Skin problems health centre

The mind-skin connection

Any time 13-year-old Amanda feels nervous, she breaks out all over her face. Jeremy often feels so sorry for himself that during bad eczema flare-ups he shuts himself off from the world. The only way that Kim can stop her obsessive thoughts is by pulling out her hair.

In these and many other ways the mind and the skin are intimately intertwined. You name it: Acne, eczema, hives, rosacea, psoriasis, alopecia (hair loss), vitiligo (depigmented white areas of the skin), trichotillomania (hair pulling) and self-mutilation disorders are many skin disorders that take their roots from or place their roots in the psyche.

Experts are calling this new field "psychodermatology".

Psychodermatology is a field that addresses the impact of an individual's emotion as it relates to the skin.� It is thought that psychodermatology is going to be growing by leaps and bounds because dermatology is ready for a more integrated approach with other fields such as psychology, psychiatry and even complementary medicine. Such an integrated approach allows for new treatment possibilities including antidepressants, relaxation therapy or counselling that can alleviate the mood problems that result from or cause skin problems.

The mind and skin are connected on many different levels. A lot of nerve endings are connected to the skin, which wraps around the organs, so as emotions are played out neurologically, they can be expressed through the skin just as stress can be expressed through gastrointestinal symptoms, increased anxiety or hypertension.

In acne, for example, when you are tense your body releases stress hormones including cortisol, which can increase the skin's oil production, making you prone to spots.

In some autoimmune diseases, such as alopecia (hair loss) and vitiligo, scientists now show markers that a stressful event can trigger the autoimmune reaction.

In other cases people have mental health problems that present as dermatological ones including cutting, nail biting, hair pulling, some tic behaviours and delusional parasitosis, a mistaken belief that one is being infested by parasites such as mites, lice, fleas, spiders, worms, bacteria or other organisms.

Dr Bruce Katz, director of a US cosmetic surgery and laser clinic explains it this way: ?It's the target organ theory, and certain people have different target organs that channel stress.? He explains how some people get ulcers, some people get migraines and other people get rashes as the skin is their target organ.

That's why when he has patients who come in with stress-induced or emotional conditions related to psychological issues, they are referred to a psychologist or psychiatrist or even acupuncture.

The good news is that by consulting with other specialties and using new treatments for skin disorders including lasers, doctors are better able to treat both the skin and the emotional issues than ever before, he says.