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How to address PMR pain while decreasing prednisone

Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Nov 6, 2023 | Replies (747)
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@lindapc

Well I have made it to 1mg of Prednisone from 20mg and feeling a little stiff in my shoulders but not too bad. Hopefully I can completely come off this after a month, can anyone tell me do you just drop to nothing from the 1mg or do you halve it or every other day take 1 mg? Also, I have put on quite a bit of weight especially around my middle, has anyone else had this and how long does it take to get rid of all the excess you have from being on Prednisone? Any information would be a help.

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Replies to "Well I have made it to 1mg of Prednisone from 20mg and feeling a little stiff..."
John, Volunteer Mentor | @johnbishop | Jun 11, 2019

Hi @lindapc, my PMR is currently in remission but I started on 20 mg of prednisone both times. The first occurrence took me 3 years to taper off and the last 6 months or so was going between 1 mg and 1/2 mg until I was finally able to stop taking it with a minimum amount of discomfort. I used a pill cutter to split the 1 mg tablets. I gained a lot of weight the first time around. Not sure exactly how much but it was 50 lbs or more. The second time around I was more conscious of the problem of gaining weight and was able to keep it between 5 and 10 lbs. There are other sites with information on how to control the weight gain but here are a couple that do a good job of summarizing. Exercise really helps but I believe the key is to not overdo the exercise to where it causes your pain to be worse.

ILD Nutrition Manual: Prednisone and Weight Gain
-- https://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/ild_nutrition_manual/prednisone_and_weight_gain/
Why do people gain weight on Prednisone?
-- https://www.helpfightra.org/weight-gain-on-prednisone/

Here's some ideas to help with staying more active.

3 Strategies for Coping with Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR)
-- https://www.arthritis-health.com/blog/3-strategies-coping-polymyalgia-rheumatica-pmr

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