On the road to recovery: My struggle and semi-cure with KP

liltarap55 · #1 03-07-2008, 07:51 PM

Hello everyone! I have just become a registered user here, but I have been reading the KP forums for the last 5 or so years when I KP started to form on my upper arms. Over the course of that first year, the KP spread all the way down my arms, and started to speckle my thighs. I am (to my husbands extreme displeasure), a picker. Ladies, you know how we are when we see a pimple; we just have to get at it or we lose our minds!

I was constantly scratching and picking at my arms, which caused them to scab and bleed and become VERY red and ugly.

I finally went to see my doctor about it about 2 years ago. He said it was a form of foliculitis and that I needed antibiotics and steroid cream. OKAY. Tried that and NOTHING. Went back again and prescribed different antibiotic and clindamycin topical liquid. ALRIGHT. Nothing again. He was really baffled after that, and told me to just keep using the clindamycin, and it would help. All it did was dry my arms out so much that it looked like I had dandruff on my arms! Pretty ridiculous.

I broke down and went to see a dermatologist. She told me she DIDN'T KNOW WHAT IT WAS and prescribed me Carmol lotion, which only served to clog my pores. Went to see another derm, and for the first time, I was diagnosed with KP. The derm told me that it's hereditary and that I might never fully lose the redness, but that I can greatly improve smoothness with lotion and exfoliation, and that I needed to STOP picking.

I tried lotion after lotion, soap after soap, and exfoliator after exfoliator that people have recommended on the forums here with no luck. I tried oil pulling for 4 weeks consecutively, with no change (but my teeth felt like a million bucks!). KP had officially worn out its welcome.

About six months ago as I was reading some medical journals on KP, and I read one that said KP might be linked with a beta-carotene deficiency. So I thought it was worth a try to start incorporating beta-carotene into my diet as well as to ONCE AND FOR ALL stop the picking madness! For the past 3 months I have been drinking Odwalla carrot juice (you can buy it at almost any store) every day (I HATE the taste, so I add some orange juice to it to mask the taste), about 8 ounces. I think the real miracle is the lotion I have been using: Burt's Bees Carrot Nutritive Body Lotion with Vitamin E and Beta Carotene ($9.99 at Walgreens). It is a MUST to use it as soon as you’ve dried off from the shower (doing it in the steamy room works best), and to apply it about three more times throughout the day, making sure to apply first thing in the morning, and right before bed each night (I keep a bottle at work, and a bottle at home to help remember). I believe my cure has also been boosted by the body wash I have been using: Dove Body Cream in Creamy Cherry Blossom & Almond ($4.99 at Target). I put a dollop of this ultra-rich and moisturizing body wash on my bath pouf (also needed to exfoliate the body and create smoothness in KP areas) and lather myself up good, focusing on gently rubbing my KP areas a bit longer. I also tan once a week for 5 minutes in a high-pressure bed, which helps the appearance of the redness).</SPAN>

This regimen along with NOT PICKING (I know how hard it is to stop, but you HAVE to!) has completely improved the texture of my skin. I also believe that taking a daily omega and fatty acid supplement will help this process along fabulously. Though I still suffer with bouts of patchy redness and blotchiness, it is NOTHING compared to what it was 6 months ago. My arms are baby soft!

I know how life-ruining KP is, and many times have I just sat down and cried out of sher frustration of not being able to wear what I want for fear of people staring at my “skin-fungus.” This might not work for you, but I feel it is my duty to all you KP sufferers to post what has worked for me. I might never be fully cured, but this is far better than what it used to be. Keep hope alive and keep trying!

liltarap55 · #2 03-07-2008, 07:51 PM

Hello everyone! I have just become a registered user here, but I have been reading the KP forums for the last 5 or so years when I KP started to form on my upper arms. Over the course of that first year, the KP spread all the way down my arms, and started to speckle my thighs. I am (to my husbands extreme displeasure), a picker. Ladies, you know how we are when we see a pimple; we just have to get at it or we lose our minds!

I was constantly scratching and picking at my arms, which caused them to scab and bleed and become VERY red and ugly.

I finally went to see my doctor about it about 2 years ago. He said it was a form of foliculitis and that I needed antibiotics and steroid cream. OKAY. Tried that and NOTHING. Went back again and prescribed different antibiotic and clindamycin topical liquid. ALRIGHT. Nothing again. He was really baffled after that, and told me to just keep using the clindamycin, and it would help. All it did was dry my arms out so much that it looked like I had dandruff on my arms! Pretty ridiculous.

I broke down and went to see a dermatologist. She told me she DIDN'T KNOW WHAT IT WAS and prescribed me Carmol lotion, which only served to clog my pores. Went to see another derm, and for the first time, I was diagnosed with KP. The derm told me that it's hereditary and that I might never fully lose the redness, but that I can greatly improve smoothness with lotion and exfoliation, and that I needed to STOP picking.

I tried lotion after lotion, soap after soap, and exfoliator after exfoliator that people have recommended on the forums here with no luck. I tried oil pulling for 4 weeks consecutively, with no change (but my teeth felt like a million bucks!). KP had officially worn out its welcome.

About six months ago as I was reading some medical journals on KP, and I read one that said KP might be linked with a beta-carotene deficiency. So I thought it was worth a try to start incorporating beta-carotene into my diet as well as to ONCE AND FOR ALL stop the picking madness! For the past 3 months I have been drinking Odwalla carrot juice (you can buy it at almost any store) every day (I HATE the taste, so I add some orange juice to it to mask the taste), about 8 ounces. I think the real miracle is the lotion I have been using: Burt's Bees Carrot Nutritive Body Lotion with Vitamin E and Beta Carotene ($9.99 at Walgreens). It is a MUST to use it as soon as you’ve dried off from the shower (doing it in the steamy room works best), and to apply it about three more times throughout the day, making sure to apply first thing in the morning, and right before bed each night (I keep a bottle at work, and a bottle at home to help remember). I believe my cure has also been boosted by the body wash I have been using: Dove Body Cream in Creamy Cherry Blossom & Almond ($4.99 at Target). I put a dollop of this ultra-rich and moisturizing body wash on my bath pouf (also needed to exfoliate the body and create smoothness in KP areas) and lather myself up good, focusing on gently rubbing my KP areas a bit longer. I also tan once a week for 5 minutes in a high-pressure bed, which helps the appearance of the redness).</SPAN>

This regimen along with NOT PICKING (I know how hard it is to stop, but you HAVE to!) has completely improved the texture of my skin. I also believe that taking a daily omega and fatty acid supplement will help this process along fabulously. Though I still suffer with bouts of patchy redness and blotchiness, it is NOTHING compared to what it was 6 months ago. My arms are baby soft!

I know how life-ruining KP is, and many times have I just sat down and cried out of sher frustration of not being able to wear what I want for fear of people staring at my “skin-fungus.” This might not work for you, but I feel it is my duty to all you KP sufferers to post what has worked for me. I might never be fully cured, but this is far better than what it used to be. Keep hope alive and keep trying!

johnE · #3 03-08-2008, 11:03 AM

thanks for your info. im going to have to try those bata caritene products.

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