MY PERSONAL TAKE ON MOLLUSCUM CONTAGIOSUM
Now coming to my personal experience with this disease- just like any other girl I thought these lesions to be benign pimples on my face, so I started using some regular ointments but when it started spreading around my cheeks in clusters I started panicking. Later I noticed a dot size bump on my left shoulder as well which resembled with the bumps on my face but it was slightly bigger in size than face warts.Without any further delay, I decided to consult a doctor.
During my first visit to the doctor, he closely monitored my face and gave me a brief about these kinds of lesions calling them Mollusca and prescribed an ointment with tretinoin for starting phase, a mild face cleanser like Cetaphil, for oral consumption anti-histamines to combat any kind of allergies and multivitamin to boost the overall process.
I duly followed this course of action for 10-15 days, after applying the ointment for a few days I started feeling a burning sensation around those lesions on my face though I was vigilantly applying tretinoin only at the surface of the bumps yet it caused a very bad itching on my face. I paid a visit to my doctor before completing the 15 days treatment describing him my experience with the ointment, he prescribed another cream to reduce itchiness and burning sensation.
I followed the molluscum contagiosum treatment for about 1-2 months and in those months I was prescribed different ointments from low to high dose but as my skin type was dry and my skin became too sensitive to those creams and ointments I asked my doctor for a different approach. There were the times when I was not able to concentrate on my work because it used to burn a lot on my face reason being molluscum treatment ointments are meant to burn those lesions so if you do not apply it cautiously you might end up burning your skin,that’s why you must apply these ointments carefully, although, it becomes easier if these viral bumps appear on that part of your body where you can afford redness but definitely not the face it really becomes irritating when they are small and present in groups.
To cut short, topical treatment didn’t work for me, so I started researching more about it and also tried to consult a different doctor, but when nothing was working especially no topical remedy was working I thought of going for laser treatment. It took around 1 month to reach this decision because my face was involved and I was also conscious about the post-laser treatment marks but my doctor assured me of no harm to the skin and also prescribed a cream for the burning marks that was meant to completely fade those marks within a week. But there is always a disclaimer with molluscum contagiosum treatment i.e. doesn’t matter which treatment you go for but there is a possibility that Mollusca might reappear if your immunity is compromised in any way or if the trace of the virus is left somewhere on your skin, so it’s better to keep a check. Coming back to my laser treatment, I had to take two sittings as after the first session some of the tiny warts were left unnoticed so I have to go again for the same procedure and until now no Mollusca has reappeared.
It has been 2 years approximately since I finally bid adieu to this skin disorder. As I was completely naive to this infection, it took me quite long to treat it, but with proper information and guidance, you can get rid of it very soon just like your pimples.
Fit Grit 