“This is the first time I’m really talking about it publicly… but you just get that ‘ah-ha’ moment where you realize, ‘I wasn’t put in this position to not utilize my voice and my platform for good.'” After living with plaque psoriasis for more than a decade, La La Anthony made a decision, one that she’s confident will help the 6 million other Americans (and many more around the world) living with the same condition. And it was Kim Kardashian who helped her get there.

In an interview with PEOPLE in 2015, La La revealed, “The thing I’ve taken from [Kim] is not to be afraid of it, not to be ashamed of it.” The Kardashian sister, who also happens to be Anthony’s best friend, has been living with plaque psoriasis as well. “It’s something that we have; it doesn’t make us any less human, or weird or freaky. It’s about being open with what we have…” While it was her best friend who helped her be honest about the auto-immune disorder, it was her son who helped La La Anthony be honest with herself.

More specifically, it was a conversation she had with Kiyan Anthony.

After opening up to Newsweek earlier this month, La La Anthony sat down with Amgen Biotech to get even more personal about her plaque psoriasis journey. What led to that was an equally personal conversation with Kiyan, whom she’s extremely close with. The 42-year-old revealed, “Plaque psoriasis can be frustrating, even if you don’t have a lot of it. I remember on days when my symptoms were bad, my son would look and say, ‘What’s that?’ – kids notice just about everything, even when you least expect it.”

Plaque psoriasis starts as inflammation inside the body and presents outwardly as raised, dry, itchy, and flaky patches on the skin (called plaques). In La La’s case, she explained that plaques usually formed on her scalp or behind the ears. Now, as a celebrity who’s in the public eye more often than not, the dread of people spotting it used to eat her up inside. “I remember I was hyper-aware of all the photos that were about to be taken, and it was distracting for me before the event. I didn’t want anyone to see my skin and think, ‘What is that?’” 

Her conversations with Kiyan brought back that same feeling, but while talking to him, she didn’t try to hide what it was. “I tried to turn it into a positive teaching moment for him and educate him about how there’s more to people than what meets the eye, but if you feel like a patch is the only thing people see, and then someone points it out, it can be tough!” Admitting her feelings to not just Kiyan but also herself helped La La Anthony open up about the auto-immune disorder. And as she told Newsweek, she’s not using her platform to help others, too!

“Those conversations and moments inspired me to not dismiss how you’re feeling, whether you have a couple of patches or a lot. Everybody’s experience is different, and I’m still on a journey to find something that works for me long-term.” In the same interview, the former MTV VJ shared that, after being diagnosed, she started using a prescription shampoo to reduce the symptoms. The catch?

It required daily hair washing. “While that works for some, that did not work with my hair or schedule,” Carmelo Anthony‘s ex-wife said. While that’s not an option for her anymore, La La Anthony hasn’t stopped looking for ways to reduce the symptoms. “And neither should you,” she preached, addressing everyone who’s going through the same thing she is. In a way, this admission may have brought her and Kiyan Anthony even closer. After all, not only did the 17-year-old basketball player help his mother realize what she was feeling, but also handled it better than others in La La’s life.

Those close to La La Anthony “minimized” her condition

For La La Anthony, considering the plaques mainly appear on the scalp and behind her ears, they were initially mistaken for dandruff or dry skin. “No one around me knew what it was,” she revealed. “Those close to me all recommended ‘quick fixes’ like drinking water and putting on lotion before bed, but nothing I did seemed to help my skin feel better.”

Not knowing the cause of her symptoms wasn’t very good for either her mental health or her self-confidence. “It was frustrating that those around me didn’t understand what I was going through and minimized my condition. Because of that, I even started to minimize it myself.” Prior to her diagnosis, she had a gut feeling that pushed her to visit a professional. After finding out exactly what it was, she began exploring her options – with her prescribed shampoo being one of them.

She also confessed that this condition influenced her choices in dressing and makeup and sent out a message: “If you’re tired of hiding your patches with your hair or overthinking what to wear because of your skin, I encourage you to talk to a doctor about how your symptoms are really affecting you.” 

In essence, the diagnosis, self-acknowledgment, and openness not only empowered La La Anthony but also inspired her to support others with the same disorder. In this journey, her interactions with her son have played a key role.