Try these strategies to help you get out onto the playing field without aggravating psoriasis symptoms:
1. Use a Barrier Cream
2. Layer Up
In areas where clothing or protective gear can chafe skin, you should wear an under layer to reduce friction, suggests Qureshi. For example, wear a pair of socks underneath your shin guards to minimize contact and chafing. And stick with loose layers, as the friction from tight clothing can cause bleeding or new psoriasis plaques.
3. Evaluate Your Equipment
Sports equipment is another consideration for people with psoriasis. Helmets and shin guards that don’t fit properly or any hard protective gear that can rub or chafe the skin can lead to irritation, and even the formation of new plaques where the skin is damaged. So make sure your athletic gear is adjusted to fit well.
4. Avoid Injury
If you have psoriasis, you should be careful to avoid any type of skin trauma, as that can cause new plaques to form on the site. This is known as the Koebner phenomenon.
5. Stay on Top of Your Psoriasis Treatment Regimen
Most important, says Qureshi, is working with your dermatologist to treat your plaques, manage your symptoms, and minimize skin sensitivity. Before you shoot a goal or swim a lap, it’s helpful to first get your psoriasis under control. Following your treatment plan can help prepare and protect your skin for the field of play.
“There are so many available therapies now, and we can treat the psoriasis so you can start living an active life,” Qureshi says.
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