Always one step ahead
At first it was just a few small bumps. Over time, new ones kept appearing, including in other places. I felt as if I was fighting something that was always one step ahead of me.
For a long time I didn’t understand why. After all, I was doing something about it: creams, liquids, disinfecting, separate towels. While reading, I came across a term that explained quite a bit to me: self-infection.
What self-infection means
Self-infection means that the virus gets from one area of skin to another on your own body. In medical texts it is called autoinoculation. The Mayo Clinic describes how this can happen when you scratch or rub the bumps. That way the virus reaches nearby skin.
A medical review also describes self-infection through scratching as one of the ways molluscum spreads. Alongside it are skin contact with other people and shared objects.
It helped me to keep two things apart. One is passing it on to other people, through skin, towels or clothing. That is what the article How long is molluscum contagious? is about. The other is spreading on your own body. That is what this article is about.
On DermNet I read that scratching often leads to new bumps forming in a line, along the scratch mark. I found that image very vivid. It shows how directly the virus can be carried across the skin by hand.
Scratching, rubbing, squeezing
In its tips, the American Academy of Dermatology writes that scratching and picking at the bumps can spread the virus to other parts of the body. It mentions a second point too: bacteria from hands and nails can get into the bumps. The spots can then become inflamed and painful.
I also read there that the AAD recommends washing your hands after touching the bumps and not squeezing molluscum yourself.
One point in the AAD’s tips isn’t about other people but about your own body: it describes using two towels when drying off, one for the affected skin and one for the rest of the skin. I had kept my towels separate from other people’s. I found this distinction between other people and your own body remarkable when I read it.
I am only passing this on. For questions about how to deal with your own spots, a doctor is the right person to ask.
Shaving and hair removal
Shaving is mentioned in the sources too: the AAD writes that shaving over affected areas can spread the virus, and advises postponing electrolysis (permanent hair removal) while molluscum is on the skin. There is more about this in the article Molluscum and shaving.
Itching and irritated skin
On the Mayo Clinic website I read that molluscum can itch. That is doubly unpleasant, because itching tempts you to scratch, and scratching can encourage spreading. For me, the spots itched now and then, but not all the time. There is more about this in the article Itchy, red or inflamed molluscum.
How it felt for me
Understanding that you can carry molluscum around your own body yourself was an explanation for me. At the same time, it strengthened the feeling of being unhygienic. And that despite paying more attention to hygiene than ever before.
I checked my skin four or five times a day, more often than was good for me. Every new spot raised the same question: Did I do something wrong? On top of that came the shame. Molluscum is not something people talk about, let alone the fact that it spreads on your own body. So, apart from at home, I didn’t talk to anyone about it.
In none of the sources did I read that self-infection is a sign of poor cleanliness. That can happen to anyone.
After two years it was over for me. Was it coincidence? I don’t know. How it came about, I tell in my story.