prednisone weaning
 

What experiences have anyone had with weaning off of, or down with prednisone? I am currently weaning down from 60 mg per day(all in the morning) at the rate of 2 1/2 mg for 5 days at a time. I am down to 12 1/2 per day.

Hello xrpodn
 

I did have this experience years ago. Not fun from what I remember. If you get jittery, or cannot sleep, or in anyway feel sick, call your doctor. I hope that this goes OK for you, and that you don't have any real problems. ginnie:hug:

Hi xrpodn,
It all depends on how long you've been on Pred. Such tapering is ok when Pred has been taken for a short period of time ( a few weeks or or couple of months) otherwise a slower pace should be adopted.
See for example:
http://neuromuscular.wustl.edu/mtime/mgrx.html
Also be careful below 10 mg/day, about 3 mg corresponds to the natural production rate of cortisone by the surrenals. If they have been shut off due to absorption of high dose Pred for a long time, they will probably not respond.
Maurice.

How's the weaning going? Have you been on Pred a long time? Like Maurice said, it can be a very tricky process if you've been on Pred for awhile.

If you have any signs of extreme sleepiness, irritability, sweating or feeling "out of it," call your doctor or go in right away. People can have adrenal insufficiency even when on Pred a short time. It's nothing to mess with and is an emergency. I'm not saying that to scare you but to protect you!

It's always best to have a talk with your neuro and/or primary doctor about this. I hope it's going well.

Annie