As I mentioned the other day, the high dosage of steroids are working really well, and my face is clearing up dramatically. It’s not red any more, it’s now pink, and there’s hardly any flaking. Most of the skin doesn’t feel sore any more, and really feels quite normal with just a couple of little patches that are behind the rest. I can see it will be completely normal very soon at this rate, a couple of weeks maybe three.
My chest and shoulders are getting better too, but still have a long way to go – I reckon about another 4-6 weeks to clear up, possibly longer. With any luck the MMF I’m taking should also really start to be getting a grip by that time and who knows, it might accelerate suddenly?
It’s like what happened to me is now happening in reverse, but at a 10x faster pace. So the growth and repair functions of my body are operating well to fix the damage my immune system has caused to my skin, and the best news is it seems to be accelerating very rapidly now my immune system is being suppressed.
All good news I guess, and the faster it all happens, the less time I have to take these high doses of steroids.
So the bigger doses of steroids I asked for are fixing it quickly, even though the dosage really makes me scared. I’m not kidding. It’s worrying me a lot.
I have to get my skin all better and then off the steroids ASAP.
MMF scares me a bit too in two aspects, the possibility of skin or lymph cancer, and increased risk of infection. As I’ve always been one of those people who hears a sneeze on the TV and starts sniffling (not hypochondria – I’ve always caught minor bugs easily), I think I’ve got good cause to worry on that front.
But nowhere near like I’m worried about the steroids. Those babies are like a big bogey man for me, and I really don’t want to end up in a wheelchair. So at some point I’m going to ask for a bone scan. Maybe the next appointment in September.
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/DEXA-scan/Pages/Introduction.aspx
The steroids continue to affect my sleep and I feel mighty fine while taking them. I only need 3-5 hours a day now and I’m good and alert the whole time. It’s a very restful and deep sleep I’ve been having and feels like I’ve slept for far longer than I have. Example: I fall asleep and then wake up to go to the toilet thinking I’ve had at least 3 hours sleep and when I check the clock I’m amazed to see only 30 minutes or less have passed by. I’m good with that!
The other side-effect I’ve noticed is my anger bursts out and is then gone like a soap bubble. I paid some money into the bank yesterday and said out loud and then heard it go quiet around me – “You have GOT to be fucking kidding me!” – when the machine spit ALL the money out because it had a problem with one £20 note. Oops.
Apart from that, nothing notable or… visible. I don’t know what’s going on inside though, and that’s the worrying thing. And as I’ve said it on here. I AM worried.
