PMR - Decreased prednisone and pain returned

Everyone is different but I usually stayed on the 1/2 mg increase for one or two weeks depending on how I felt in the morning when I woke up before trying to go down again.

Thanks so much I’m grateful for your help! I’ll try it. Do you increase a half mg if the morning pain doesn’t subside in a week?

I did increase the dose a half mg quite a few times my last six months when I was trying to get off of prednisone and going back and forth between 1 mg and 1/2 mg until I was finally able to stop taking the prednisone with little to no morning pain. I think if my PMR ever comes back again I might try this tapering plan on the HealthUnlocked PMR/GCA forum. It might be worth a try if you are having trouble tapering off.

--- Dead slow and nearly stop reduction plan
https://healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk/posts/131189593/dead-slow-and-nearly-stop-reduction-plan

I could not take predisone, made me more anxious but did help pain,
I am on Infusion of Acterma. has helped.Theresa

I could not take Predisone. on Infusion once a month with Actemra.
PS love Sicily.Theresa

4 seems to about be my bottom, and that’s on the edge.

It’s tricky isn’t it, especially when the rheumatologist expects you to be off it in 3 months!

After passing 10mg, I had been decreasing by .5mg every 10 days. The 5mg - 4.5mg drop caused pain again particularly in my left arm. Pain increased when I started 4mg . I backtracked to 5mg for one day, then restarted at 4.75mg and have been decreasing by 1/4mg every 10 days. No pain so far (I'm currently at 3mg). This will also lengthen the withdrawal time. I've been trying to keep the decrease to less than 10% each time, although at some point that won't be possible because there is only so much that the 5mg and 1mg pills can be cut.

has anyone been on Infusion Therapy? for PMR

It has taken me eight months to taper from 15 mg to 11 mg. I'm now working at tapering by 1 mg per month, and so far have been fairly successful. I do notice a bit of extra pain and stiffness when I first drop down by 1 mg, but as my body gets used to the slightly lower dose, it gradually fades away. That's not to say I don't always have some mild pain and stiffness, because I do -- but it's so minor that it doesn't interfere with my life. My doctor originally wanted me to taper by 2.5 mg every few weeks, but that was way too dramatic a drop. The "textbook" tapering schedule, which is to drop from 15 mg to 12.5 mg, then to 10 mg, over a period of several weeks, doesn't seem to work for most people because it's too fast.

I have found, both from this forum and from my own experience, that we have to taper the prednisone the way our bodies need us too - not the way the doctors dictate. Most of them also seem to think PMR only lasts a year and then goes away, but that's also inaccurate.