Steroids & Incessant Hunger

Careful_with_that_Axe

Has anyone found a way to deal with this? It's really starting to get me down.
It's a real gnawing, almost painful hunger that never seems to go away for more than an hour at a time.

Having never been a big eater, I find I have to "graze" my way through the day and am getting really concerned about possible associated weight gain although I try to eat fruits etc regularly.

Paparika

Been there and it's horrid.

Give in but try to be healthy about it, have a game to do your 5 a day fruit and veg when you are hungry if you can.

The only way i dealt with it was ignore it and that was hard, water to drink to fill your belly up and a nice bowl of special k if desperate.

Good luck, i understand how you feel.

kay74

haven't found any way of making it better I'm afraid (12 years down the line!) However have found that drinking coke/ caffeinated drinks makes me much puffier on my face. I tend to stock up on low cal drinks, munch ice, ice lollies, smoothies etc. On plus side now I do seem to burn quite a lot of calories from being on them, which wasn't he case before. Your body definately settles into them. PM anytime - I've had all the possible side effects!
x

somewhere_sunlight

13 years and counting . . . diet coke/water lol. I was told to try and really concentrate on the food you are eatting , slow down and enjoy it but not to think about planning your next meal but i know it is really hard because of the appetitie the steroids give you . will power is needed which i know is easier said than done. Good luck

Careful_with_that_Axe

Willpower. Now that's something I'm sadly lacking in!
Had lunch in a noodle bar today with my dear old Dad and wondered about that. Make up a batch of noodles in soup and snack. Full of carbs though, but it looks like there's no easy answer.
Did any of the rest of you get huge mouth ulcers that last weeks?
I used to call steroids my magic pills as they were so effective, but having now proved to be allergic to every possible immunosuppresant it looks like I'm stuck with them and the side effects.
Am wondering about trying to get doen to 5mg and then to once every other day.
Thank you so much for your replies and good wishes. I do appreciate it as I don't have a great support network and so it's nice to be able to soundboard.

calleyw

I have just spoken to my husband who has been steroids for the last two years.

He started off at 60mg a day and is now or will be in month down to 5mg :j

I asked him if he feels or felt hungry all the time. He said no but he does not always feel full.

Snacks for him are microwave popcorn, a couple of crumpets, cup a soup and fruit.

I don't want to be too nosy but my ask what I auto-immune condition you suffer from. You don't have to answer if you don't want to. My husbands is Churg -strauss vasculitis

All the best.

Yours


Calley

Careful_with_that_Axe

Calley, not nosy at all! I have Lupus together with Connective Tissue Disease and further complicated by a T-Cell Lymphoma.

calleyw

Careful_with_that_Axe wrote: »

Calley, not nosy at all! I have Lupus together with Connective Tissue Disease and further complicated by a T-Cell Lymphoma.

Don't know much about lupus but it is a massive pain the backside with a auto-immune disease.

And even worse if you are allergic to the drugs that you need to help keep it under control.

I call my husband the funky monkey junkie because of all the meds he takes :rotfl:

It is coming under control which is great. And we are hoping by christmas of next year that he might be off a lot of his meds. Amazing he takes so many just to help with the side effects of others.

These are life long conditions and something I would never wish on my worse enemy.

I do wish you all the best.

I have had another thought about the hunger. What about something like fibresure. It is suppose to add fibre to your diet. You can put it in a glass of water and drink it. I wonder if it would help to keep you feel full up. Or the stuff you take when you are on a diet to make you feel full up.

Take care


Yours


Calley

mum2one

Ice cubes - I end up on steriods about twice a year, with asthma, so Im lucky its a short sharp dose, but they make me feel hungry, I could scoff 24/7.
I use ice cubes or not quite frozen, so you can munch them.

Good luck x

SuziQ

I have experienced this as well,and it is a different type of hunger to normal-very difficult to ignore. I drank fizzy water and tried to take smaller more frequent meals,the other advice already given is great too. It took me almost 2 years to wean off them (I was taking them for severe ulcerative colitis,yet anothe auto-immune disorder)once off them completely I dropped 10lbs in 4 weeks despite the fact I had managed to only gain half a stone,which was also retained fluids.They are life saving drugs but dreadful side effects. There is some talk of steroids without these side effects being very close to being released-what a great leap that will be!
Hope you fel better much soon.

Careful_with_that_Axe

SuziQ wrote: »

I have experienced this as well,and it is a different type of hunger to normal-very difficult to ignore.

Absolutely! I have never experienced anything quite like it!

I had wondered about some fibre type stuff, but would you believe it, I have also had IBS since I was about 16 and I'm 45 now :rolleyes:
I must come from bad gene stock :rotfl:
Silly isn't it that the more serious things are easier to deal with than the niggling things like the hunger and mouth ulcers.

Mu ex-SIL has ulcerative colitis and she has the same probs with steroids.

Off to have some more scrambled egg :rotfl: :rotfl: