rachel73
12 posts
Aug 29, 2008
6:47 AM
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Hi,
I have been put on steriods after being hospitalised. I have been on them 13 weeks. Initially on a high dose but now on 20mg daily. Im 34 and now very overweight as I am struggling to control my appetite and my mobility is limited, Im in a wheel chair at present. Ok so my question is has anyone else out there had their menstrual cycle just stop due to steriods. Im on prednisolone. I just haven't had a period since being on steriods. Its costing me a fortune in pregnancy tests!(I know you are thinking you are supposed to be ill, but hey its one thing I can do lying down!) I know its a possible side effect as it says so in the patient info leaflet. I have to wait another 3 months before my gp will test my hormone levels. In the mean time my night sweats have got worse and Im having hot flushes in the day or if I undertake any physical activity (what I can do). Has anyone else experienced this or am I just really strange? - rach
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redtail
73 posts
Sep 01, 2008
1:49 AM
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Hi Rachel, dont I wish, no mine have been regular, which makes my MG worse at that time of the month. Know all about the weight gain with steroids tho, have gained about 10kg!! Am trying to lose it, but as I'm having a minor crisis at the moment, excercise is the last thing my body needs to exhaust it more, hope you get some answers.
redtail
---------- "downunder" western australia
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pam2507
106 posts
Sep 01, 2008
1:12 PM
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ive been taking steroids for many years and never had any problem with my menstrual cycle, didn't even know loss of periods was a side effect of steroid therapy so I've learnt something new!
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rachel73
15 posts
Sep 02, 2008
8:33 AM
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Thanks for your replies.
I spent a while on the internet last night looking at Prednisolone. All sites said can interfere with periods or stop them all together. The periods stopping isn't a problem as like the rest of you my symptoms worsen around that time. I just wondered if anyone else had the same side effect?Reading the sites made me realise how many side effects I am suffering with. I have put on 21lbs in 14 weeks. I wasn't petite before hand. Luckily Im tall 5ft 9 so I dont look like a weeble! My face and neck are just one blob sat on my shoulders. My mood swings are just fabulous and I can go from crying to hysteria in 30 secs. My poor husband!!Its a wonder he wants to come home from work!! I did read one useful study for those of you who like me are ballooning due to the miracle drug prednisolone. Cut down on your carbohydrates and eat more protein. They did a study on rodents and found prednisolone mixed with high carbohydrate diet equals rapid weight gain. Also weight gain isn't soley about what goes in your mouth, contary to several posts I have seen on here. You will retain fluid. So Im now trying not to feel down about the weight, trying to ignore comments from people I know about my weight.People seem a lot more interested to talk about that than the disese. Just reducing those carbs.
I cant do anything about the prednisolone until I see the drs at Oxford.
Thanks to both of you for responding.
Rachel
Last Edited on 2-Sep-2008 8:35 AM
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annawaliszewska
71 posts
Sep 02, 2008
1:59 PM
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Rachel
Please talk to your neuro before making any dietary changes. High protein diet is harder to digest and makes the body more acidic therefore affecting the optimal ph balance. Go for whole grain and veggies instead of white bread. Drink a glass of worm water with lemon juice first thing in the morning - it has some light diuretic effect. And try not to worry about the weight gain, when you (with your docs blessings) start reducing steroids the weight will go away by itself. Best wishes.
@nn@
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rachel73
18 posts
Sep 02, 2008
3:55 PM
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Im not eating excessive amounts of protein before anyone panics! Im just having larger portions of protein rather than carbs.
Im vegetarian. I have also had to go gluten free as I really cant tolerate wheat and mestinon. Im still bloody ill on mestion without wheat, its just not as bad. Im so ill at the moment I cant cook for myself, so my mum has been making me meals on wheels and putting them in the freezer. I have never eaten so much legumes and beans since I left home 13 years ago!
The steriods are unfortunately going to be part of my life for the forseeable future as Im not improving. So I have to do something about the weight gain. I have always loved carbs, so what I have done is dramatically cut my portion sizes down, not cut them out completely. As for bread, I cant eat it I have my mum make gluten free out of Brown rice flour, tapioca flour, rye flour, corn flour.
Thats why Im finding this massive weight gain so upsetting. I rarely eat crips I dont eat biscuits or cake I cant it makes me ill. I eat chocolate once a week. But Im HUGE!!!!
Oh well they keep me breathing that has to be a bonus. Steriods hey can't live with 'em cant live without 'em!!
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mum2six
2 posts
Sep 12, 2008
8:42 AM
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Hi Not sure if I have mg yet but I had steroids the other week. I had the same problem as you, light to no period but the night sweats and sweating profusely whenever I tried to do anything, even brushing my hair, it would be running down the back of my neck. Very red face and a permanent puddle in my bra. Now about 3 weeks since I'v stopped taking them and the sweating is easing off and the puddles are reducing but I believe they can be in your system for at least 3 months after stopping them anyway. julie
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TraceyM
18 posts
Sep 12, 2008
12:19 PM
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Hi Rachel Well I would love to say that I didn't understand but unfortunatly I do only to well...
I have been on the same steroids for over four years now, smallish dose up to a massive dose then down again... Gaining 8 stone in three months and not able to shift it since... It's easy to say about controling tour diet but getting diabeties because of the weight gain means more problems... I don't eat chocolate or rubbish, crisps as a treat once a week, but with the swollen head, neck and extra weight I look like a spend all day every day eating pies... (I don't even like pies) The sweating the red face, the not able to walk far and looking like a huge balloon is not a great way to live on a daily basis, so I do know how you feel...
Sorry to rant on you were asking about periods... I have missed some had some very light to very very heavy and never regular so I suppose it just differs person to person... Wish we could live with out them though hey... Take care
Tracey
Last Edited on 12-Sep-2008 12:32 PM
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sweetkerry
59 posts
Sep 14, 2008
7:01 PM
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im sorry im quite the opposite i take 100g pednisolone everyday ive been on it for 10 years i havenot gain weight im still 115 pounds instead i lost about 5 pounds instead i get acne is something wrong with me cause my doctor says he cant explain it i started taking cellcept 500 mgs from novenmeber last year it suppressed my need to eat thats why i lost the weight as for my period i get weak during my 5 days its comes different date every month so i take a iron table or b12
Last Edited on 14-Sep-2008 7:03 PM
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redtail
75 posts
Sep 14, 2008
8:34 PM
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No Kerry, when I was first on pred, 60mg daily, I didn't put on any weight, it wasn't until I had a setback about a year ago, and the pred was bumped up from 10mg alternate days to 40mg daily that I put on weight, and have put on about 14kg over the last year.
----------"downunder" western australia
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rachel73
19 posts
Sep 30, 2008
12:30 PM
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Hi all,
Thanks for your replies. Sorry I haven't got back to you sooner but I have real problems logging on. I have spoken to the webmaster but apparently its me. Now for some reason tonight I logged on first time. Now thats never been heard of.Ok Steriods.... Still no period. I have now put on 28lbs since June. I have a face that resembles a football. I have an enormous double chin that gets in my way. I have developed a hump on my back, due to the way that the fat is being redistrubuted around my body. I now have pigmentation issues, brown patches under my right eye, white patches under my left. I look like Im growing a beard, luckily Im blonde so its not too bad. If it gets much worse I will shave! I am hungry 24-7 its like they have flipped a switch in my head and its just hunger all the time. Im desperately trying to stick to 3 meals a day however Im hungry an hour after eating. I hate the way I look so much now that I have removed al mirrors from the house. I was large before, im now enormous. I hate it. I won't go out as I don't think its fair on the people that have to push my wheel chair. The good news yes Im trying to find some...is that Im at Oxford next week. Been waiting since August 19th. Im hopingthey put me on anything but more steriods. I want to come off them. Im so throughly peed off I'm struggling not to just stop taking all medication and let nature take its course. Im now really reacting badly to the mestinon, I spend all day upstairs as thats where the bathroom is. I just defecate more than 4 times an hour from the minute I get up for about 12 hours. If I go out or have friends around I have to take six immodium. If I visit the GP Im told you have been referred to oxford wait until you see them. Well I have had enough and Im going to reduce the dose right down. I take 30mg every 4 hours day and night I take propanthaline Bromide to reduce the side effects but it doesn't work any more. I won't be able to take mestinon next tuesday as the journey to Oxford up and back will be eight hours, it will take years with all the toilet stops if I take it. Sorry to any newbies reading this I don't mean to scare anyone. Im having a moment and Im sure it will eventually pass. Thoroughly peed off in Exmouth
Rach
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rachel73
20 posts
Sep 30, 2008
12:34 PM
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Hi
sweet kerry,
acne is the one side effect from steriods that I don't have. To tell you the truth if I now got that on top of everything else.....I would stick my head in the oven! Joke I have a gallows sense of humour.Its always worth putting the name of your drug into the search engine and seeing what the side effects are especially when on a reputable site. hope this helps Rach still a bit peed off in Exmouth but feeling a wee bit better after my rant!
Last Edited on 30-Sep-2008 12:35 PM
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