Good afternoon. Please can anyone help me? I have been on preds for about 5 years after getting Polymyalgia at the age of 47. I have had several relapses where I have had to increase my preds and in doing so increased my waistline (I'm normally slim) however upon reducing preds my waistline reduces too. This time around things have been different as I'm on the lowest amount of preds ever, 5mg daily but by waistline is still very large and hasn't reduced at all this time and feel a very uncomfortable almost constant bloating. I was wondering if anyone has experienced this at all? Thank you so much in advance...Jules
Anything different about your diet? Or possibly your reaction to common foods. I find I can no longer tolerate more than a small amount of anything made with wheat.
Have you spoken to your doctor? Things do change and the discomfort should be investigated.
The weight gain with pred can be minimised by cutting carbs drastically - and that also often helps bloating problems too.
yes and yes. im at 5 also and very thin but my waist and lower tummy are an abomination. never looked like this in my life. in fact i just discussed this with my gp last week who said "its the pred." ive been on it for 2 1/2 years now. ive had to buy all new underwear for the 2nd time. disgusting.
Not to be "preachy", but be thankful that you do not experience the PMR pain.
Good luck!
i DO experience the pmr pain! every day! im not one of the "lucky" ones who are pain free.
Which does beg the question: are you on the right dose?
ive never been pain free. by pain i mean stiffness and soreness in the morning, eases in afternoon, but never goes back to "normal." standing is always hard.
even at my starting dose of 20, i still had stiffness and soreness. saw rheumy who said i "had a bad case."
ive read many times on forums that not all of us are ever pain free?? i dont expect i ever will be, at least not until the pmr burns itself out.
im getting in 5000 steps a day along with some gentle stretches. best i can do.
There is nothing to be thankful about when on prednisone. It's a toxic drug, and on top of the bloating and weight gain, people develop diabetes, high blood pressure and osteoporosis. A terrible price to pay. They need to find another treatment, in the case of PMR, the treatment is as bad as the disease.
It is not - I am living proof of that. The treatment is NOT as bad as the disease - with pred I got my life back after 5 years of pain and disability. And for that I am very grateful. Because you have had a bad experience does not mean everyone does.
PMR can progress to GCA - and that can kill or blind. Taking pred at low to moderate doses can prevent that.
They do need to find another treatment, I won't dispute that - but that is easier said than done. For the moment we have pred, which need not be as bad as you are suggesting.
I agree with Eileen. Any abdominal bloating that persists needs investigation. Pred is not the cause of every symptom while taking it. i did get bloating from ppis like pantoprazole and other like it to protect my stomach while taking pred. it went away immediately when stopping that type of medication. I switched to an H2 blocker called ranitidine or PEPSID. No more bloating from gas.
I've gone up 2 sizes. gained 20 lbs. my stomach is huge. I can't stop eating sweets i crave them all day.
Agree with Eileen pred gave me my life back too and even though I have to stay at five mg for the rest of my life I'm still grateful for a drug that gives us some relief.
Hi Twopies, you and I have spoke about this before. Highest dose was 30mg I started to get relief. My Rheumy wanted me to start reducing. I said when I am PMR pain free, 6 weeks on 30 mg and I was Mr Hyde not Dr Jekyll. I am surprised my wife didn't divorce me. After 6 weeks I started modified DSNS, with reductions 10% or less. Now finally breaking the 10% rule reducing from 5 to 4.5. Not feeling the best but out walking and will do so. I remember the struggle to walk after the bad flare, I will get there, with a smile. 🙂
Rosarita,I have disagree, you must work on it and that is no fun. Watching my diet my Diabetes is a little worse, but under control with oral medication. I have been a type 2 diabetic since 1962. Last fall, my Bone density scan showed an Improvement, Did have a drip before the scan 2 years ago. I lead an active normal life and know that would be possible without Prednisone. Prednisone may cause my cataracts, to get worse, but diabetes does also, I don't care one way or the other they are doing to get worse. I am 82 and active, positive with a smile. 🙂
Hi folks it’s been a while since I weighed in. My journey started last May when i had excruciating pain for about 8 weeks until diagnosed with PMR. I got near immediate relief from 15 mg of pred daily. i am a 76-year old type 1 diabetic and so the impact on my self test and A1C readings was dramatic. Based on info from this forum and others, i went on a keto diet. My blood glucose readings stabilized and i am down to 5 mg of pred daily. My ability to exercise has also improved significantly. I don't know where I'd be w/o prednisone. Best wishes RICH
Hi folks it’s been a while since I weighed in. My journey started last May when i had excruciating pain for about 8 weeks until diagnosed with PMR. I got near immediate relief from 15 mg of pred daily. i am a 76-year old type 1 diabetic and so the impact on my self test and A1C readings was dramatic. Based on info from this forum and others, i went on a keto diet. My blood glucose readings stabilized and i am down to 5 mg of pred daily. My ability to exercise has also improved significantly. I don't know where I'd be w/o prednisone. Best wishes RICH
Hi folks it’s been a while since I weighed in. My journey started last May when i had excruciating pain for about 8 weeks until diagnosed with PMR. I got near immediate relief from 15 mg of pred daily. i am a 76-year old type 1 diabetic and so the impact on my self test and A1C readings was dramatic. Based on info from this forum and others, i went on a keto diet. My blood glucose readings stabilized and i am down to 5 mg of pred daily. My ability to exercise has also improved significantly. I don't know where I'd be w/o prednisone. Best wishes RICH
I stand by my opinion and I know many who have been harmed by long term use of steroids.I wish there was more research into other, less toxic, treatments for PMR. The steroids, not the PMR, caused the worst of my symtoms. I have myopathy in both legs and cannot climb steps. It is steroid induced myopathy, according to all my doctors, and I am impaired for the rest of my life. This is not good and is not from PMR.
I was diagnosed at 76 yrs old and got immediate relief from 15 mg prednisone. I am now 80 , soon to to be 81. I was able to go thru knee replacement on 6 mgs a couple of years ago. I had cataract operation before PMR. I do have ulcer medication because of ibuprofen before PMR diagnosis which was much more harmful than pred. I am able to have an almost normal life because of pred. I am currently on 6 1/2 mgs, reducing slowly every 6 to 8 weeks to 6 mgs after a few flares. Prednisone is a miracle drug for PMR pain from inflammation. My weight is less than when diagnosed thru careful diet.