for newcomers - a not so bad story (to make you feel better)

Skin, nail and hair health
1

i posted a couple times before and noticed people saying that few ever came back after to let everyone know the full experience...

basically i got my herald patch about 5 weeks ago, followed by 2 weeks of maddening itching. couldnt sleep for longer than 2 hours a night, didnt wear a bra for over 2 weeks and actually wanted to hurt people at times through frustration! it was pretty bad, aesthetics aside (coz obviously it doesnt look pretty does it!) it was the itching that was the main problem for me.

im glad to say that 5 weeks in and all itching has gone away, and the rash itself has faded massively (it is still noticeable but im slathering myself with fake tan to try and even it out, i figure orange all over is a slight improvement)

my doctor gave me daktacort (hydrocortizone cream) but its hard to say how much it helped or not.

my SAVIOUR was calamine lotion. there is no limit to how often you can apply it and it really helps the itching. mine was far worse at night, best thing to do is to sleep without a top on with the covers off keeping cool and smothered in calamine!

also antihistemines helped with the itching quite a bit.

i didnt try sunbeds coz i just didnt get round to it before it started to improve, but it does seem like they have a positive effect for most who try them.

i massively agree that it could be stress related. im in my final year at uni (after having failed a previous year being ill with something else) and i had assessments piling up and my whole dissertation to write so a lot of pressure to do well, and everything seems to hit you harder when you're run down.

ive been really lucky that mine has cleared up so quick, being quite unlucky with illnesses in the past i had prepared myself for months of this...

all i can say is keep cool, drown yourselves in calamine lotion and have a sense of humour about it. hard i know, but there are rarely any other side effects its not dangerous at all and it will go eventually...so it could be a lot worse :D

xxxx

2

ive had my rash for about a week now and it just came on like woomf.. i had that daktora cream or whatever it is lol and its for dermatitis so it wont help

now ive got calomile cream not lotion only to hydrate my skin as mine (luckilly for me) doesnt itch

i think it could be stress related as i was house hunting and job hunting wen i got my patch..

i think the sunbeds will work as if u have had this for more that 3 months then the doc gives u u.v treatment

so might have a lil go on the beds, talking about having a sense of humour about it, theres nothing else u can do so ya might aswell lol x x xx

3

Just to give everyone a little hope, I'm going to share my experience.

I am very in tune with my body and I notice every bump and abnormal rash right away. The first week of february 2008, I noticed a very small red blotch on my chest and i was slightly concerned as i had just started working out again so i thought it was due to strain on my body that i hadn't been used to. The following day, I woke up with multiple clusters on my chest and all over my stomach. I took a hot shower and after getting out, I looked in the mirror and much to my dismay, the blotches seemed to be multiplying before my very eyes...I was mortified!

I went to the nearest dermatologist and he knew what it was right away. He spotted the herald patch on my left shoulder blade, which amazingly I overlooked. He didn't give me any antibiotics or prescribe any creams..just told me it should go away in 8 to 12 weeks. it went on for weeks, and didn't seem to get better, just worse. It appeared all over my back, my entire torso, all the way down to the top of my knee caps. It looked so bad that I thought it would never go away or it had to leave scars. But surprisingly, into my 5th week, the spots began to fade and about a week and a half later they were all gone. It looked so bad before that in my third week of having this condition, if anyone had told me that there would be no scarring or no traces of it, I would tell them that they were out of their mind. I would have been willing to bet my pension on it that there would be scars! It is now the middle of May and there is no evidence that I ever even had a skin condition! It left me as mysteriously as it appeared.

The bottom line is, In most cases, it WILL go away eventually and most likely, completely. There is no sense in stressing this condition. I believe stress will make it worse and is probably part of the reason I got it in the first place. I just received a promotion and the stress of my job and the change probably compromised my immune system. I am no doctor, but after doing extensive research on this topic, I think it may be a major contributing factor. It is very inconvenient, and being as I am a lady, I couldn't wear the clothing that I normally wear..I had to pretty much cover myself up from neck to toe to hide the ugly blotches so surely that was not fun to do.

Just some words of advice, those of you stricken with disease who feel like there is no light at the end of the tunnel, there will be. Just take care of yourself, eat right, get plenty of sleep and try not to keep looking at your physical self in a negative light. it will only stress you out and make matters worse. It may have temporarily taken you over physically, but it doesn't have to take you over mentally.

4

Hi steph75, I just went to the doctor today, I fell like crying. I feel sick to my stomach that it can last so long. I dont think im too stresses at the moment. I have often been worse.

reading your story helps but i wish it was over. I got this fab outfit for a wedding in a few weeks, going to have to rethink that!

dont want to let my fiance near me.so sxx if off the cards for him. we are ment to be heading away this weekend. really dont want ot go now....

Im so so so fed up. Did you get blood test done too?

5

I have just been diagonsed with PR _ had never heard of it before, let alone pronounce it! I had about 5 large spots 2 weeks ago, appearing from nowhere. I am now covered on my entire torso, back, top of legs and upper arms and neck! The docor was worried because I am also 18 weeks pregnant and checked for every kind of rash, chicken pox, etc...

Its good to hear that it does eventually go and that sunlight is good for it. Unfortunately, I can't go on the sunbeds and have actually been avoiding sitting outside incase it makes the itching worse! I am going to try it next time the sun is out and will try all the advice on here - have bio oil, piriton, creams, etc...I really don't think I could go 6 more weeks like this though! Its driving me mad already!

Do you have more spots all the time or do they stop after about 2 weeks?

6

I was diagnosed with ringworm by a GP towards the end of June, and started using a cream which is recomended for thrush on what turned out to bethe herald patch. It did not itch, and i did doubt the diagnosis. I saw another GP when i started to get a red blotchy neck a couple of weeks later. This was when i was diagnosed with pityriasis rosea, 4 days after my 21st birthday!

So, 6 or 7 weeks into the diagnosis, i am now starting to see some improvements and am getting excited! I have experienced a lot of itchiness, and had many sleepless nights being kept awake by the desire to scratch but trying so hard to resist even though it felt so nice when i gave in!

I used a 1% hydrocortisone cream on the affected areas (most of my body!) and also applied a fragrance free body butter to help with the moisturisation which i definitely found helped so would recommend this!

It spread on my torso very quickly and the tops of my arms, and back. The tops of my thighs were also affected, all of this by approx week 4. It also started to affect my face which was a massive disappointment as my doctor told me this never happened, and was a serious blow to my confidence. Even going to work was torture and once i got home i refused leaving my house as i looked so awful and itched so much!

I actually tried sunbathing (which was very minimal because I live in England!!!) but, even though i was hot and itchy afterwards - it did seemto look a bit better the following day!

I also have been through a phase of my skin literally flaking off of me, which looked like my body had dandruff, and everytime i did have a cheeky scratch i would be surrounded by the dandruff looking flakes! This was especially bad on my face, neck, chest, arms, and back. This meant moisturising every morning after a cool shower and every evening before bed, and also during the day on my face and neck when necessary.

I now feel like i can at last see light at the end of the tunnel - it is visibly so much better on my body. However, it has spread onto my bum and i have the rash between the tops of my thighs all the way to my knees! So I know this will last a while longer, but i can easily conceal this area for a little while longer. Basically, it is in different stages on different parts of my body... but i have just recently been using gentle exfoliators in the shower (dove on my body, and clinique on my face) and this has also been a massive help as i think it helps the moisturiser work better.

Anyway i am sorry this has been such a long post but i would have liked to have read something like this when i had first been diagnosed with the condition! so i hope it helps someone, especially when you are feeling like it is never going to go away, which really gets you down.

:D

7

Hi

I was diagnosed today with PR i was worried it was Chicken pox or shingles at first as I am 38 and had a really bad case a couple of years ago!! I worry a lot and get stressed very easy so if your right then i must be a really good candidate for this.

Anyway I started last week with what seems to be the hearld spot, then two days later lots of little spots popped up on my stomach and another two days later its a case of dot to dot.

I was really embarrased when I had to go to Work after i'd been to the doctors I felt like it was something strange and nasty and I was depressed. Am still a little as I watch more spots arrive!! My doctor gave me hydrocortisone 1% cream and Ketopine Shampoo to use as a body wash.

I have to admit its not as bad as my chicky pox was but I am a little scared about the fact it could take so long to clear up and where the spots will pop up next. Anyway reading your posts have given me a little lift so Thank You smile

8

This website has been a life saver!!! I got the herald patch a couple of weeks ago.. and just thought that it was weird bite... but woke up one morning with the rash covering my left leg, back and arms, and the GP diagnosed it as PR straight away but was really unhelpful when it came to how to deal with the itching, so did a bit of research and came across this site. It seems to be getting a bit better now, but its spread all the way to my wrists which a bit hard to cover up in the summer. I do think it was caused by stress, as when it started I was in the midst of working for the biggest event in my companies calender, and also trying to cope with the usual university student life problems.

Anyways again just to let other people know that there is hope and the end of this exceptionally dark tunnel!!!!!!!!

9

I was diagnosed with pityriasis rosea 1o years ago after 7 herald patches, and subsequent rash, now I get re occurances twice a year with maybe only two rough patches to be seen but always accompanied by joint pains, which seem to increase with severity as I get older, this lasts about 10 days