You have truly had an amazing life thus far! I would have loved to have grown up on a farm. I just animals so much! My little ones bring me such joy! As I write this, they are all around me "protecting" me - of course, they are tiny so they couldn't do anything, but they love me no matter what! My big girl has really begun to fit in, though she still scares the heck out of my little ones.......

The thought of sky diving makes me cringe! I am such a wimp, though! My stepdaughter is going for her 18th bday with her mom - I just know they are gonna have a blast!

Today is gonna be a lazy day - a wonderful lazy day! My hubby took Devon to school and let me sleep in - what a guy!It is hard to believe that we have been together 12 years now! It just flies by!

My son will be 17 next month - 17! I am still in shock! It prolly would have been better if I had at least one more, that way I wouldn't be such a pain to Devon, but you never know! We are thinking about adoption - but I want to make sure I can take care of Mike and Devon before we add another one to the fold...........

Are you feeling better today? Your mom? Auntie?

Erin

HEy there! Being in the medical profession I was wondering if you could help me......I have heard the potassium reduces swelling - that is the case, right? I've got my hubby's family coming down this weekend and am appalled by my appearance - vanity is such a stupid thing - ............

I also "ice" down my face, but it still looks cushionoid - of course, I'm still @ 60 mgs of pred so I can't expect miracles, but would like to look somewhat like my former self.........I've only gained 25 lbs, but on my frame it makes a huge difference.........My head looks like an orange on a tooth pick! LOL

Any help you can give me would be appreciated!!!!!

Erin

~Erin: I really wish I could give some good advice for you..to my knowledge, the only thing that will make the "moon face" go away is decreasing the dose of steroids. The dose you are taking is pretty high(although it is considered a normal dose).

Prednisone causes sodium retention and K+ excretion..you get more potassium onboard and you'll excrete more sodium..the water will follow the sodium..But potassium you have to be careful with. You take too much and it can really, really make you sick.

You can try to decrease your sodium intake, that is if you are consuming more than your daily recommendation(something like 2400mg). Ice, to my knowledge, will not help at all. It may, because it will decrease bloodflow to the area because of the blood vessel constriction...but I do not think it'll be significant.

I wish I could give you some better information but that's all I've got. I've been a pediatric nurse since I graduated and I've only had two kids that were steroid dependent. When I get home I'll try and dig around in some books or ask around the next time I get to the hospital.