Re: Re: Admiration for you special P & PA (O.T.)

[Guest guest]

bruse

Thank you for the information about Enbrel. wow you are right you need

prescription coverage. I was not that fortunate to get that but I do have

good hospital coverage. That is why I opt for the inpatient treatment. What

i spend on prescriptions now makes me feel guilty. That's another story.

The modified gockerman (spell?) treatment is mainly tar and photo

therapy.When I'm in as an inpatient you may have the tar mixed with a

lubercant and maybe a steroid cream. First thing in the morning you wash

with a special soap (basis or compatible) and shampoo with a tar shampoo. Lub

up immediately after your shower with maybe luberdurm . Then you have lights

and each day is increased by so many modules depending on your type of skin.

They want you pink but not burned as burning can cause a flare too. So you

are monitored real close. Then three times a day you use the tar mixture and

inbetween you keep lubercated. It's a long prosess and you don't smell good.

Some people will use the anthrlin or salacitic acid. My skin can't tolerate

the anthrlin so I use the salacitic acid after I've got my skin calmed down a

bit. It comes in different strengths. You have to be careful with the

anthrlin not to get it on good skin, or anything else ,it can really give you

a burn and stains (the kind you can't get rid of) it's on for only a few

minutes and then is increased each day.

Now when I went to another hosp. they used a sauna suit. They used strong

steroid then pj's ,wet down, and then the suit for four hours two times a

day. Boy I gotta tell ya it did wonders for the PA! I would go in on crutches

or wheelchair and within in days be able to walk the unit pain free! But

there is a down side to this-you see the suit makes the steroid (from my

understanding) 7 times stronger and well needless to say the side

affects.----increased blood pressure - increased blood sugar-thinning of the

skin, steroid dependence,steroid rebound. The problem with this treatment is

it didn't last ever long and I truely believe that it wa just a quick fix,and

played a major part in me becoming a diebetic and having blood pressure

problems and weight gain. Then I found another place that did the modified

gockerman without the strong steroids with mainly the tar and,lights and

cream and I was clear for 9 mos. and that is good for me and besides getting

away from all the steriods. It was so nice to feel skin that felt normal and

looked good. My PA seems to calm down when I get the P under control.

Insurance companys are causing the hospitals to cut back on the days or even

close the units and for me that will be devastating. I am not able to get

out for out-patient treatments so it means the fight with this disease and

any relief doesn't look good. I'm not sure what I'm going to do . I just

hope I can hold on for a cure or some other miracle. It does get so

depressing what a merry -go- round.

For those of you who are interested, there is another web site. It

belongs to the National Psorasis Foundation it's www.psoriasis.org/. It was

through this organisaton that I found you lovely people. Oh what a gold mine

I found. Thank you and Gillan says God Bless. Nanny