Anyone ever get a Cortisone shot?

[Jeanine]

Been having trouble with my left thigh/hip joint for a while now. Finally went to the doctor, said it was more than likely bursitis. It's better some days others not so much. He suggested this shot when I was there but told him I would think about it. Well I thought and decided to give it a try at least once to see how it goes.


It's my understanding that it can help most but not all who get it. Just wondering if anyone here has had one??? I'm a bit nervous about getting it tomorrow afternoon. 

[Guineagirl]

Been having trouble with my left thigh/hip joint for a while now. Finally went to the doctor, said it was more than likely bursitis. It's better some days others not so much. He suggested this shot when I was there but told him I would think about it. Well I thought and decided to give it a try at least once to see how it goes.


It's my understanding that it can help most but not all who get it. Just wondering if anyone here has had one??? I'm a bit nervous about getting it tomorrow afternoon. 

yes I had one in my shoulder.  They tried to barbotage the calcium out but it had gone hard that was painful but the shot wasn’t.  They will numb the area first.  It really did help the pain and lasted quite some time.  Have you had an x ray to see if it is a spur or calcium deposit.  I got told that when the calcium is soft they can suck it out with a needle but once hard it’s impossible other than surgery to remove it. 

[Jeanine]

Thanks Guineagirl, they did do an xray but didn't see anything out of the ordinary, just said it was probably bursitis. so just going with that I guess.    Good to hear that they numb the area where they give you the shot, was a bit nervous about that. It is this afternoon so will update on how it goes. Hope your shoulder is doing better? Sounds painful!

[Guineagirl]

The worry of the unknown is awful especially needles    maybe there’s a bit of over use going on in your hip and it may die down, hopefully it’s just a flare up.

[haidyl]

Hey Jeanine, just curious to know how it all went? Interestingly, I have always preferred getting an injection rather getting a prescription. I have never had this injection before though!

[Jeanine]

Well thank you haidyl for asking. I have to say it went kind of 'weird'. Never had one before so wasn't sure what to expect (they have a list of possible side effects a mile long!). They did put something on that area to numb it although I don't think it went all the way through , like past the skin! It did hurt but not intolerable. A few minutes after went I got up I noticed that I felt really nauseous then my upper mouth and sinuses started to feel funny and I started sneezing like crazy! The sneezing finally stopped but took awhile for my head to clear up. That was the weird part.


I don't think it is hurting as much but was told it could take a while or possibly not work at all. So we shall see. But I'm like  you, I think it is much better to be able to get a shot and have it last (hopefully) longer then taking meds.

[txzookeeper]

I've had a couple of cortisone shots.  The first one was exceptionally painful (in my heel for plantar fasciitis).  It did help a lot though.  The next one was in the top of my foot and it also had lidocaine in it.  I'm not sure if it was the lidocaine or where he gave the shot but my foot itched so bad for about 4 weeks and I felt like I was going to rip the thin skin off the top of my foot scratching.  The last one I had was in my shoulder when I had a partial tear of the rotator cuff.  It didn't help at all and I spent the next weeks feeling lousy every time I ate.  I swore it had to do with the shot because I never had that problem until right after that.  It finally went away.  I think things like the shots can have weird side effects on people, especially if the doctor doesn't get it in exactly the right place.

[Jeanine]

Good Morning Tx, thanks for the reply. Funny you mentioned the itching. The area he gave the shot started itching a couple days ago. It's not to bad today so hopefully it won't last as long as yours did. I'm with you on the weird side effects for some people. Still can't get over how it hit my sinuses like that..


I'm not sure as of now how it is working. Sometimes it feels pretty good (although I can still tell it's still 'there'). Other times I can feel myself limping again.


Did you need to have more than one in the areas that you got the shot? Seems I've heard you shouldn't get them less than six weeks apart. Not sure if I would go for another, will wait and see how this one goes.


Hope your foot and shoulder isn't still giving  you trouble...?

[txzookeeper]

My foot finally healed and my shoulder is better.  I was given the option of another shot and turned it down.  I've had quite a bit of trouble with my hip but told that doctor I didn't want a shot there either.  I went to physical therapy for a couple months so I know what exercises to do to help when it's really bad.

[CountryMom]

I'm happy to hear it helped you. I can't have Cortisone or any type of steroid given to me due to my medical history. It sucks because it's a really helpful medication! Hope you keep feeling better.

[Jeanine]

Hi Tx, well it's good to hear your foot and shoulder are better and I think I'm with you now as to not wanting another shot. As of yesterday I don't think it has done much good. Hubby and I went out to eat and afterwards we went down to the water docks for a few minutes. On our way back to the truck my hip started to get worse, felt like it was going to 'lock' up on me! Had to hold on to hubby's arm to make it to the truck. Right now it's not hurting to much but just feels like if I make the wrong move (trip, turn to fast, etc.) that it will lock up.


So for those of  you who have had one and it worked, that's great for you, guess as they say, sometimes they work and sometimes not.


CountryMom, what kind of medical condition do  you have that you can't have any type of steroid? If you don't mind me asking that is.

[SeniorLady]

I've gone through these shots before, didn't help me either. And yes they do have some side effects although your sinuses messing up like that Jeanine does sound weird but guess everyone is different.


Sorry to hear you are back to having trouble again with  your hip. Hope it feels better soon.

[CountryMom]

Jeanine, I used to have steroid creams prescribed for eczema. My eczema worsened despite the creams and I got higher and higher strength creams given to me by my dermatologist (which pisses me off in hindsight). Unfortunately, if you apply too much steroid cream to your skin it becomes literally addicted to it and it's just a nightmare. The skin becomes very thin (just a light scratch will cause a bleeding wound) and gets worse and worse. So, I had to go through the living nightmare of weaning myself off steroid creams. If you look up topical steroid withdrawal / red skin syndrome you will see pictures of people who went through the same thing. Warning though, it ain't pretty! Your skin literally goes bright red, oozes, crusts, and flakes off.....all while you have bone deep intense itching! I'm 90% healed now and my skin is generally ok. If I touch anything or ingest anything with steroids (like Prednisone for example...I made the huge mistake of accepting that medication not too long ago) my skin goes back to square one.  I wouldn't wish the process on my worst enemy.

[Jeanine]

Oh wow, Countrymom, sounds like you really went through a lot! From the sounds of it I don't blame you for being pissed at your doctor to have you go through something like that.


I've had bouts of eczema so know how uncomfortable it can be. I have used creams before and think they had a steroid in them but didn't use them for a long period of time. At least you know what to look out for and hope you don't have to face anything like that again!