5 QUESTIONS WITH: Brittany Hallberg

Today marks the return of an old favourite for me with a brand new series of 5 QUESTIONS WITH! I loved working on these posts so I'm beyond excited to be able to bring them back for you all, and I am kicking them off with the beautiful Brittany Hallberg from the Instagram account Health & Heart (here). I have been following Brittany's journey through TSW since 2017 and earlier this year I was over the moon when a photo popped up on my feed showing that she was doing so well. She looks absolutely amazing and is such a positive influence within our community and if you are suffering, I couldn't recommend her account more. I'll hand it over to Brittany:

Brittany during withdrawal.

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself and your skin journey.
My name is Brittany and I am 27 years old.  I grew up in the United States and am currently residing in Virginia with my wonderful husband and daughter. I have had mild eczema since I was a baby (mainly on my arms and behind my knees), but my mom was always very wary of steroids so I never actually used them until high school, which is where my life started to take a turn for the worst. I started with mild steroid creams which I would use here and there. Then over the course of 10 years, my eczema started to worsen, spread, and burn. I also started becoming very allergic to everything in the environment and had chronic hives all the time. I knew that I had to find an answer, so of course the doctors recommended stronger steroids and even rounds of oral prednisone. I would leave the doctors feeling hopeful, thinking that a stronger steroid would fix my problems. I even went on allergy shots to try and reverse my environmental allergies. One day after receiving my allergy shot my organs started shutting down, my blood pressure was through the roof and my heart was beating out of control. I ended up in the emergency room for 3 days and the doctors could not figure out what was wrong so they kept pumping me with strong steroids. This event occurred over and over for a matter of 3 months. We went to over 40 doctors, traveled to the Mayo Clinic to run every test in the book, and yet every answer that I would get regarding my health was "I'm so sorry, I have no idea why your body is acting this way". I was terrified, feeling like death was just around the bend. Finally, a homeopathic doctor explained to me how steroids have such a huge effect on your adrenal glands and that I needed a year of rest to heal all of the trauma from the oral steroids and allergy shots. However, at the time I was still using the steroid creams because I thought "it's just a cream, it's fine".  Then *surprise* I got pregnant with my first child and I decided to stop all medicines for the sake of my child. I ditched the steroid creams and that's when the dreaded TSW began (as if I hadn't been through enough already....sigh....). I started my TSW journey in April of 2017 and have not touched steroids or immunosuppressants since. Going through TSW and pregnancy at the same time was incredibly traumatizing but the pregnancy is what kept me going, knowing that I had to do this for my family. The first year was a nightmare, with many setbacks and tears. I had to quit my job, practically lived in the bath tub, and had a full time care taker because my hands were so compromised. When I delivered my baby things started moving forward, and after the first year life slowwwwwly started getting better. I am now over 2 years tsw and can function normally and enjoy spending time with my family, traveling, and am very involved in my church. I still have a few areas that give me trouble but it is nothing like it used to be. This experience has taught me SO much and I am so thankful for the little things in life that we take for granted everyday

2) How did you find out about TSW?
I found out about TSW through a youtube video I saw online which then led me to ITSAN. When I read the symptoms I knew in my heart that that was the answer. Not going to lie, my first thought was "those people are hardcore, it can't be that bad being off of the steroids", and boy was I wrong. It was much worse then I could have imagined.  A short time later I found the TSW Facebook group and got connected to someone in my area that was already further along in the journey.

3) Did you find that anything aided your healing?

Brittany now!

TSW is so different for each person and every person will find relief in different ways. For me, I feel like I've tried it all. In the beginning the bath was the only thing that would comfort and calm me down (which I do think it is better to dry the skin out if possible but for me I just could not do it at the time). During pregnancy I was not able to use a lot of medicine but I did find vicopaste bandages, tubigrip bandages, benedryl, zinc, and dss baths to be a lifesaver for me.  After pregnancy ibuprofen helped a lot if I was very oozy and inflamed and then I also went on an herb treatment that was very helpful. I've tried many diets and supplements but have not found much of a difference that route. About 18 months in I went on low dose naltrexone (which boosts your endorphins) and that was a game changer for me! For infections I would use tee tree oil and also high dose vitamin C. I also tested positive for the MTHFR gene mutation in which my body does not detox very well so I have also made changes in that area to help support my body in getting rid of toxins. Overall the main healer has been time, but all of these items aided in giving me relief and hope in the process.

4) Sum up TSW in five words.
Perseverance, life-changing, TIME, hope, healing.

5) What positives, if any, have you found from going through TSW?
This process has been extremely tough and traumatizing, yet I am extremely thankful for all that I have learned in the process. I find myself more confident in who I am, not as worried about my outward appearance, and more focused on what's inside. I have also met so many amazing friends who I will cherish for the rest of my life. This experience has motivated me to make healthier lifestyle changes, do more research, and spread awareness to people who are not aware of the dangers of steroids.

To follow Britt's TSW Instagram account, click here and for her fabulous health and wellness account, click here.

Thank you so much Brittany <3

Links to my previous 5 QUESTIONS WITH:
Henni @rawsomesoul (here)
Alice @healthy_healer (here)
Maleeha @TSWHealed (here)
Nina Sloan (here)
Nick @Eczemacism (here)
Stephanie & Isaiah Quinn (here)
Stephanie @TheItchyConundrum (here)
Josh @Redskinrecoverydiary (here)
Briana @PREVENTABLE (here)
Melanie Lynch (here)
Stephanie Miller (here)
Holly Dillon @GetYourSkinOut (here)
Me (here)
Keisha Gregson (here)
Douglas Maddy & Charlie (here)
Gillian Breslin (here)
Jasmine and Jennifer (here)
Robyn (here)