Frequent Steriod Injections & Carb Craving Keeps me Gaining

deby32904

Had cervical epidural injections today, 4th steroid injection in 5 weeks! Nurse said peeps typically gain between 5-10 lbs each procedure but guess I'm lucky. Only gained 12lbs in 5 weeks but am angry 'cause I couldn't maintain weight even staying w/in daily cals & exercising w/trainer 5-6x weekly!
You wake famished & thirsty since fasting's required. There were 2 bags cookies along w/a small Coke filled w/ice! They said I needed 'cause my BP dropped. I said I need to sit up & move around but wasn't allowed. Downed Coke but after reading cals on cookie bags, had about 75% of 1 & ditched 2nd!
They had had to weigh me & it was highest ever since untreated Hashimoto's disease. Almost had panic attack. Sobbed when I got in car but my incredible hubby said I was gorgeous & he hadn't noticed difference & then started getting frisky till I was laughing again! He's a keeper!
Decided today that I need to take total control over MYSELF. Reduce refined sugar (was told TODAY it digests differently making harder to lose where I thought as long as I stayed w/in daily cals & exercised it was ok).
Wish me luck or better yet, say a prayer. Gonna need God's power to remove these last 25! This extra weight is damaging my health. I'll take all advice I can get!
Deby

CharlieBeansmomTracey

deby32904 wrote: »

Had cervical epidural injections today, 4th steroid injection in 5 weeks! Nurse said peeps typically gain between 5-10 lbs each procedure but guess I'm lucky. Only gained 12lbs in 5 weeks but am angry 'cause I couldn't maintain weight even staying w/in daily cals & exercising w/trainer 5-6x weekly!
You wake famished & thirsty since fasting's required. There were 2 bags cookies along w/a small Coke filled w/ice! They said I needed 'cause my BP dropped. I said I need to sit up & move around but wasn't allowed. Downed Coke but after reading cals on cookie bags, had about 75% of 1 & ditched 2nd!
They had had to weigh me & it was highest ever since untreated Hashimoto's disease. Almost had panic attack. Sobbed when I got in car but my incredible hubby said I was gorgeous & he hadn't noticed difference & then started getting frisky till I was laughing again! He's a keeper!
Decided today that I need to take total control over MYSELF. Reduce refined sugar (was told TODAY it digests differently making harder to lose where I thought as long as I stayed w/in daily cals & exercised it was ok).
Wish me luck or better yet, say a prayer. Gonna need God's power to remove these last 25! This extra weight is damaging my health. I'll take all advice I can get!
Deby

refined sugars doesnt make it harder to lose and its digested the same as sugar in fruits. as long as you are in a deficit you will lose weight. but having a medical issue can make it harder/slower to lose. you just have to find what your caloric deficit is, I have a metabolic disorder and still lose weight. the first thing to do is get your hashimoto's treated first.you may not see a loss until you get that under control. what are these injections for?

AnnPT77

A good bit of that weight gain is going to be water weight . . . at least steroid injections or other forms of steroid medications seem to do that with most people.

I understand why you're freaking out, since you've been working so hard to lose weight. But adequate intake and good nutrition is your friend. The water weight will pass sometime after your treatment is over. Try to stay the course with the calorie deficit you've been using; try to stay calm; try to maintain patience through it. (Sounds like your religious beliefs will be a help with that calm/patience part - that's good!)

Eat right to stay healthy - with multiple health challenges like Hashi's and whatever's caused need for the steroids, you want to stay as healthy as possible! If you stay on course, I'm betting you'll see a big weight drop shortly after you finish that course of steroids.

Please don't sacrifice more on the health front because of something that's almost certainly water weight gain!

HippySkoppy

I'm sorry that you are ill enough to have to have steroid injections and I hope they weren't as painful when given as mine. Also take heart you have kept your weight much lower than what the Nurse told you to expect.

I believe the majority of your gain is fluid retention and when the course finishes, over time this will dasappear. You'll have to wait maybe 2-3 weeks to get an accurate picture of any real weight gain.

You have said that you remained at your cal. deficit and continued to workout. Altering your Macro ratios may to help with hunger and cravings, making sure you hit your protein and fat goals and let the carbs fall where they will.

I think moderating refined sugars is a good stategy for everyone but I cannot agree that suddenly you are no longer able to process sugar and that it alone is the sole cause of the gain. However, when eating refined sugary products do be aware that steroids can put you at a higher risk for devloping Type 2 diabetes so be mindful of that.

I am not saying this to be unkind or dismissive of your experience but I have been on a moderate oral steroid dose for over 3 years and have recently gone through a series of spinal injections due to auto-immune disease. In flares the dose is tripled and then slowly titrated down, apart from the moon face and fluid retention I haven't gained true weight.

Chronic ill health and different meds. make weight loss and maintenance truly challenging at times.

Also I do have treats in mod. amounts, my blood sugars are fine... a life without chocolate or fruit (cause fructose eventually get converted same sugar as the whie granuals) would be awfully restricting and pretty joyless.

I wish you all the best and hope the injections ease your pain.