Topical Steroid Withdrawal

Skin Update: Skin Cancer and Mohs

2026-08-04T14:29:46.493+00:00

Hi. I know it’s been years since I updated this thing but as anyone who has done through the other side of TSW knows, once the hell is over and you are out there living your life, you don’t really want to look back. Anyway, I thought it was time for a little update as I have had some skin stuff going on, but hopefully not TSW related.

ALSO I just looked at the blog stats and we have passed the million mark! So thank for everyone who has stuck by me and read this little blog over the years, I hope it has helped you.

When I started this, social media wasn’t a big thing like it is now, and it’s thanks to social media that TSW has now become much more well known than it was back in 2011 when I stopped the steroids. I am so glad that the knowledge is out there now and that scientists and dermatologists recognize TSW as a real thing.

Anyway…back to the skin stuff…a few years ago I noticed a little scab by my eye that would not heal. The dermatologists were a bit divided about what it was and it took a long time to get it treated. One dermatologist said it was basal cell, a type of skin cancer. She gave me chemo cream called Efudix that resolved it.

A year later, the blob returned, and because the chemo cream had failed to heal it, I was scheduled for Mohs surgery.

Although I was scared, the surgery was fine. The surgeon and team were amazing and cut out a small area of skin, which had clear margins, so all of the cancer was gone. They then stitched me back up and I’m currently recovering at home, putting Vaseline on the wound daily until it heals.

Like I say, I doubt it’s related the TSW, but PLEASE if you are reading this, this is your reminder to wear sunscreen and a hat, which is something I didn’t do as I thought the sun was good for my skin!

All’s well that ends well. I should try and check in here more and I am sorry for the radio silence, but post TSW life really is good and I don’t have as much time for the blog as I used to.

My archives are still here for anyone curious about the TSW healing process.

Love to all, and here’s to the next million page views!

New TSW Website by Briana Banos

2022-11-19T08:56:00.002+00:00

Hi TSW community! I know I don’t update this very often, but I wanted to let people know about an amazing resource from TSW veteran Briana Banos. She has just started her own website about all things TSW and it is full of useful information.

Most in the TSW community will know of Briana but for anyone new to this, she has been an active TSW advocate for about 8 years now. She was the first person to create and produce a documentary about TSW called Preventable, which you can watch on YouTube. It’s a must-see for anyone interested in topical steroid withdrawal.

Anyway, get on over to her shiny new website and take a look!

https://brianabanos.com/

Reopening my TSW archive

2022-05-11T15:05:00.008+00:00

Hi folks. Back in 2016 I closed this blog down and archived all of the posts.

It was a difficult decision at the time. The blog was at the peak of its popularity and there was clearly a great demand for information about TSW. People may have thought me selfish to close down something that was such an important resource to people going through TSW. However, I had my reasons.

I'd healed from TSW and no longer wanted to be a part of that world. I quit the TSW forums, quit blogging and shut everything down. I didn't want to be reminded of that painful part of my life. I was healed. My skin was normal again and I felt well. Life went on and I got a wonderful job which I love, and was able to enjoy time with my family.

In the TSW community, an inspirational new generation of people ran with the baton and continued the work that ITSAN started. Social media allowed awareness of TSW to spread to a much bigger audience than we could have ever dreamed of. Documentaries were created, TSW was featured on TV and in the news. It was even recognised by the medical establishment and main eczema charities; something we had worked so hard for back in the early days.

So I felt my work was done. In the 6 years since I closed the blog, I have continued to thrive post-TSW. Life is good.

However, I still felt a little selfish having archived all the info on here. I spent a LOT of hours creating this blog and it seems a shame to have it mothballed for eternity.

Sooooo...I made the decision to reopen the archives. Bear with me while I do it please. I need to check over a lot of the old posts and also check that the links still work, so it may take time. (*UPDATE all old posts have now been checked and uploaded. The complete blog archive is here.)

I want people to be able to see that TSW is something that had an END for me and that might give you hope if you are suffering. Its what I would have wanted to know when I started this journey back in November 2011.

Closing the blog down for 6 years was the right thing to do at the time. It enabled me to enjoy my newfound health and distance myself from the suffering I'd been through.

But now its time to reopen the doors and welcome friends old and new.

The gates are back open. Welcome back.

Huffington Post Article on Topical Steroid Withdrawal

2016-03-16T07:54:00.001+00:00

Sometimes we just need a blast of positivity to help us through the hard times. That is why this Huffington Post article is so lovely. It lists a bunch of positive things about TSW. I'm not sure that I'd ever describe TSW as "awesome," but maybe it would help our collective mindset if we started thinking that way!

I did have to laugh at the part about smelling good, though. Anyone who has caught even a tiny whiff of TSW ooze in their nostrils after a sweaty, unsettled night will definitely wonder what that one is all about. Maybe it's time to invest in some clove oil...

Let's all be inspired by the article and try and be a bit more positive today. It will do our minds and our bodies good.

Big Pharma Make Big Profits

2016-02-24T09:43:00.002+00:00

I saw an interesting article in the Daily Mail today about the underhanded methods employed by the big pharmaceutical companies in order to maximise profits.

Of course, those of us going through TSW will be more than aware of this!

You can read the article here.

Insomnia Part 1: Kalms Night Review

2016-02-22T14:24:00.001+00:00

Most people with Red Skin Syndrome will have likely experienced insomnia at some point during their steroid withdrawal. This is likely because of the link between the stress hormone cortisol and sleep. Long term use of steroid drugs interferes with our HPA axis and could explain why insomnia is so common in TSW patients.

In normal people, the cortisol levels are lowest around midnight and highest about 8 am. This promotes a healthy night's sleep. When our natural rhythm is disturbed, problems can occur.

I bought a fitness tracker back in December and one of its functions is recording my sleep patterns. I immediately noticed a recurring pattern with my sleep cycle. It takes me a long time to get to sleep, even if I go to bed early. I dont usually fall asleep until about 11:30 pm. I then go into a very deep sleep for an hour or so, followed by a light, broken sleep. At around 3-4 a.m. I wake up and them I'm wide awake for an hour or more. I'm usually hungry too, which I believe is due to low blood sugar levels. I then drop off again and enter a really deep sleep cycle, which is unfortunate, as it coincides with when I have to wake up. When the alarm goes off, I'm really tired and shaky. If I don't set the alarm, I will have a deep sleep cycle between about 5-8:30 a.m. and then wake up. So basically my sleep cycle is the wrong way around.

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to be trying different things to help my insomnia. The first thing I've tried are Kalms Night tablets which cost about £5 for 50 pills. They contain valerian root extract as the main ingredient.

I was surprised that the nightly dose was 4 tablets. This means that each pack only has enough pills for 12 nights. The tablets were sugar coated and easy to swallow and tasted pleasant.

I have nearly finished the pack and haven't noticed any difference in my sleep pattern. The fitness tracker data confirms that my patterns have been exactly the same as when I don't use the tablets.

Therefore the Kalms Night tablets didn't work for me, unfortunately.

Back to the drawing board. I'll be trying more remedies soon in the hope of finding the elusive cure for my insomnia.

On the plus side, my skin is REALLY good right now, but more on that in another post!

The Dangers of Steroid Cream Addiction in the News

2016-01-24T19:32:00.004+00:00

I was glad to see another Daily Mail article featuring TSW today.

A lot of people in the TSW community will know Jake And Libby and their amazing story of Jake's full recovery from dependence on steroid creams. It's a great reminder that it is possible to heal from this condition and that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Thank you so much Libby and Jake for all that you do in raising awareness!

Topical Steroid Abuse in Taiwan

2016-01-22T16:11:00.002+00:00

In Taiwan, even the most potent steroid creams are available over the counter without a prescription and this is causing big problems for dermatologists who have to deal with the aftermath.

Since a reporting system was set up, hospitals were reporting over 500 cases of topical steroid abuse a month, according to Focus Taiwan News.

We are thankful that organisations like ITSAN exist to support these people through what is likely to be an horrific withdrawal phase.

New Medications for Eczema in the Pipeline

2016-01-20T08:25:00.003+00:00

Now that the medical community are becoming more aware of the dangers of steroid rebound, many new and exciting innovations are taking place within the pharmaceutical industry. Targeted medication seems to be the new buzz-word and is generating a lot of interest.

The NEA recently featured an article about a targeted medication that has the potential to change lives. I like the fact that the article actually mentions steroid rebound as a bad side effect of steroid medication.

Wouldn't it be great if these new, targeted medicines became the standard treatment for eczema and steroid creams became a thing of the past? Maybe it's a long way off, but I live in hope. It would be so good if the next generation didn't have to suffer the way that we have from overuse of steroid creams.

Cold Weather Hives

2016-01-11T13:44:00.001+00:00

I'm going to write about weather-induced allergy today because it is something that affected me badly when I was using steroids.

Back when I used strong steroids on my face, my face became very sensitive to external stimuli. One problem that I had was whenever I would go outside in cold weather, my face would break out in hives. At first, it was just one or two spots, but after prolonged steroid use, the welts got really bad. It became a big problem for me in winter, as I would have to walk my children to and from school, which would result in a messed-up face most days.

Anyway, as readers will know, I've been off steroid creams for 4 years now. I'm on a bit of a fitness kick to lose all the weight I put on during that time (I lost 7lbs already!) and I went for a walk this morning. I walked several miles in the cold, January UK weather and suddenly something occurred to me. My face wasn't itchy. I didn't have hives. The arctic wind was blasting my face and my face was ok!

I find this sort of progress really encouraging. Cold induced hives were a big problem for me for such a long time and they have vanished over time without me even noticing. This must mean that my skin is getting stronger. I'm not fully healed yet, but this is a really big step for me. I dont have to fear the cold any more!

I'd love to know if anyone else has ever had this problem. Has the weather ever affected your skin? Did you think that steroid creams were to blame? Has you skin improved since stopping steroids? Please share your experiences.

Daily Mail Features Story on TSW

2015-12-08T15:16:00.004+00:00

Thanks brave Laura for sharing your story and raising awareness. I love that TSW has been in the news so much lately. The world needs to know about this!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-3350782/Eczema-patient-spent-20-hours-day-bath-soothe-flaking-skin-suffering-severe-reaction-stopped-using-steroid-creams.html

Observations on my Moisturiser Withdrawal Regime

2015-11-30T11:03:00.000+00:00

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about my desire to give moisturiser withdrawal another try, even though I'd struggled with it in the past. The reason for this was because I found that my skin was reacting to everything and needed a break.

I'm trying to follow Dr Sato's guidelines strictly, as he has had proven success using this method with his TSW patients. He has quite a strict interpretation of what constitutes moisturiser use so I'm using the Sato method to the best of my ability.

These are some of Sato's rules:

No cosmetics: Not an issue for me, as I haven't worn any makeup in a couple of years.

No moisturisers at all: I've been a good girl and followed this to the letter.

No long soaks in the bath: I've been a bit naughty with this because I do love a long bath and my other vice is that I like my water hot. I redeemed myself a little by having a full bath as infrequently as possible and just wiping over my skin with plain water or Epsom soap to maintain good hygiene.

No picking scabs: I'm getting better at this one and it's REALLY important. It's so tempting to pick a scab or a big skin flake, but it does you no favours, the skin underneath is usually raw and wet and the whole process will start again. Leave it alone! My biggest problem is scratching off scabs and flakes in my sleep. I don't really have much control over that.

In conclusion, I've been pretty good following Sato's regime and I'm pleased to say that even as early as two weeks in, I'm seeing results! The redness is largely gone and skin flares seem shorter in duration. The large skin flakes have been replaced with smaller ones, which make the skin look a little dry, but not blotchy or red. It's a fair compromise.

The downside is the itch, which can be bad at night and sometimes I damage my skin in my sleep. Hopefully this will be less of an issue with time.

The plus side is the improvement in my skin and the savings I'm making on skin products!

So those are my observations, two weeks into MW. I'm not going to lecture anyone or make people feel bad about moisturising, as the decision to moisturise is a very personal one. If moisturisers are helping your TSW then do what you need to for comfort. However, in my case my skin was reacting to absolutely everything, so this was a signal to stop. My experience with MW this time round has been very different to when I tried it in 2013. It was really horrible then and my skin was cracked and bleeding. This time round, my skin seemed ready for it and discomfort has been minimal.

4 years in and this is a new phase for me. Maybe a final push toward healing.

4 Year Anniversary Post

2015-11-23T10:29:00.001+00:00

Well I finally made it 4 years into TSW.

Sadly, I'm not healed. I thought I would be by now, but I'm not.

On the positive side, TSW isn't really preventing me from doing anything. I can do jobs, go out and day trips and socialise. My skin isn't in such a terrible state that it holds me back in any way.

On the downside, it's still far from perfect. The moisturiser withdrawal is helping a lot and my skin isn't in an active flare, but it doesn't look completely normal. It's still dry and blotchy with uneven tone.

The last year has been a hard one for me in TSW, as my progress seemed to go backwards rather than forwards. Back at the 21 month point my skin was almost perfect, but months 37-48 have been much harder and that has been hard to deal with psychologically.

At 4 years in, I thought I'd have all the answers, but I seem to have more questions! I form a hypothesis and believe it and then something blows it out of the water and changes everything.

I know TSW is not as simple or linear as I expected it to be in the beginning. I expected gradual improvement and progress, but my progress has been all over the place. Why? I have no idea, but everyone else seems to be the same too.

I read that Dr Rapaport has reported seeing longer healing times in his patients due to increased usage of potent steroids in recent years. What we thought would be a 12-18 month healing process can take 5-7 years, maybe more, who knows?

I remain strangely optimistic, even at 4 years in. TSW is not so unbearable that I can't cope and I'm grateful for that. I read a story recently of someone who healed completely at the 5 year mark, so maybe this time next year I will be done with this.

I usually make a big deal of my anniversary posts by writing a special blogpost or writing a month by month analysis of the preceding year. I think I will be more understated this time round. I feel like I've already said everything that needs to be said.

My big goal this coming year will be converting from my current steroid inhaler to a cromolyn preventer. I don't know whether my doctor will let me do this yet, and I'm not even going to attempt it until the weather improves, as winter is a tough time for me. I scared that being completely steroid free may put me into a secondary withdrawal, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

I probably won't be blogging much over the coming year; just the odd photo update and any news that happens to be of interest.

I'm sure that opponents of TSW will be taking this opportunity to have a good laugh at my expense and consider me a lunatic for persisting for 4 years with no immediate resolution in sight. I couldn't care less what they think. I'm glad to be off the steroid creams and it doesn't bear thinking about the amount of tubes I would have gotten though in the last 4 years if I hadn't stopped when I did. That has to be better for my long term health than being dependent on the 'roids. Has it been tough? Yes, at times, but most the time my skin has just been stagnant and not too much bother. I'm happy with the decision I made and I remain determined to be steroid free, whether I eventually heal or not.

Best wishes to everyone going through this. Here's hoping that the coming year will bring increased awareness in the medical community and doctors will stop being so quick to prescribe steroid cream as the answer to everything.

Going to Give Moisturiser Withdrawal Another Try

2015-11-15T16:13:00.001+00:00

I feel lucky inasmuch as I've been able to tolerate moisturisers throughout most of my TSW process. In the early days, this was a real lifeline to me and enabled me to cope with everyday situations with more confidence. I was able to use a variety of oils and creams with no adverse effects at all.

HOWEVER...all that seems to have changed recently. It started with my beloved hemp cream, that I've used as the main cream during withdrawal. Suddenly my skin started to react badly to it and itch terribly when I applied it. Over the following months I had the same result with all moisturisers. It seems to be a type of hypersensitivity reaction.

Therefore, I have decided to give moisturiser withdrawal another go. I tried it a while back and didn't like it, but I feel like I have no choice now as creams feel horrible on my skin. I know that Dr Fukaya said that hives and sensitivity were a sign of final healing, so maybe this is the last push before my skin heals completely. It's actually not feeling too bad right now and I'm preferring the dry feeling to the itchy wet feeling.

According to Tommys Skin of Rose blog, Dr Sato says that: 'moisturisers' here mean using emollients, creams, lotions, oils, thick bandages, staying in bed all day, taking a long/frequent bath, make-up, picking up scabs, wiping off ooze and drinking too much water. I hope to follow this as strictly as I can, although I do love a long bath!

I'd appreciate feedback from anyone who has tried MW, especially if you have any tips. This is all new for me, so voices of experience are welcome.

I'll be posting an update soon, especially as I'm near my 4 year anniversary.

Best wishes to all.

Steroid Cream in the News...Again.

2015-11-13T14:01:00.002+00:00

Well done my husband for spotting another article about steroid withdrawal in today's Daily express.

When he read it, he said "her hands look like yours!"

The poor lady was using 12 tubes of steroid a WEEK, which her doctor seemed quite happy to prescribe. Thank goodness she managed to get off them.

Wishing her a speedy recovery.

Itsan Representatives Attend Major Dermatology Conference

2015-10-19T17:19:00.000+00:00

Itsan was pleased to announce that two of its members got to attend a four-day conference run by the American Academy of Dermatology Association. During the conference they got to speak to many dermatologists, a large portion of whom had not heard of Red Skin Syndrome and Topical Steroid addiction. They received a number of business cards from dermatologists keen to learn more about the condition.

You can learn more about the AADA conference here.

Itsan Forum Reaches 3000 Members!

2015-10-14T10:08:00.000+00:00

I just logged on today to see that the Itsan forum membership is now 3002 and rising every day. We have come such a long way in such a short time.

I'm also pleased to see that the main TSW discussion group on Facebook is almost at 5000 members and there are other, smaller discussion groups on there too, as well as dedicated areas on the British skin foundation forum, talk health and eczema voice websites, to name but a few.

This is in addition to over 100 blogs on the subject of topical steroid withdrawal. Everyone who has contributed to the discussions online has helped get the information out there. The good news is that our collective shout-out has now got the medical community paying attention and doctors are starting to get on board and take us seriously.

Let's keep the discussion going, people. The word is getting out but there are SO many more people who need to be reached. When TSW is recognised by medical professionals worldwide as a real medical condition, we can be proud that we had a part in telling the world about this terrible affliction.

Guest Blog Post: Visit to Dr Sato

2015-10-09T06:34:00.004+00:00

The following post has been copied directly from the Itsan forum with kind permission of the author. I thought it would help a lot of people so have reproduced the post in its entirety here for you all to read. Many thanks to the author for sharing this valuable information with us:

Hello everyone,

I've been waiting to make this post, I don't know if it'll be helpful but I decided, every information and experience counts.

A month and a half ago, I visited Dr.Sato in Osaka, Japan.
I was 17 months into starting TSW, and was flaring almost as bad (about 90%) as my first flare since TSW started. I needed some answers to see if I was on the right path. I only found out about itsan a month before the visit and I was not getting enough understanding or support from my family that I was going through steroid withdrawal. I understand that they were as confused as I am and didn't want to see me suffer anymore, so they wanted me to go back on steroids and that's what led me to Japan.

I initially inquired Dr. Fukaya about visiting his clinic, but he had referred me to Dr.Sato with compliments that he is Japan's number 1 leading expert in TSW. I understood this as Dr. Fukaya is not a practicing dermatologist anymore. I called the Hannan Chuo Hospital in Osaka to book an appointment and it was not that difficult to get through to speak with Dr.Sato. I was booked for seeing him two weeks later. I had my father accompany me to see him, hoping he can also get a check up with the doctor (as he is also a dermatitis sufferer).

The staff's at the Hannan Chuo Hospital were amazing. They were very kind and polite and even with their limited use of english, we were guided through our administrative procedures very well. Dr. Sato speaks good english so I had no problem communicating with him. I was the first international patient to visit him, and I found out later that he made extra time to speak with me to answer all my questions. I did not know that he had seen all the Japanese patients first in the morning and left the afternoon time available to our consultation.
He is a kind man, and he knows how to listen and speak his thoughts carefully. I could tell this because he would always pause in thought before answering my questions.

After blood test and urine test, I waited in the waiting room and I saw quite a few amount of men and women who looked like they were obviously going through a steroid withdrawal. Some were severe, some looked liked typical eczema cases. It was heart wrenching to see a baby and a boy going through the most severe withdrawal, their entire body was red, bloody and full of scabs. The dermatology department of the hospital admits patients who are specifically going through steroid withdrawal.

When he saw me I was already at a 80% healed state from the outside. I showed him the steroid history he had initially requested and some photos documented in a timeline.

The first thing he said to me was "You have no skin lesions, you are not eczema".
Ofcourse my father was dumbfounded. He observed my face and arms and said that my symptoms were not the traditional eczema patches. I knew this as well as my symptoms arose in a different form - as nummular eczema patches. They clear up with no dry patches, but they come back fast. Month before, I still had red skin syndrome on my face though, that was typical- oozing, red overall or as if a map is drawn on my face and burning.
He said he has seen some of his Japanese patients with the same symptoms, however one thing clear was that it was due to too much steroid usage.
After looking at my blood test and urine test, he said I was very very healthy. All my blood test and urine test came out normal. I accredit it to all the healthy diet and exercise I have been doing and a very stress free life (not working). He also had asked me if I had eczema as child hood and I said never until 27. He then asked my father if he had applied any steroids on me as young child, but he and my mother confirmed that there were no steroid usage as child .

He said I will get better, but did not say how long it will take to heal. "It will take a long, time. The skin will heal surely but (for some) slowly, getting better with time!"

I don't know how helpful it will be but I will write down the question list I have asked (I was rushed to finishing the questions quick as we were concerned that we were holding back a lot of other patients). I wished that I asked him more scientific details of the effects steroid does to our skin and why it takes so much time to recover but I figured that this whole thing is still in preliminary stages of research and hard to pinpoint so I did not ask any further.

TSW and Symptoms

1. How do you define end of TSW?
- After 5 years of normal skin after the last rebound.

2. Should I use mositurizers?
- No moisturizers, no shampoo and no body wash. Shower only 3 times a week as water acts as a moisturizer. Exercising is recommended as sweat keeps your skin moist. Females should wear make up only when needed, once a month (eyebrows, and lips only).

3. Would it be okay to go on immunosuppressants or allergy shots?
- No, immunosuppressant is dangerous and allergy shots would not help as it does not prevent rebound reactions from steroid withdrawal.

4. I feel like our body remembers the worst its been during a rebound and always has a potential to relapse. Is this true?
- Yes, using steroids on a 3 month old for a few days can cause the skin to remember what it was like whilst using it, it can remember for rest of life.

5. I have taken traditional chinese medicine and I feel like it worsened my symptoms. What do you think?
- I tell my Japanese patients not to use tcm as some practitioners use ingredients that imitate steroids. It only delays healing.

6. I took antifungal medicine for toe nail fungus called sporanox, does this interfere with steroid withdrawal?
- It is ok. (He prescribed me antifungal liquid, which I did not use)

7. I have been eating all vegan diet and no gluten for over a year. Does diet matter? and how about detoxing through sweating / exercising?
- Diet does not matter. You must eat some fats and proteins as they are necessary for forming new skin cells, a balanced diet should be good, however junk food would obviously not be good. I always tell my Japanese patients to exercise as it will help the skin to retain moisture. Sweating excessively does not help heal faster.

8. I have a list of substances I am allergic to- found by contact dermatitis and blood test. Do these contribute to my rebounds? (I found that I have allergies to emulsifying agents and solubilizing agents found in topical steroids and antibiotics, and vaccine preservatives)
- If you did have reaction to these you would have papules and bumps right now, but by observing your skin patterns and its clear periods, you do not have severe allergies to these substances.

9. This condition is so hard to bear with and hard to keep a working life. When do you think the skin is stable enough to deal with certain stress levels at work?
-Once The severe steroid withdrawal symptoms are over you should continue to do easy work. It is better for psychological health as some people become depressed or over-stressed with skin if they are not distracted by work.

10. How do you deal with the oozing?
- Leave the ooze to dry and crust over. The ooze contains elements needed to help underlying skin recover faster. Do not pick on scabs.

11. How do you know the steroid withdrawal is officially ended?
- There is no way to know until you die. It is also the same with not knowing you were on the path to addiction in the beginning.
Small portion of the large population will not get addicted to steroids to the amount you have used and they will be okay to continue using them, but you have been addicted which is why you are going through irregular skin symptoms.

Additional questions I really wanted to ask was:

1. After a year of steroid withdrawal, if the patient decides to use steroid again for few days to a week, does this bring back the steroid withdrawal process back to the beginning?

2. Is it better that for people who were not as strongly addicted to steroids to keep using them sparingly until the symptoms diminish over the years?

If anyone has any information on these questions please let me know :)

He prescribed me some antihistamines, I guess it's the best he could do. But I have not taken them since. I still am trying to go drug free through out the rest of my steroid withdrawal!

Dr. Sato believes that the fastest way to healing is to leave the skin untouched (unless it is severely infected). No additional baths, oils / moisturizers, sweating or even diet to recover.

He also showed me photos of people who went through extreme withdrawals- huge bloody scabs on face to the point it was hard to recognize the appearance, but all of them recovered back to normal skin conditions. He calls such reactions a good sign, that the body is trying to recover.

I know I have used steroids more than my body can handle even if other doctors say its not enough to be addicted. The amount of antibiotic courses I have taken and other mixed medicines have made my immune system low and made my body susceptible to addiction so I am now paying the price. If only we could gauge the steroid bucket inside us, it is true and a fact that this addiction must be closely monitored by a professional who will prescribe the drug!

As for now I suppose I will keep my routines, keeping a constant diet and intake supplements that would hopefully give my body the boost it needs to keep recovering.

Stay strong everyone, you will spring forward, much further than you imagine.

Big Improvements at Last!

2015-10-05T09:27:00.000+00:00

Just a quick update to show everyone my improvement photos, as my last post was a bit depressing. Since then, things have been on the up and I've seen a lot of improvements in my skin.

I'm not sure what to attribute the improvements to, as flares can come and go and sometimes we can make links and connections that aren't really causes. However, I will mention a few things that MIGHT be the cause of my improvement:

Time (ha ha! I'm almost 46 months in now!)
Quercetin. I've been taking 2 tablets daily. Its a natural antihistamine.
Vitamin D. I'm back to megadosing on the D now that the weather is darker.
Sun. Its been surprisingly sunny here in the UK for the time of year.
Lower dose of steroid inhaler and using a spacer to prevent the steroid touching my skin. I also rinse my mouth afterward.

So here are my photos. I tried to get them as close to last months positions as I could to allow easy comparison:

I'm still not perfect, but I'm really happy with how much better my skin looks and feels compared to when I last blogged.

Hope everyone sees improvements in their skin soon. Keep soldiering on, folks!

Photo Update at 45 Months

2015-09-10T09:02:00.000+00:00

Nothing too exciting to report, I'm afraid. My skin seems to have settled into on/off flaring cycles in an almost weekly basis, so I never know quite how my skin will be on any given day.

Today was lucky. After a few mornings of waking up with a wet neck, I was blessedly dry this morning.

My worst areas are my hands, which are always incredibly dry and itchy. I'm currently doing moisturiser withdrawal on them as dry and ashy is feeling better than red and swollen right now.
My neck is also a super bad area, with lots of oozing. Thank goodness for silk scarves and hair bobbles. Made the mistake of wearing my hair down to the shops and it was all stuck to my neck when I got home.

My face isn't too bad. Just ashy round the mouth area. I've also scratched a big graze into my jawline.

Here are my pics.

Old lady's hand!

Ashy chin.

Creased neck.

Despite this, I'm able to get out and about and live my life. I've been on a few big days out recently, including theme parks. It's hard, but that's TSW for you.

Cant believe I will be 4 years off steroid creams in November. I'm still on low-dose steroids for my asthma, so sometimes question whether I am actually in true TSW, or just bubbling under. My asthma is really bad right now, so I've no negotiating room with my doctor to get off the steroid at the moment. In the summer, when my asthma improves, I will ask the asthma nurse about the possibility of the non-steroidal preventers.

I'm currently using quercetin and vitamin C as well as vitamin D in the hope of helping symptoms, although I've yet to see any benefit from either.

Daily Mail Article About Steroid Addiction

2015-08-31T18:16:00.003+00:00

Today's Daily Mail features the story of a lady who was hospitalised after suffering a bad reaction from steroid creams. The article mentions Itsan too.

Let's get the word out there. Please leave comments on the article and encourage people to visit the Itsan site.

Vicks Vaporub for Eczema and Topical Steroid Withdrawal

2015-08-24T11:32:00.001+00:00

My hands have been off-the-scale bad the last few weeks. They just peel constantly, with no nice layer of skin underneath; just more peeling flesh. In my desperation I've taken to slathering my hands in thick ointment and applying tubular bandage on the top to try and seal in the moisture and get some relief.

I'd been using the Robertsons eczema cream, which was helping a lot, but I'm now running low and really can't afford any more due to the high cost of postage and the customs charges (hopefully it will be available in UK soon), so I'm back to using Vaseline right now as it seems to be the thing that irritates me least. I would love to be able to do moisturiser withdrawal on my hands, but when I try I get deep bleeding fissures, so I really am dependent on the gooey stuff for now.

Anyway, during my research I found a forum thread about a man who used Vicks Vaporub on his eczema and it cleared it up. I also found a few references on the Itsan forum of users who swear by the stuff. There is no way I would have ever considered using Vicks on my eczema, as I just presumed that it would sting like crazy.

It's cheap enough to buy though, so I thought a little experimentation wouldn't harm and got myself a nice big tub of Vicks for about £4 from the supermarket. It's slightly runnier in texture than Vaseline so seems to be easier to apply. After a few seconds, WHAM! I felt an icy cold tingle in my hands. It didn't sting at all. It was lovely. It felt so refreshing and cool. My itch vanished. It tingled cool on my hands for several minutes. I felt like I had Elsa's ice powers.

I've had no adverse reaction or allergy to the Vicks and I really like the way it feels on my skin, especially how it kills the itch dead. For now, it's another useful tool in my TSW armoury and I'm thankful that it was mentioned on he Itsan forum. Hopefully it will give my hands a break, as I'm getting really fed up of not being able to use them properly. I've not had hands like this in the whole of my TSW journey so far, so I don't know what's going on.

Anyone else tried Vicks and found it helpful?

Topical Steroid Addiction in the News Again

2015-08-14T18:37:00.001+00:00

Isaiah's story made the news here in the UK. Thanks for sharing his story and raising awareness of the dangers of steroid creams. He's doing well now and his whole family is such an inspiration to me.

Read his story here.

New Scholarly Article About Topical Steroid Addiction

2015-08-01T22:10:00.000+00:00

As this phenomenon becomes more widely known, more new articles are being published all of the time, adding to the growing body of evidence about the dangers of topical steroid overuse.

This article is published by the Japanese Journal of Dermatology and discusses the rebounding triad of severe itching, dryness and burning following the discontinuation of topical steroids on the face.

You can read the abstract here.

More Pictures of Healed and Healing People

2015-07-27T07:00:00.003+00:00

Thanks my boy Isaiah for keepin' it real and showing us all that we CAN heal from TSW!!!

Isaiah and superheroes 1: Scratchy Monster 0.

Click to see topical steroid recovery photos.