If, indeed, there is not cure, is there anything that works to cover-up this unsightly condition on my legs so that I do not have to wear long pants all summer, and I also would like to know if there is medicines that will help?
Hi Grammy98:
I have had GA for about 5 years…I have corresponded with some that have had it for over 20 years. Sometimes it goes away spontaneously. Most of the time it does not. Right now, there are some docs that are trying Remicade, but it is off label, so insurance will most likely not cover it. I have tried Raptiva which is for Psoriasis with no help, but within the past six months I have been on an anti-malarial drug that has helped. I have it all over my arms and it was on my face, which is rare…but confirmed by biopsy.
It is ugly and no one seems to care that we are struggling with this emotionally because it doesn’t affect us physically. Sun seems to help and tanning does cover it up somewhat, but not totally. Good luck. There is another support group that has about 10-15 members in Yahoo, it you want more info and more contacts. Yahoo is free to sign in and you just go to the home page and click on groups, type in Granuloma and you will see a few more peeps than what is under careplace. Sorry careplace, but your site is a little hard to get around in.
Do you have any idea how relieving it is to finally hear that other people feel the same way as I do about our granuloma annulare? I’m in tears right now because it’s so overwhelming. I’ve tried steroids, protopic, sun, diet, stress reduction and anything I think might work. The best result I’ve had is when I walk with my head up and arms bare and just know I’m loved by my friends and family. Just trying to ignore it makes it fade. What is in our hearts is what counts.
Hi there
I first started with GA at the age of 22 - I have had it for the past 15 years and it has been at various stages during that time.
At its worst it covered most of my legs, arms and torso - luckily it has never reached my face and I have only one lesion on my hand.
At best it disappeared completely when I was pregnant but came back with a vengeance a week after the baby was born - the spread was so rapid that you could almost see the lesions coming up and growing in size. It did settle back down but all of the previous marks came back and some!
In the past 18months it has started to dissipate - over that time we had been trying for a baby but I was told 6months ago that I was already starting the menopause and was unlikely to concieve.
My personal view is that my variety is certainly hormone linked as in addition to the above when I once took the morning after hormone pill the lesions again flaired up really badly.
During the past 15 years, I have tried all of the pills and potions and creams and treatments - some mainstream and some not. I have had light therapy which gave me a good suntan and hid the marks for a whole summer season which was nice! However, the best thing about that particular treatment was that it took place in the dermatological department of the local hospital.
I remember when I was first diagnosed that the dermatologist said - if you have to have a skin condition this is the one to have. I took great exception to this remark until I visited the dermatological department and I then understood exactly what he meant. Some of the people there had conditions that you would not wish on your worst condition and to be honest it absolutely humbled me.
Do you think that your personal condition could be hormone linked?
I read on the board a long time ago, several women wrote to say that, when they were pregnant their GA went away, and returned after they had the baby. Seems pretty significant to me.