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Skintome

The art and healing of dermatographia,
by Ariana Page Russell.

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  • Dermatographia
  • Holistic Living
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Dermatographia

How Skin Writing Brings People Together

April 28, 2014 • 11  

Those of us with dermatographia–or skin writing–stick together. We share our experiences of it and tips for how to take care of it. Plus, dermatographia is a good way to meet people, because folks think it’s cool and want to learn more about the welts.

Here is a great story by my friend Jes, an invaluable part of the dermatographia community:

Jes Blackwell here, yep…I thought for a very long time this condition sucked! Being an awkward, dorky, queer outcast in highschool (in Wisconsin) was enough of an ordeal that I had to live with, but every time I had a tiny little itch on my face and I wasn’t thinking… BLAM!! A gigantic welt would appear on my already hormonally confused face. Needless to say…I did not date. It wasn’t all bad though, playing tic tac toe on my legs during long car rides to Indiana, getting my sister in trouble…etc. However you really do have to plan out whether or not you should pop that zit now or wait till you have about 30 minutes to hang out all puffed up.

It actually wasn’t until I met Ariana that I even remotely thought of this condition as something “special” or even…dare I say “cool”. To write on the skin…well when you put it like that, it sounds alright. Ariana told me how she works with her skin to create…to create beautiful pieces of art. I haven’t been making art with my skin but I have gotten as far as writing a love note on my stomach for someone special or (as pictured above) demonstrating to co-workers what it does. And here’s the best part, EVERYONE thinks its cool as hell! So, I’ll take it. And the BIGGEST thank you to Ariana for changing my perspective on the condition by teaching me about how it works, how many of us have it, and how awesome it actually is.

Thanks Jes! It takes an army of us to change the context of dermatographia (from an embarrassing condition into cool, unique skin), and you are showing everyone you’re proud of what your skin does that makes you different!

Also, I realize some of us with dermatographia do not think it’s cool, because it’s extremely uncomfortable (never mind embarrassing), and actually hurts and itches to the point of drawing blood from scratching so much. I am so sorry for your pain. Please speak with your doctor about this, and seek other treatments if your antihistamines aren’t working (sometimes you need to change the dose and/or type). There are also natural treatments that I’ve found to be very helpful. I write about my experience here.

#dermagraphia, #dermatographia, #jes blackwell, #outcast, #skin drawing, #skin writing
• Tracking the Seasons With Skin: Ana Myers's Photodermatitis Previous
Introducing Rich, Skin Writer • Next

About Ariana

Hi, I'm Ariana (pronounced Air-e-anna, like banana ;)!
I'm an artist and the founder of Skintome. I have dermatographia (aka skin writing), a condition that hyper-sensitizes the skin to touch, stress, diet, and chemicals. I've been making art inspired by my dermatographia for 20 years. And in doing so, have spread the word about the condition, how to treat it naturally, and how to see the beauty in it.

Subscribe to Skintome and get a free chapter of Ariana’s book

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11 Comments

  1. Rich S.

    on April 29, 2014 at 9:13 am

    I think Jes sums up a lot of my own personal experiences with being a skin writer. At first I was ashamed…worried about unconsciously scratching an itch in public or people staring at me in horror as mysterious lines crossed my forehead on the subway. In all honesty, I was first a little upset when I came across a story on Ariana and her art. Something so embarrassing and so uncomfortable being turned into something creative and marketable? I felt like my skin was being exploited…but shortly after, through Ariana’s work and raising awareness, my skin should be exploited. It is cool! It is a novelty! It is special! Why shouldn’t it be embraced, celebrated and shown off? Thank you Ariana…thank you Jes for sharing your story. We are all united by our skin!

    • Ariana Page Russell

      on May 1, 2014 at 9:56 am

      Thank you Rich! Yes, we should celebrate this weird thing our skin does. It’s either that or mope around and feel sorry for ourselves ;’)

  2. Danashell

    on April 29, 2014 at 6:54 pm

    Love this site. Have had moderately severe psoriasis since age 13 — spent my teen years coping with people’s horrified looks as well as pain, itching, and everything being bloodstained. Have always been itchy and rashy and have known about dermatographia for years but only after seeing some of the beautiful skin art have I started actively trying to skin write, to turn my skin into canvas, to embrace it. Thank you!!

    • Ariana Page Russell

      on May 1, 2014 at 9:58 am

      Hi Danashell! Thanks for writing. If you’d like to be featured on Skin Tome, please send me some photos and we’ll do an interview. I’d love to hear more about your skin work and psoriasis! arianapage@gmail.com

  3. Shauna

    on May 19, 2014 at 10:17 pm

    I’ve never met anyone else with dermatographia, and definitely didn’t know there was a support system for it! Nice to know I’m not alone in the world…mine started about 7 or 8 years ago.

    • Ariana Page Russell

      on May 20, 2014 at 10:34 pm

      Thanks Shauna! You are definitely not alone. Let me know if the coconut oil helps ;’)

  4. erwin wijaya

    on May 20, 2014 at 1:24 pm

    I am happy to know some people also have this skin writting..i just suffered it this year on february..i have to eat medicine everynight to control it..

    • Ariana Page Russell

      on May 20, 2014 at 10:26 pm

      Erwin, thanks for writing! Some people take medicine for their dermatographia, but many of us don’t. It depends on how bad the symptoms are. Hope yours isn’t too bad! And, welcome to the club ;’)

  5. erwin wijaya

    on May 21, 2014 at 12:06 am

    Its so itching..i dont know mine also bad or not..hope isnt bad..i try to reduce my medicine dose..

  6. Gina K

    on October 7, 2016 at 9:57 pm

    This makes me so happy!! I have never met someone who has this, and I’m so pleased to see people are finding unique and fun things to do! My friends used to play tic tac toe, and even once checkers (on my back) and we would laugh, but it got bad when I had acne (does anyone else have it severally?) . Also, people mocked me when I scratched my arms or face and would call me a cutter, but now I scratch in drawings I’m just happy I’m not alone

    • Ariana

      on October 11, 2016 at 5:11 pm

      That’s awesome Gina! Thanks for letting us know 🙂 Oh, and I used to have acne when I was younger but it was never too bad.
      Welcome to Skintome!

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About Ariana

Hi, I'm Ariana (pronounced Air-e-anna, like banana ;)!
I'm an artist and the founder of Skintome. I have dermatographia (aka skin writing), a condition that hyper-sensitizes the skin to touch, stress, diet, and chemicals. I've been making art inspired by my dermatographia for 20 years. And in doing so, have spread the word about the condition, how to treat it naturally, and how to see the beauty in it.

Subscribe to Skintome and get a free chapter of Ariana’s book

Popular Posts

  • What To Do With the Itch: 6 Tips to Manage Dermatographia
    November 17, 2013 306 183056
  • Personal Adornment: Can People With Dermatographia Get Tattoos?
    March 26, 2014 118 105696
  • A Surprising Link Between Dermatographia and Antibiotics
    July 21, 2014 171 90378

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