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I am having a major flare - what can I do?

Posted , 9 users are following.

Padada
Padada

Hello all,  I am having a painful flare.  I was down to 12.5 mg of prednisone and doing fairly well.  I know what I did to cause the flare. I was getting my house ready for a family reunion.  that we had on th 12th.  I had cleaning to do, laundry, cooking, waiting on my house guests.  I was able to do all of that with out any Pain ncrease.  An then, it happened.  i had the most severe pain In my neck shoulderss. both hips, back -really everywhere. 

I upped my prednisone to 14 mg and the pain is settling down somewhat.  How long do I stay at 14 mg, and do I have to use the very slowest taper back to 13.  I had forgotten how much pain PMR can cause. But the higher dose of prednisone is now also causing me sweating and stomach upset.  This is my first flare.  Please advise. 

0 likes, 10 replies

10 Replies

  • Nanduff
    Nanduff Padada

    Posted

    My advice would be to stay on the 14mg for at least a month before you start to taper and then go very slow.  I found that every time I tried to taper too fast I had a flare up that put me back a step.  Better to go really slow

    also I was told that as the dose lowers, the slower you have to go to taper. 

    • Padada
      Padada Nanduff

      Posted

      Nanduff, I appreciate your advice.  i am taking all advice for consideration.  I will definately go really slow.  Thanks.
  • Anhaga
    Anhaga Padada

    Posted

    Oh what unfortunate timing for the family reunion.  I gather that at least you were able to enjoy the reunion?  Now you have to be very strict with yourself and say: if I had a broken leg no one would expect me to (fill in the blank).  Be very kind to yourself.  This is the best thing you can do to help yourself.  I've learned this the hard way!  And google the spoons story - very helpful both for you, and to help others understand what your life is like now, and will be like for the foreseeable future.  Best of luck!
  • EileenH
    EileenH Padada

    Posted

    You stay where you are until the symptoms have gone - and you rest and pamper yourself a bit in the meantime. Then you can try going back to where you were a bit quicker but don't waste time if symptoms return. REspond fast.

    And next time you either increase the dose BEFOREHAND - or you do what you should have done in the first place and say: "Sorry, can't manage this on my own, either you help out or we go out and you pay". 

    I know I sound harsh - but this is the new normal. You put yourself first or this is the result.

  • Padada
    Padada

    Posted

    Thanks for the advice everyone.  I wonder if going up and down with the prednisone dosage is doing even more damage to my body?  The pain is even worse than my initial PMR pain.   

    I know that I worked too hard and I have learned my lesson.  Now I can barely walk again,  

    I am afraid that I won't get over this flare... 

    • Anhaga
      Anhaga Padada

      Posted

      You will get over this flare.  
    • EileenH
      EileenH Padada

      Posted

      As Anhaga says, you will get over it - but it may take a week or two. You have really put your muscles through it and you will have to wait for them to recover, they simply don't heal as well when you have PMR. You would expect to feel like this if you had run a marathon - which you wouldn't ask your body to do. What was ordinary is now the equivalent of a marathon.
  • Silver49
    Silver49 Padada

    Posted

    I did something similar and learnt my lesson......I think! I now do any preparation in a phased way and if people are offended by the dust then I will point them in the direction of my dusters. It hasn't happened to date. I no longer wipe my granchildrens' prints off the windows but look at them with fondness and am glad I have grandchildren and that they love to come and stay. My garden is not as I would like it but it'll soon be frosty and that will kill the weeds. We are only here for a short time and there are more important things to enjoy like watching the birds, enjoying time with friends and family. People are often happy to help out and like to be useful/ needed. Conserve your energy  and do what you feel like doing and do not feel pressed in to doing what one thinks is expected. I wonder if we PMRs are all 'people pleasers'. It's time we learnt to do things for our own pleasure. Having said all that I find it difficult to change the habits of a lifetime. Let's all try to break the mould! Please take more care of yourselves. I hope you feel better soon Padada.
  • Anhaga
    Anhaga Padada

    Posted

    Yesterday I did a little yardwork, which involved setting nine pavers into place.  I happily watched my son start restoring a garden wall, and made us both tea.  This morning I went for a walk along the harbour shore, and thought about how lucky I am to live in this place at this time.  A month ago I was despondent because I was having a flare and hadn't even heard the term before.  Thanks to all the supportive and knowledgeable people on this forum I am able to manage myself much better, and learning how to alter my behaviour.  You will get to that place soon, too!  confused
    • Padada
      Padada Anhaga

      Posted

      That was lovely.  Thank you for the encouragement Anhaga. It was so good of you to share your experience with me.

      And thanks to all who have offered me their opinions.  It means so much.  I am feeling a great deal better after adding 1 mg. to my daily dosage.  Of course I don't know if just 1 mg.  is enough, but now after 5 days of the additional 1 mg., I no longer wake up in pain during the night, I am not walking funny due to pain and stiffness, and the pain in my shoulders and neck is gone. These are major improvements.

       Since this is the first real 'flare' that I have had, I am guessing that adding the extra 1 mg. has stopped the flare.  Prior to this additional prednisone, I was sofa bound for 3 days and could barely walk.  And may I add that I was despondent too. 

      I do need to learn from this episode and I do need to be able to manage myself better.  My real desire though is to be out from this 'kettle of fish' (translation: be done with PMR).  I know that this will take time and I really have no control of how long.  And thank you for the smiley face.

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