Rosacea

[Lauri D]

It's flaring up to the point that I don't want to leave the house. It's bad. I don't want anyone to see me.

[beyelzu]

hugs

[LadyShea]

Prolly on accounta stress, babe. Is there anything you have found works best, a med or a cream or anything?

[lisarea]

This probably sounds way more flip than it's meant, but seriously, nobody of any consequence would judge you for something like that, or even give it a second thought.

It's not your job or your moral responsibility to be pretty, or to live up to someone else's (or your own) aesthetic ideals. You are allowed to go out and do what you want to do without paying a pretty toll.

Go leave the house, really. It'll be OK.

[Chris Porter]

:cheerhug:

I sometimes have psoriasis bad enough to feel that way too.

[One for Sorrow]

:hug:

[beyelzu]

You could do what I do when I do not feel my prettiest, I just give off waves of anger and glare at everybody, I suspect however that this is probably an effective tactic for me since I am a big, scary looking dude already.

[mulebear]

If you are in the northern hemisphere right now, simply moving from the cold outside into a warmer indoor area is enough to cause an outbreak.

Food can also trigger outbreaks. Alcohol and caffeine are definite culprits.

I'm sure you already know about all this, but I thought I'd mention it.

Let's hope it clears up soon.

[Lauri D]

Thanks guys and girls. I went to the store and nobody looked at me funny! It's weird how these things can get to us, the things no one else might even notice are worse through our own eyes.

[Qingdai]

I feel your pain, literally. I wasn't going to leave the house last winter because of rosacea.

The worst that happened is that people asked me if I had gotten a sunburn and I glared at them and declared I had rosacea.

[Lauri D]

I feel your pain, literally. I wasn't going to leave the house last winter because of rosacea.

The worst that happened is that people asked me if I had gotten a sunburn and I glared at them and declared I had rosacea. I hear that.... sometimes people are like "you are so red in your cheeks! Do you have a fever?" and I go into the whole speech about what rosacea is, blah blah blah blah. I've got it down to a routine, though.

It sort of reminds me, though, of when I was younger (let's say 12 on) I always had a really red nose because of having lots of sunburns as a kid to the point that the nose skin was/is actually partially scar tissue, and people thought it was funny to call me "Rudolph" (graduated from Casper due to extreme paleness).

I have always wondered why it is seemingly socially acceptable to criticize certain aspects of someone's physical self but not others. Like I wouldn't walk up to someone and be like "Hey you have a lot of wrinkles on your neck! HA!" because that would make me an asshole. But no one has ever had any compunction (I hope that's a real word and not a Palinesque made-up one) about talking about my skin.

That's it, I'm starting "People With Skin Issues Unite"! PWSIU. Or I'll think of something that makes a better acronym.

/rant

[Qingdai]

I also don't explain what rosacea is, except to say "it's a honky disease" that also shuts up people.

[viscousmemories]

That's it, I'm starting "People With Skin Issues Unite"! PWSIU. Or I'll think of something that makes a better acronym.
Beware: I once started a thread to discuss my various and sundry skin conditions and now everyone thinks I'm a freak. :(

[wildernesse]

Since moving to Houston, if I couldn't go out unless my skin were halfway normal, I would never leave the house. It is like I have regressed to some terrible teenaged point in skin development.

Most of the time, I shrug it off and don't think too much about it. But, when I am stressed out, then I have to work on fighting back anxiety about things like my skin. In those cases, it's really not about my acne, but about the stress. If I were having a good skin day, then I would compulsively worry about whether I have something in my teeth or whether a bird really did just poop in my hair, or something else that I could seize on.

When I realize that I am worrying, I can usually work on de-stressing and kicking the anxiety out. It doesn't make me look better, but I feel a lot better. The important part, for me, is recognizing that I am worrying (and not thinking rationally), which is harder than one might think.

[mulebear]

That's it, I'm starting "People With Skin Issues Unite"! PWSIU. Or I'll think of something that makes a better acronym.
Beware: I once started a thread to discuss my various and sundry skin conditions and now everyone thinks I'm a freak. :(

We don't think you're a freak because of your skin conditions.

[Ensign Steve]

I also don't explain what rosacea is, except to say "it's a honky disease" that also shuts up people.

It's even more fun to tell them "It's Highly Contagious!"

:zombieglomp:

[Qingdai]

"I'm a highly contagious honky!"

:lol:

[Dingfod]

Quick, does anyone here speak honky?

[Lauri D]

Too funny... I never thought of telling people it's contagious (and then lunging in for a full contact hug!) I might try that soon if I get any flak (although it's better today, knock wood).

Is a honky the same thing as a cracker?

[Qingdai]

Yes, yes it is. It's also a class of Native American dancing, it's much better to go honky class than the alternative, which is whitey or something.

[JoeP]

Thanks guys and girls. I went to the store and nobody looked at me funny!

Sorted!

:hug:

[JoeP]

That's it, I'm starting "People With Skin Issues Unite"! PWSIU. Or I'll think of something that makes a better acronym.
Beware: I once started a thread to discuss my various and sundry skin conditions and now everyone thinks I'm a freak. :(

We don't think you're a freak because of your skin conditions.

And it didn't start at the time of that thread.

[viscousmemories]

:glare:

[LadyShea]

Lauri, enough people love you, and think you are beautiful, that you shouldn't give a shit about strangers on the street looking at you funny. In fact, I am pretty sure you don't care about them, but don't like looking at yourself with a flare up. I am that way about my gray hair. I color it because I hate looking at myself with it, not because I care what people at the supermarket might think.

Hubby worked with a lovely girl who happened to have a port wine stain covering one half of her face. It was the bad kind too, with raised scar looking tissue in places. She said she would tell staring people "It's not a burn, it doesn't hurt", and that made them all squirmy and ashamed (loved that). She was really pretty even with it, and married, and happy and sweet. I always think of her when I get worried about my looks...really your looking sunburned or my looking like a freaky old person with a good face lift is small taters.

[viscousmemories]

Just do a Google image search for "skin disease" and you're bound to feel much better about your appearance post haste.

[Lauri D]

Thanks guys. I was having a particularly bad day and even though I've had the Big R for like 4-5 years now it hasn't been that often that I feel THAT bad about it. Next time I have a flare though (since it's manageable and not curable per se) I will try to be more level headed about it!