Day 58 (photo)

Well, I knew this day was coming, but I would have liked a bigger break in between: Flare number 3 has arrived.

After a busy and active weekend, my body has responded quite angrily to all the increased activity and my skin is flaring badly, with lots of wet areas including the backs of my knees, the backs of my ears, my neck, my chest and my elbow creases. These areas are very raw, itchy and sticky to the touch and I don't really know how to deal with it other than expose the affected area to the air as much as possible to dry up the oozing. it is hard with the backs of my knees though, as they are usually bent in a sitting position, which causes oozing to pool in the skin fold. I am going to try lying on the setee with my legs straight and a fluffy towel under my legs to dry up the oozing. It is affecting my ability to walk.

This is a photo I took today of the back of my leg. My legs were fine during the first few weeks of withdrawal, so this is something new. It is not uncommon for this pattern of "moving rashes" to appear in patients going through steroid withdrawals.

It is disheartening to see areas of skin which were white a few days ago turning red and wet. It is as if all of the good is being undone. I know it is only a phase and each flare brings me closer to healing, so it is something to be endured. Hopefully, this flare will be shorter than the other two, which each lasted about 20 days. I'm hoping that the skin will improve and I can post a better picture of my leg in a few days!