Head Games

Unlike a lot of medical conditions, psoriasis has a visible presence. In its more severe forms, it’s disfiguring and painful. You probably already knew that, so I won’t insult your intelligence any further!

Back in 1999, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center did a study that proved what people with psoriasis have known all along – when it comes to chronic diseases, we walk a hard road.

The folks at Wake Forest surveyed 317 psoriasis patients using a standardized form that rated quality of life in eight areas. These surveys were compared with those filled out by patients with 11 other diseases, including hypertension, diabetes, depression, cancer and congestive heart failure.

You would think that psoriasis is less of a pain in the butt than some of those conditions, but think again. Only patients with congestive heart failure reported poorer physical functioning than people with severe psoriasis; only people with depression and chronic lung disease reported poorer mental function.

“These results indicate that psoriasis can be physically and emotionally debilitating even though it is not life-threatening,” Stephen Rapp, PhD, co-author of the study, said in a press release.

Maybe it’s not in the physical sense, but I don’t totally agree that psoriasis is not life-threatening. In the same press release, there is a statement that indicates that psoriasis “is associated with a higher risk of suicide.”

I’m confused. Since when is suicide not life-threatening?

Obviously I’m not going to solve the world’s problems in one short article. But I can issue a call for a more comprehensive approach to psoriasis treatment.

Doctors need to evaluate psoriasis patients for signs of depression and refer them to appropriate treatment if needed. Patients need to ask for help if they are feeling depressed. Sometimes talking to a mental health professional is all that’s needed; sometimes people need more extensive treatment.

Consider this: If you’re depressed, you’re probably going to do the bare minimum to maintain your physical appearance; in a severe depression you may not even do that. If you’re not keeping up on the basics, you’re probably not keeping up on your psoriasis treatments. Then the psoriasis gets worse and you get more depressed about it. It’s a vicious cycle that’s hard to break.

This is not to say that psoriasis causes depression all by itself; other things can also cause or contribute to it. Not everyone with psoriasis is depressed, but a lot of us are frustrated. There’s a fine line between the two.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic