Please answer if you can

[Guest guest]

This will be my last post for awhile. I apologize for the length of this

post, but I am in need of advice.

This year has been very difficult. I had emotional/anxiety problems before;

but now my father was sent to federal prison, I lost my car in a horrible

accident where my truck rolled over twice, I dropped out of college with 96

credits, and rosacea is controlling my life. Everything I do, from eating

to sleeping to leaving my house, seems to be rosacea involved. I have

become paranoid. Then some tell me its psychologically involved, which

makes the whole ordeal worse. I have no real family or relatives, im losing

my friends, and im slowly losing it. And the redness isn't really that bad,

im just scared that it will become worse. I have done everything mentioned

here. I don't know why sometimes I can have a drink without my face

burning, why sometimes i can go in the sun without it burning. It doesn't

make any sense.

I have worked very hard all my life. At 21 I have an exceptionally high gpa

and have worked every day for the last two summers. This summer I have to

option to live and work on Ocean Beach on Fire Island. I will have a great

time, it is a beautiful area, but it is a beach after all. I bought a

cowboy hat and the new spf 35 sunscreen Dr. Nase recommended. I could go or

I could opt for photoderm. Right now im planning to do photoderm sessions

after the summer. Im thinking a summer there would be therapeutic. But all

in all, the decision is making me lose my mind. Not a day goes by without

me breaking down into tears, not only because of rosacea, but because of the

rest of my situation which I have not mentioned.

Any comments would be so greatly appreciated. Im not sure what to do. But

sooner or later I will be selling my computer and hitting the road. I thank

you, wish you all the best of luck and hope you all find your own path.

God bless,

_________________________________________________________________

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[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Believe me, I understand what it is like to feel panic-stricken by this whole

thing. But PLEASE don't let rosacea control your life. There is a good

chance your rosacea will NEVER get worse as long as you keep up with your

medications - just think of it as an adjustment to the way we have to live.

We have to put more care and time into our skin and eyes than other people do

but don't let it ruin the quality of your life; you are so young. I strongly

suggest you go to the beach(protected!) and have a good time - I think it's a

good idea to get the photoderm done after the summer as you mentioned because

as many people here have told me, it's best to " nip " it while it's not bad.

That will only increase your chances of keeping this thing permanantly under

control and ensuring that it never gets worse. I also suggest you look into

seeing a therapist - there is NO shame in doing that; it sounds like you

have so much going on in your life - maybe you need some help in dealing with

it. Also, stress is a major trigger for a lot of people so I'm sure that's

not helping you any. Therapy can only help. You know, we need to be

emotionally strong to handle all of this, don't give up or let it " weaken "

you. I don't know how many times I posted to this group freaking out because

of my eyes so I know how you feel. But we can't live in fear. I'm trying to

learn that still myself - it's hard. A friend of mine just found out that

for the third time her cancer is back. And you know what she said to me?

She said that she can't live every day fearing that she will die otherwise

she might as well not be alive at all. She said she could walk out the door

tomorrow and get hit by a truck as any of us can. She said all she could do

is fight as best she can and appreciate and cherish every moment she has with

the people she loves. We won't " die " from this, but all we can do is fight

it the best we can, as long as you know you're taking care of yourself, just

LIVE - don't let it lesson the quality of your life because of your fear as

to what may or may not " someday " happen. If you ever need to talk, you can

e-mail me anytime.

Good Luck,

Donna