She lives in fear it could happen again
A MUM has told how she woke up one day to find she’d become engulfed by painful, red scabs overnight – but she was left hiding indoors “like a monster” as she faced an 18-month wait to see an NHS dermatologist.
Emmy Robertson woke up one morning in summer last year with a bit of dry skin above her eye.
But as the day went on it got worse and quickly took over her whole body.
Within a matter of weeks, the 35-year-old was covered from head to toe in burning, red scabs across her body.
The mum-of-two grew even more concerned when her scalp became red and inflamed and her hair and nails began falling off without explanation.
Emmy stayed indoors for months suffering excruciating pain, and explained how she felt “like a monster” and was “living in hell” every day.
She said: “It literally happened overnight. I woke up one day and I was covered.
“I started off with a tiny bit of dry skin above my eye and then within a couple of weeks, I was covered from head to toe. I’ve never seen anything like it.
“My scalp, fingernails, my feet – I was completely covered. There’s no family history. Every inch of my body was covered and it was burning constantly. It was like living in daily hell.”
Desperate, Emmy sought the help of her local doctor “multiple times” but felt her symptoms were repeatedly dismissed and told it would be a 77-week wait to see a dermatologist.
The competition website owner said: “No one seemed to know what was causing it. The GP kept saying “what do yo u expect us to do?” And that the waiting list to see a dermatologist was 77 weeks.
“I said ‘look at the state of me?’ I was crying and begging them to help.
“The doctors were useless, just prescribing creams that weren’t working. Nothing was helping. I kept getting dismissed.
“I couldn’t even take off a piece of clothing without my skin peeling off my body. I couldn’t move my hands, I couldn’t drive.
“My hair started falling out and my nails were falling off. Every time I put my hand through my hair, it was coming out. I used to have thick, black long hair which was 24 inches.”
Emmy said her scalp was engulfed in psoriasis and she told her partner she “couldn’t do it anymore”.
She continued: “I felt like everyone was looking at me. I couldn’t put on makeup. I was just so embarrassed.
I couldn’t even take off a piece of clothing without my skin peeling off my body.
Emmy Robertson
“I felt like a monster. I didn’t want to see anybody, I just wanted to stay indoors.
“It was so painful. It was like your skin was covered in flames 24/7. I was inconsiderable, I had to take time off work. I felt so hopeless.”
Emmy, who lives near Aberdeen, spent around £3,000 on private dermatologists and was eventually put through the NHS as an urgent appointment when she began a new, successful medication in March.
She said: “I was desperate, I would’ve paid anything.”
When Emmy started the new medication she found her psoriasis started clearing up within two or three weeks, then it completely went away.
She said: “I’ve never had any explanation as to why this happened. Nobody has a clue. I think it should’ve been investigated.
“I live in fear every day that it could happen again. My life was put on hold.”
Psoriasis – symptoms and why it happens
Psoriasis is a chronic skin condition that affects around two in 100 people in the UK.
It causes raised, inflamed, red patches of skin that are often covered with silvery-white scales. Patches normally appear on your elbows, knees, scalp and lower back, but can appear anywhere on your body.
Most people are only affected with small patches. In some cases, the patches can be itchy or sore.
Severity varies greatly from person to person. For some it’s just a minor irritation, but for others it can have a big impact on their quality of life.
People with the skin condition have an increased production of skin cells.
Skin cells are normally made and replaced every three to four weeks, but in psoriasis this process only takes about three to seven days.
The resulting build-up of skin cells is what creates the patches associated with psoriasis.
The exact cause of psoriasis isn’t fully understood, but it’s thought to be related to a problem with the immune system.
A GP can often diagnose psoriasis based on the appearance of your skin.
Source: NHS
