I'm getting ready to drop down to 10.5 mg again. Whenever I get there I start having pains so I've been tapering slower and slower each time. Then today it dawned on me, my pain comes on at bedtime. My legs start hurting from my knees down and they hurt so bad it keeps me up. So I'm explaining all this to my rheumatologist this afternoon and it dawned on me that I should try splitting my dose. So I need to know two things. #1) do you think it sounds like a good idea? and #2) how should I split my dose?
Everyone is different. For me I take 1/2 of the dose just before going to sleep ( which is ~1AM) and the second half with breakfast (9AM). I am at 5mg and until recently I was taking 2mg at night and 3mg in the morning, but morning stiffness was bothering me, so I switched; increased the dose at night to 3mg and reduced morning dose to 2 and it felt much better.
The point I am trying to make is you have to tailor your dose and timing to YOUR needs and the only way to find out is to try. Don't be afraid to experiment.
I was thinking I had read here that there was a golden rule about two-thirds in the morning and one third at night or something to that effect but I can't remember what it was.
I would start by taking 5mg at 6pm or so. I take my whole dose at that time and now sleep well.
I am at a very low dose now, if I was at 10.5mg I think that taking 5mg at 6pm would not negatively affect my sleep the way that a higher nighttime dose might.
Why not? If it doesn't work you can always have a rethink!
No, no "golden rule" - 2/3 in the morning is just that having the majority then is when most people need it. As Nick so rightly says - YOU need it when YOU need it. The more you take early in the day the less likely it is that you will find it interferes with sleep but some people can take it all just before bed and still sleep like a log. And when you take the other 1/3 also depends on what fits well for you - there are people who take it with their lunch, others early evening, others just before bed. It depends where you need the extra to take effect.
I'm aware that most people on this forum take Pred in the morning, plus various healthcare professionals have suggested that mornings are better for lots of reasons, but I have tried on two occasions now, the second time for at least a week to give my body a chance to adjust, but I had to go back to late afternoon (whole dose of 9mg), which doesn't affect my sleep and allows me to take it with food (yogurt, as Mrs O has suggested). My stiffness is better in the morning than when I was taking the Pred in the morning. I have discussed this with my GP and she has agreed that whatever works for me.
Good luck!
My chemist said that it was a given that Pred interfered with ability to sleep, and as I am a LIGHT sleeper I took their advice. Some people would sleep well no matter what they took or when. So as everyone says "whatever works for you".
"My chemist said that it was a given that Pred interfered with ability to sleep"
Nothing is "a given" in PMR and pred!!!!!
Well thank you all for your comments. Taking prednisone in the evening will probably not be a problem with my sleeping as I take a muscle relaxer for my back too and that pretty well knocked me out. So it will just be up to me to figure out the right balance of medication to take in the morning and in the evening.
Generally speaking I've slept much better with pred than I did before. First few months it was because I didn't hurt whenever I tried to move so wasn't constantly waking myself up. Later I started taking one of my calcium doses near bedtime and I have to say my sleep pattern is probably the best it's been my entire life!
What's a "calcium dose" Anhaga ?
Part of the calcium I take every day. Have it near bedtime with a small snack.