Why's my faces redder on the lupus meds?????

[louiseamos]

Find can't sit in sun no more etheir..feel xxxxx.....crap wake up being sick!!!.my face is worse !!!my life's gone ..went gp.who's lovely lucky..she said not to stop it just yet..feel took bloods again hey my white plates down.narrrrr...been down 11 year arrrrrr

[Sugarplumb]

My face is bad also every day but aweful in the sun ,my GP said wear factor 50 x

[tennissenior]

Lupus always pulls the white blood count down - that's a sure sign that you do have Lupus. After a while, you'll adjust to it. Sometimes the nymber will up a little and then down again. Your doctor will tell you that other numbers are good so not to worry. My WBC is usually between 2 and 3. As for the redness - it does take a while. I had a red sore spot on my face that looked pretty ugly. I use a lot of face creams on it. It took a very long time to get lighter but it's still there. When I had cataract surgery, the nurse put tape on that spot and when she took it off, tore more skin off that spot. I've learned to live with it. Make up works. With Lupus, you have to learn to live with a lot - including depression and anxiety. No one other than the people on this site can understand. I'm going on my 5th year with Lupus. Still I can't get thru to people. They can never understand.....but we do! Hang in there!

[kimc in reply to tennissenior]

You're so right, I still don't know enough about lupus.

[L-2day4u in reply to tennissenior]

Viral infections pull the white count down too. I was told by U.S. doctors that Prednisone ( a steroid for lupus) pushes the white count too high. Makes me wonder if a virus is often involved in lupus...autoimmunity is such a curious thing!

[tennissenior in reply to L-2day4u]

Prednisone doesn't "cure or treat Lupus" - it's supposed to treat the "symptoms." It has a lot ot side effects, one being causing osteoporosis. I took steroids once and yes they pulled the numbers up but it was brief. Low white count is normal with Lupus.

[Fighting]

You can't sit in the sun even with the sunscreens and cotton clothing? I am under the impression that Placquinel does more for sun related symptoms than Prednisone. I could be wrong.

[kimc in reply to Fighting]

No Sun for me at all even I wear closed up everywhere, high temperature or sweat can also tricks my inflammation. The Plaquinel supposes to help to absorb the sun light. The best is to stay out of the sun as much as possible.

[tennissenior]

I livein Florida all year round, so I am always in the sun. I wear SPF 30 and don't really "sit" in the sun. I play tennis 4 days a week in the morning, and usually go to our country club pool for an hour and a half. I have SLE, and the red mark on my face has faded slightly after one year. It was pretty ugly for a while. Sometimes I get a rash but it goes away. I take nothing for the Lupus - only the additional factors that go with it. Vitamins, Coumadin (I have the Lupus anticoagulant factor - blood clots twice), Biotin for hair loss, and Mag Ox, which seems to help some with the Raynaud's and muscle cramping. White count will never be normal. If it were - we wouldn't have be having Lupus! THat's a sure sign that you do! The B12 keeps the anemia beween 11-12. Be active and accept where we are now. We were not given a choice!

[Fighting in reply to tennissenior]

When I have a choice, I choose shade or partial shade and move my chair to keep it that way. When I don't have a choice, I determine how important the activity is. Sometimes, I put up with the redness but I'm careful not to do this 2 days in a row. I also choose earlier morning or later afternoon when possible. I live close to a lake and refuse to totally stay away from it.

[tennissenior in reply to Fighting]

Use a high SPF without perfumes or try zinc oxide. The sun cannot get thru yet. People in my community use it and they don't have Lupus. We Floridians live with skin cancer - whether we're in the sun or not. Dermatologists make a fortune here!

[Fighting]

I'm sure the Dermatologists do make a fortune in Florida.

[L-2day4u]

Sun exposure is a killer with Lupus. Taking vitamin D helps some people enormously! If you're on steroids like prednisone, you may also gain (lots of) weight and get very moody ( watching what you eat is very important to your wellbeing later). I'm 20 years down the road with it, so I only mention what I wish someone told me. Remissions DO happen (some long), and seem more likely with those who have purpose and try to live their best, taking gentle care of themselves. Keeping you in prayer...

Annie