@pah17 once on Prednisone I could function normally but felt the intensity of the steroid and knew it was destructive (last time I went through this 10 years ago it gave me a solid case of osteopenia—I was in my early 60s and hadn’t had it before). So I was eager to wean from prednisone ASAP. It took 8 months last year to complete a slow weaning. SWas it a side affect or just aging that over this period last year my cataracts grew from barely any to operable, my hair thinned so that I had precancerous growths on my scalp, and we haven’t checked my degree of osteopenia or other systems where prednisone hits.
I enjoyed 3 months off Prednisone at the end of 2025 when I started getting symptoms of PMR again. My Dr ordered blood tests to confirm my SED rates were elevated and the blood something rate (I forget the other blood test’s name). So back to 20 mg Pred. I am now weaning again, trying to taper by percentages @ a steady 2-week dose decline. I am lousy about my diet and exercise—really need to get on that because there’s a direct correlation between my AM aches and pains and sugar intake, even on Prednisone.
A friend pointed out that all my side effects could also be attributed to aging (I’m in my 70s now). Could be! But I’d still like to get off prednisone and maintain my life drug-free as much as possible. Live healthfully. Good plan! It’s a new day. Thanks for the prompt.