How to address PMR pain while decreasing prednisone

I'm not an expert but its my understanding that both prednisone and CBD inhibit a certain enzyme BUT CBD is a big inhibitor. I believe therefore the corticosteroid side effects (that we all hate) will be worse. Simply put CBD increases the concentration of prednisone in your body. So if prednisone keeps you awake you may be exasperating your problem if you take CBD oil. Maybe if you are on smaller dosages it is okay. I hope someone else will weigh in on your question.

@karinaph and @dmsbronch. I saw your comments the other day about CBD and prednisone so I had a discussion with my doctor yesterday. I had just started CBD oil and patches and was worried about interaction. He said that as long as the amounts I use were small, there wasn’t a problem. The problem starts if I take 15mg per kg squared of body weight. For me that would mean 900+ msg a day! That’s a lot! h
He has had medical education in the use of marijuana for cancer patients and I really trust him.

Thank you for sharing the discussion with your doctor about use of CBD oil in conjunction with Prednisone. I had been using CBD and a small part of THC at bedtime in an effort to get a few hours of sleep. When I saw the negative discussion thread I stopped. I have an appointment with the rheumatologist end of the month, I'll report back what he says.

Appreciate your insights. I’ll check w my MD too.

I am a recent PMR candidate. I am on a 20mg daily dosage. My recent problem is stiffness and rigidity, no pain or sleepless nights. Some days are better than others but after prednisone/Risedronate (35mg) my whole body is tight. Is this normal? What can I do? Some days I can't get out of a chair. I cannot walk without a walker.

Hello @glendal, Welcome to Connect. My PMR is in remission but when it was active I had stiffness and pain. The pain was ever present for me when the PMR was active and it was the prednisone that gave me relief from the pain and the stiffness. When you were diagnosed with PMR did your rheumatologist also prescribe Risedronate to go along with the prednisone to prevent bone loss?

Hello! I am not Glendal, but saw your reply with great interest. I have been on step-down with Prednisone for 2-1/2 yrs and my rheumatologist never suggested Risedronate. I am in my mid 60's and osteopenia is on my. medical chart. Sadly, I fell in October and had a nasty break to my wrist. I was then told that I should consider going on Fosamax. Now I'm wondering if I should have been on something all along. I will certainly ask about this Risedronate at my next visit.

Hi Glendal. I concur with John’s comments and have a multitude of ?’s. Are you in the
“ diagnosis search” category or does your provider feel you have PMR? I only get relief from the prednisone ( and some side effects of that med). It made an immediate impact on me. I couldn’t get out of bed, struggled to ambulate and after prednisone, I could return to a “ normal” lifestyle. When did you start the 20 mg? Is that where you started or are you tapering? I’d definitely talk with your practitioner and let her/him know. Have you gotten any relief from your PMR symptoms taking the meds? Take care and hope to hear updates from you. Wishing you relief.

@dmsbronch. I saw your message and even though I don’t have PMR, I have been on prednisone for 3 years. I wasn’t put on Fosamax until I’d been on prednisone for awhile. I now have osteoporosis! My sister, who started Fosamax right away, doesn’t . Please tell your doctor that you WANT to go on Fosamax or one of the newer drugs.

I have had PMR for a full year now although it wasn't diagnosed until April of last year when I started 10 mgs. of Prednisone. Have had a couple of flare ups and am now at a steady 4 mgs. My rheumatologist suggested I take 600 mgs of Calcium twice a day (1200 in all) for the bone loss. I was on chemo for breast cancer in 2018 and my nails suffered terribly. The calcium has brought them back to full strength, now I can't even bend them. Hope it is doing the same for my bones.