Is Psychodermatology the Answer to Your Skin Problems?

If you and your dermatologist are on a first name basis, it might be time to talk to a therapist. Yep—the issues you're dealing with emotionally could be leaving some seriously unwelcome marks on your skin. (As if puberty wasn't bad enough.)

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), psychodermatology is defined as the treatment of skin disorders using psychological and psychiatric techniques. In other words? The secret to getting rid of our acne, psoriasis, eczema and hives may be dealing with what's going on in your mind—not on your body.

While psychologists who practice in the field emphasize that the severity of your skin problem isn't connected to the severity of your emotional distress (translation: that huge zit could just be those hormones, girl), they stress that by dealing with the stuff going on in the inside, you should be able to see a difference on the outside. 

"This is a great role for psychologists," Kristina G. Gorbatenko-Roth, PhD, a psychology professor at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, told APA. "Dermatologists and other health-care providers are out there doing the best they can for patients, but they're frustrated, because they see their patients' emotional distress but typically have neither the time nor the tools to fully address it."

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