Hi guys please post if kp is making you depressed the way it does me. Im not trying to start a negative thread its just that people with normal skin dont understand and sometimes you need someone to talk to and the best people to talk to are people with the same problem.

After my weekend away i havent been able to fight this feeling. The image of my boyfriend,in the water with my girlfriends in their bikinis and short skirts is making me very insecure. I sat and watched them have fun.i felt like dying inside.

i'm so desperate i tried endless things to try to get rid of it.Some things seem to start to look like its working others make it worst. im currently using a aha lotion which i'll keep using.

It's so true that people with normal skin have no idea what it is like to have a skin disease. What really gets me is all these people who have tattoos. It's like, they are SO lucky to be normal and have nice, smooth skin, and all they want to do is jab it with needles and inject it with permanent INK ? How can they do that to skin that is *perfect* ??

I know there are lots of things that people don't appreciate when they have them, like I'm sure some people would envy me because I can walk and am not disabled or something like that. For instance, I bet people in wheelchairs get furious when they see people driving everywhere and talking about how much they hate exercise. If you were stuck in a wheelchair, it would be the highlight of your life to be able to get on a treadmill, run around, walk to work instead of driving. And instead people treat walking like it's a chore. I wonder what it is like for paralyzed people to go to stores and see customers driving around in those little motorized carts because they are too overweight to walk comfortably. That must be infuriating.

Good. Yes, PLEASE keep at it. It WILL help your KP as long as your skin can handle it. It may not clear it up completely, but it should improve it quite a bit if you just stick with it!
I say this because it does exfoliate the skin. Everyone's. It is not some body chemistry thing that will work for some and not others. It's just a matter of time, figuring out what strength is right for you, and how often you need to apply it.

I had KP for 15 years before I finally found effective treatment, and it took lots of experimenting and research. I tried about a dozen things and wasted all kinds of money on useless products.
It is horrible to have KP. Or any skin disease, really, but it can ruin your whole life. Some people are never able to move past it and live a normal life. I never did. I pretty much arranged my whole life *around* it and have adapted my whole lifestyle to it.

Yes, it is *very* depressing to see normal people with their perfectly smooth skin. They get to wear whatever they want and not even worry about it. Fortunately I live in a somewhat cold climate, so I don't have to look at all those perfect legs in shorts and swimsuits.

Im new to this site but after reading how sad it makes us i think we should pour all our frustrations out in this thread. Whatever is on our minds concerning kp just let it out so we can focus on achieving our goals to get just NORMAL skin.

I was spotted by a modelling agency about a year ago. Friends convinced me to give it a try so i went to see them. They offered to pay for my port folio so i went for the shoot fo this. The sylist told me i had to wear this demin shorts and i was very reluctant. She insisted and when she saw my legs i could see the expression her face change. To cut a long story short i never got called back. i know its because of my skin i dont blame them because how can you model if you got spotty skin.Right!

Keeping the Faith...

i dont know if your boyfriend gives you reasons to feel insecure or if its just your own insecurities thats causing this. if it is your own insecurities you could end up losing him because of the strain you putting on the relationship. its easy to say dont let it get the better of you but DONT LET IT. Dont let bad skin take your life from you. Maybe we should put a picture of a burn victim in our pockets and everytime we feel down to look at the picture and see how lucky we have it.


Turquoise

You are lucky to live in a cold climate i dont. its tropical weather so its always warm. ALways tourists around with there fake boobs and perfect skin. Even the older women have good skin. i dont have the bumps you guys talk about i just have the red dots all over my legs from just above my ankles all the way to my butt.The only time my skin look a bit normal is if i tan it. it hides the red dots.

im sure there must be something that can be done. Doctors can perform brain surgery im sure they can perform skin renewing

Oh, I moved here on purpose exactly because of the cold climate! I used to live in Southern California. It was wretched having to wear jeans all the time to hide the KP. I got out of the state as soon as I was able to.
But even here (Washington state) we have hot summers - above 90 degrees sometimes - and I still wear jeans. (After 20 years of this, I don't know how to wear anything else.) I am not built for warm weather anyway, so I get overheated very quickly and sweat like crazy. Even 70 degrees in jeans and I will be covered in sweat. On summer days I have to soak my shirt in cold water before I go out, just to prevent the overheating.
KP creates *so many* complications for a person's life, it's ridiculous.

But you have to cover it up somehow. Honestly, you can't go out in public like that. People will stare, kids will point and ask their parents what's wrong with you and then the parents quietly say, "shh, we don't say things like that. It's not nice."
And the worst thing is that no one will want to go near you, because they don't know if it's contagious.

Maybe some people can handle that reaction from the public, but I sure can't. I have to keep it covered.

I have figured out that KP does that when the skin is kept moist, so it must be the moisture in the air where you live. It prevents the dead skin from piling up into bumps, but the follicle stays clogged and inflamed. I suspect that you could get your KP under control if you just found a good exfoliant that was easy to use.

OMG, how awful!! I'm so sorry. I've seen some topics here about whether celebrities have KP, and the answer is NO they don't. You can't get work as an actor or model if you have bad skin.

What's really stupid is those acne commercials where they show someone with "pimples"... And they are actually red dots of make up ! So even when someone is supposed to have a problem, they have to fake it because showing the REAL bad skin would just be too offensive.

God, I *hate* how fake Hollywood is. I wish they didn't hire all those perfect people, women who weigh 98 pounds, guys who are 0% body fat, people wearing a quarter inch of make up. When I was little I used to think movie stars were attractive, but now I really find them ugly sometimes. Especially the women. I don't get how the whole world can idolize skeletons in makeup!! AGHHH!
*Explodes*

Another thing that REALLY ****es me off... And I have to say... Of all the problems that KP has caused me, this one angers me the most. When you are reluctant to show your skin and people wonder why, and you either make up an excuse, or say it's not a good idea or something.
Then they pressure you about it, so finally you have to say, "I have a skin disease."

And if that's not shaming enough, THEN they say,
"Oh, I'm sure it's fine. I'll bet you have nice legs."
"Yeah right. No you don't."

It's infuriating !! Having to *convince* people that you have a disease! You have this ugly thing and have to hide it, and then people don't even take it seriously. And the only way to prove it to them would be to *show them* your KP and embarrass yourself even more.
You can't win.

KP is cruel, too. You have people in your life who like you or see you a certain way - or especially guys (or girls) who maybe find you attractive in some way. Maybe a small crush, or just someone who thinks you're cute.

But if they ever find out you have KP, they look at you differently. If they ever see it, suddenly they get that "expression change," like Goosey said. They get *uncomfortable*, because suddenly you are a person with a disease, and they are turned off by it and don't know how to interpret you anymore. They are disgusted but at the same time they feel sorry for you. Then they feel *guilty* about thinking that it's ugly, because they know they shouldn't be that shallow. And then you see in their eyes that they're wondering what this disease is, and whether it's contagious, and they want to know, but they know it would be rude to ask you if it is...
You can see it all, and God it's just TOO MUCH !

That happened to me when I was 12 and someone (a friend) saw my legs for the first time. Her whole demeanor changed. You know, she hardly said anything, but in that moment I felt like a total, disgusting freak. I hated that look she got. It's the subtlety in human expression that can hurt even more than the barbs.

I know... I remember those school dayz. i had to wear a school uniform and living in a sexist world that we do i had to wear a school skirt. I went to the school councelor who helped me out and felt sorry for me cause she knew how cruel kids could be so i spent the rest of my school days wearing the boys pants. So ofcourse rumours started spreading i was a lesbian. Those were the days......

Damn the place i get my neostrata is out of stock. They aparently dont order a lot so i have to wait a week. A week without exfoliation on MY SKIN is like complete INSANITY. my hard work will go down the drain. So i opted for the only other aha lotion they had. Which is a latic acid. So ill use that till i pick up the Neostrata next week.Hope it works.

But Turqoise

i guess we should be happy we dont have it on our faces cause it looks so nasty on the legs imagine it on your face. No hiding that with jeans.

Does wearing even a long skirt make you guys uncomfortable?

From a male point of view, I don't care if a man or woman has KP. If anything, I have greater respect for her (especially) if they have the courage to show it.

Another thing that REALLY ****es me off... And I have to say... Of all the problems that KP has caused me, this one angers me the most. When you are reluctant to show your skin and people wonder why, and you either make up an excuse, or say it's not a good idea or something.
Then they pressure you about it, so finally you have to say, "I have a skin disease."


I know exactly what you mean. Like friends would be like " So why dont you ever wear a skirt" or " i never saw your legs " and try to lift up your pants to see it or " why dont you get dressed in front of us , we all girls" BLAH BLAH BLAH

Thats why i have a list of excuses

swimming ...Cant - That time of the month

No sleep overs ...sorry - Parents are very strict

Skirts and dresses...Are you crazy - To girly im a " tomboy"

Sex with the light on ....No baby - Im too shy

Skin touching - PLease dont im VERY TICKLISH....

And if they do touch......BBRRR its so cold im getting gooseflesh can you feel...pass my jacket please..

The list goes on

Mrmark in a perfect world that would be great.I know you must be confident and that a guy finds confidence more attrative than anything else but its so hard to go out and feel comfortable when you know people are gonna look at you like you got a problem.And people are CRUEL. Maybe the aftermath of my youth still holds me back. And sounds like it did Turqoise and Goosey too.

I used to be conscious of it, and ocasionaly in certain circumstances I am but the big difference was that I started getting toned and muscular which gave me confidence.

Now at the gym, although I have it on my arms, i know that compared to about 90% of the people there, I look better, irrespective of the KP. It's this kind of thing that is really big help.

Dear, I have an extra bottle unopened sitting right here (are you on the 15 or the 20? I have both) and will priority mail it to you if you want? It would have to go out on Monday but it would probably arrive Wednesday, even sooner if you are near the west coast. Email me if you're interested -
******************@yahoo.com

I agree, it is not a good idea to skip days or use something less potent at this time in the treatment.

Yes, I am thankful not to have KP on my face, but then again I do have some acne and I have rocacea, so...

I don't think I could wear a skirt... I'm just not the type I think. I'm a tomboy really. It would be way uncomfortable.

EDIT: LOL, I just noticed you put that as an excuse! Well for me it's actually true.

Oh goodness... Well that was nice of the couselor to do that, but it still made you different and drew attention to you. I don't know anything about school uniforms, though it should be illegal to force girls to wear skirts and not have the option of pants. (It should be - title 9 and such. Then again I believe girls are still forced to wear shorts for softball for some ridiculous reason. Yay, I can't wait to *slide* in shorts !)
That is so weird that people would associate pants with lesbianism lol... Since it's pretty uncommon to see girls wearing dresses or skirts anymore. I can't believe they even still make girls' *bikes* with the dropped bar. Seriously when was the last time you saw a girl in a dress on a bike?

Off Topic Story- Skip if you want!
Your story reminded me of another one. When I was in school, there was this girl who had a glass eye. Her name was Adrianne I think but everyone called her Adoe. She was really neat and funny - Actually I was on a softball team with her - Anyway, everybody knew about her eye and no one had ever cared or noticed it. I mean, you could see there was something wrong with it, but you just got used to it, and she was such a cool person that no one cared. Well, 12th grade came around and it was Forcible Senior Portrait time. (Totally retarded.) Everybody got about 30 pictures taken and then you got to pick the one that wasn't ugly to be used in the yearbook. What no one knew is that someone had made the stupid decision to have everybody's pictures facing the *same way* in the book. So no one's non-ugly pics mattered at all - the editors just grabbed a random ugly one that was facing to the right.
The yearbook came out and was huge. (Our graduating class was like 600 people.) So everybody is facing to the right. But what happened was that Adoe's parents (I guess?) found out about the direction and realized that Adoe's funny fake eye would be showing, and her real eye would hardly be seen. So they (?) made a call to the yearbook editor and asked if she could get special treatment and have a different picture used so her fake eye wouldn't show.
So... Out of 600 people, Adoe was the only one facing to the left, and it was SO obvious! It looked lame. People mean well but they just make things
worse. So that reminded me of your story, being the only one in pants, and really it just made you stand out even more !


Now at the gym, although I have it on my arms, i know that compared to about 90% of the people there, I look better, irrespective of the KP. It's this kind of thing that is really big help.

That's awesome. Anything to help you feel more confident, too. It's hard
having KP on your legs, though, especially for girls since you're supposed to keep it shaved. Even being thin or in shape wouldn't help.

OmG, I could never get dressed in front of anyone ! Not even because of KP
(though that totally makes it worse), but I just couldn't. I know girls do it all the time but it is way uncomfortable for me. I don't need to see other girls in their underwear, thanks.
I always dressed in the bathroom when I was in high school. Can't imagine that people actually *showered* together? Bizarre. That would feel totally gay, and not that there is anything wrong with that, but I know guys especially are not comfortable with it and I can't believe they can be naked next to each other and feel totally straight. And then feel odd about wearing a pink shirt or even having a tea party? lol A tea party is like a monster truck ralley compared to showering with another guy.

Oh and I really loved your list of excuses. Those are great. I never would have thought of some of those!

I would totally feel a kinship/respect with someone else if I found out they had KP, but I know most normal-skin people ("Normies" lol) are just grossed out by any skin problem and wouldn't admire the courage it takes to show even acne or something in public.

I've had a serious problem with kp since I was 15. I'm in my late thirties now. The truth of the matter is, it has ruined my life. I spent my entire teenage years beeing comforted by my mother, telling me this thing would go away, that I would grow out of it. It never did. I never had an adolescence, never dated until I was in my 20'. It has obliterated my self-esteem. The funny thing is that I'm actually quite attractive with my clothes on. I've also kept up a facade to try and keep myself sane. I'm always perfectly coiffed, the latest trends in clothing, I'm an expert at applying makeup, people tell me I look like a model. I'm not quite sure why I keep this up at this point. Some are baffled that I don't have a significant other in my life, still. Some people rationalize it by thinking that I'm gay because I keep to myself. When a guy comes on to me and makes it known that he finds me attractive, I laugh bitterly on the inside. I've had a man I liked walk out on me as we were about to make love when he lifted my shirt and saw my stomach. He was no longer turned on. Left in a hurry. It actually happened a few more times. I was married to a conman for a short while. Obviously, I did not know this and thought I was loved. It was the happiest period in my life. When he got what he wanted and showed me his true colours and broke my heart and spirit in the process, he told me that he and I had more in common than he initially thought, that we were bought incredibly false advertisements, that he was using me and that I was a beautiful looking peach on the outside and that when you bite into me, there's nothing but rot. He was referring to my skin. He was a hateful son of a *****, no doubt, and I know intellectually that this thing should not determine my worth, but it's been an accumulation of things, you know... I'm truly sorry for being so negative. I need to pour this out. I don't feel like my folks understand what it's like. I admire those of you who managed to get on with your life regardless. I wish I were in that category. I don't expect to find love anymore or have a family of my own. It doesn't matter what you look on the outside, it's the inside that counts. I tried so hard to hang on to that. But the world doesn't work that way, that is not what the culture vehiculates, that is not what people truly think. I've experienced that a hundred times over. This disease has broken me.