The doctor prescribed mtx.....i became paranoid and had hallucinations.....
prednisone was prescribed for RA (have had since age 2).....now 19 yrs.
many side effects..still trying to wean down to 1mg with anxiety and depression symptoms....never take prednisone long term...it is debilitating and ravages too many other parts of your anatomy.
I have been on 10mg for the last three days and feel like a new person. I am also on Humira but was having a bad flare up. I can't bellieve how much difference the little pill is making. I am on it for six weeks and will hoefully only need it when my RA flares up and Humira isn't enough. Side effects scare me but quality of life and the ability to move out weighs it.
Doing some follow up research. Has anyone heard of this?
Went to a seminar today promoting cortisone treatments for RA by the Helen Foundation. It may be well known that cortisol (natural in the body) can be the answer, and you all seem to have had some success with cortisone-drugs. What these folks were "selling" was an expensive tracking and monitoring program, real life doctor or nurse to patient interaction along with computer analysis of your diary to rate daily changes in symptoms. Their theory is that with better tracking you can learn when to expect flare ups, and take low dose prednisone (or similar) for a day or two only. You can take it up to five days if the flare up is severe or you catch it too late. They claim an average of 80% relief in nine years. The low dosage-booster type treatment keeps side effects at bay.
Any thoughts--or where, besides helenfoundation.com I can find more info?
I have read that the adrenal glands naturally releases cortisol and having RA depletes and drains our adrenal glands. When we load up on cortisol it affects our adrenal glands and that it's not safe to decrease it in large quantaties and its best to decrease it a little at a time until your adrenal glands kick in. I have been on prednisone 25 mg for some time and went down by 5 mg over 3 weeks time and I felt really fatigued and blue for about a week each time the dose was lowered.
Yes, I attended the same seminar. I was told that it is EFFECTIVE for 80% of the people. The "come-on" was the $4000 or so they want you to give them to do a "work-up" which would include which foods you need to avoid in your life which may be triggering the arthritis. The list could be quite extensive, they said, and if you don't adhere you will fall into the 20% who are not helped. Also, you are taught to assess 50 areas of your body each day to decide how to micro-dose. There is no guarantee that anyone will benefit any greater from this than low-dose management without the bloodwork to assess "allergies".
Hi everyone,
I am a student in National University of Singapore and I am doing my final year project on Online healthcare communities. May I request you all to pls fill up my survey which will maximum take 2 mins. This will be of great help to me. Pls help me out in this regard. The following is the link to the survey:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dEJ0dDFEbWVLbVRGWGFwNzhSV0pIOVE6MA
Thanks a lot!
Praveen
Due to increasing liver function tests all of my medications had to be stopped in order to figure out which one elevated them. I am now on a constitant dose of 20mg daily. If I miss even one day I can feel it. You can really see it too. My hands look like baby hands as do my toes. I can't say the prednisone is doing the trick but God knows it is helping. If I try to drop even 5 mg it's a no go. Can't say I haven't tried.
Due to increasing liver function tests all of my medications had to be stopped in order to figure out which one elevated them. I am now on a constitant dose of 20mg daily. If I miss even one day I can feel it. You can really see it too. My hands look like baby hands as do my toes. I can't say the prednisone is doing the trick but God knows it is helping. If I try to drop even 5 mg it's a no go. Can't say I haven't tried.
I was diagnoised with RA over 7 years ago. I have worked as an operationg room scrub nurse for over 36 years and have spent nearly all of my life standing on my feet. This disease is horrible. I cant imagine what it was like for people before all of the current treatments came available. I tried Methatrexate, didnt work. I have been giving myself Humera injections weekly for several years now. For a long while now I feel like I have the flu all the time, you know how it makes you ache all over your body and you literally have to push your body to move. About 6 weeks ago I was at the end of my rope with it and my doctor tried me on 20mg of Predisone and advised me to decrease it gradually as the weeks pass until it is all gone. OMG! The first week was incredible, I felt like I was 30 again,it was great. I had forgotten how good it feels to be normal again. I am on my last week now. Last week I was on 5mg. and noticed that I was starting to get that tired miserable feeling back. I watched my caloric intake and did not gain any weight. I hope I can increase the dosage to at least 7.5mg and just stay on it. Its a shame that something that gave me such relief and joy can be so bad for me. Im due to go back for a visit to my doc soon so Ill find out then what my options are. Good Luck to all with this crappy disease and God Bless.
I was diagnosed with RA about 1 1/2 years ago. It's weird - I will go months with no symptoms, then my hip joint will flare, then that will die down and my shoulders, one after the other will be so bad that I have to sleep sitting up, then it will move to my elbows or wrists or ankles. I've been on sulphasalazine and plaquenil for all this time and just found out that if I haven't seen some improvement it's time to move up to methotrexate. My RA doc did give me an "emergency" Rx for predisone if I was having problems and couldn't get to him (he's in another city about 100 miles away). Since my wrist have been so swollen and so painful for the past few days, I started the Prednisone - 5 mg, 5 pills a day for 3 days, 4 for 3 days, etc, etc. Took the first dose (all 5 pills) this morning and it's now 8 hours later and I have complete movement of my wrists, little swelling and no pain. My question is.....since I feel better, I'm wondering if the one dose is all I should take until another flare up. I'll call my Doc tomorrow and find out. BTW - this is a great forum!
I HAVE HAD RA FOR 8YRS.AND STILL THERE IS NO KNOWN CAUSE FOR IT.IT COULD BE FROM AN INFECTION,PARASITE,DEPRESSION ECT.SO I DECIDED TO ATTACT ALL THE ABOVE.IF YOU HAVE AND INFECTION IT CAN BE FOUND IN YOUR BLOOD WORK.IF IT IS PARASITES IT CAN BE FOUND IN YOUR STOOL.IF IT IS CAUSED FROM DEPRESSION.THEN DON'T LET YOURSELF ARE SOMEONE ELSE DEPRESS YOU.GET CLOSER TO GOD AND HE WILL GET CLOSER TO YOU.DON'T EAT PROCESSED FOODS.THE CHEMICALS COULD CAUSE A FARE UP.WHY DO WOMEN HAVE RA MORE THEN MEN.COULD IT BE BECAUSE THEY HAVE MORE YEAST.TAKE PROBOTICS TO REPLACE ALL THOSE GOOD GERMS THAT THE ANTI- BOCTICS THEY PUT IN FOOD KILLS IN YOUR GUT.COULD YOU HAVE A LEAKY GUT?TAKE A GOOD COLON CLEASE THAT KILL PARASITES.(BLACK WALNUT)I HAD BLOOD IN MY STOOL.THE DR COULD NOT FIND ANY BLOOD IN MY COLON.THEN HE CHECKED MY GUT AND FOUND TWO SILENCE ULCERS IN MY THROAT.SO COULD IT BE THAT I WAS GETTING SOMETHING INTO MY BLOOD.LETS FACE IT.THE ONLY WAY ARE LETS CALL IT A ROAD TO THE JOINTS IS THE BLOOD VESSELS.WHAT EVER IS CAUSING YOUR FARE UPS MAY BE DIFFERENT THE MINE.BUT THEY STILL HAS TO BE BY THE BLOOD.THAT IS WHY PREDNISONE WORKS SO GOOD.NOT LONG AFTER YOU TAKE IT.YOUR BODY DELIVERS IT THOUGH THE BLOOD.AND YOUR BLOOD PREFECT PH IS BETWEEN 7.2 AND 7.4.HAVE YOUR PH CHECKED.THEY CARRY PH STRIPS AT HEATH FOOD STORES.IF YOU HAVE HIGH ACID BLOOD .THEN ALL KINDS OF THINGS CAN GO WRONG .REMEMBER YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT. US WITH RA NEED TO HAVE OUR BODY AND MINE IN HARMAEY.AFTER ALL I HAVE DONE TO FIGHT THIS RA,I WAS BLESSED TO MEET SOMEONE TO SHARE ME THIS THAT GAVE ME FREEDOM FORM MOST OF THIS PAIN.TAKE ONE GAL.OF PURE APPLE CIDER(THE KIND THEY SALE AT CHRISTMAS)MIX ONE HALF CUP OF APPLE CIDER VINGER(THE RED KIND YOU COOK WITH)CHILL IT AND DRINK 8OZS COLD ONE HOUR BEFORE BREAKFAST.THEN AT BREAKFAST TAKE 250mg MAGNESIUM,100mg B6 AND POTASSIUM(ONLY COMES ONE WAY NOW.COST ABOUT $14 FOR ALL.THE APPLE CIDER GIVES YOU 2 FRUIT SERVING A DAY.AFTER SLEELING ALL NIGHT.ALL YOUR FOOD WILL BE IN YOUR COLON.AND THE APPLE CIDER WILL CLEANSE YOUR INTESTINES.DETOX ANY CHEMICALS LEFT BEHIND.EAT A GOOD BREAKFAST. STAY A WAY FORM DAIRY PRODUCTS AND EAT ONLY NATURAL MEATS.STAY AWAY FORM RED BEANS ARE ANY THNIG THEY WILL SOAK UP YOUR WATER IN YOUR BODY.DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS(NOT COKES THEY ARE FULL OF CHEMICALS).COOK ONLY FRESH VEG.(FOR 2 CUPS ABOUT 1 TABLESPOON OF OLIVE OIL COOKED SLOW UPTILL TENDER.AVOIL THINGS THAT ARE SPICEY. YOU WILL LOSE WEIGHT SAVE MONEY AND MAYBE YOU WILL FIND THE RESULTS I HAD.
After being treated with prednisone for poison ivy I noticed that all of my lingering pains are gone! I was diagnosed with severe fibromyalgia 3 years ago. Why can I not get my doctor to listen to me? I am on all sorts of med's that are doing little to nothing for my constent pain. I am sick and tired of feeling my life is being ruined..I have no energy and do not can not do simple daily tasks. Help!
For all of you I wish you the best with this terrible, debilitating disease. I was diagnosed about 4 years ago and my doctor had me taking many of the medications folks on this forum have discussed. None worked with the exception of Prednisone. I agree with others on the use of Predisone. It was the only thing that gave me any kind of releif. My doctor however much I told him how good this drug was, insisted it was not good for me long term. I am 54 yrs old and was thinkning to myself, I would rather live pain free with this drug (prednisone) and take the risk of any long term effects. Even though it is quite expensive, my Dr. has since put me on Embrel. I can tell you that this drug works!!! - at least for me it has. There is also an Embrel support program that will help you with co-payments. Please ask you Dr. You will not be sorry as this stuff really works.
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