When you have psoriasis, chances are you’ll experience cracked skin from time to time. The patches of thick red skin often develop into fissures that can bleed and it’s important that you treat these right away to avoid infection.

Here’s how to treat cracked skin caused by psoriasis:

Apply pressure

When you have cracked skin, it will surely bleed and you have to stop that right away. Apply a little pressure on the wound with a clean cloth or bandage. Try to avoid lifting the bandage to check if your wound is still bleeding. Eventually it will stop and when it does, wash it with cool or lukewarm water to prevent infection.

Seal the wound

After cleaning the wound, you should seal it to prevent dirt, bacteria or any other debris from getting in. You can either use liquid bandage, which hardens and seals in a wound. This substance can last for a week and is effective in preventing debris and bacteria from entering.

Adhesive bandages/tapes are also good for closing up cracks on your skin and they’re even better because these bandages are moist, which can help speed up the healing process.

You can use lip balm for emergencies

You won’t always have a bandage on hand when your skin starts to break but as long as you always have a lip balm on hand, you can protect your skin from infection. Just apply a little bit of lip balm on the wound, or if you have petroleum jelly that would do as well, until you can find a bandage to treat it properly.

Keep your skin soft

When your skin is dry, it’s more prone to cracking. That's why it’s important to moisturize your skin all the time.

Here are some ways to keep your skin soft and moisturized:

1. Soak your skin in lukewarm water (not hot) with these ingredients: oils, Epsom salts, Dead Sea salts, Colloidal oatmeal.

2. After soaking, moisturize your skin with emollient ointment, cream or oil.

3. When you’re about to sleep, moisturize your skin once more with either petroleum jelly, vitamin E, olive oil or shortening.

4. Cover the areas of your skin where fissures often appear; make sure that you’re wearing hypoallergenic gloves.

5. Use medicated lotion to prevent inflammation.

Inflammation is one of the causes of your cracked skin. When your skin experiences inflammation it will swell and crack open so you need to prevent those inflammation by applying medicated ointments prescribed by your doctor.