Side Effects Of Cortisone Injections

Oh... i was in the hospital for a few days...Major panic attacks.. little or no sleep no eat.. for 6 weeks.. we were freekin poisoned. but... you will be ok... its 4 months later.. experiencing only a little anxiety.... once or twice a week.. not a big deal at all. life is good now. You WILL get better with time!!!

I posted on here about 7 months ago about the coritsone shot I recieved in my shoulder. I have since started getting better. It will be a year in another week. Yes a whole year! 

I have been put through the ringer. For someone who was never sick I have experienced the oddest and scariest symptoms. Night sweats, burning mouth, vicks vapor taste in mouth and facial twitches. toes turning blue, side pain, eye twitching, facial tight feeling, leg cramps. You name it! I have endured it. And yes the anxiety was horrid. 

I was made to feel like a nut job. I have under gone a spinal tap, mris and cat scans. No one would admit it was the cortisone. Although all this happened 3 days after. I was given the 80mg of Depo Medrol to the right shoulder. Then they gave me predisone to take, only took it for three days, side effects were terrible. 

Some tried to give me anti depressants, they thought I was crazy! I went to work everyday feeling like I was slowly dying.

The night sweats stopped after 8 or 9 months, the leg cramps subsided and I am now riding my horse again. I have however been left with a odd feeling in my top lip and the on again off again of the vick vapor rub taste(this drives me nuts) and the tight feeling in the side of my face. 

I am convinced it was the shot. I was not sick before, just a bummed arm and shoulder. 

Even after all this time my shoulder is still sore in the spot they did the shot. 

I will never again get another shot because I must be allergic or something to cortisone. 

I am aware that most people don't get this problem and those people are the one who thinks we are crazy. But every one's body is not the same. Like other medicine, some can take, some can't.

My life has been severly altered by this one shot. My family suffered, I suffered, my job suffered. I have medical bills out the wazoo just because I was not told of the side effects. 

I am the type of person that does not get sick often and this was a wake up call. 

I don't think I mentioned the ringing in the ears. But I had that also, it has went away also.

My legs would tremble and arms tremble... I was a mess. A hot mess. 

I have had every blood test known to man.. I showed thyroid antibodies, which I never had trouble with before. I honestly believe the shot messed with my thyroid. 

After being sent to three nueros, one remytologist, a dentist, oral surgeon, infectious disease dr and spine speacialist plus 2 general doctors none found anything. 

The anxiety is leaving slowly, as with everything else. 

What a ride this has been, what a freaking nightmare ride! 

 

Suffered terrible side effects from steroid injections. Flushing, fever, weakness, rosa is, hair loss, acne, tinnitus, tight aching calfs, weeping & unusual anxiety. I went into Cushings, adrenals shut down, from that went into a steroid withdrawal syndrome. Myopathy, myalgias, neuropathy, my god, I have/had every listed side effect, except death. These are dangerous and doctors know this! They are covering because its a $300 billion dollar market. At our expense. To all the doctors saying this isn't steroids? If it was your wife, sister, mother, husband, or own child? You would not deny their complaint. If I said hey doc, that shot you gave me is working great, all these months later! Doc would say that's terrific! But, if I say hey doc? I'm still suffering side effects months later....doc would say, oh that isn't from the steroids. Hypocrisy at the expense of our health. Our complaints are valid. Our symptoms are real. This drug is poison to our bodies. They mix this drug with a preservative called benzyl alcohol. Guess what lice shampoo is made with, or formaldehyde....benzyl alcohol. These are long acting injections. They are local like adhesive, but they break up and slough off slowly, entering the blood stream. I'm still recovering and this has completely stollen my life, and my body. If docs admit it, then they are out money. How they can sleep at night, my god.

Forgot to add....I have burning mouth syndrome too. Thyroid affected, scalp & teeth tender, lost weight then gained, liver enzymes shot up, heart was affected, potassium, magnesium went low. Severe tingling, leg pain, nerve pain everywhere. Burning feeling but it's deep in tissue. I hurt all over. I have severe stuff muscles now, and I walk like I'm 100 years old when getting up. It's affected every part of my body. Was perfectly healthy, on no meds, no health issues. All from steroids. But, docs will tell us it's not steroids. Reckless and uneducated they are for profit.

When did you get the shot? It has been a year for me and slowly I am getting better. The side of my face still feels strange and my mouth takes like vicks vapor rub off and on. Been a long damn year! This is Cathy..

i can't remember how long it was between the 2, but over the past summer, i had 2 epidural injections in my spine, because they thought it was my sciatica that was giving me so much back and leg pain, they were just a few months apart i believe, because the doc figured maybe a 2nd one would give me the relief i needed..i don't remember having too many, if any symptoms, with those, except being wide awake for the first couple nights..just this past week, i had an injection in my hip, the bursa area, i believe, which i had 2 sessions of them, back in Feb. maybe..i lose track with dates...come to find out, it has been my hip causing all the issues and pain i have been having..none the less, since the injection in my hip, i have noticed increased heart palputations, anxiety feelings, the hot and cold flushes, etc. i am going through menopause, so i never know if its that or the steroid shots...very frustrating!! but now that i think of it, i can remember a few heart palps with the others, but none like these, they come out of the blue! i have a hietal hernia, which alot of things effect that also, and i thought maybe that was acting up. i came very ill, Tuesday, in the night, SEVERE headache and them vomitting, weakness, etc. i thought maybe i caught a bug, but hadn't heard of anything going around. is it possible that i have had too many injections and too much of that in my system?? they say the epidural ones, don't go into ur bloodstream, and i believe the hip 1, was into my bursa sac...and now that i have read some of these posts, and googled some things, i believe my heart palps and all the other issues, heartburn(even though  take a perscription antacid), has increased, but the things have seemed to get worse just within the past few days, i thought maybe they would be subsiding a little by now, but its starting to bother me, i was going to call the doctor and be seen, because i was so scared! now it makes sense that the injection is probably the culprit to all the issues i am having...and nausea is another, increased appetite, then i feel bloated, then sometimes i have no appetite..like i said, i don't remember it being this bad before, i think i remember the heart palps a little, then they went away..i even quit taking Lyrica that they put me on, because i thought that was causing the palps...ugh!! what a mess!! i will definetly be telling both my docs that gave me the injections, and my family doc! i hope these side effects go away soon!! i also was trying not to take my pain meds, as i was having little to no pain, so i thought i was having withdrawal symptoms...jeeeepers, what a mess and frustrating  time they cause!! does anyone advise me to see a doc, or will these effects pass in time, i don't know how long these injections stay in your body or blood stream...

Cortisone injections are very safe to perform. Side effects tend to be rare and minor. In people who have diabetes cortisone injections can elevate the blood sugar. A disadvantage of receiving a cortisone injection is that a needle needs to pierce your skin in order to administer the medication.

As cortisone is a type of steroid that is produced naturally by the adrenal gland in the body.But injectable cortisone is synthetically produced and is not injected into the blood stream,but into a particular area of inflammation.It is not a pain relieving medication,it only treats the inflammation.Very high concentration of the medication can be given while keeping potential side effects to a minimum.Cortisone injections usually work within a few days and the effects can last upto several weeks.

You cant get it out of your system. And actually all of these symptoms above are an allergic reaction. Usually when you have an allergic reaction they give you a steroid but when its your steroid youre allergic to then its benedryl and rescue inhalers for the tight lungs. (I add that because my asthma is out of control) Everyone is different in how long it takes to get out of your system. If they told you a cervical injection might last 3 months so might you systems. I will also share that if you have any other allergies to anything it will magnify the allergies. It was recommended to me to eat a diet that causes me to go to the bathroom...it is one possible way to get it out of your body. Unfortunately the anxiety portion may have to be treated with herbs (tea or herbs from alternative medicine source). Also, when you have symptoms that effect your lungs, cause abnormal acid reflex, chest pain, or pain in your back or shoulders you should seek medical advice and maybe not from the administing doctor. Unfortunately when we use sythetic meds in our body they cause havic. Deep breathing is a good idea. I was told if breathing, choking, etc to put books under the head of your bed to raise it. I found that to be very helpfu. Switch your coffee to half and half (I know, how awful) and minimize your stress and take inventory on what you are thinking. It can cause a roller coaster of effects. I promise you are not insane you just feel like you are going that direction. God Bless...I hope this helps.

Michele01, Have you ever had an injection before?
Yes, Side effects are rare, but what if you are the one with the side effect?
You need to read the warnings on the box.
I have been every where trying to figure out what happened to me.

I am really surprised to read people have been in pain or suffered from other problems because as far as i know cortisone injections are very safe to perform. Side effects tend to be rare and minor. However, there are a few potential side effects of a cortisone injection that patients should know about.Systemic side effects occur as a result of a small amount of the cortisone entering the bloodstream and affecting your entire body, not just the location where the cortisone was given.The most common systemic reaction is seen in diabetic patients. Patients with diabetes should carefully monitor their blood sugar as cortisone can cause a temporary rise in their levels. Patients taking insulin should be especially careful, checking their blood sugar often and adjusting the insulin doses, if necessary.....

I cannot get answers from my decline. It is frustrating, but i do know the only thing i had done was chiro and shot. I started all problems 3 days afyer shot.

Had a shot in each knee for the first time yesterday 10/2/13. Arthitus in the rt and torn miniscus in the lft. Knee feel great like I could rush for 200 yards and a few TDs but my stomache burns like a fire. I'm also hiccipping frequently. I was told take Advil regularly until Saturday while at teh Dr so i took 2 yesterday afternoon and 2 in the evening. Not sure if it's the corizone or the Advil. I also felt high after the shot for a few hours. I do feel flush today. I'm going to continue with Advil but only 1 per time and see what happens.

I have had 5 or 8 cortisone shots over my life so far...started losing individual count after the first series.  Here are my experiences:

First series - in right wrist for carpal tunnel relief.  Shot itself was painful, I think mostly because of pressure due to large amount of fluid jammed into tiny space.  Lidocaine in shot wore off too soon (I have known rapid metabolism of anesthetics), and wrist was worse instead of better for a day or two.  Advil helped, but did not totally relieve the pain.  After both shots didn't help, we went to surgery.  Doc discovered nerve was so impinged NOTHING would have helped.  (He apologized for not getting me into surgery earlier.)

Second series - Lower back for bulging discs/sciatica.  IMMEDIATE pain relief by 50% or better.  Shots themselves suck...---caine anesthetics do not numb fast enough for me, I feel the needle the entire way in.  As soon as the needle was withdrawn, pain reduced quickly.  A little sore within the first 24 hours due to large amount of fluid.  Seemed to swell a lot - ice helped hugely on these shots.  Something I found out - stay flat for the first 24 hours.  If you move around too much the cortisone gets shifted out of that area and becomes ineffective.  Definitely do that one again in a heartbeat, SO much pain relief.

Third series - Cervical (neck) vertebre for messed up facet joint.  I demanded a painkiller/sedative in advance for this shot (you should have an IV for this one anyway - any time they go near your neck with a needle you need an IV in case they bump your vagus nerve...can do funny stuff to your heartrate they have to correct with IV meds), knowing I would feel the needle and didn't want to move inadvertantly while they had the stupid thing mm from my spinal cord.  Whatever they gave me worked great - felt some pain, but was too doped to do anything about it.  Drugs fuzzed the memory...would definitely take that option again.  Had no real pain when I got home...definitely a stiff feeling and a little dizzy.  Lots of hot and cold flashes, but spent two days on the couch anyway.  Little bit of nausea...the Advil didn't help that...so I ate a lot of bread and pasta!

Last one earlier today - shoulder for rotator cuff problems.  Holy c**p did that one hurt.  Doc admitted he touched bone with needle, which produced an instantaneous nausea response.  (Same thing happens with broken bones - body does not like bone trauma)  Got dizzy, cold sweats, was really sure I was gonna toss cookies for a minute there.  Nurse said is common adrenaline response.  Shot was screaming agony while he gave it.  Died down decently afterwards, but once again, numbing agent wore off too quickly.  7 out of 10 pain 2 hrs after injection.  Already taking 800 mg ibuprofen every 6-hrs...know it's gonna make me a little sick if I don't take with bread or milk.  Ice not really helping yet.  Bone deep ache is really hard to take, iboprofen has dropped pain to a 4-5.  The good news is, moving the arm doesn't hurt any worse than holding it still.  Lifting up over the head sort of not an option yet...we'll have to see how it feels.  Interesting note about reaction...mom and I have same low blood pressure, and she had the exact same reaction for a shoulder shot.  She doesn't really have any problems with spine shots either.  Maybe something to do with blood pressure and specific nerves pissed off?

Bottom line:  Reaction depends on location the shot was given and is easily compounded by adrenaline.  If you are at all nervous, bring a driver with you and ask the doc to give you something to settle you down before getting the shot.  A little valium or versed goes a long way.  As far as the other side effects, remember cortisone is a stress hormone to your body.  The less you move in the first 24 hours, the less it will spread through your body.  Many of the feelings described here are the after-effects of stress reactions: rapid heartrate, feeling detached, upset stomach, dizziness....you'll see many of these coming down off an adrenaline high. 

Also, you can be allergic to the shot solution without being allergic to the cortisone.  All the drugs are suspended in a solution and some have preservatives added to protect the active agent in the drug.  You may be able to use a different shot that has a different suspension without an adverse reaction.  It is rare to be allergic to a steroid, but allergies to shot solutions are actually very common.  Some vaccines contain an egg based solution, there is also sulfites added to many solutions, and it is very common for people to be senstive to those.

Sorry you have pain. But you need to be aware of the effects theses shots could have on your health depo medrol and kenelog are not to be given near the spine.
These drugs have a lot of side effects,so far I like others know to well.
You my friend are playing with fire.