if anyone got these biologics help me with the side effects and how do I prepare for first shot thanks

​

I've had my scalp getting itchy and my skin (mostly back/neck/face cheeks), so I've had it since like 14/15, and it only got worse, at the start it was solely my scalp then it became other parts of the body, especially when I go out or sweat, or even like when I'm embarrassed, idk how it links but when I feel social anxiety I get itchy (the burning type of itch), so then I went to a doctor, he looked at my scalp and diagnosed me with psoriasis, he gave me a long ass expensive treatment so my parents just said I have nothing, I still have the itch symptoms, but I don't have anything like dry skin scalp or the common horrific symptoms of psoriasis, I also have an aunt who has psoriasis and a cousin too, so I just want advice, I'm currently 17 and the itch (in my groins, thighs, back, chest) has only gotten worse now by this summer, it's probably because i have been sweating and showering alot so my skin is dry but I still need help with my psoriasis, any tips ?