40 Month Update With Pictures

Sorry about the lack of updates. I've been very busy and to be honest, there has not been a lot to report. I've been in a slow and steady "rolling flare" since the end of December, which has been quite tough to deal with psychologically after healing so well the previous summer.

Anyway, I'm pleased to report that the sun is finally shining here in the UK and I've been out in it as much as possible, I sincerely hope it will give me the boost I need.

Flare-wise, I'm tending to get broken night's sleep (which to me is always indicative of TSW). It takes me ages to drop off and then I wake up about 4 in the morning. I put it down to wonky cortisol levels and for me, insomnia always accompanies or precedes a flare.

I get slight oozing in the night around my neck and ears. It is the very thin ooze, not the thick yellow stuff.

When I wake, my skin usually has a dusty, papery surface which flakes off throughout the day. If I'm flaring, the skin under the papery skin is wet. This is the cycle I want to break. I'm also getting the dreaded eye-goo from my flaring eyeballs!

When at its worst, flares can interrupt my daily activities, but lately I have been able to resume normal life once more and enjoy days in the park, at the cinema, theatre and ice show. I've even got a theme park visit planned, so you can see that my skin is having little impact on me right now.

For those interested in the Vitamin D experiment: I don't honestly think it helped me at all. That's not to say it wouldn't benefit others, but I saw no significant improvement after taking at least 5000 dose daily for several months.

Photo time!

 My neck has given me no end of grief these past few weeks. the skin seems too tight and I hold my head in a weird position. Jojoba oil is my salvation and allows me to lubricate it enough to move.

 My inner arms are slowly on the mend again after a few very bad weeks. The redness is subsiding at last. The elbow crooks remain dry and tight.

 My hands have flared again recently. You can see the demarcation between good and bad skin.

Finally my face, which today seems quite flaky, which is a sign of healing. I think things are improving again after a LONG winter.


I hope everyone else is doing OK. I know people reading this and seeing me still flaring at 40 months will think I'm a nutter, but that's alright. I'm on this path and intend to see it through to the end, however long it may be. Its up to blog readers to use the information to make an informed choice about whether TSW is for them. For what its worth, I feel that personally, I'm way better off the steroids and glad to be steroid free. I never intend to use them again, unless it was a life-threatening emergency.