WEEK #9: ITCHING FOR NEW SKIN

Again, I'm not going to review the Alphosyl shampoo just yet as it's not as easy to determine it's effectiveness as quickly as it is with moisturisers & shower/bath products. The products on review this week didn't particularly help my psoriasis & were mainly chosen on a budget basis as I'm spending a significant amount of money on skin stuff now.  I do realise that a lot of people have already given Aqueous cream a no-no but thought I would try it out anyway as I've not used it before and it was cheap and I would like to exhaust all product options before choosing the ones I'm going to use on a regular basis. 

AQUEOUS CREAM 500G : 4/10

So I think it should be compulsory for all moisturisers to come in these tubs. I LOVE being able to completely smoother my skin in moisturiser and tubs allow that to happen easily. The first night I used this I thought I had found the one, I felt so comfortable after applying it & slept right through...and the the night after I was back to having my midnight itchfests. My skin generally felt softer and my psoriasis patches smoother but I've also read that aqueous cream merely seals in the moisture already in your skin rather than applying any moisture for your skin to drink up. Also the smell was very medical and clung to all my clothes. Definitely not one you'd want to be applying at work. It's also not that cheap despite what I said earlier, considering that one tub lasted just under a week if you apply moisturiser at least three times a day like myself. 

(£4, BOOTS)

SANEX SENSITIVE SHOWER GEL 500ML: 5/10

Not a product I have strong feelings about. It wasn't moisturising but it wasn't irritating & didn't dry my skin out. It smelt nice and for value for money I can't fault it. I'd definitely use it if I was in a position where I had to get something readily available in a supermarket. I was initially enticed by their dry skin adverts so I'll probably have a try of some of there other products. 

(£1.59, BOOTS)

DIPROSALIC OINTMENT: 6/10

I'm fully aware of the aversion to steroids and I completely understand why. When your psoriasis is widespread like mine it's entirely impractical to cover each dot in steroid cream whilst avoiding your normal skin so I just stick to using it on my lower arms & lower legs when I'm trying stuff out. Diprosalic (I think) is quite a potent steroid and I was applying twice a day. It's probably no surprise then that I did notice a tiny improvement. My spots reduced in redness but this was usually accompanied by new little red dots appearing. I also don't like to use the same steroid ointment for more than two weeks due to side effects. Judging by my use of it I think it would be ok for short term use intermittently (i.e. use for two weeks then have a break for a week or so then resume using it). For most people though steroids really are not a solution but an emergency fix, and even then they're not that effective unless your psoriasis is severe. 

(PRESCRIPTION)

DITCHING THE ITCH PART II: LORATADINE TABLETS

LORATADINE 10MG ANTI-HISTAMINE TABLETS (30 TABLETS): 3/10

So after the failure of the last product I tried to get rid of my night time itching hell I asked the doctor what she would recommend. I specifically needed something that was non-drowsy, I had tried a really powerful anti-histamine from my dermatologist once & it worked a treat, probably because it knocked me so far out that there was no way I'd be itchin' in such deep sleep. However that was in my student days... Unfortunately I am now (considered by society) a responsible adult who only gets an opportunity for a lie-in once a week so I need something that's not going to make me sleep through my alarm clock and be dozy for the rest of the day. 

She told me that this worked really well for her severe hay fever. 

Not so good for my psoriasis I'm afraid doc.

Ok so I'm not too sure how long you're supposed to give these tablets to kick in but I've had a few experiences where I've suddenly & randomly woken up (usually around 4am) by a bout of itchiness. I've then taken a tablet which I keep by my bedside table, moisturise whilst still in bed cause I'm too tired to move and then attempt to go to sleep. Instead, however, my itchiness more often than not continued and it would usually take a good hour or so to get back to sleep. And even then I probably only got back to sleep out of pure exhaustion rather than comfortableness.

I must admit there were a few nights where I took this before I went to bed & before I got all itchy and I slept through- but it's hard to tell if that was thanks to the anti-histamine or whether I just wasn't itchy that night. 

To conclude, solely using this as an anti-itching agent didn't work for me and if your dr. says anything about prescribing this for you I would recommend asking for something stronger. It also scored less than the Eurax because as it is a tablet there is nothing to slightly soothe your skin even if it doesn't work to completely take the itch away. 

WEEK #8: ALOE ALOE!

UGH! There's a major lack of sleep in my life at the moment & I'm exhausted right now so this will be a rather short & sweet review of the products I've been using. I've started back on the diprosalic ointment but I'm gonna wait till next week to assess it's full effects. I've also started using Alphosyl shampoo which I'm going to give a bit more time before reviewing as it seems to be working quite well & I'm interested to see if it will continue to clear up my scalp with prolonged use. 


-HOLLAND & BARRETT 99.9% ALOE VERA GEL 200ML 6/10
This another product that people generally seem to rave about in assisting psoriasis but it didn't work that fantastically for me. It's quite cool so when you apply it there is an initial soothing effect but after a few minutes that wears off & I was sometimes quite itchy again not long after applying it. The texture & smell reminded me of that alcohol hand sanitiser gel stuff. You also don't get much use out of this particular tube for the price. I'd rather just use a moisturiser. 

(http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/shop/product/holland-barrett-aloe-vera-gel-60002672, £6.99)


-DR ORGANIC ALOE VERA SOAP 100g 3/10
I liked the smell of this & that's about it. I was ideally looking for a pure aloe vera soap but I had to settle for this. My skin ended up getting quite dry very quickly after use & I was left itching whilst still in the shower. Bit of a rip off considering how ineffective it is. 

(http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/shop/product/dr-organic-aloe-vera-soap-60083619, £2.99)

WEEK #7: THREE DOWN FIVE TO GO {AVEENO}

Some of the views I express in this weeks review may prove to be a little controversial in the world of dermatology. A lot of people say that oatmeal baths really help them (that's what the blob in the picture represents, it's actually a muslin filled with porridge oats) & same goes with the Aveeno lotion, unfortunately it wasn't the case for me so please don't shout at me for my low ratings, I've simply assessed them based on the effectiveness I've experienced. 
I also apologise for my tardiness in completing my review this week, a combination of loss of internet and extreme tiredness (I'm only slightly exaggerating when I say extreme) have slowed me down- But, alas! I'm not defeated!
P.S. -you can find my review of dermalex updated on week 6 should you be interested
-The fish oil supplement I've been using (green bottle in picture) hasn't been helping much...I'll give it one last chance before I report my final verdict to you. 
-I also think brand of supplements may make a difference?? The effects of Evening Primrose Oil (yellow bottle in picture) seems to have either plateaued or the morrisons one isn't as good as 

AVEENO LOTION 500ML: 6/10
Everyone describes Aveeno as 'nice', my doctor, my pharmacist, other people who've used it. Jennifer Aniston seems to like it to.  
It is very soothing but it is also expensive and it also doesn't last very long. The 500ml bottle got a bit annoying to use towards the end of the supply as well. This is another one that worked great on my face. It's not one I'd want to use on a regular basis though. It provided moisture but not quite enough for my spotty areas. I got itchy pretty quickly after using it. I think this is the best moisturiser out there to bring to work. It's easily transportable, it doesn't have ugly medical packaging, it doesn't smell, it absorbs quickly, it doesn't leave your skin shiny and it's easy to apply. If I was at home though I'd want to use something more intensive. 
 (I GOT THIS ON PRESCRIPTION ALTHOUGH IT'S VERY READILY AVAILABLE THESE DAYS WITH MY LOCAL PHARMACY GIVING OUT FREE SAMPLES)


OATMEAL WRAPPED IN MUSLIN: 3/10
...or my oatmeal bath bomb as I liked to call it. As Aveeno is oatmealy I decided to pair it with this I used average porridge oats you just get from your local supermarket so maybe I used the wrong stuff. I tried to give it a google but it didn't help me find a difference between oatmeal and porridge. 
Anywayyyyy, I'm really really sorry if you disagree but I don't get what all the fuss is about. I mean soooo many websites etc. recommend it. It became very smelly cause I only had one muslin to last me the week & there were also porridge remnants in my bath. I didn't find it particularly soothing, It wasn't irritating, but none of it's effects warrant it's popularity. It was quite nice squeezing it directly over my skin but bathing in it did nothing for me. 


-HEAD & SHOULDERS APPLE FRESH 250ML: 2/10
Ok so I know this was ridiculous to even try I just wanted  to try it for a week as I thought it might be something that people newly diagnosed with psoriasis might think of trying (i.e. me four years ago). I mean it seems logical that a shampoo to help with the flakiness of dandruff might help with the flakiness of psoriasis...right? (you can just humour me & agree, I've never been great with logic). Yep maybe not, especially given that it's probably going to more chemically due to the apple scent, I'm not sure why I didn't just try the original if I was going to try it at all (I told you my logic isn't great). I basically was hoping to find a nice smelling shampoo which I haven't had for a very long time that might reduce flaking. In fact the apple smell wasn't that great & my flaking greatly increased (surprisingly). Some of my lumps got bigger, I hope you get what I mean by lumps, and most importantly I got very itchy. It's a no from me head & shoulders (even though I'm not your target audience)
(OCADO ONLINE £2.99)

WEEK#6: TWO DOWN SIX TO GO {AVEENO}

Not quite such a successful week compared with last week's products. Last weeks products seemed to have faded a lot of my lesions and reduced itchiness massively. This week I haven't been so lucky and I seem to have new dots appearing accompanied by a resurgence in my itching :( 
Oh well that's the point of experimenting with different products, finding out what works and what doesn't. And I must remind you that what doesn't work for me might just work for you...Unfortunately I just have that incredibly stubborn kind of guttate psoriasis.
So here's the weekly review...
P.S. The reason for the title is that Aveeno products have been recommended to me by a few different doctors so thought I'd try out there whole product range. There are eight different products shown on their website and I've used two now...just thought I should explain. 

AVEENO SKIN RELIEF BODY LOTION WITH SHEA BUTTER 200ML: 7/10
Advertised as for 'extra dry, irritable and sensitive skin' to 'moisturise the skin for 24 hours'. 
I think this would work fantastically if your skin was just dry & you didn't have any kind of skin condition. Not so fantastic if you have psoriasis however. It does provide long lasting moisture for the skin...all day... and I often felt like I didn't need to moisturise as much as I normally do (3 times a day) but my lesions would get itchy and irritable so I did still end up moisturising 3 times a day. I feel like this lotion was the responsible for my new spots flaring up  & existing spots getting bumpy. I also used 4 bottles in a week!!! So based on price alone I wouldn't use this on a regular basis. I'd highly recommend for people with just regular dry skin, it would be a lifesaver. 
For those of you like me with severe psoriasis though I'd say don't waste your money.
(QUALITY SAVE £3.99----I've since seen this on offer @ co-op pharmacy for £3.49 if you're in the uk & fancy trying it)

AVEENO BATH & SHOWER OIL 250ML: 6/10
It's such a nice change to have a nice smelling, nicely packaged shower gel! Based on it's use as a shower gel it's not a product I have strong feelings about. It didn't feel as though it was that nourishing to my skin but it certainly didn't do any harm, although it did dry out my skin a little. This product would last quite a while, I still have loads left, but it wasn't effective enough to justify the price. I'll probably review it again as used in the bath some time in the future but not that impressed with it. 
(OCADO ONLINE, £7.99)

DERMALEX PSORIASIS CREAM 60G: 4/10
So I was supposed to moving back on to diprosalic ointment this coming week but it's recommend to stick with this for two weeks to notice a difference so I can't provide a review for this yet. It caught my eye in the shops and I thought it might be my miracle cure. Judging by it's effectiveness so far it's probably not going to clear my skin but still it's very appealing that it's cortisone & steroid free. It is rather expensive but a little goes a long way and it probably lasts quite a while. I'll get back to you next week with my findings  

*To get straight to the point, this didn't work for me although I have a feeling it might help on people with mild psoriasis as the middle bit of the spots faded a teeny weeny bit...not enough for me to pay £18 for the tube, I'd rather get steroids which I can get on prescription 
(SUPERDRUG ONLINE £17)