According to the National Psoriasis Foundation, more than 125 million people worldwide suffer from psoriasis and as many as 7.5 million of those people are Americans. If you know someone suffering with psoriasis, there's not a lot you can do to directly relieve their suffering, but you can still help. Show your concern by educating yourself about the disease and work to help others understand what people with psoriasis go through daily.
Instructions
1. Offer others a clear definition of the problem and its cause. Psoriasis is a genetic disease that attacks the skin and/or joints. It is caused by abnormal activity of a person's immune system. It is not a sexually transmitted disease.
2. Know how psoriasis looks. There are five different types and the skin lesions can be small dots with scaly patches, red and inflamed sores, or weeping, shedding skin.
3. Pass along only factual information. Psoriasis is not contagious. You can't get psoriasis from someone else and no one with psoriasis can give it to others. Anyone can get psoriasis and while it most often begins between the ages of 15 and 35, it can develop at any age.
4. Help others understand people who have psoriasis suffer, not only physically, but emotionally. The reality is someone with even a moderate case of psoriasis is often treated like a social outcast. Because the skin lesions are so visible, most often found on elbows, knees, scalp, face, palms and feet, and they often itch, people may go to great lengths to avoid touching the person or handling items the person touches. Children can be particularly cruel, especially if they've heard adults discussing the person with "that skin stuff."
5. Encourage the person with psoriasis to join a local support group or an online message board or chat. While some people often have trouble talking about their problem in person, they may feel more comfortable getting support from cyberspace. The National Psoriasis Foundation offers information about support groups, online and off.
6. Give a gift of massage. Sometimes stress aggravates psoriasis and a nice hour-long massage once in a while can help the joint pain which often accompanies the skin problems. While most therapists are familiar with psoriasis, it's helpful for them to know before the appointment if a client has psoriasis as they may use special lotions for people with skin conditions. Such a gift goes a long way toward showing someone suffering from psoriasis they matter and offering your compassion can often be the most effective thing you can do to help them.
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