prednisone | Arthritis Information

 

I just posted yesterday that I thought my doctor would put me on avarra or metho..well instead he gave me a 2 week supply of prednisone.  I take it once a day at 10 mg and then seen him.  He only wants to use it short term and said if it does not shock my system back into remission, he will then change my meds.

Any side effects I should be worried about with this lose dose, short-term use?

 

The doctor did the same thing to me.  I noticed immediate relief from the prednisone which was later tapered.  I've remained on a small dose of prednisone and added several other drugs to the pharmacopia. If you respond to the prednisone, it prpbably means you have an inflamatory kind of arthritis, at least that is my understanding.I agree with what Linda K said. My doctors put me on prednisone for 4 months - I wouldn't say it shocked me into remission, but it definitely made my life more manageable. And my doctor also said that a positive response to the prednisone means an inflammatory disease. It's pretty much standard operating procedure. The MTX, Plaquenil, Arava, etc., all take time to work.


Yes, I should have said that I have been officially diagnosed with RA.  I have also been under control for 4 years just on planquil till now.I've been put on prednisone too and I am scared to death.

I too, am wondering what side effects there are on low doses. I'm only supposed to be on it for a few days.

trtldy, you should be okay if it's only a few days.  I read that it would be considered more substantial if it is more than three months.  I did a LOT of reading on it.  I have been on it for 3-4 weeks.  I have the same worries, but it is a means to an end, that's how I look at it.



hi everyone. ive been taking 5mg. prednisone for more than 5yrs. my mood changed since then. the effects from taking preds is really disappointing. your bloated all over, you can never stop eating. your usually empty and want some more to eat. you have tantrums anytime of the day. you get paranoid for no apparent reason. you feel like the world is against you.i like to think pred. is doing these things to me. although, i have other meds. which i know could probably have some effect but i would still think pred is leading it.
Thanks arizonara.

Today was the first day and I am sooooo sick. I have nausea and feel completely wiped-out. I took two this morning and two at noon and with food and still have nausea that comes and goes. Right now I'm somewhat better. I'm going to stick with it and tough it out unless I have more stomach problems. Like you indicated it is worth it if it brings relief.

Take care all.I hope it gets better. We all seem to have different reactions to it. The first time I took a high dose of prednisone, they gave it to me with Tylenol 3 - and it was the morning of a big party - I thought I would die. I was so dizzy and so sick. It did get better, and it helped the inflammation right away.  Make sure you take it with something bready. That's what my doctors & the pharmacist all said.

I already took Prilosec - if you keep having problems, you might want to try something for the nausea. Good luck!
True, everyone is different. The Pred. worked great and fast. It also made me fat and I cant stay on due to bone loss. So I was off of it with in a few weeks anyways.Thanks Fiona and crunchy. I had a really bad day yesterday. Today, so far, is much better(of course I haven't taken my meds yet).

Only 5 more days of this stuff to go.

Take care all. Thank you for the info.  So far, I have had 2 days of tummy upset (nothing I can't handle) and 1 day of no side effects.  Amazingly, almost all of my inflamation is gone!  I would hate to go thru 2 weeks of this drug and have no response!  While, I am happy about that no way will I stay on it long term.  I would rather try some of the scarier DMARDS and be creaky!!Poof,  I loved pred. in the beginning but then I became dependent on it.  I was on it for 18 months.  So just be careful, it is wonderful short term but long term it sucks.  I gained 30 pounds got the moon face and just felt overall yucky.  It was hard to wean off of but I feel so much better.  I would rather take pain meds.  I think the side effects are less scary but for short term - PRED IS A WONDER DRUG.  Good luck and glad you are feeling better.  Rox

It was the first medication I was given the day I was dx'ed too. I got that and two shots of cortisone in my shoulders that I could barely move. My doctor called me the next day to see how I was feeling and I told her I honestly could not believe the difference. It was amazing the results that it quickly gave me.

I stayed on it several weeks after that while we waited for my forst DMARD to start to work but then we slowly tapered off of it. None of my doctors have ever suggested I stay on it long term. Although I've used it many, many times while we've adjusted my DMARDS; my doctors felt like it wasn't an option for me long term. I'm gratefu for that because I can not stand the way it makes me feel emotionally.

If you can steer clear of long term usage you'll be far better off in the long run. It's hard for some though. Roxy is a perfect example of one that was not responding to other medications. In situations like those what choice do you have? I hope you won't have to be one of those people.

Good Luck!

Roxy or Lovie,  I have been on 20mg daily of Preds since December and now the Dr is weaning me off if it.  What did you experience when you came off.  I am down to 10mg per day , this is my 4th day and so far so good but I don't know how long before I will start feeling the effects of the decreased dosage.  Hopefully the Enbrel and MTX will keep working.

I took 20 mg of pred daily for 11 months when I was nursing my first child. (I couldn't take ENbrel, my usual drug).  I really hated it.  It only worked marginally - not really much better than ibuprofen - and I got all puffy and gross.  For me it wasn't worth it. 
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