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How to address PMR pain while decreasing prednisone
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Nov 6, 2023 | Replies (747)Comment receiving replies
John, when I came out of the hospital on 8/13/18, I was put on 7 mg. Today I am on 5 mg and next week will drop to 4. I will continue to drop by 1 mg every 2 weeks. I trust my journey with my healer, massage therapist, chiropractor, food plan and breathing exercises. My great concern is my bones. Not sure, but I would like to hope that when off prednisone , we can stop the bones from getting worse. Has anyone experienced that?
Replies to "John, when I came out of the hospital on 8/13/18, I was put on 7 mg...."
@rearea1 - From Tinkerbell - I am just off 1 1/2 years of Prednisone. Hopefully the calcium and vitamin D supplements will help with your bones. Also, I walked every other day 2-3 miles. I don’t know if you are well enough to walk on a regular basis. I will be having a Dexa scan in a few weeks. I had one just before I was diagnosed with Giant Cell Arteritis. If you have any problems with your taper, you may want to slow it down to 1/2 mg every 2 weeks. Good Luck
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Hi @rearea1, you are ahead of the game so to speak. I wasn't very informed during my first occurrence of PMR did not know about steroid induced osteoporosis or I think I could have done some things to help reduce the chances including more weight bearing exercises, calcium and vitamin D supplements, and watching the weight gain. It also makes it worse if you smoke or drink but I've never smoked and didn't use alcohol much then.
Osteoporosis and long-term prednisone: What is the risk?
-- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/rheumatoid-arthritis/expert-answers/osteoporosis-prednisone/faq-20057843