a lot of this kind of buildup, it can lead to a stroke or heart attack.
How to protect yourself
In order to reduce inflammation and your risk of heart disease, it is important to keep up with your psoriasis medication. It should also be noted that some psoriasis medications, including steroid hormones, retinoids, and some immunosuppressive drugs can raise your risk of cardiovascular disease.
If you’re using one of these medications, ask your doctor about the risks. He or she can help you determine if regular blood tests to monitor your numbers are necessary as well as ways you can minimize any possible side effects.
Depression
It’s no surprise that living with a chronic illness can affect more than your physical health. Dealing with the visible, and often painful symptoms of psoriasis on a daily basis can take an immense toll on your mental health.
“Most of the people who get diagnosed with psoriasis are younger than 40, which means they’ve got another 40 years to live with it,” Alan Menter, M.D., chairman of the division of dermatology program at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, tells SELF. “That can be psychologically incapacitating.”
In fact, 16.5% of individuals with psoriasis reported having symptoms that could be diagnosed as major depression, according to a 2016 study of 12,382 people published in JAMA Dermatology. (This was compared to 8.9% of people who had the same symptoms but didn’t have psoriasis.)
How to protect yourself
It is important to prioritize your mental health just as much as your physical health if you are living with psoriasis. One great way to do this is through therapy. Not sure where to start? Try finding a therapist that has experience working with people living with chronic conditions.
“We don’t always think about therapy as something that could help us with navigating a health condition, but that’s not correct,” says Lauren Selfridge, L.M.F.T., a therapist in private practice in California. “There are many therapists, including myself, who specialize in working with people with health conditions. People can actually get specific care for this. One common thing I hear from people is that they wish that when they were newly diagnosed, they had reached out for therapy.”
Anxiety
The unpredictability of what your day may look like can understandably cause anxiety. About two to 23 percent of people with psoriasis report having anxiety compared to one to 11 percent among those without the condition, according to the aforementioned review of studies published in Seminars in Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery.
How to protect yourself
When anxiety happens, it is important to take a break and do something that you enjoy.
“Maybe you spend some time journaling. Maybe you spend some time talking with a trusted friend or a family member,” Selfridge suggests. “Or maybe you zone out and watch a movie or go for a walk or play a video game—do something that gives you that mental and emotional rest of not having to be constantly processing.”
Additionally, keeping up with your medication can help with anxiety and depression because seeing improvement in your