This past winter has been quite bad for my psoriasis. The heating system just dries all the moisture in the apartment and makes the skin especially bad. The thing is that the humidity of the summer doesn’t always help either. So unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like the weather has much of a positive impact on my skin in any season. It is in worse shape than ever, I think. Maybe the summer sun will have some positive effect. But I am not too optimistic at this point, I have to say.

A few years ago it seems like spots would flare up and then get better within a few weeks. Now some spots just never stop. That is quite unfortunate.

I also see a very disturbing trend of the psoriasis showing itself in areas that are really not “cool” - the neck, and a couple of spots on the face. I think I moved from being a mild case to a more severe case

At least my fingernails are not so bad right now. I actually have noticed that my fingernails are going through cycles. Problem is that soon after they look all nice and “normal” they decide to get back into action and they experience “The return of the psoriasis”…. As far as my toenails — I basically gave up on them. Honestly I can’t see them returning to normal. That is quite embarrassing, and sandals or flip-flops are not an option that I am looking forward to. I remember that during one of my first appointments with my dermatologist he mentioned that damage to nails (fingers and toes) is sometimes irreverssible. Once the nail is detached from the bed (skin) it will not ever be able to reattach itself like it was.

Anyway, for those of you reading this site, I don’t want you to think that my life is revolving around the psoriasis. Yes - I don’t like it, and I am self-conscious about it in certain situations, but it doesn’t define me.

I am lucky to have a supportive family and friends. And I can always hope that new treatments will prove more effective.