Birmingham dad shares psoriasis story in national awareness campaign
Safwaan Ali is among those featured in a new photography campaign highlighting how psoriasis can affect people at every stage of life
A Birmingham father of two is sharing his experience of living with psoriasis as part of a national awareness campaign.
Safwaan Ali is one of the people featured in a new photoshoot by charity Psoriasis UK, which aims to show how the skin condition and related psoriatic arthritis can affect people throughout their lives.
The images are being released for Psoriasis Awareness Week, which begins on World Psoriasis Day on Thursday, October 29, and focuses on the theme of age.
Safwaan, who has lived with psoriasis for seven years, is pictured enjoying time with his young children.
He said the condition had previously affected his confidence and led him to spend more time at home.
"It's been a difficult seven years, to be honest. At one point, my closest friends didn't even know I was struggling with the condition," he said.
"I've tried so many treatments and lifestyle changes, but I'm thankfully now on a systemic treatment that's working really well. It's allowed me to get back to the gym and feel confident enough to tell my story."
Other photographs show people living with psoriasis going about their everyday lives, including enjoying coffee, shopping and walking in nature.
The campaign also marks the charity's recent name change to Psoriasis UK, with images and personal stories set to be shared throughout the awareness week.
Laura Stevenson, deputy chief executive of Psoriasis UK, said the campaign aimed to highlight how the condition could affect people at different ages.
She said: "This year's theme is age, shining a much-needed spotlight on the ways psoriasis may affect a person throughout their life.
"Throughout the campaign, we'll be sharing images from our most recent photoshoot showing how people at every age, like Safwaan, can continue to live their lives with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
"While it may seem small, this representation shows that psoriasis is just one part of someone's story. It proves that it does not have to stand in the way of living a happy, active life."
Psoriasis Awareness Week 2026 will conclude with a free online webinar, Psoriasis Through Life: What Do We Know Now?, hosted by Psoriasis UK and St Johns DermAcademy on Wednesday, November 4.
The event will feature talks from UK dermatology experts and continue to explore the theme of age.
More information about the campaign is available at the Psoriasis UK website.