Why cant i stop my steroid tremendously?!
Question:
Why cant i stop my steroid tremendously?
im under steroid therapy due to crohns.it had bring lot of incoveniences on me.terrible acne, a very sensitive skin,mood swing, great appetite that made me put up about 13kg of my weight.i feel so embarassed of my condition that make me feel like giving up the treatment.but my doc said if i stop it suddenly, the complication will be much more than i have now.why is it so?what will happen if keep doing my thought other than facing the flare up back??i know the steroids that im taking supprest the natural steroid produced by my body but then what are actually its function.what its like if we dont have any steroid at all in our body.
Answers:
I'm guessing that you're on prednisone. This resembles the body's hormone cortisol. It is a potent anti-inflammatory - common in treatment for Crohn disease.
When you're on the higher doses (esp. 20mg or more) it suppresses your own cortisol production, and if you stop abruptly, your body won't be making the amount of cortisol it was prior to the steroid therapy, so you need to taper the dosing over a period of 1-4 weeks, depending on the prior steroid dose and how long you've been taking it.
Steroids are great for Crohn disease, but if you have to take it long-term, the side effects start causing problems. If you need long-term suppression, you should probably look into something like Asacol - it's not a steroid.