BBC NI radio presenter Steven Rainey shares his psoriasis journey

Transcript

00:00To be able to physically watch my skin getting better on a day-to-day basis, in a way that

00:05I could never have imagined, the impact that had on me was transformative.

00:15One day I got into the shower, looked at my body and went, something is not quite right here.

00:20Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory condition. It's immune mediated, so essentially that

00:25means there's over-activity of the immune system. It's very well defined, red plaques,

00:31often on the extensor surfaces of their skin.

00:34Until it came a point about maybe seven years ago, where it was just too much. I couldn't

00:40do it anymore. The irritation, the anxiety it was causing. And on a trip to the GP, they

00:46had noticed that it was particularly bad and they were able to recommend some other treatments.

00:51I'm so aware now that it's not a one-size-fits-all kind of problem.

00:56Often people with psoriasis, it's not just a condition that affects the skin. The patients

01:02are in an inflammatory state, so we are concerned about their cardiovascular health. So there's

01:07things that they can do to improve their health in general. Lifestyle advice, exercising more,

01:12having a good diet.

01:14Onto the treatment with biologics, which I noticed a massive change in my skin. So if

01:19anyone is sitting there in that position thinking, well, I'm on my own here. You're

01:23not. You're absolutely not on your own. There are people who can help you.

01:26The staff at the hospital have been fantastic. I mean, I've met some incredible people over

01:30the years who've really made an impact on me at some dark points on that journey. I

01:35mean, I've been living with psoriasis for the best part of 20 years at that point. And

01:39to see it disappearing from my skin, knowing that I could roll my sleeves up again or I

01:45could wear shorts again in public and I didn't have to worry about that kind of thing. I'll

01:49never forget the impact that made on me.