Just had a call from my doctors re: first appointment with Rheumy

Thank you Christina, it's as well I don't have to rely on a Rheumy, I am doing it by myself and keeping my dr. informed of this.  She's good and she understands me.  I will be reducing down to 12.5mg on 4th April but I had to double up Sunday, Monday and today from 15mg of pred to 30mg because of teeth implant work.  When I get down to 10mg I will be monitoring myself.  I am in no hurry to get off pred.  I could not go back to the level of pain I was in.  Thanks again Christina,    Pat

I know Eileen but sure maybe it's for the best.  I get to do what I want, when I want and then inform my dr. regarding pred.  So it's an ill wind that doesn't blow some good (I think that's the saying).  My memory has got worse, I don't know if this PMR or pred.  Oh and another wee question my blood results from 8th January were ESR 17, CRP 13.2 and white cell count  10.2, I don't know what this is but I know with your medical background you will know.  Anyway thanks again.  I would be lost without you all on here, this forum and yourself and others have been a Godsend.  Thank God I am not a worrier.     Regards   Pat

That ESR is really good - the pred is obviously doing its job (I'm assuming it was higher before was it?) The CRP is a bit up I think (all depends on the lab what the range is) but your ESR could get lower, you never know. The white cell count is within the normal range - at the top end but that is what happens with pred.

And yes - both PMR and pred can cause brain fog!! 

Thanks Eileen, yes blood results are good, they were from January at Endocrinology and results for last week from my own gp are ESR 19, CRP 12.3 and Vit D 63, my vit D has gone down a bit (maybe because I forgot to take my Adcal for a few days) the last time Vit D was 72, so am doing not too bad.  Yes the pred is definately working.  Thanks again Eileen.    Pat

Yes Eileen my ESR in November past was 124 and ESR was 46.7 and brain fog I thought ME was bad with the brain fog, but it doesn't have a patch on PMR.

The adcal is a low dose of vit D, about what we use every day anyway, and we use our vit D stocks up over the winter so our vit D level is likely to be highest in September at the end of the summer and then it falls steadily until May when the sun is high enough again to make vit D in our skin (if we are out in it at midday with no sunscreen). That level is about as low as is good to get - don't forget the adcal again ;-)

You have 3 reasons now: ME, PMR and pred! It does improve though - honestly!

Oh but there is light at the end of the tunnel and it's not just my age.  Happy days Eileen.  

Oh Eileen I just slapped myself on the wrist.  I had just finished the chewable ones and had forgot to take my caplet ones.  If they are not in my sight or beside me, well they don't exist.  That's why I am a clutter bug, I have to have everything around me.  Anywhere there is a flat surface in my home, I have something on it.  But now I have a cleaner, and she's a brilliant organiser and has brilliant ideas of where to put stuff.  I gave her free reign (she is my sister-in-law) she has loads of energy, talks ninety to the dozen and cleans and move furniture at the same time while drinking coffee.  And I cannot hold one thought in my head, cannot multitask, never could really.  Cleaning is not my forte, never was.  Of course the house was always cleaned from top to bottom, in my head, but sure I never got up from the chair.  I had more important things to do, like sleeping, but not all the time.  Oh aren't we mothers just brilliant.  

I used to have a cleaner like that - my best friend at the time. She needed a job but had small children. I looked after the kids when we were doing RDA and she did the horsey things. She cleaned as a religion - and my house was never so clean! She cleaned like I would clean if I could be bothered - or my back didn't hurt so much! We tell so many people to get a cleaner if they can when they are badly affected by PMR but very few of them do.

Yes Eileen now that I have my cleaner, I couldn't be without her.  She has also papered and painted some of my rooms.  She also does my patio with all the plants and soil and replants what needs to be replanted.  I don't know what I would do without her.  Her brother (my ex-husband of 23years) he died nearly 2 years ago aged 61 and her other brother just January there, he  was 59.  Both had aesophical cancer (cancer of the gullet, I cannot spell the other word) and then it spread all through them.  

She lost 2 brothers and gained myself and my youngest son.  We had lost contact over the separation but we never fell out.  She is a scream, when she was doing my plants last year and she was covered in soil.  She had a black moustache (soil) and still proceeded to put her lipstick on, she has such a good heart.  She has her health, she has no children, (maybe that's her secret).  Now what started out as a brief message has turned into a saga to be continued.  My method of cleaning is dead slow and stop and only when it starts to effect me, which is not that often.  It's unimportant but I know I cannot do it or keep on top of it, (I really don't want to anyway)  Have a good day and thank you for your input, like my cleaner I would be lost without you keeping me right and all the others of course.   Pat