Since first publishing A Seborrheic Dermatitis Survival Guide in 2021, I’ve conversed with hundreds of people afflicted with seborrheic dermatitis, and have noticed some uncanny similarities among SD sufferers.
These similarities are predominantly related to character traits that were revealed by their outlook on this skin condition, the daily activities they participate in, life stories, as well as their take on life in general.
The underestimated, psychosomatic nature of SD
SD sufferers and health practitioners alike often fail to acknowledge the psychosomatic aspect of SD, meaning that it is caused or aggravated by a mental factor such as internal conflict or stress.
Throughout my decade-long struggle, holistic practitioners would sometimes mention this, but I never took it seriously.
I was convinced that my SD was caused by a nutrient-deficiency, candida overgrowth, or that I was allergic to something I was eating, and believed that there was a magical pill, powder or diet that would resolve my symptoms.
As a result, I spend thousands of dollars on supplements, and tried countless diets while being blind to the bigger picture.
I ignored the part I directly played in the onset of SD. Coming to terms with the fact that one’s own behaviors could’ve contributed to its onset (and potential remission) requires personal accountability and a willingness to change, which is obviously much harder than adhering to a new diet or buying a new supplement, for example.
You didn’t always have seb derm…
It’s important to acknowledge that there was almost certainly a time in your life when you did not have SD.
During this time, you likely weren’t on a restrictive diet nor taking a myriad of supplements, and there were no debilitating skin issues. This goes to show that something took a wrong turn at a certain point, and it had nothing to do with a lifestyle change (diet, exercise routine, supplement etc.), but rather a significant uptick in psychological and emotional stress.
You probably got so accustomed that you don’t even notice.
Based on my interactions, I believe that a specific, intense kind of emotional stress is associated with this very specific skin condition.
Skin barrier sensitivity is a given
An indisputable and unsurprising commonality among those afflicted with SD is a poorly functioning topmost layer of the skin barrier, the epidermis. The stratum corneum, which is a sublayer of the epdermis, functions as a protective barrier, and contains nutrients that keep the deeper layers of the skin hydrated and fed with cholesterol, ceramides and fatty acids.
A weak skin barrier is more common amongst northern Europeans or any other ethnicity with lighter skin. These demographics generally have more sensitive, thinner skin. As a result, they generally have more skin issues.
This inherent weakness makes it more easily damaged by excessive sun exposure (e.g. getting burned repeatedly), exfoliating skin creams, and alkaline soaps.
The epidermis is the first line of defense and ultimately, its sensitivity leads to the cascade of events that lead to SD. A weakened epidermis allows for Malassezia yeast to penetrate the skin and provoke an autoimmune reaction, but this doesn’t explain the autoimmune reaction. It only allows for the autoimmune reaction to take place.
Having said that, I speculate that the common factors elaborated on below reflect the specific kind of psychological stress associated with SD due to its distinct way of impacting the subconscious, nervous system and immune system.
Similarities noticed:
1. Time spent away from home
We live in an era where it’s common to relocate often, have parents divorce, study abroad, and travel to far away places for extended periods. All of these events disrupt the sense of having a reassuring foundation.
Many individuals I’ve met with SD are isolated either by deliberate choice or circumstance. They’re often living physically far away from family and friends, or have found themselves distanced from the familiar in an extreme way. They’ve violently exited some kind of comfort zone and have distanced themselves from those closest to them.
2. A dysfunctional family
I understand that if you put the spotlight on just about any family, there is going to be problems and skeletons in the closet. However, a commonality I can’t help but notice is that most SD sufferers typically don’t come from loving, harmonious households.
There are often major issues with one or both parents, especially the father.
3. Low self confidence even before the onset of SD (mostly relating to physical appearance)
To use myself as an example, I was always self-conscious about something relating to my physical appearance starting at around age 7.
If it wasn’t my hairstyle, it was my height during adolescence. I was terrified that I wouldn’t grow. My next insecurity was my premature grey hair, which consumed me until I developed seborrheic dermatitis. Interestingly, my teen acne did not bother me, as I considered this to be “normal”.
I desperately wanted to be accepted and not stand out in any negative way. Especially from a physical standpoint, I was a perfectionist who put an unhealthy amount of importance on body image. People I’ve met with SD are extremely self-critical and tend to hate some part about their appearance (in addition to SD), despite often being conventionally attractive.
Attractiveness can actually be counterproductive in that the physical body becomes more heavily tied to self-worth. Since other, more sustainable means of self-worth were not cultivated, such as feeling loved unconditionally by family, the body’s appearance becomes a center of attention.
4. Obsessive behavior
The SD sufferers I’ve interacted with are extremely thorough, detail-oriented people who have a tendency to compulsively go down rabbit holes. They end up giving large amounts of personal energy to things of small objective significance. Again, this is often related to physical health or appearance, but not only.
They are constantly second-guessing themselves and the best way forward.
5. Unhealthy relationship with food
Many have dysfunctional relationships with food and go to extremes. For example, binge eating, excessive periods of caloric restriction, and highly restrictive diets are common themes. They don’t only eat when hungry, but often out of boredom or compulsion, and tend to have a sweet tooth.
6. Intense workouts, especially bodybuilding
Especially amongst men with SD, I’ve noticed bodybuilding to be an obvious similarity, and I would suspect it to be for what are considered to be the “wrong” reason, which is poor body image and a desire to be acknowledged for an impressive physique, and not to simply be healthy and fit.
Vanity is the key motivator, or at least it was for myself. Bodybuilding is being used as a tool to cover up a more fundamental insecurity that they don’t want to be noticed.
7. People around them also have skin problems
Strangely, two of my closest childhood friends from completely different cities and contexts have developed SD. One invested in expensive hair implants to conceal his male pattern baldness before anyone would notice, and the other is hyperaware of his physical appearance. They also share many of the same characteristics mentioned in the rest of this article.
From a more esoteric standpoint, I sometimes speculate that we came into this physical realm with similar life paths or purposes, and since we were vibrating at almost identical frequencies, we were literally drawn to each other like magnets.
8. Secrets “too heavy to bear”
In many instances, they are trying very hard to play the role of who they’d like to be, who they’ve convinced themselves they’re supposed to be, who society has told them to be.
I suppose everyone does this to some degree. “All the world’s a stage”. However, the people I’ve come across with SD take this to another level, which deprives them of being at peace with themselves in a more debilitating way. I speculate that this leads to feeling like a fraud on a subconscious level.
This also means that they’re not being recognized for who they actually are. They want to renew the skin because they don’t feel comfortable in it.
9. Strong-willed
They tend not to “go with the flow”, which can be helpful in some areas of life, but they also tend to impose strict, self-imposed rules as to what they can and cannot do.
10. Hypersensitive
The most obvious similarity is that SD sufferers generally don’t have thick skin (pun intended). They often take things personally and are significantly impacted by criticism. I believe that this goes back to the potential to reveal something that they don’t want to be revealed. After all, if you have nothing to hide and own up to who you truly are, what power does criticism have?
The hypersensitivity also amplifies every emotion felt, which means that their negative emotions have more repercussions on their physical health than on the average person.
This also means that they have a more pronounced need to feel loved, but are afraid when it’s presented to them and try to protect themselves by staying in a sort of emotional shell, making matters worse.
11. Improvement after sun exposure
This is a very common remark by those with SD. This can be argued that sun exposure positively impacts the immune system and reduces stress, but why? Is it really just the vitamin D?
The sun also symbolizes the father in the collective unconscious. In other words, sun exposure produces the same feeling of being protected by a father on a subconscious level, filling an important emotional void that contributes to SD (security).
12. High pain tolerance
I’ve noticed that those SD are generally strong-willed and have a high tolerance for pain in general, which works against them. Since they feel they can withstand intense, negative emotions even while the body is crying for help, they generally don’t address them.
What does this all mean?
These specific thought patterns help reveal the true nature of what’s going on beneath the surface when it comes to seborrheic dermatitis. At the end of the day, the body always tells the truth. These are outward causes or manifestations of shared, fundamental issues.
Emotions’ impact on physical health is hugely underestimated. Emotions impact the subconscious, which impacts the nervous system, which impacts the immune system. However, specific emotions and situations impact the subconscious in a specific way, impacting the nervous system and immune systems in specific ways.
Of course, you can improve the health of the nervous system and immune system with a variety of corrective treatments. You can even eliminate symptoms of SD with topical treatments, but if the source is not addressed, the fire is still burning, and there is still needless emotional suffering taking place.
Our bodies, minds and spirits are extremely complex and difficult to decode, but they do reveal patterns.
While it’s easier said than done, when it comes to addressing these emotional issues, this would be where to start:
- Practice self-acceptance and own up to who you are under all circumstances
- Overcome the fear of being apart from what makes you feel protected
- Allow affection and love into your life