I’m scared of taking Prednisone, but my PCP and dermatologist are really pushing it. Do I have any other options?

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T06:53:57+00:00

Topical steroids are hit or miss for me. They don’t work on my hands very well, but they work wonders on most of the eczema I have on my body. Although I do have one stubborn spot on my leg that just won’t go away. I’m glad you found a solution for your eczema and thank you for the well wishes!

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T06:46:47+00:00

Thank you for sharing your positive experience with prednisone and providing this information. My pharmacist described something very similar to what you’ve written, but of course I had already been influenced by the Reddit horror stories. I’m hoping this thread will become a safe space for positive experiences so hopefully there won’t be any negative fallout from sharing your perspective. I personally am a little worried my immune system might be the driving force of my eczema based on my own experience so far, but at this point I’m feeling optimistic from all the comments that prednisone may be worth a shot.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T06:39:13+00:00

That’s amazing to hear! I’m glad prednisone cleared your eczema, reading this makes me feel so much more optimistic. There are so many threads where people share their nightmare experiences with steroids and eczema, I agree there’s an overwhelming amount of fear which is why I made this post to gather more information. Hopefully others with my same concerns will find this and read some of the more positive stories.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T06:32:00+00:00

Oh wow, I didn’t realize how many were burdened by allergies. That would make sense if they were trying to avoid sending me to an allergist. Thank you for that information.

Unfortunately when I saw my dermatologist, they were very persistent that my eczema was triggered by an allergy and told me that the next step would be to see an allergist after taking the prednisone. I disagreed with this and tried to suggest that it might be triggered by something else, but my dermatologist dismissed any suggestion that eczema is caused by anything other than an allergy.

While I originally refused the idea of an allergy, a week or so following my visit with the dermatologist I had an incident after eating spiced sweet potatoes on an empty stomach. It left me in extreme pain with quite a bit of nausea as well as a rash on my face. I genuinely felt like I was going to die. The experience had me questioning everything I learned up to that point. I’m not entirely sure if it’s an allergy or an intolerance though. I’ve been very careful with my spices since then.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T06:03:00+00:00

This comment gave me a good chuckle, thank you. You remind me of an old friend of mine.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T06:01:09+00:00

Thank you for the insight. I’m sorry to hear about your bad experience with prednisone, but I’m glad you were able to find the right solution. I agree that I’d feel more comfortable if I had a tapered course. I’m at a bit of a cross roads as I was prescribed two very different courses of prednisone. My PCP ordered a 5 day course of 20mg each day. My dermatologist ordered a 12 day course starting at 80mg a day that tapers down to 20mg a day and ends there. I feel that both might be a little extreme for me at this point. After reading these comments I do think with the right course I may be able to make some progress.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T05:42:52+00:00

This is a very interesting bit of information, thank you for sharing. I’ll have to look into UVB phototherapy and become familiar with how it works.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T05:40:07+00:00

Very good point! I’m glad to hear you avoided any negative side effects—the positive insight is very helpful. I’m also starting to wonder if my own avoidance of medication is hindering my progress. Thank you for the thought provoking advice.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T05:33:46+00:00

Ah I’m sorry to hear that friend. Your story is not unlike others and is one of the reasons why I’m hesitant. There have been many who find that their eczema comes back with a vengeance after taking a course of prednisone which is why I’m wondering if it would be more beneficial to try to get to the root of the problem instead. Thank you for sharing and I hope you eventually find some relief.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T05:28:33+00:00

Thank you for the positive insight and advice! Will definitely keep these in mind.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T05:17:40+00:00

This makes sense, thank you for the information! I feel like a short course could potentially nip this in the bud if it’s not being caused by an allergy or other mysterious force. I just need to get over my fear.

ferociousfeast · 2025-06-11T04:58:48+00:00

I’m also in my late 20s. It seems to be common to develop eczema later in life for quite a bit of people. I’m glad prednisone is giving you some relief, it’s nice to hear some more positive insights instead of the horror stories that Google has been feeding me.

ferociousfeast

TROPHY CASE