this is me too. It's beyond frustrating. You will take a lower dose of hydrocortisone, but still feel the effects. It helped my intense muscle pain, but the combo of hypothyroid and adrenal fatigue is hell. I was a very competitive triathlete, now I just train like one but all my speed is long gone. And I undereat (have for years) and still gain.
I am the same. Take Cortef 3x a day for the last two years and the scale is just continually creeping up. I crave salt like the dickens. Not in potato chip form but in pickles!!! I can easily eat the whole jar of pickles with the juice. I eat quite healthy otherwise. I work out 4 times a week with a mix of weights and cardio. I'm ready to jump off a cliff. I work damn hard at the gym!!!!! I tried weight watchers but my stomach felt hollow and empty and just growled for most of the day. I also ended up with my blood sugar bottoming out then too. Not cool!!!!
hello, thank you for your precious info about the hydrocortisone quantity. My cortisol in the body is 54 at 9am then measured in hospital in the afternoon was 200. I don t know but I can t even stand up or walk and got swollen like a baloon without hydrocortisone because metabolism doesn t work at all, I have also a total thyrodoctomy and I take 125micrograms syntroid. Doctors put me on 100mg hydrocortisone tablet which made me better but killed me I look like a monster with a pig head. Just wanted to ask you in which form you the take the growth hormone and who prescribed it? thanks simona monica
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I feel the same way!!! No energy left to do anything.
Thank you for everyone who posted here. I came here looking for some kind of answer to lose weight while on cortef. And while I did not get a direct answer , just reading this post is giving me renewed hope.
Hi I have been on the same meds since June. Gain 25 pounds, and I ate it. I try everything and nothing works.
Dr days I have to take it for the rest of my life. Any suggestions?
Dr days I have to take it for the rest of my life. Any suggestions?
Hi guys I to have Addison's disease have and for 11 years now. Put 4 stone on then managed to lose 1 1/2 stone. After fighting the weight for years I then managed to lose another 1 stone 2 lbs which I have put on again. It's a long fight folks keep at it don't give up. We are alive and healthy now that is the main thing.
I am! I lost weight but then put it back on again. After two years I was in need of the fludrocortisone. My blood pressure dropped, I felt megga depressed and dizzy. I now have more random skin pigmentation. I've been on the fludro along with everything else for a few weeks and I'm feeling a little better, though I'm struggling with weight loss. As one thing was off it has affected my thyroid even though I was on Thyroxin. I really advise going for regular blood tests, drinking lots of water and be careful of starchy foods like potatoes.
I feel that once Addison's Disease is diagnosed and steroids are prescribed then that's it as far as Drs are concerned, there's no emotional support even though your mind turns somersaults and there is no physical support to help with weight loss. Its a horrible disease and I don't feel it's given the respect it deserves from Drs. I have had this and 5 other conditions for 20 years and every day is a battle.
I too have Primary Addisons and I am on 12.5mg Hydrocortisone a day...I have had to drop down my Fludrocortisone to 0.25mcg as my blood pressure became very high, my blood pressure is a lot better but still high so maybe will have to stop Fludro althogether. I still have a lot of belly fat though and my diet is basically Rice Veg chicken/Fish and no sugar no bread, I have milk in tea and plenty of water and that is it..Boring as hell my diet and even though I have lost weight It is impossible to get rid of the tummy fat :( so frustrating. Actually my blood pressure is fab in the mornings before any meds 101/68 and goes up on standing to 114/73... I have been told that my Hydrocortisone medication is low for an Addisonian but I feel fine on it.. I broke my foot back in November and then had a severe ear infection and I didnt have to take any extra medication as I have a BP monitor at home so I keep a check that my BP dont drop..
Sarah, I am a primary Addisonian too (5 years) and a pharmacist. I disagree that your hydrocortisone dose is too low - it may not be. I take 7.5-10mg daily, have never had a crisis (knock on wood) and function well. I am also 53 years old, post-menopausal and hypothyroid, so my baseline physiological parameters may be quite different than yours. The key for me is making sure I get enough sleep. 7.5 to 10mg HC per day is where I feel my best and can maintain weight, and we all have a responsibility to find our 'best dose' (ideally with the help of an expert endocrinologist). If I do attempt to increase the dose, even by 2.5mg, I gain abdominal weight and generally don't feel as well. Steroids change the way our bodies metabolize energy. Unfortunately endocrinologists don't warn us about the weight issue when we are diagnosed. We get to discover that on our own...
I have Addison,s disease, thyroid disease and type one diabetes. I saw always very slim but now I have no control over my weight. I don't have any energy, I have to pace myself so depressing. I see old friends and they are shocked. I live in vancouver canada wish there was a support group as I have no one to talk to. My health rules my life. The addison makes my diabetes go crazy. I am in hospital every few months. I hate it.
Ah that's great to know thank you ..now I know my dose isn't to low as the doctors keep on at me all the time..my tummy fat well hopefully adjusting my dose will help even more
Hi its SarahP again,
Sorry I meant to ask in my last reply, how do you distribute your 10mg through the day do you take a morning and evening dose?? I am 51 and post -menopausal and Hypothyroid also.I take one dose in the morning and the last dose about 5pm.
Sorry I meant to ask in my last reply, how do you distribute your 10mg through the day do you take a morning and evening dose?? I am 51 and post -menopausal and Hypothyroid also.I take one dose in the morning and the last dose about 5pm.
Hi Sarah, I take HC 5mg in the morning, 2.5mg @ lunch & 2.5mg late afternoon. Be careful when adjusting your dose. You don't want to precipitate a crisis. If your health has been good and no near crises, then maybe try cutting back by 2.5mg for a few days to see how you feel. If you feel worse, you will need to up it again. And don't expect that belly fat to melt away - it's crazy-stubborn once it's nestled in. Weigh yourself weekly and try to keep it in check. Doctors will err on the side of caution to avoid a crisis in their patient, so they like to see us take a little more steroid than we might need. They feel our weight gain is a small price to pay to keep us out of the hospital and breathing. I think we can avoid both weight gain and crisis if we can find our best doses. Of course during extreme stress, we still need to up-dose. Good luck!