How I healed my skin with my diet

Back in the summer of 2017 I was managing a skin clinic down south and out of nowhere, a dry, red and itchy patch of skin appeared on the back of my neck. It started as a tiny dot and then began to grow quite significantly. However, due to its location, I couldn’t see to it be able to analyse it myself.

Thankfully I had a smear test booked in and there just so happened to be a GP in the room with us, so I asked if she’d mind taking a quick look at my neck. With complete confidence, she diagnosed it as psoriasis.

I’d never struggled with this type of skin condition before, but knew it was extremely difficult to manage, as we didn’t have treatment for it even in the all-singing, all-dancing skin clinic I was running.

This is because psoriasis is an autoimmune disease. Although it looks like an external problem, it’s actually an internal issue where the body mistakenly attacks it’s own skin cells. This malfunction dramatically increases the rate in which your skin renews itself causing the excess skin cells to build up on the surface, creating the thick, red, scaly patches.

Within days of my diagnosis, mine began to spread like wildfire and within a few months it was all over my limbs and torso. Initially I had no idea what to do because still to this day, there's no known topical treatment or ‘cure’. All I could do was attempt to minimise the itching with soothing, fragrance free creams from the chemist.

Eventually though, the psoriasis began to work it’s way up onto my face, which was much tricker to conceal and not ideal given my job 🙈

I knew if I went back to the GP I’d likely be prescribed a steroid cream which wasn’t a long-term solution for me, as they can thin the skin significantly. So instead, my inner nerd scoured the internet for a solution and stumbled across some very early research that suggested psoriasis may be linked to gut health.

This was extremely interesting to me as I’d always struggled with digestive issues and had been bloated for as long as I could remember. So, I booked to have my allergies tested to see if there could potentially be a link.

Sure enough the results showed I was intolerant to both dairy and gluten…In the individual food intolerance testing, it come back that I was 97% allergic to butter and 93% allergic to bread - Both of which I’d been eating daily!

As I’m naturally quite strong-willed, I immediately cut both food groups from my diet to see if it would make a difference. At first, this was extremely challenging as I had to figure out a whole new way to eat and try not to feel embarrassed when we were having dinner with friends and family.

Fortunately, everyone was super supportive and I didn’t deviate from my new diet once. Within 6 weeks, every single patch had gradually faded away, my skin looked brand new and as a bonus, my bloating had reduced and my energy levels were unbelievable.

My psoriasis never returned until a few weeks ago where I had one mini flare-up. It turns out I’d had an accidental food mishap, but as soon as I removed the culprit, it all settled down again.

I’ve always been aware of the gut-skin connection, however I saw first hand just how powerful it can be. Now obviously I’m not a doctor, so if you’re currently under a GP or dermatologists care for a similar skin condition, please make sure you seek their advice before changing your treatment plan.

I’m just always keen to share my personal experience in case it helps anyone else find a long term solution. My skin and tummy have never been happier and now (with a helping hand from my 5 Minute Kit), I glow from the inside out ✨