LIVING WITH WARTS
After having suffered from warts on my fingers, for more than five years, I know all about the embarrassment that they bring. I decided to do some research into warts and share what has helped me. Warts are viral outgrowths similar to benign tumors,formed on the epidermis on the skin, caused by the Human Papilloma Virus.
They are definitely infectious, usually not painful, but sometimes painful and they are long lasting. I am not a doctor and am not offering medical advice, just sharing my story here. You should consult a doctor for any medical advice.
Why Warts are Painful
Contrary to the popular belief, warts do not have roots. It is just that, the virus grows on the lower side of the epidermis and replicates to give rise to almost normal looking skin.
Warts are generally not painful; however, but at time planters’ warts do cause pain.
But when I talk of pain, warts are more responsible in causing psychological trauma rather than physical.Warts are commonly found in children and in teenagers; affecting those at an age when self esteem is the most vulnerable.
Treating Warts
Fighting the warts is one thing, fighting the impact on my self-esteem as another. I remember spending sleepless nights, feeling of embarrassed because of my warts. I had warts on my fingers and on my upper arm, and I did everything possible to remove them. I always felt like being under a microscope, like everyone around me were staring at my warts. I never followed a fashion trend that required sleeveless shirts, I didn’t want anyone to see the warts on my arms.
Salicylic Acid Wart Treatment
I started researching on wart removal through various home remedies. I began with rubbing off the warts with pumice stone and sand paper and trying to make them tender. Almost every day I would rub my warts with the pumice stone, until they ached. I would cover them with band aids later on, to avoid spreading into other areas. This did not work and left my skin dry and flaky. I finally learned about preparations of salicylic acid and it worked.
For me, The best and most effective method for applying salicylic acid was to first soak my warts in warm water to soften them. I found that when I wrapped them with a band aid, after the application, that hastened the process of healing.
It didn’t happen overnight, but with twice daily applications, they went away over a period of months. I also used petroleum jelly around the area of the warts, so the solution didn’t dry out my healthy skin in the area.
The entire process took longer than I wanted because I wanted to just have them disappear overnight, but they did disappear. Truly, nothing made me happier than when I noticed all my warts were gone. It is sad but especially as a teenager, those small tumors can really make you feel embarrassed and unattractive. As I get older, I realize no one else really is noticing nearly as much as I do about my body and I am working everyday on accepting my body flaws and all now.