Prescriptions

Posted by gman254 @gman254, 1 day ago

Have had PMR for 5 months. I am down to 10mg prednisone. I tried to drop to 7.5 about 3 weeks ago, but each time I had recurring severe symptoms.
I have 5mg and 10 mg prednisone. Researching the internet, the recommendation is to reduce by 1mg's each month.
My rheumatologist refuses to give me a new prescription for any other than 5 mg and wants me to take 7.5 mg regardless of the symptoms.
I'm trying to get my GP to issue a new prescription but won't until he sees me again. Another month before that happens, and I 'm not sure what he will do.
Getting new doctors is about a 3 month project, and chances of getting a prescription on the first visit is nil.
My worry is that as I go down the tapering, can I get the prescriptions that I will need.

Any help on trying to solve this problem?

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John, Volunteer Mentor | @johnbishop | 1 day ago

Not sure why your rheumatologist is refusing to help you taper at your own speed as each patient is different. My Mayo rheumatologist actually suggested that I get 5 mg, 2.5 mg and 1 mg tablets to make tapering easier when I got below 10 mg. He had me keep a daily log with my level of pain when I woke up and the dose I took for the day. He also told me if my pain level was unacceptable to delay the taper a few days to a week and try it again.

I think I would have a nice long conversation with him about your level of pain when you are tapering.

jeff97 | @jeff97 | 1 day ago

Would it be worth trying to split a 5 to make 2 2.5s, and then split one of those? That way you could take a 5, a 2.5, and a 1.25, which would make 8.75. That might work for you better vs 7.5. Otherwise you could stay at 10 if you have enough to make it through until you see your GP.

It's a shame that your rheumatologist is so inflexible.

ropnrose | @ropnrose | 21 hours ago

I would insist that the rheumatologist order Prednisone dosages to allow for flexibility in tapering. There is no set 'recipe' for your taper. Everyone is different. I've had prescription dosages in 20, 10, 5, and 1 mg. of Prednisone. I've learned a lot from others in this forum on how to adjust my taper. Advocate for yourself. Good luck.

mtr2601 | @mtr2601 | 20 hours ago

We have seen a post on this forum by a chemist who stated that splitting Prednisone pills was not advisable because the dose becomes highly inaccurate. However this was the only way I have been able to get from 10mg to 1mg. I will continue splitting and going down by 0.25mg until I reach zero. I think your Rheumatologist is being unreasonable, sounds like they dont trust you to manage your own taper. I had to stand my ground with mine on a few occasions over the last 18mths and simply refuse to be bullied or coerced into doing things I knew were not good for me.