An estimated 30% of those people are diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis.
This is her story as told to health writer Emilia Benton.
Id had dandruff for most of my life, so at first I chalked it up to that.
Amanda K Bailey
It was also a stressful time in my life.
My skin quickly got worse, and I felt as though something was constantly crawling on me.
I started feeling pain and noticing flaky skin around my elbow and knee joints.
This flakiness then morphed into dark, purplish lesions.
But these new symptoms felt different.
That added a lot ofwhole-body fatigueto the mix, leaving me feeling like I always needed to lie down.
But after some trial and error, Ive found some things that work for me.
Heres what Ive learned along the way.
Finding the right medication may take some time.
Ive had a rollercoaster of a ride finding amedication that works for me.
I even tried phototherapy, which didnt work fast enough for me.
Its very expensive, and I initially wasnt able to get it because of some issues with my insurance.
Being judged by others is deeply upsetting.
There just isnt enough information out there about psoriasis, and it shows.
This even continued after the lesions were clear.
They left behind some discoloration, mostly on my stomach, backside, and whole torso.
I felt like I was being judged for a condition that I have no control over.
Psoriasis can seriously impact your mental health.
At its worst, my diagnosis alsoimpacted me mentally, even making me feel suicidal.
I thought, I dont want to live like this.
I feel guilty about that, almost as though I gave it to her.
But its a challengeliving with psoriasisbecause thats the first thing people see, especially if its on your face.
Peoplemay think its contagious if theyre not informedor judge you because they think you look unclean.
Accepting a chronic condition is an ongoing journey.
The biggest thing Ive learned and had to accept about my conditions is that theres no cure for either.
Sometimes you will feel lonely.
When I was first diagnosed, I felt alone and just sat with myself, and that was hard.
Be open and willing to try new and different treatment options to figure out what works for you.
You never know what theyre going through.
If youre outside the United States,hereis a list of international suicide helplines.
