My long road with my friend started at the tender age of 10 years old. I had not known much and was still figuring out about the changes my body was going through at the time reaching puberty as a young girl. How overwhelming it all was. At the same time, I discovered I had developed psoriasis too. I had no idea what it was and neither did my family. It was later confirmed by doctors that I had psoriasis. Unbeknown to me my life would change so much. I had such a hard time trying to figure out life and still having to cope with so many lotions and treatments at the same time. It was hard.
Time went on and I learned to adapt. I met a few awesome people on my journey who became not just friends but extended family. They made me look at life so differently. I realised that I could either let this break me or make me. I chose to let it make me. I valued life so much more when looked at it through different eyes and made the best out of situations that psoriasis had given me. Most times I found that I was covered up to 90 percent of my body. But it was in those times that I learnt my own strength, not giving up, and always open to new meds and ointments finding out what was for me and helped me. I slowly learnt that I had to live my life and not let having psoriasis hold me from my purpose or my dreams as there would be good days as well as bad. In the bad ones I would just have to push a little harder than usual.
I grew up and I had my little family, three beautiful kids. I pray that the gene skips them and that they can have a life with no aches and pains and not having to hide their beautiful skin as I did so many times. Life can be cruel and people too. My children growing up and seeing me have learnt that beauty is more than just skin deep.
I have met a partner who loves me and looks past the skin. My psoriasis has robbed me from love in the past and meeting someone who totally understands you is the best thing that you can ever find. It makes the suffering so much easier. I made a choice to accept the life I have. I have realised, as I mentioned earlier, that there will be good days and there will be bad, but at the end it’s what I choose it will be. I look back after the covid pandemic when I went through such a tough time falling ill, being on life support and having to see to my skin and joints suffer. But I had such a great support team with my family. I recovered and made a promise to myself to let nothing stop me from achieving my dreams, one of them was singing.
As a child I had to grow up so quickly and learn all these things about my body and the changes psoriasis had done. I put so much on hold and then came my kids. I love them with all my heart. But my dream was on hold because loving and caring for them was my number one priority. After seeing so many people that I love pass on in a time that was so terrible during the covid pandemic, my heart was broken. But it made me realise that we only have one life to live, and we have to go for what makes us happy and focus on the good. I chose to sing. I am now a singer and have sung with some well know people and having psoriasis had not stopped me. I try and use my singing as a platform to educate people about what it is we go through each day and so far I can say it has been successful.
I want to end off with saying that:
Psoriasis can either make you or break you.
Let it make you.
Let it make you the best person you can be.
Just like psoriasis, always leave a little piece of you behind wherever you go so that you made your mark in life and in the life of many others.