Corticosteroids have really taken a toll on my body and I hate it

Its been a little more than 1 year since my 2nd round of Gamma Knife Radiation (November 15th, 2019) and I ended up getting some severe Brain Swelling back in March. I was on Corticosteroids for 4 months (March-July 2020) and I gained 30+ pounds. I thought I was done with the corticosteroids but I was wrong. My stretch marks from my body got 1000x worse, my acne got so bad and left acne scars on my face, I had virtually no muscle left in my legs, it was a tough time but I was happy I was off. I had a massive moon face and a Buffalo hump, not to mention my depression and anxiety were the worse they’ve ever been in my life.

Fast forward to late September, and I get another MRI because of a sharp headache and neurological symptoms. Turns out, my Brain Swelling’s back. Since I had 2 sessions, I they believe this swelling’s from the 2nd session. I had to go back on my Corticosteroids in early October and ever since its been such a pain. I have handled it a lot better. I clean my face to make sure I don’t get acne and I try and hydrate my skin to prevent my stretch marks from becoming worse. But the one thing I hate, is the fact that I gained more weight on top of the weight I had already gained. Before I went on Corticosteroids, I pretty much got screwed over by my ex and struggled with my self esteem, so I lost a 20 pounds and felt great about myself. I weighed 160 before I started my Corticosteroids, now I weigh 196 and I feel like complete crap, not to mention my Moon Face/Buffalo Hump are back. Has anyone struggled with this same issue as well? It’s been bothering me. I’ve been trying to tapering down but I have been able to taper down fully in 2 weeks, I’m stuck and it’s been frustrating.

Meds are def an issue

The side effects they cause are a major downer. And, there is no “easy” way out

They change so many things in our body.

Only thing I can say is, do your best - again, I have been extremely lucky. When I came out of my ICU stay, I couldn’t even recognize my own body. I was lucky - it came back fairly quickly

Too bad I’m dealing with a whole other set of health issues now - it’s a struggle, that I think will now be life long.

I have to make myself work out day after day - even with pain(which is thankfully no longer in my head)

I k ow this one is very difficult for me - but, try not to be as hard on yourself either

I just keep asking myself, am I doing the best I can - I think so < that’s all that matters

GL - we all need it!

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