I rarely if ever get colds but also got one last week that lasted for 8 days! And that is well after my thyroid and adrenals were treated. I reluctantly got the flu shot this year as my new team of docs insisted that I do so. I never had one before and this is the first year I have actually gotten a cold/flu.

You are suppose to stress dose if you get sick, even for a cold. Your stress dose is double your daily dose. But you want to split it up through out the day with the higher doses in the a.m. Like your body would do. You will need to stress dose until your over your cold. If that's more than 5-6 days, then you need to taper down 5 mg a day every two days until your back to your daily dose. If you had stress dosed right at the start you probably would have only been sick a few days.

I thought you only stress doses of you have a fever over 100 degrees?

I've been told to stress dose every time I get sick. But I have to know that I am sick with something extra, like a virus, flu, or a cold. You are also suppose to stress dose for major emotional stress, like a death in the family. Your body needs the extra steroids. If you go to NADF you can get the guidelines for stress dosing I believe. The UK site is better but I can't remember that one off hand.

If you have been sick for over a week, even without a high fever, I would be careful it doesn't go into your chest. I would stress dose for at least a couple of days to let your body get a head start on getting better. Good luck.

My adrenal specialist who I saw in the midst of this cold/flu bout told me to stress dose up only 30% because the fever was 100, and all other vitals were OK. I did that for 4 days and it really helped. He said that stress dosing is necessary when you become really ill, as in the stomach flu, food poisoning, bronchial infections etc and any invasive procedure or emotional upset.

Thanks for your help!