So I know how painful scalp psoriasis/dermatitis lesions can be. Trust me. I’ve been there. 14 years old, in the cusp of becoming a teenager, I spent half the time scratching and the rest worrying if other people could see white dandruff specs on my clothes. Man I don’t miss those days. Fast-forward 15 years later and I now know what to do to help keep the symptoms at bay. This mask is extremely soothing and will stop your itching attack. It will help I assure you, you must do it at least once per week and keep your hair washing to a minimum (1 or 2 x /week). 

I usually put it on, leave it over night. After putting the mask and being stressed about how itchy your scalp is, try to relax, do something that chills you out. take some YOU time and practice self-care. This is essential as psoriasis flares up in moments of stress. 

Pay attention to your body’s cues. In my case, when I get a flare ups I know that this is my body warning me that something is not right. A change needs to happen in my life, an emotion needs to be released, I need to cut down on certain foods, and maybe do some journaling to figure what the issue is. 

Just tonight (4 am as I am writing this), I woke up in the middle of the night and my scalp was itching me. I had forgotten after months of not really feeling pain (I am in Australia right now and the salt water from the ocean and the great weather helps with the psoriasis). It occurred to me that this pain was coming from somewhere. I had been feeling pretty shitty in the last few weeks. Kind of stuck in my next traveling move, where I was going to go next. But also in my general life moves. I had been questioning where and when I would finally start naturopathic studies which is something I had been contemplating for a while. At the same time, I was looking for a job in Melbourne or Sydney to fund my traveling. Also the fact that I was obsessing over a guy who had been rejecting me for weeks didn’t help. I knew I deserved better. You could say I was ALL OVER the place, to say the least. I had been trying to keep it cool, meditating, doing yoga, but deep down it was boiling inside me. Tonight I exploded and started crying and writing in my journal, which really helped!

I realized that this pain was just a signal from my body telling me : GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER. Also, my sister Carine just got psoriasis herself and had been in pain.  I think this flare up was also a sign to remind me of the pain I had felt when my psoriasis first started so I could help her cope with her symptoms. Call me crazy, but I follow my gut and thats what I felt it was telling me. 

A part of healing from psoriasis is to find healing within your spiritual and emotional self. You need to dig deep down and think what happened in the moment of your life when your first had a flare up. Psoriasis is said to be caused by a separation, from someone or something that you hold dear. It stems from a feeling of abandonment from a thing or a person. For me, my father left my mother. At the time I didn’t think it affected me so much but today I realized that my insides took that move as “you are abandoning me”. Even though, I now know that this isn’t the case and it was not his intention, deep down, I think I resented him for leaving our home at such a young age. My father is my best friend, my hero and has always supported and loved me but at the time, without even realizing it, his leaving broke me. A few years after their divorce, my sister passed away. She, was also my anchor and protector, always giving me advice and guidance. Both these situations felt like abandonment which caused much fear of being alone, loss of stability and security. After doing therapy, practicing yoga and meditation, I realized that my body was holding on to that pain. Once I accepted that it had nothing to do with me and that I could take control of my mind and body and let go of the past, I started seeing tremendous improvement in my overall health. Our bodies tend to express our emotional pain through physical ailments. Its SO important to deal with those emotions to truly heal.

MY TIP: try to find that cause, come to terms with it, accept that it happened either through meditation or therapy or whatever helps you and most importantly LET IT GO. Attachment is self-destructive. This will help you find healing. Of course maintaining a healthy diet is incredibly important, but do not neglect your feelings, thats all I am saying. Hope this could help. 

 

How has psoriasis shown up in your life? Did it coincide with a stressful event? Feel free to share your experience and if the hair mask has worked for you!