WHY??? Re: Side Effects from VERY Low Dose of Hydrocortisone?

[Guest guest]

Chloe,

Last fall I began taking 5mg.HC in AM and at Lunch, both with meals.

I didn't notice any difference the first two weeks. Week 3 weight

began to melt off of me and each day I had a little more stamina. It

was great.

THEN, week 4, as fast as the weight came off, it went right back on!!!

All 7 pounds. Worse than gaining the weight back, it all went to my

upper abdomen!!! (It's still there, by the way, no matter what I do.)

My stamina was still better on week 4, but I was getting digestive

problems: burping, loss of appetite (not too far from beginning of

nausea). I stayed on it for two more weeks before I quit taking it.

I think my body was trying to tell me something.

What was happenig to me? WHY??? Was I was taking too much HC??? I

still don't know!!! Worse, my doctor had no idea why my body reacted

like it did. Actually, she didn't even believe me when I told her

about the weight loss and then gain and showed her my abdomen!

I hope this helps as this board lets us learn from each other. I'm

glad you began HC slower. How long were you on it when you began your

bad side effects? We all react so differently, don't we.

Homekeeper

>

> When I first started taking HC (2.5 mg in the morning to start), I

> felt better initially--more energy, clearer-headed. Then, per my

> doctor's instructions, I gradually increased dosage so that I was

> taking 2.5 mg twice a day (AM and noon). I felt okay with this

> initially, then added a third dose (mid afternoon). This caused

> horrible insomnia, so I slowly backed down to twice a day again, with

> the last dose at noon. I had been feeling very strange--just not

> right, agitated, my body felt wrong. I've slowly backed my dose down,

> and I'm now only taking 1.25 mg of HC in the morning. I am having

> dizziness, headaches, anxiety, depression, sleep problems, acne,

> water retention, marginal weight gain. I'm confused because my entire

> endocrine system has been a mess for months, but now my progesterone

> and thyroid levels are normal but my estrogen is a little high...so

> I'm having trouble figuring out what is causing which symptoms, and

> I'm in the process of adjusting my other hormone meds. I've been

> working with my doctor, and I'm seeing her this Friday, but I thought

> I would put this out to the group to see if anyone else has had

> negative side effects (primarily the ones I listed above)from such a

> small dose of HC (1.25 mg in the morning). My doctor said I just may

> not be able to tolerate the HC at all, or maybe my adrenals are

> coming back (since my thyroid has normalized while on the same dosage

> of Armour).

>

> I would appreciate any feedback the group can provide. This has been

> such a frustrating time for me, with my body feeling completely out

> of balance. Thank you!

>

> Chloe.

>