Lupus Support Group
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I was just wondering my Rheumy is wanting to start me on predisone, and i'm scared to get on it. I know when i was on for 14days i started blowing up and i'm trying to lose weight not gain! He says it's a lower dose and i shouldn't gain weight on it..could someone that is on it tell me is this true or not? and will this help with my pain? right now i'm getting a celestone shot about every 40days and it really helps for about 3 weeks but hey that's 3 good weeks i didnt have! thank yall and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
I am on prednisone, 10 mg (now down to 9.5) for over a year now. I will tell you this. I would never take it again unless I absolutely needed to and nothing else worked first (or I had organ involvement and needed it). I am very lucky that i have not gained one ounce from being on it... It really just causes me irritability (major). If I could stay on it forever, I would because it helps me so much. BUT, it is not a safe drug to be on long term and getting off of it has been pure hell. I have failed 4 times now. This will be my 5th try. I get anxiety and worse moodiness being on a lower dose and my symptoms start to come back...But, my rheumy says I need to get off of it and am on a high dose to be on all the time.
What dose is he wanting to put you on? If it is 1-5 mg I would say try it out. If it is 10 or more then I would try anything and everything first (maybe a pain management clinic) before going on 10 or more mg. Your body stops producing it on its own at that dose and that is where it becomes very difficult to get off of. It has to be done very slowly and alot of people are miserable while doing it.
It is a great drug and has given me back my life. Like i said, I would be on it forever if I could. But, going thru what I have gone thru now trying to get off of it, Im not sure I would have been so gung ho about starting it. I DID need it when I started it. My blood work was bad...But, this has been so hard for me to taper down on. This is my honest experience. Let us know what MG he wants to put you on.
xoxox
Melissa
I wish i could stay on it forever but like melissa said its not a good drug to stay on long term. I was only suppose to be on 15 mg for two weeks then start to taper down to 5 mg but i am terrified of the pain again.
Good Luck
Personally, if the shot helps you, I would stick with that. Especially since when you were on prednisone before you didnt notice a difference. Usually you notice a big difference almost immediately so what Im thinking is that maybe your pain is not from inflamation. Many things can cause pain without inflamation. Pred. is not a drug you can just start and stop. Stopping it improperly can kill you. I have never heard of the shot you get but its good that you mentioned it because maybe it will help others who suffer daily pain.
Im glad that you didnt just jump into taking the prednisone immediately. If you really want to try it again, try a prednisone pack first and see if it makes a difference. If it doesnt then you know you wont really benefit from taking it and the only benefits you may get will be negative ones. The pack is much easier since it tapers you daily. Have a happy thanksgiving!
xoxo
I have been on prednisone for 5 years now, and it is the one drug that has worked the best for me!!, just make sure you take calcium tablets if you take it for a long time, as i have low bone density due to it, but they say its reversible when i come off it....
good luck!
Hugs.