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We all know about how bad stress can be for psoriasis and although we know we must remain calm it's not always easy to achieve, but what if you could think your psoriasis away?
This interesting article is a case example of a young man who has done just that using AT (Autogenic training), AT is a relaxation technique developed by the German psychiatrist Johannes Heinrich Schultz and first published in 1932 that uses a set of visualisations that induce a state of relaxation.
Source: biofeedback.com
This interesting article is a case example of a young man who has done just that using AT (Autogenic training), AT is a relaxation technique developed by the German psychiatrist Johannes Heinrich Schultz and first published in 1932 that uses a set of visualisations that induce a state of relaxation.
Quote:
Case Example: James
The participant was a 23-year-old male student who had been suffering from chronic psoriasis for the past 5 years. His condition consisted of psoriatic plaques covering his elbows, knees, ankles, and scalp, as well as smaller red irritations periodically appearing on the entirety of his body. His condition was first diagnosed in 2008, and he had been using a combination of topical corticosteroids daily since diagnosis. He had also experimented with ultraviolet light treatment for a short period of time but had stopped for fear of developing skin cancer. Despite treatments, his condition did not improve. He reported that if he missed even 1 day of topical corticosteroid application, his symptoms worsened dramatically. His failure to respond to treatment motivated him to explore an alternative approach. Prior to beginning the self-regulation study, he had stopped all medication for 1 week. The procedure consisted of pre and post photos of his elbows and knees, a biofeedback assessment (including a desensitization-to-touch trial), and self-regulation training.
Biofeedback Assessment with Desensitization Trial
The pre and post baselines were recorded with surface electromyography (SEMG) of the upper right trapezius, temperature from the left index finger, skin conductance levels from the pinky and middle finger of the right hand, blood volume pulse from the right index finger, and thoracic and abdominal strain gauges on the first day of treatment and 3 weeks later at the end of the intervention procedure. The assessment consisted of the subject sitting with his eyes closed during the following conditions: A: prebaseline (sitting comfortably for 3–5 minutes), B: an imagined stressor (thinking about feeling the itching of the psoriasis for 3–5 minutes), C: sitting relaxed for 3 to 5 minutes, D: the trainer randomly touching the subject's psoriatic plaques, and E: a postbaseline (sitting comfortably for 3–5 minutes). The postassessment 3 weeks later repeated the identical procedure.
Training Procedure
The training protocol consisted of daily AT to induce relaxation, stress reduction, and desensitization. James was instructed to practice AT on his own time and was instructed to use it throughout his day whenever he felt the urge to itch, touch his psoriatic plaques, or when thinking self-critical thoughts. When the subject had such an urge, he was to stop and conduct a quick five-step AT session in that moment.
In addition, James was instructed to change his body posture from a more powerless body posture to an empowered body posture, namely, from a slightly collapsed and shrinking posture to sitting and standing upright and being expansive (power pose)
- Stop.
- Take a quick self-talk assessment from 0 to 10 (0 being negative or low, 10 being positive or high).
- Breathe deeply.
- AT, using a quick series of cues: “My right hand is heavy, my hands and feet are heavy and warm.” “My skin is cool, clear, and regenerative.” “I am worthy.”
- Post AT self-talk rating 0 to 10.
Results
The subjective data were collected daily, and after 3 weeks, James's skin cleared for the first time in 5 years. The skin was smoother and less red. The subject reported that his skin was the clearest and smoothest in the 5 years since his diagnosis. At a 4-month follow-up, his improvement was maintained. In addition, he transformed his body posture and expression from being collapsed and having a hoodie over his head to sitting and standing upright with an expression of confidence.
The biofeedback pre- and posttraining data showed that James demonstrated a more relaxed state throughout the posttraining assessment. During the posttraining assessment, James's trapezius SEMG readings decreased from the pretouching to the posttouching segment. At the close of the study, James was able to return to baseline SEMG values much more quickly. He also demonstrated an improved ability to inhibit his automatic skin conductance response to touching and when thinking about the psoriasis. His skin conductance level showed very minimal reactivity to touch during the posttraining assessment as compared with the pretraining assessment
James said
Acceptance that my condition was incurable left me feeling like a lost child, hopeless and scared. Whenever I found myself collapsing and scratching, a series of negative thoughts would enter my mind, “repulsive, ugly, sickly, helpless.” These thoughts would perpetuate my consciousness, leaving me feeling self-disgusted, unworthy, and helpless. It was only once I gained conscious control over my urges to collapse and itch that I was able to foster more positive self-talk. I began to be more in control, more powerful. I was no longer just reacting. I was able to once again take charge of my mind and my body. Instead of feeling defeated, I was hopeful. With each practice of autogenic training, I would fill my consciousness with positive thoughts; eventually positivity began to prevail. No longer was I self-loathing; rather, I was proud.
Source: biofeedback.com
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