Has the relentless itch and discomfort of seborrheic dermatitis turned you into an anxious warrior battling your own skin? You are not alone. Living with seborrheic dermatitis can be challenging. For many, it comes with an unexpected companion — anxiety.

Seborrheic dermatitis is a form of eczema that is characterized by redness or discoloration, itching, and flaking of the skin, often in areas with high oil production. In milder cases, seborrheic dermatitis may cause dandruff on your scalp, but it can also produce large, discolored patches of skin in more severe cases. Seborrheic dermatitis most commonly affects the scalp, face, and chest.

You may feel self-conscious if you have visible patches and flakes on your face and scalp. Constant worry about flare-ups (when your health condition worsens) or how others perceive your skin may make you feel even more anxious.

One MySebDermTeam member described how their seborrheic dermatitis made them feel anxious: “I have seborrheic dermatitis all over my scalp, forehead, ears, and eyebrows. It is so embarrassing. ... I have a lot of stress and anxiety. I wonder if I have to live with this for the rest of my life.”

Although seborrheic dermatitis may be caused by your body’s reaction to a yeast called Malassezia, stress and anxiety can trigger or worsen the condition. If you’re anxious and constantly thinking about flare-ups, you may scratch and pick your skin even more, making the discoloration, itchiness, and flaking worse.

Thankfully, there are various ways to manage anxiety when you’re living with seborrheic dermatitis. Let’s dive into five practical tips to help you navigate a challenging combination of anxiety and skin flare-ups.

1. Try Relaxation Techniques

Calming practices or relaxation techniques such as deep breathing and meditation can help soothe your mind when you’re feeling stressed and anxious. These activities help promote a sense of tranquility and inner peace and help you feel better overall. An essential aspect of relaxation techniques is to listen to what your body needs to help yourself feel better.

Deep Breathing

We’ve all had those moments when we just needed to slow down and take a deep breath to let go of our worries. An effortless calming practice you can try is deep breathing. All you need to do is find a comfortable seat, focus on your breathing, and take 10 slow, deep breaths. Repeat the process if you need more time to release the tension in your mind. Deep breathing has been found to help reduce stress hormones, strengthen the immune system, and stimulate the brain to relax.

Mindfulness Meditation

Often, when you feel anxious, your brain gets stuck in a loop, and you can’t stop thinking about your problems and all the worst possibilities related to them. Mindfulness meditation can come in handy in those situations. Mindfulness meditation is a calming practice that helps you focus on staying present and paying attention to the feelings and sensations in your body.

Mindfulness meditation is like having a friendly chat with your thoughts and feelings. It can help you to get to know your thoughts better and understand if and how you may get caught in them. Over time, as you practice mindfulness, you might become better at recognizing when your thoughts are making you anxious, and you can try to redirect your mind to things that make you happy.

You can also indulge in activities like painting or listening to soothing music to calm your mind and remove anxious thoughts.

Calming practices like deep breathing, mindfulness meditation, painting, or listening to music promote a sense of ease and harmony in the body, helping reduce the stress and anxiety triggers that may lead to worsening seborrheic dermatitis symptoms and flare-ups.

2. Move Through Your Worries

Did you know that as little as 10 to 15 minutes of exercise or movement might help you feel better? Focusing on different movements during exercise can help take your mind off continuous worry and thoughts, like those about your skin. Exercise releases feel-good hormones, or endorphins, in your body that help you relax. Reaching daily or weekly exercise goals can also give your self-esteem a nice little boost.

When it comes to moving and exercising, you don’t have to do anything fancy. Gentle practices like yoga, swimming, or leisurely walking in nature can be a great place to start. You can walk, jog, ride a bike, dance, or even clean and organize your home to regain a sense of control over your environment — whatever you enjoy to get your body moving. If you are starting a new exercise routine, chat with your health care provider first and listen to their advice. Depending on your body and health status, they can recommend a type of exercise and how much is safe for you.

3. Practice Self-Care

Self-care can be a great way to manage anxiety if you have seborrheic dermatitis. Self-care routines such as gentle cleansing with mild soaps, moisturizing with good-quality lotions, and protecting your skin from cold and dry weather can help reduce the severity of your symptoms. Eating nutritious foods and getting enough sleep can contribute to healthier skin and ease seborrheic dermatitis flare-ups. As the physical discomfort from itchiness and visibility of your skin condition improves, you may experience fewer feelings of anxiety.

Practicing self-care can encourage you to prioritize your well-being and foster a sense of self-compassion and acceptance toward your health condition. This compassion can improve your ability to better cope with the emotional challenges that seborrheic dermatitis may bring.

4. Write About Your Feelings

For some people, writing regularly about their thoughts and feelings can also help manage anxiety. Journaling provides a safe and private space to freely express your thoughts and emotions. Writing in a journal allows you to vent, release pent-up emotions, and gain clarity about what you’re going through. Writing down your worries and anxieties can be cathartic. It allows you to externalize your fears and concerns, making them seem less overwhelming. As you see your worries on paper, you may find that they become more manageable, and this can reduce anxiety levels.

Try keeping a journal and listing all the over-the-counter and prescription medicines you take, and when and where your symptoms occur. This practice can help you track your seborrheic dermatitis symptoms and identify potential triggers. You may discover patterns in what you eat, your skin care routine, stress levels, and symptom severity that can help inform your self-care strategies.

5. Seek Professional Help

If you ever feel like your anxiety has become too much to handle, don’t hesitate to ask for professional help. Reach out to your health care provider or a mental health professional, such as a therapist or a counselor. They can provide you with strategies and support to help manage your anxiety effectively.

A therapist, especially one who specializes in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), can help you manage your anxious thoughts. CBT is a popular type of talk therapy that’s shown to be effective in improving mental well-being and quality of life for those with skin conditions like seborrheic dermatitis. CBT can help you recognize when your thoughts might be inaccurate or negative and work on changing or reshaping those thoughts, which then helps you to see difficult situations more clearly and respond to them in a better way.

Talking openly with your health care provider or dermatologist about your concerns and treatment options is perfectly OK, too. Managing seborrheic dermatitis and anxiety can be challenging. It’s important to remember that you are not alone. Your health care provider can offer guidance and support tailored to your needs and prescribe topical ointments that suit your skin.

Remember, managing seborrheic dermatitis and anxiety is a journey, and it may take time to find the strategies that work best for you. Be kind to yourself, stay consistent with your efforts, and never hesitate to reach out for help.

Find Your Team

Connecting with others can be a valuable resource for managing a skin condition. Reach out to your friends and family for support. If you’re feeling overwhelmed and alone, there are online communities like MySebDermTeam where you can find people who genuinely understand what you’re going through.

MySebDermTeam is the social network for people with seborrheic dermatitis and their loved ones. On MySebDermTeam, more than 5,600 members come together to ask questions, give advice, and share their stories with others who understand life with seborrheic dermatitis.

Are you living with anxiety caused by seborrheic dermatitis? Share your experience in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.