this forum has been my saviour

[steelem]

guys young & old i seem to have been on the forum for years - now thank you pho for being here - were able to share our views and from what i have read thru many yrs has given me good skin for some time now ... so anyone who needs direction lets talk..

[Dev]

What has helped your skin heal?
Glad to hear your having some relief!

[steelem]

basically it was a matter of cutting all the bad foods out.  i read up alot on nutrition - i cut out things i used to love like pizza mcdonalds pasta carbonara - i have pretty much nailed a healthy diet now with a few tweeks - i try to eat 5-6 meals a day i also exercise religiously every day..  not sure what caused a few spots 2-3 months ago on my elbows but they were getting bigger so i invested in a hand held uvb - and with in a week of using it - i was clear again and they have nt come back - i also try to drink as much water as i can 5 litres - so i know there are a lot of factors involved here - diet is a must firstly for anyone if you know your overweight then you know this brings disease..  i also know from back when i used to eat all this rubbish that uvb at hospital remission was like a week - i also know that one time the uvb did not clear on my elbows it was just red and angry... so for me looking back diet definitely plays a good role in all this..  i also used to suffer with i.b.s irriatble bowel for some 20 years but since making a healthy choice this has been clear for over 12 months,, so for me  its these factors diet / exercise / moisturize.. i then think the odd bit of sun or uvb  to get that vit d p will be controlled.. i have put my diet on other threads but if anyone wants it let me know..

[steelem]

received some mails from a few members - 1 is covered with p - bowell issues etc - when i asked how his diet was he said normal - so i have now seen the diet - and really really shocked but no surprise really  fast foods fatty foods - dairy too - skipping meals - i do feel for this member -  i just hope now he follows a similar  balanced diet to what i have been doing... and gets on track and just hope his p improves and get a better quality life - ill keep you posted - obviously cant mention any names... again any one wants to chat 1-1 drop me a line///

[Dev]

I don't have any health issues part from small patches of gutatte p over various part of my body. I would say that I am maybe 20%-30% at the moment.
I have been on a strict diet since May/June 2011. I Don't eat any of the following: nightshades, citrus fruit (only a bit of lemon juice in salads), dairy, junk food such as crisps, sweets, chocolate, shop brought cakes & biscuits (I have started making my own with rice flour & oil), I have drastically cut down on wheat/gluten (I eat no more then 2 slices of bread a day and usually wholemeal, I have wholewheat pasta for dinner once a week). I don't eat out anymore so no pizza, chips, burgers ....
I researched diet a lot on the internet and there is one thing that seems pretty consistent and that is that diet will help heal a persons p if they have other health issues such as IBS which such a diet is good for.
At the moment, I'm expected a flare as I have just had very bad tonsillitis for almost 2 weeks.

[steelem]

thats brill stuff dev really done your research like me- so in the 6 months you have been doing this have you seen any improvement clearance have you now thought maybe get some uvb get rid of the rest?? i have plaque p so slightly different

[Dev]

have plaque p but  often it starts as gutatte.
I went to the dead sea in July 2011 and had almost 100% clearance (I only went for 9 days and the recommended amount of time is minimum 14 days). Since then the patches that hadn't fully healed have come back a bit and other new patches have formed mostly where I had p previously.
At the moment my skin is definitely better then what it was at this time last year.
I find that diet helps keep my p under control and doesn't really heal it in the way I would like. For example if I eat cheese or spices then my p turns red/looks inflammed.
I'm not sure about uvb at the moment although I do have an open appointment to go and see the dermatologist. I know that uvb will clear me but the p could come back straight away and at the moment I'm not prepared to take that risk although I have done uvb in the past any times.
tbh sometimes I feel like what is the point of all this!

[steelem]

dev do you pay for prescription? do you exercise? only when p began was it like gutate for me - all over my body but i suppose then i found exercise - now ive had uvb about 5 times over 20 years - 1 occasion didnt clear - i normally clear on holiday too but 1 year i didnt clear - elbows were that red it was like i had been burnt.. now for the last 10-15 years p has come up on the usual places i.e elbows always 1st - left hand leg where i got originally got P.. ass back of legs coverage i would say 5-10% nothing as bad as i what i have seen with other ppl - so firtsly i believe alot of why i have small coverage may have somet to do with exercise.. 
now i have found how to eat properly and this has taken 2 years of hard work to do - maybe now i m seeing the benefits - can i suggest the hydromol ointment i cant tell you how im enjoying this stuff 6 months in on this stuff now.. as i said its the normal places where it normally comes back but nothing has apart from places i cant get the hydromol too i.e top of my back i have 2 spots.. also i think now you have found diet that you will clear like me really well under uvb - the question is how long will your remission be - if you can stick to the plan hopefully only small parts come back & your happy.. for what i have at the minute i would say 0.02%..  by the way now you have done some research on diet look at your intake and find what is alkaline / acid - did you know the lemon is actually alkaline when taken..  this is what i did some months ago in fact 6 months ago i try to make my diet as much alkaline as poss - as we all know ppl with  acidity are the ppl who are ILL & have disease.

[Dev]

I have actually looked at acid/alkaline but never really done anything about it maybe now is the time.
Concerning the uvb I'm not really up for it because in the past 10 years I have had altogether over 100 sessions. The maximum recommended over ones life time is 200. To be honest I've noticed that all the sun exposure with out protection and the uvb have seriously affected the skin on my face. I'm only 30 yet I have lines and wrinkles that someone at least 10/20 years older then me would have and I have to be careful about the skin products that I use.
To be honest last year I was at least 60% covered on my body and my scalp and ears was completely covered. Now I have about 20% body coverage max and a few patches on my scalp in comparison. Maybe I shouldn't complain but life without this wretched p would be much better.

[steelem]

my time for uvb was meant to be up - my consultant last year said uvb has showed to be safer than 1st thought - therefore they will give you more sessions if needed - im 40 this year i have always moistured my face after shaving with nivia sensitive prob the only thing i can use too without bring me out in a rash - i cover whole face in the stuff daily  maybe thats helped me.. anyway you know you can put a visor on so it doesnt touch face..  as i said seems like your on the right track can you record you diet for me and send it over on a pm.. maybe say 3 days worth.. need supps and water intake too.. have to say just nice back in t shirts for me ive hidden away 4 yrs..