takes 12 months

i did read on the forum, that it takes around 12 months  for your body to recover  after stopping pred.  what does this mean  please ,,     and still thanking   everyone on this forum  for there  help and  input.  for  advise

Hi Pauline, I can't answer your question but all I know is every time I reduce Pred I get totally diferent side effects and symptoms, then just when you think you've got rid of certain side effects they return months down the line! So yes I'm sure the pred could lay dormant and have long lasting effects on our bodies even after we stop taking it!!! Sharing your concerns,, Andrea xx

yes i know  i am down to 1 mg   and will start reducing again afte the weekend,  so i am just preparing  my self for what will happen  when i come off it altogether   fingers x  lol

Pauline how long have you been on pred? Have you ever had a flare and had to increase it again? I've only been on it since March 2015 and have reduced from 20mg to 12.5mg in that time ok. Going to 10mg in 2 weeks! But Im having awful sensitve teeth at the moment!!! I'm just wondering how long I'll take to reduce from 10mg to something a lot less?? Andrea xx

Pauline, when we start taking steroids we can notice a lot of things happening to our bodies at the beginning, such as swelling in various areas, disrupted sleep patterns, dry/thinning skin, just to name a few of the side effects.  After being on the medication long term, our bodies don't just immediately switch back to our pre-steroid days immediately.  Many of our hormones will have been disrupted, and our adrenal glands have been suppressed from making their own natural steroid (cortisol) by the artifical steroid (Pred), and they will very slowly need to get up to full speed again.  The very slow tapering plans we recommend can be a very big help along the way.  Our muscles can be weakened by the steroids and they will need time to become strong again.  It was very many months after I came off steroids before my stiff ankles and knees fully recovered.

I hope that helps to explain things for you.  

thanks  mrs o,   thats just what i wanted to know,  you are real help to  all  us

newbys  to pmr,  what would  wedo without you  thanks a million x

 

hi andrea   i have been on pred  3 years,  with one  flare   at   5mg.  but it could have been a reduction  pain  i  just paniced  and went back up ti 7 mg, .  then slowly  down to 1 mg  but had to go back to 2. in dec., there i stayed.   so it took me  slowly reduction untill now to get to 1mg. and i will slowly go down to none  by end of sept,  rather  do it like this just be  sure it has gone.   i must also say this time i feel  better at 1   than i did  last time   so  fingers  x  its on its way out

Hello Andrea, I started on pred May 2014 15mg and had teeth pain for a few weeks but then disappeared and have now had it again May and June 2015 whilst on 8 mg. Seems a bit better now and dr thinks it's more to do with my sinuses and of course it's the hay fever season. Never suffered before but perhaps the polymyalgia makes our teeth more sensitive. I am going down very slowly, trying 7.5 next week. Kay

It is thought to take the feedback system in the body that comprises the hypothalamus, pituitary and adrenal glands and the many hormones they secrete about a year to settle down and work reliably again. Until then any real stress - physical or mental - can be too much for the body to cope with and you may need a shortterm dose of corticosteroid to tide you over surgery for example.  The slower you take the final stages of reduction below 7mg the less likely it is to happen.

Pred also has physical effects on the body - some reverse but don't do so overnight. Tendons for example remain a bit delicate as a result of the action of pred for some time. 

thanks eileen you are a godsend to this forum dont know what we would do without u and  mrs  O. its like visiting the specialst.. if not better    thanks again.x