No problem with sleep while taking only 1mg in the early evening and no pain at all in the morning, just occasionally very minor morning stiffness or aches.

Reducing by .5mg a week for a reduction of 1mg every 2 weeks is a very fast reduction schedule. My doctor's original reduction schedule was 1mg every 4 - 8wks, and the slow taper I'm doing results in a 1mg reduction every 8wks, at the longer end of the range. I'm happy with that. Doctor now says I can sit on the same dose for a week or so longer if I need to but I haven't done that yet.