On Being A Chipmunk

For the past 2 months, I have been on a drug called Prednisone. This is my third round of long-term steroid therapy, so I'm not new to the side effects, but it still affects my life more than any other drug has. This past week my doctor said I could start decreasing the dosages (you have to do it slowly to give your body time to make it's own), so I thought I'd recap my experience this time through. There are plenty of side effects I haven't experienced, but here's what it does to me:

1. Observe above picture and compare to my profile picture to the right. Chipmunk cheeks! This phenomenon is known as Cushing's syndrome, which basically causes water retention in the face/cheeks and upper back/neck. (Google the term and check out the images tab). The first time I went through this, it was REALLY rough. The devil was constantly telling me I was ugly, fat, yucky, shouldn't leave the house, etc. The second time I went through it, it was difficult, but better. The miracle is that this time, while it somewhat bothers me that I don't look like I normally do, it really doesn't bother me NEARLY as much as it did before. In fact, I sometimes forget this is not my normal face! Ha! So that's a blessing. I am, however, looking forward to not having my fat face anymore. :)

2. Increased appetite. This is unfortunate if no one knows you're on it, because, combined with the above effect, one might think you're eating yourself into being overweight. But really it does increase your appetite. The best way I've found to combat this is simply KNOW that it will make me want to eat more and simply don't. There are a few times when I eat the chocolate cake or have another serving of broccoli, but for the most part, I've done pretty good. If you know you're more likely to want ice cream if you drive by the ice cream shop everyday, you avoid it. Simple as that. So I've learned to check myself and ask if it's my tummy or the steroids talking.

3. This is a small side effect, but it was really bad during my first round about 8 years ago. Long-term steroid therapy can cause muscle cramps that come on suddenly and, obviously, are quite painful. For instance, if I'm holding a pen for a long time, my fingers might start to cramp and then my hand is essentially "stuck" in that position until I can get it to relax. When I had my first round 8 years ago, I would kick in my sleep (dreaming? who knows) and that would trigger a ridiculously painful cramp in my calf. It was pretty annoying. This time, I'm pretty good at being able to relax the muscles and stop it within a few minutes. Mostly happens in my fingers and feet.

If you've ever been on Prednisone for a week or less, or at low doses, these effects are not likely to happen. It's only when you take it for long periods of time that it will do this stuff. I think overall I've had a MUCH better attitude and been blessed this time around, and can only attribute that to the grace of God and the support around me. Believe me, when you look different, it helps when your friends treat you as if you look the same. :)