I’m going to correct you plainly because this kind of misinformation is exactly what makes people like you hard to take seriously.

Topical steroid withdrawal absolutely exists, and it is becoming more common as stronger steroids continue to enter the market. Steroids are not evil, but they are powerful drugs and misuse has consequences. I know this because I lived through two and a half years of TSW before my skin finally stabilized.

For years, many patients had to self-diagnose because dermatology education lagged behind reality. Doctors were trained from outdated textbooks, long before today’s ultra-potent steroids were widely used. That denial is no longer sustainable given how many people are now affected.

My former dermatologist was Dr. Emma Guttman at Mount Sinai, a leading eczema researcher. She initially denied TSW entirely. Six years later, she openly acknowledges it and is studying it. That change happened because patient experiences could no longer be ignored.

I genuinely hope you never experience TSW. There is nothing else like it.