Therapy Helps Me Manage My Psoriatic Arthritis

Therapy is not only beneficial to my mental health, but it’s also helped boost my physical health. 

Treating my psoriatic arthritis (PsA) hasn’t been a straightforward process. I wish it were as simple as seeing a rheumatologist, being prescribed medication, and being pain-free. Even though I’m on a medication that works for me, I still deal with chronic pain and fatigue. Taking care of my PsA has required a whole-body approach, balancing nourishment, exercise, rest, and mental wellness.

I found therapy sessions have greatly helped me manage my PsA.

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Building compassion for myself

First and foremost, therapy helped me cope with the significant emotional burden of living with PsA. It is taxing to live with chronic pain and fatigue and pretend like everything is fine. It’s very common for people with PsA to experience depression and anxiety.

Additionally, I feel insecure from the years spent constantly trying to “prove” myself to get the accommodation I’m entitled to. And while my wounds from gaslighting doctors might be old, they still feel fresh. Looking OK on the outside while suffering on the inside is tough, and it’s hard to feel like I’m “enough.”

My therapist has helped me see that I deserve love and compassion, especially from myself. I don’t need to prove anything to others or myself. It was a wake-up call to treat myself better mentally and physically.

It hasn’t been easy, but accepting that I live in a body that needs a little extra TLC has helped a lot. I don’t feel so guilty anymore about leaving dishes in the sink if it means I get well-needed rest.

I have also learned how important it is for my morale to celebrate small victories. For example, doing a little physical therapy is better than none.

A noticeable physical relief

Stress can be a flare-trigger for so many of us with PsA. Final exams, breakups, and wedding planning all caused flares, one way or another.

Some of my most severe flares came when my loved ones passed away. It made an already hard time even more challenging to cope with.

Even when it doesn’t go so far as to trigger a flare, stress has a habit of making us tenser and causing a lot of physical pain, especially in the back and shoulders. It’s hard to live with chronic pain and fatigue and a heavy emotional burden literally on your shoulders.

Being able to talk to someone about all my problems and learn techniques to cope with them has brought some pain relief. When I’m really stressed, you can actually see a physical difference before and after sessions: I go from very stiff and tense to a little more relaxed.

Naturally, life does still get stressful, and you can’t always have a therapy session right when you need it. But I’m so glad I’ve worked on skills and ways of thinking to help me cope with the stress.

Skills for success

My therapist has encouraged me to make healthy choices, such as prioritizing my health and setting boundaries. Therapists want you to take good care of yourself and can help you develop the skills you need to do so.

That could be by giving you tools to cope with emotional stress, like meditation, journaling, or other exercises. They can also help you determine what you need to do to stay healthy and the best way to achieve that, like learning to advocate for yourself and setting boundaries for your physical health.

I benefitted a lot from learning how to set boundaries with loved ones. Living with PsA means that to protect my health, I need to be able to say no. It has helped me to talk to someone who reaffirms it’s OK to say no.

Learning to set boundaries can also help me navigate healthy relationships. For example, you could tell a friend “no thanks” to a hike but offer to host a movie night instead.

Therapy can be accessible

Thanks to the internet, therapy is more accessible than ever before. There are so many telehealth therapists out there now! It is incredibly convenient to take appointments from home instead of venturing out. If I had to go to an office for therapy, I’d doubtless cancel a lot of my appointments during flare-ups (when I need therapy the most!).

Additionally, many insurance providers are starting to cover mental health care. I’ve noticed many insurance providers promote different telehealth companies in the past few years. But if you still have difficulty getting your health insurance to cover appointments, many independent therapists will work out payments and payment plans with you.

When I was having trouble getting my insurance to cover therapy, I paid my therapist directly, an amount only a little more than my usual copay. It might not be an option for the long term, but it can help while getting things set up.

Don’t give up

Like doctors, not every therapist is a good fit, so it might take a few tries to find the right one. Sometimes, you personally might just not be a good fit. There may be other factors like cultural reasons or values that can make it hard for you and your therapist to see eye to eye.

I had one therapist who might’ve worked out if I didn’t have arthritis. She always commented about how I needed to stay home and rest when she saw me struggling to get off the couch.

And when I wanted to talk about the emotional side of chronic pain, she would advise me to call my doctor to ask for stronger medication. Clearly, this relationship wasn’t a good fit, but thankfully, my next therapist was a lot more understanding.

Feeling better overall

I truly believe in the mind-body connection. While going to therapy isn’t a quick fix for PsA (unfortunately, there’s no such thing), it has been a beneficial part of my treatment.

In the short term, I’ve benefitted from the stress relief and encouragement. And in the long term, I’ve gained invaluable coping skills and self-compassion that have benefitted me emotionally, mentally, and physically.