I cannot believe that as a child my eczema started on minor areas like the crooks of my arms and back of my knees. Doctors told my trusting parents to put this steroid cream to take it away. Which it did but only for a while. But using it for far longer than I should've, only prolonged my eczema and caused it to spread to other places. It spread to my face. So then I was prescribed something mild for the face and something stronger for the body. The doctors believed if it keeps coming back, anteing up the dosage will surely make it disappear. Doing so did but only for a limited time. My eczema always came back. I was not getting down to the underlying issues. Possibly diet, environmental factors. I do believe in hindsight I probably had food sensitivities which are different from food allergies.
Why didnt' the doctors tell thousands of us that we should only use it for a certain amount of time? Ive seen so many of them in my life and not one told me about my body possibly becoming dependent on them. That's where the relationship between western medicine and pharmaceutical companies make me sick. It's as if they didn't want to disclose this type of information because this is how doctors make their money. Pushing the meds. And now sometime later when I tell my doctors about this most of them deny it or don't believe this is what's happening to me. They think it is just severe eczema and something like prednisone will do the trick. NO THANK YOU. I am never touching oral or topical steroids again!
Even thinking back to the time I was in college and was no longer on my dad's medical coverage. My face started flaring every so often and it didn't seem like normal eczema. It was red, weepy, flaky, sometimes swollen, and would repeat itself every so often. And get this, I was not using steroid creams because I was no longer covered. So for a couple years my face was going through a withdrawal and I didn't even know it! When I got coverage and got more steroid creams, it didn't seem to really work anymore. It was always a temporary fix and did not feel right so I decided to stop relying on them. In time my skin was glowing and healthy and I never worried about it. I had typical eczema breakouts but they were totally manageable. I never worried about it. But eating healthy and yoga for 7 years seem to make me believe that was all I needed! I just wish I stopped using steroids then. It's okay. I'm 6 months into TSW, and that is 6 months I never have to relive again!
Sadly I am not the only one. There are teenagers, adults, mothers, fathers, children, and even babies that have to go through this. I hear their stories, they bring in concrete research and papers of TSA/RSS, and most of the doctors still don't agree. If this isn't real, then why do thousands of people experience the SAME symptoms?! I know this is not an epidemic but there are still way too many people suffering for nothing. And that in itself should make this condition valid in the medical community.*sigh... That fight is for another time, another day. Let's get to healing.
If anyone decides to stop all topical/oral/injections of steroid use, I would recommend getting your GP or find a GP who will support your decision and who won't try and push you into using steroids. That way they can monitor you or your child and you can get blood tests if things don't feel right. I wouldn't recommend seeing a dermatologist because 95% of them will insist that steroids is your only hope. Even if they tell you there are non-steroidal creams, most of them still have rebound effects. Support is also needed to get through this. There are the ITSAN and TSW facebook forums where I met incredibly brave individuals that I will never forget. These forums allows you to connect with other people going through the same thing. We all have notes to share and everyone is so friendly and compassionate. Definitely join the forums. Also, you have to understand that what might work for someone may not work for you. And also we are not trained physicians so make sure you run recommendations by a GP and just do the research. Learn your body. Know your body. Listen to your body.
There are many people that have stopped steroid creams cold turkey, put in the time, and came out on the other side with normal healthy skin. Time heals all wounds.
love n light,
Dawn
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