Before we left on holiday I consulted SuperHappyFunGP about a few recently niggling issues, almost as if I was a sensible grown-up person.

+ Horrid, not infrequent heartburn from not heartburny food – which, given Don was recently treated for h.pylori – would it be beyond the realms of possibility that I also have it?

+ Strange seemingly allergic reaction to something – waking up with an incredibly itchy insect-bite-like-lumps (but not insect bites) on torso, puffy face, swollen mouth, rashy face.

He sent me off for blood tests for both and a bunch of other things (no results yet); and put me on a short course of steroids for the unspecified allergy.

And gosh wow.

The waking up at 3am drenched in sweat and being unable to return to sleep!

The extreme speediness!

The crazy! So very much crazy. Fairly high levels of anxiety and a smidge of paranoia.

It was a tapering course – so 2 pills for the first four days, 1 for the next four and 1/2 for the next four. Those first days were quite a wild ride.

I finished the last half this morning.

What I found interesting about the mood altering affects (well in addition to wondering how people function on steroids long-term) was that I could see, understand and accept that it was the medication causing the mood.

Would that I be so generous with myself in times when there is no immediately obvious cause!