Prednisone withdrawal

PS I think the italics fairy must have taken care of my post. No sign of them when I clicked Post Reply!

They haven't been interviewing for years - there is talk of bringing it back.

Really? So are they selected just on academic achievement? That explains a lot.

For a long time and a lot of unis, yes. Even I got offers from 2 without an interview from 2 London colleges nearly 50 years ago.

GP apologised for making me come off pred! She is a young GP so told her about the forum and how to spot PMR. Not sure she had dealt with it out of text book!

My private rheumy was as good as his word and sent her a letter detailing all the tests he wanted done on NHS. Diebitis important as I pass urine very often so need to check that out.

Anyone else have it having been on pred for long time?

Rheumy said 10mgs for week 3 days in and already feel the difference, then down to 5 mg for week then stay on 4 if I can manage on 4 for couple of years. I know this is not advocated but want to do this jump and think having only been totally off it for 5 days it is still in my system and am already feeling the brain telling me to eat!

Thanks for your help again Betty E AND Eileeen H, mega trupors for the PMR cause.

D_J

I will be very interested to hear how things go for you. Keep well!

No - it is a perfectly reasonable thing to try for a relapse - if you'd previously been OK on a low dose and only relapsed because of stopping the pred when you shouldn't have the hope must be that a low dose is plenty.

CUT CARBS - it is high blood sugar levels that plummet suddenly that cause the cravings for food to bring the BS back up. You can't do much about the random spikes of BS that the pred causes but then you have to be disciplined and that shortens the effects rather than feeding the up and down cycle of BS levels. The rest of the time - low carbs means you don't get the swings in the first place.

That all sounds very satisfactory. Best of luck.

OK, will really try to cut carbs. Thanks for all replies and help.

Will let you know if any test results are of interest but now stable again and rid of that ghastly bilateral pain.

I still play tennis 3 times a week at 71 years so no way can I complain!

HAPPY EASTER everyone.

Cutting out carbs may be easier than you expect IF you are very very strict with yourself for a few days. We are all actually feeding our gut flora and fauna and if it is used to and demanding carbs from grains and sugars then those are the varieties which thrive. Once you start to starve them and instead feed those which thrive on, for example, leafy green vegetables and good quality protein, then those varieties of microbes will take over and you will find that your food cravings will also change. The first winter I was dong this I started to crave, believe it or not, leafy greens like kale! Before my diet changes I really had no idea how much wheat I'd actually been consuming. But even a few days or maybe it was a couple of weeks of simply not eating wheat, but eating protein foods (eggs, seeds, nuts) changed all that. At the time I didn't know about the gut microbes. Since then I've learned to eat a variety of fermented foods, beyond yoghurt, as well, and think this is also beneficial. The hardest part is the first few days when those little critters are demanding their sugar/carb fix!

I have just started again to cut the carbs and I know it works, Anhaga. What I have found is if I crave a carb I cut a very small piece of whatever it is and have it which satisfies my need as an interim measure to finally get off them completely. It may not work for everyone but it does for me

I have a drink of water (or tea) or go away from where I am and do something for 10-15mins. By which time I've usually forgotten ...

That's probably a much better way but it's only until I get back on track and I don't mean every time. I often take myself away too and you are right it works. I'm seeing the better weather coming and need to do something!! Mind you, it's bitterly cold today because of a biting wind.

We had new snow in view this morning! Over an inch of rain down here - bleugh!

Still blowing straight off the North Sea here but is supposed to improve by Wednesday and be almost summer-like by Easter.

Oh gosh. We had a couple of nights away. Glorious for two days. Road was closed for a short time on our return .......snow. It was like a different world!! It's been dry for days but cold. The temperatures look better as the week progresses.

So they suggest here - but I do feel just a tad sorry for the Germans who set off on Friday as soon as school finished for their Easter jollies on Lake Garda!

Been decidedly unpleasant here - wind got up a bit and that made it horrible without sun.

Much like that here but no rain. Sun has come out just in time for setting!!

Now I've read the weather forcast!! can I ask if feta cheese is allowed when binning carbs?

Am sure it is but just checking.

Great to have views on kicking carbs , my husband is very good at sticking to leafy veg and protein, doing it for the brain/memory having read an article, so there is NO reason why I can't also.

Does the weather not affect your PMR badly? It does me! And the others discussing the weather I think.

https://healthyeating.sfgate.com/kind-cheese-good-high-protein-low-carb-diet-1913.html

does have a good summary of the types of cheese that are best. The harder the cheese - the better. But feta is OK too. I find it very salty - so not ideal together with pred,

Cannot say about PMR and weather as I didn't keep any notes but Weather and OA I do know about ( at last in as much as it affects me. )

I have a friend and neighbour who is an RA sufferer and we go to the same Practice. Both of us were under the same GP, sadly now no longer at the Practice. Several years ago he said to her that there was evidence to connect low air pressure with increased RA pain. I have since read on the arthritis website that the same possibly applies to OA and lately have had plenty of opportunity to monitor my own OA pain levels. Much though I'll be glad to see the back of the Easterlies from Scandinavia from the temperature point of view there is no doubt that I have been more or less pain free while they have been blowing and remember being very low when pressure was low a couple of weeks ago.

All I need is a smart barometer and an App that will let me control it but I expect some Silicone Valley outfit would buy it up and rent it back to us.