Month 17!

So far month 17 has been ok! Mostly the same, but a few improvements to share!

Still very flaky and dry in some areas 

Neck is still the worst area for me

Shoulders aren't so great as well (mostly due to scratching)

Now for the grand reveal!

Wrist before:

Wrist after:

Completely back to normal, no trace of a rash or scars or anything!

Forearm perfect!

Inner arms still giving me a bit of trouble, but they're getting better!

Wrist still horrible.

Hope everyone is doing well! If not, just keep in mind the fact that you will heal!

Doing a lot better!

So happy to say that my recent flare has disappeared. It seems like most traces of tsw on my body are slowly fading, and it's just my scratching habit keeping things a bit rough. Also, happy to say that I will be attending University of California San Diego in the fall majoring in molecular biology. I'm not exactly sure what my career goal is yet, but perhaps topical steroids will come into my research someday? But, that will be very VERY far in the future. It would be a great way to thank ITSAN for everything it's done and contribute to this cause. Bye for now!

Month 16

Sorry to bear bad news, but month 16 has brought one of my worst flares since starting tsw. I finally know what it was that made me flare: vitamin E oil from the capsule. I thought it was that I had consumed too much sugar, or that it was my pre-menstrual cycle flare, but it was indeed the vitamin E oil. I used it again a few days ago, thinking that it was safe because I had used it before with no reaction. Then the day after, I could barely open my eyes because they were so swollen, I was oozing and swollen from everywhere that I had applied the oil, and my other tsw areas that I hadn't applied the oil were flaring as well. The swelling is going down very very gradually, but even 2 days later it still looks bad.

This flare was just so alarming to me because my face has never become so swollen before. When I looked into the mirror, I could not recognize myself at all. I know that I will get better and this will all go away, but in the meantime it is quite difficult to just put my entire life on hold. I've already missed 2 days of school, and am probably going to miss tomorrow as well. Hopefully I will have the strength to carry on for a few more days and see myself heal.

To anyone who has had eye and facial swelling, how long does it usually take to go down? The info would be very much appreciated. I hope that you are all faring well, and if not, we can wait it out together.

Note to self #2...

Cut out sugar! Flaring again....a bad one with ooze and swelling and everything. I'm 99% sure it was because I consumed so many sugary foods yesterday, way more than normal. Sigh, another lesson learned.

Note to self...

Never use olive oil ever again.

 

But other than that, my arms are great! My inner wrist is beautiful!

Outer wrist still needs work 

I still have the habit of scratching...which explains those cuts.

 Neck is still not good...lately each night I've been having scratch attacks and my neck ends up oozing. It's not the typical TSW yellow ooze, but more like the watery clear ooze you get from over scratching. I've tried wearing scarves and gloves but still end up scratching at night. Undoes all of my progress ):

 Hopefully I can break my scratching habit for good!

Update! Month 15

Long time no talk, everyone! I'm about to hit month 15 and things are just going ok. My neck is the worst problem area right now, being constantly itchy and still red. It goes through a lot of mini flares, for example today it was very very slightly bumpy which is a telltale sign of a flare. However, I haven't had a major neck flare in more than a month! My arms have gotten WAY better but I tend to scratch them a lot which sets me back. I no longer see that burning tsw redness on my arms, wrists, and shoulders, but again my habit of scratching is apparent with all the scabs...I tell myself not to scratch but at times you just can't help it. My face is doing pretty much the same: clear everywhere except for in between the eyes/eyelids and around my mouth. These areas are ok to handle some light makeup, but I am unsure if it is only aggravating the redness.

Living in SoCal, the ninety-degree weather has commenced. One of the most annoying things about tsw for me is having to cover up my arms, which means no t-shirts or tanktops whatsoever. This is especially troubling when I walk a mile home after school each day when the sun is the strongest. It just gets so. Hot. If anyone has any recommendations for lightweight longsleeve clothing, please let me know!

Feels like month 4 all over again...

I truly feel my skin regressing and undoing progress. My neck has started to itch like crazy again, that deep itch that originates from the nerve. I also scratch it unknowingly in my sleep, which is impossible to stop and undoes all my efforts to let the cuts heal. Also, entire face has flushed red today, which it hasn't done in a long time. It's strange, I feel like I am having similar symptoms to this time around one year ago. One year ago, I imagined that at this point I would be way better if not fully healed. Boy was I wrong.