A character in the prologue of a WIP is taking steriods to bulk up. Do these produce any "withdrawal" symptoms if not taken on a regular basis?
Posted by mikemunsil (Member # 2109) on :
I don't know about withdrawal, but I know that they can induce rage. I've been through that myself. Its is very distinct and recognizable to everyone except the person on steroids..
Posted by ChrisOwens (Member # 1955) on :
Yep, that's what I was counting on. Rage is integeral to the character. Of course, he dies in Chapter 1...
Posted by Phanto (Member # 1619) on :
Yep, they do. Off the top of my head:
- Can promote feminization of the body (breast growth, skin change, muscle weakening), as confusion among hormonal levels can lead to Testosterone being converted into Estraidol. - Headaches - Acne
Posted by wbriggs (Member # 2267) on :
Try googling "steroid withdrawal" and hit "I'm feeling lucky." The first article I found seemed to anwer the q very well.
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
Just make sure you spell it correctly:
steroid
(I fixed the topic title for you).
Posted by Survivor (Member # 213) on :
What Phanto describes aren't the withdrawal symptoms, but the side effects of taking too many steroids. On the other hand, most steroids do have minor withdrawal effects, since most of them mimic or affect hormones produced naturally, and there is some tolerance effect as your body stops producing the imitated homone (or produces less) and the targeted "sites" become saturated and "desensitized".
What exact withdrawal symptoms will occur depend on what steroid is being taken. Generally, steroids replace/target hormone pathways that are pretty actively autoregulating if left alone, so the physiological withdrawal won't be severe nor will it last a long time.
The psychological withdrawal is very different, people abusing steroids usually have severe self image problems at the root of their desire to take steroids. Basically, they stay on them for the same reasons that anorexics continue to starve themselves even when they are in imminent danger of dying. For someone abusing steroids, the prospect of returning to a normal, healthy body is horrifying. It's exactly what they already are risking death to avoid.
Posted by Doc Brown (Member # 1118) on :
Steroids can have MANY effects beyond those described or commonly discussed. Then can have powerful neurological effects and are often used in an anti-inflammatory role for various neurological conditions. I've seen them have incredible psychological and neurological effects, the most striking was when a Multiple Sclerosis patient who could not walk temporarily became a prima ballarina.
Strong stuff. Handle with care.
Posted by ChrisOwens (Member # 1955) on :
What Survivor said hits the nail of the head of the character's problem, which was caused by something the character's wife said before her suicide.
Posted by autumnmuse (Member # 2136) on :
This probably isn't relevant, but in case it helps at all: my upstairs neighbor got steroid injections for her wrist injury when she was pregnant and couldn't undergo surgery. It took the doctors eighteen months and wasn't until after her next pregnancy, when she almost died, before they realized that she had contracted Addison's disease (her body stopped producing all steroids once the injections started; a rare but very serious side effect and possibly permanent) and she has to have steroid injections for the rest of her life, and can never get pregnant again or she will die.
Posted by franc li (Member # 3850) on :
How sad.
The anti-inflammatory effects of steroids can lead to some very addict-like behavior in people who use them for pain relief. Like switching doctors to get more prescriptions than would be medically advisable.
Oddly, now that I think about it the person who used to say this also "happened" to be in weight-lifting. Perhaps he had psychosomatic chronic pain in order to justify getting the cortisol shots.
On a biochemical level, steroids like cortisol overuse sodium, which is compounded by nicotine use. Nicotine locks open the sodium pump on cell walls. I've noticed that some of the smokers I know have incredibly salty diets. It may be the actual mechanism by which smoking is associated with hypertension and heart disease. The actual smoke, that would certainly create respiratory cancerns.
[This message has been edited by franc li (edited June 29, 2005).]