Newbie Haleyalexxis

[jiml]

Hi! My name is Haley, I’m 20 years old. I’ve suffered from “dry skin” all my life. When I was younger they said it was eczema. Doctors always said I would grow out of it. I think I was about 13 when they started calling it psoriasis. My psoriasis covers more than 90% of my body. Its definitely gotten worse with age. Ive used topical steroids religiously for most of my life.  I have a bunch of other medical stuff going on as well. I have seen a million and one specialists, no one could ever really help me. A few of my specialists tried getting me in to National Institute of Heath and after 3 long years I was finally accepted and had my first visit in February of 2017. I thought that was going to by big break. Finally get a cure and be able to live a normal life. Well, turns out the NIH is stumped too. Patiently waiting, still. 

As far as my psoriasis goes we tried Stelara first. I stayed on that a few months, showed no signs of improvement. Then, they put me on Humaira. I’m currently still on the Humaira (40/0.8 ml biweekly). No improvement as far as skin goes but hair (alopecia) and nails have somewhat gotten better. Now I just started Acitreten (7-30-18). I hear a lot of negative things about the drug, but hopefully it will help.

Hi Haley and   to the club I'm sorry to hear of your experience of psoriasis it's an unpleasant disease for us at any age , and you say you're pretty well covered in it ...topical creams are ok for short term use on small parts of your body ...I myself developed psoriasis at the tender age of 17 and if you're anything like me it knocks your self confidence ..there is a drug out there that should work on you and it seems as if your dermatologist is trying by hit and miss to see what works ....most of the drugs take time to work so don't give them up too quickly
You say you have been on Biological like Stelara and currently on Humira and also acetretin but see no improvement ....I hope the acetretin kicks in and helps get you clear skin

It is possible to get a normal life again Haley but it's a bit hit and miss finding what works

There are lots of new drugs in the pipeline that all target slightly different cells so keep your eyes peeled for new drugs here  
Fred has already mentioned Cosentyx ans Taltz if I were in America I think I would be trying to get one of those
Meantime you have joined a great social group of sufferers who understand your predicament and are all happy to share their experiences and advice with you

Come back often and see us for a chat or to ask questions or to have a virtual drink in the bar where I'm regularly found ... [Group Specific]

Jim