Woman who swiped hotel’s freebie shampoo begs them for more after she says it CURED her psoriasis
A HOTEL guest was forced to confess to nicking shampoo from her room after she reckons it cured her psoriasis – and begged for help to find out where to get more.
Anna Martin says she had tried "everything" after developing the condition three years ago, leaving her scalp covered in patches of crusty, itchy and painful skin.
The 38-year-old says it crippled her confidence to the point that some mornings she could barely face going to work because of flaky skin "flare-ups".
But after some hotel shampoo "found its way" into Anna's handbag she was stunned to discover her psoriasis cleared up in just three washes.
Desperate Anna then had to pluck up the courage to make a plea to the hotel chain to discover where they get it from so she could try to buy more.
Malmaison bills its own brand product as "The best shampoo you will ever steal".
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Anna wrote on Facebook: "HELP!!! I stayed at your hotel in Birmingham at Christmas.
"Having 'stolen' what you describe as the best shampoo ever, I have only last week rediscovered this in my going-away bag. It has CURED my scalp psoriasis! Cured!!!
"Literally life-changing for me. I now need to know where u can buy it? It's run out and I'm desperate."
Anna, a university administrator from Lincoln, said her psoriasis "came out of nowhere" three years ago. Other sufferers include A-listers Kim Kardashian and Cara Delevingne.
It is an incurable but treatable condition that causes the body's immune system to attack healthy skin cells, resulting in the build-up of red patches covered in silvery scales.
Before her stay at the Malmaison she had tried special shampoos costing £30 a bottle but nothing helped.
She said: "It was a little bit embarrassing having to go back to them to tell them I'd taken it and ask for more.
"Even though it says that it's the best shampoo you'll ever steal and you've paid for the room, it does definitely still feel like stealing. But needs must.
"I tried everything to get rid of it. The doctor told me to avoid parabens in shampoos so I tried the most expensive and the cheapest ones I could get. Nothing worked.
"Then just before Christmas last year, my partner Simon and I went to stay in the Malmaison in Birmingham and I put the shampoo in my handbag.
Kim K and Cara Delevigne are sufferers of painful skin condition
Psoriasis is a skin condition that causes red, flaky, crusty patches of skin covered with silvery scales
Psoriasis affects around 2 per cent of people in the UK. It can start at any age, but most often develops in adults under 35 years old. The condition affects men and women equally.
Patches normally appear on your elbows, knees, scalp and lower back, but can appear anywhere on your body. Most people are only affected with small patches. In some cases, the patches can be itchy or sore.
Psoriasis is a long-lasting disease that usually involves periods when symptoms are milder or more severe.
Although the cause isn't fully understood, it is thought to be related to a problem with the immune system in which it attacks healthy skin cells by mistake.
Psoriasis can run in families, although the exact role that genetics plays in causing psoriasis is unclear.
Many people's symptoms start or become worse after a trigger such as stress, an injury to the skin, throat infections and certain medicines.
Treatments to lessen symptoms include vitamin D and steroid creams, and phototherapy - exposing the affected skin to ultraviolet light.
Source: NHS Choices
"I'd completely forgotten about it until a few months later when I found it in my going-away bag. It says on the bottle that it's the best shampoo so I decided to try it out.
"After just three washes it had completely cured my psoriasis. The Malmaison shampoo has been amazing and it feels quite natural. All I need now is for them to get back to me so I can buy some more.
"I don't care if it is the cheapest shampoo ever or the most expensive. Money is no object, I just want to keep feeling this much better.
"My partner, who really saw me at my lowest, has noticed how much happier I am now too."
After her Facebook post, Malmaison offered to send Anna some freebies in the post.
The chain declined to comment.
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