I hate it. I have hallucinations and it runs my blood sugar sky high, I refuse to take it. However, I am sure at some point I will eat those words. So far I have avoided it. It really helps if one can tolerate it.

I hate steroids and have refused to take Advair for that reason. I am told that I am still in a moderate stage with COPD but the Johns Hopkins White Papers state that they don't give steroids to anyone until they are diagnosed as severe. I don't like the side effects and my blood sugar and blood pressure go up as well but I did finally agree to have a cortisone shot when my last bout with bronchitis became so severe and I hate to admit that it helped; that along with antibiotics.

I still hope it will be a very long time before I need them again.

I'm with Grannie on this one. I don't take it. I told the Dr. I hallucinate when I take it and he said he'd never heard of anyone having hallucinations from prednisone. It does have awful side effects. Good luck with your new Dr.

Yep - the side effects are a bear at best - and they are cumulative in long term use. I'll be having cataract surgery next month. I had no evidence of cataracts a year ago. My ophthalmologist calls steroids cataract fertilizer. You can also develop skin that tears like paper, often just from brushing against something. Weight gain. Insomnia. Suffice it to be said, a whole stew of the various and sundry are associated with it's use.
But on the other hand, I can breathe fairly well most of the time. So when you stack that up against the side effects, I'll live with it...

Hugs,
Dennis

I refuse to take it also, but I know at some point I will need it (probably when I am in my 90"s).

Right now I even stopped with the inhaled corticosteroids.

Gary

Honestly, for exacerbations corticosteroids like prednisone are the standard of care for a reason. And there are folks like me that have to take prednisone daily for very extended periods of time, if not forever. And yes, it sucks....

High blood sugar, high blood pressure, vision problems, loss of bone density, insomnia. Skin so thin it is like paper. Anxiety, mood changes. Difficulty concentrating. Hand tremors. Excessive sweating, hot flashes. A face that now looks like I have downs syndrome (moon face) and my personal favorites.... a huge lump of fat at the base of my neck that looks a buffalo hump & weight gain.

Try to talk your doctor into prescribing you some Ativan. It will, at least,
Stop the jitters from making you wish you could crawl out of your skin.

Sorry for my passionate response. I truly hate it. But not as much as being unable to breathe.

i had a dr try to tell me i couldn't be "allergic" to steroids.
well 1-10mg pill & my blood pressure "drops" (60/40), every joint in my body feels like it's on fire & i tend to want to kill people---that may not be considered "an allergy"---but i sure won't take them EVER again!!
so i won't even try inhaled steroids as that's downright scary to me to think of what it could do straight into these sick ol' lungs!
however, steroids sounds like they are a miracle drug for those that can take them.

may i ask what kind of side effects others have experience?

ps--we were posting at same time caitsmom---wow! that's quite the list added to dennis!
scary stuff to me!

Two good articles, one explains the difference between anabolic steroids Vs corticosteroids. The other explaining the difference between oral and inhaled corticosteroids.


http://arthritis.about.com/od/steroids/f/anabolicsteroid.htm

http://asthma.about.com/od/asthmabasics/f/What-Is-The-Difference-Between-Inhaled-And-Oral-Corticosteroids.htm

Gary

Thought of one more thing any new users should consider.

Corticosteroids are naturally produced by the adrenal gland. When you take extra to combat inflammation, your adrenal glands stop production as the level of prednisone you are taking rises in the bloodstream. When it is time to stop taking prednisone, you must taper off slowly so the adrenal glands have a chance to resume their production. Do not just get up one day & decide to quit on your own. An adrenal crisis is serious stuff.

I'll chime in with the I hate prednisone crowd. My Dr is very conservative and cautious with it as well. I just feel like I want to crawl out of my skin. However, yrs ago I had to take it and had no reaction whatsoever to it. Just took it...done..no big deal.

That said, it is very interesting that in the links Gary ( thank you!) provided, that Vitamin D is considered a steroid. I know my Dr wants me to take 1000 mg daily, and that very high doses at once are being used for COPD, as Bill has started. I'll leave that for him to further explain.

ty all for response to prednisone--I thought I was going crazy.because my sister takes it and has no problem--I love it when we tell the dr. about side effects and they say it cant be that medicine--we are all different and have various reactions and if there is a bad side effect I get it.I have severe emphysema--will find out with new dr.how bad it has gotten

I too, am on a low dosage (11mcg) every day. It's the only thing that really helps, but the side effect of osteoporosis has caused 2 disks in my back to fracture along with several ribs. Tons of fun! Everything in life is a risk/benefit analysis. Do what you feel is best.

New to the list folks - What I find as an important factor is that steroids put a strain on your immune system and it seems like you'd want that working at max, huh?

wow---am i the only person that i drop BP?
of course those that get hallucinations are pretty weird too ;)
as for the "thin skin, insomnia, osteporosis and a few other side effects; i have those without the steroids so maybe i already produce enough.
i do take vit D every day tho so maybe that helps me without me knowing it:)---i was surprised that vit D was on the list also.
gosh i learn alot here :)