Light Box

This post will be quick.

Over the winter I had a bad case of psoriasis on my hands. I had no idea that’s what it was and my hands were peeling and red and raw and hurt really badly. I was buying every lotion, cream, ointment known to man and nothing was working. I emailed my dermatologist and apparently it was psoriasis!

This is not a picture of me, but this is kind of what my hands looked like (but picture redder and angrier):

They gave me a few different ointments and cream prescriptions and sent me a lightbox for my treatment. It took a bit of setup that a nurse had to walk me through to calibrate.

Lightbox therapy is UVB light: “use narrow-band UVB rays. These rays penetrate the top layers of the skin, interfering with cellular DNA and effectively slowing the rate of reproduction.” (A quick google search told me this type of therapy helps psoriasis, eczema and vitiligo.)

A few key things:

You must wear the goggles!
Certain parts of the body need to be a few inches away from the light or you will get a bad burn (like a sunburn).
You need to increase the time slowly to avoid burning.
Slather lotion on your skin before starting.

Because I am so fair, I did the increase in time even slower than recommended. For my hands I started with 30 seconds three times a week (increasing it by 15 seconds each week). The maximum time for your hands is like a minute total. You are supposed to put your hands directly on the light.

With the rest of the body, I started with 45 seconds and then increased the time about 25 seconds or so each week, depending on how my skin felt. With this part you aren’t supposed to get closer than I think 7 inches from the light box. Maximum time is 4.5 minutes. I don’t think I ever got up that high.

I did it all winter long and it helped so much! The psoriasis spots disappeared on my legs and my hands healed. If this is something insurance covers, I recommend it. I kept a little log of each treatment to keep track of where I was in time. The only reactions I had were some itchy skin afterward. There were also a few times where I was too close and got a burn (like a sunburn) but I put aloe and lotion on it and it was fine in a day or two.

I am curious if I will have to use it again this winter, now that I am on the medication….

That’s the quick overview.