Burn Baby Burn....

No disco inferno to report unfortunately. Just to update on my past 3 session of UVB. As I stated in my last post, I was slightly red on my neck/chest after Wednesday and thought I'd be lowered to a different dose...Nope! 

Fridays session lasted approx. 2 minutes and 47 second, up again another 20%. I was told because it was the first incident of redness that I should be OK. Friday night was agony, it was like I had been sunburned all over, without the blisters or the peeling. My skin was red and hot from head to toe. I moisturised once I got back from the hospital with E45, and again later that evening to try and cool my skin and because it had felt so dry. That night I did my usual routine of Emulsifying Ointment but it was still quite uncomfortable to sleep with the heat (not good with work the next morning!)

The next day I felt like my skin was not as bad, it was still fairly red, but not as hot to touch. I went about my day at work, making sure to top up on SPF 50 on my face during the day as I work outdoors. On Sunday, I felt back to normal and to top it all of my thighs which had still felt a bit grainy, had felt much smoother.

Monday morning, the nurse noted about what I experienced on Friday. She checked over my skin, all seemed well. My face was looking much better so she came to the decision that I'd finally be using the visor to cover my face during light treatment, and I also had a step under me to raise me up to get lower areas better. I went up by 10% to see if my skin would react at a lower dose. That evening, I did have a small bit of redness on my upper arms and lower back but no where near last Friday.

Today I went up another 10% and my session lasted 2 minutes 57 seconds. My knees had felt quite sore last night and this morning, I put it down to not taking any medication for my Psoriatic arthritis since early March. I'm trying to give my system a chance before I start Stelara but if the pain gets worse I will take Methotrexate. Due to this it did feel a bit difficult when doing the movements in the light treatment box. Legs and arms are raised, and any skin folds where Psoriasis is, just to make sure the light gets to it.

I have only 4 more session left to go. While I definitely see and feel improvements in my skin, I still have a bit to go yet. The legs always seem to be the most stubborn but I'm hoping for good weather here to get clear for holidays. Also the introduction to Stelara a week after I finish light treatment, time will tell if or when it works.

Until next time...

Sarah x