Kim Kardashian Revealed Photos of Her Latest Psoriasis Flare-Up Following Tanning Bed Backlash

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Kim Kardashian is just one of the millions of Americans dealing with psoriasis, a skin condition that causes itchy, painful red spots. And though she usually takes pains to present all aspects of her appearance as perfect (and, let's be real, filtered and photoshopped), she just gave followers a look at what happens when her psoriasis flare-ups worsen.

On Tuesday, January 30, Kardashian shared a recording of her lower legs on Instagram Stories, explaining that, while she normally has “one spot” of psoriasis on her leg, it has recently spread.

“Not gonna lie this is painful,” she wrote, adding that she wants to be transparent about her journey.

“I can tell it's going down my leg and up my leg and all up my thigh,” she said in a voiceover, adding via text that she doesn't know what triggers the outbreaks.

However, by morning, there was hope! On Wednesday, January 31, Kardashian again took to Instagram Stories, revealing that she slept with “intense cream” (brand unknown) on her legs, which she then bound in Saran Wrap. And it worked: She reported that the intense itching was gone and the dark red patch from the day before looked significantly lighter and calmer.

Kardashian marveled that the treatment “changes everything,” saying that all this progress was from “just one night” and she would be doing her Saran Wrap routine “twice a week.”

I'm no dermatologist, but lotion and plastic wrap sounds like a pretty basic combo (and in fact, it is recommended by the Mayo Clinic). And at the very least, it's less risky than the last treatment Kardashian touted: a tanning bed.

Earlier this month the Skims mogul revealed on TikTok that she has a tanning bed in her office, meant as a self-deprecating remark about the perks of being Kim Kardashian. However, after Allure published an article about the dangers of tanning beds—which Kardashian seemed to be normalizing—she wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that it's for when her psoriasis is “really bad” and she doesn't “use it too often.”

Still, there was a significant amount of backlash, as doctors agree that the UVA rays found in tanning beds are not a good treatment for psoriasis. Here's everything you should know about tanning beds and psoriasis.

And not to downplay the difficulty of living with a bad flare-up, but isn't melanoma worse? Let's all use good judgment, and in the meantime, lots and lots of cream.

Originally Appeared on Glamour