1. < Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR)
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Forgot to take my pills this morning

Posted by p0rtia @p0rtia, Jun 24 4:17pm

Day 14 of my 15 mg prednisone course. Forgot to take my pills this morning, which I usually do between 6 and 8 AM.

2 PM and I hurt from head to toe, including shoulders and hips.

Took prednisone at 4 PM when I got home.

Can this stiffness/pain be from the missed pills. Because if so, wow, that didn't take long. If not, I'm happy to write it off to a very active day yesterday, with gardening tasks I have not done in months.

Eager to hear your thoughts!

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p0rtia | @p0rtia | Jul 13 12:24pm
In reply to @dadcue "@p0rtia What plan do you have that is ready to go? There is no single plan..." + (show)
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@p0rtia

What plan do you have that is ready to go?

There is no single plan that works for everyone. Your plan has to be flexible and easy to revise. It also depends on your dose. Being on 15 mg per day is different than when you get down to 5 mg per day. You might need to adjust your plan as you taper lower.

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@dadcue My plan is to do what my rheumatologist recommends to start my taper, go very slowly, and be ready to respond when the first flare occurs. I'll talk to my Rh about Kevzara when and if I near that stage. I'm game for the Up Day Down Day tool that has seemed to work for some. Still waiting to get my Rh recommendation, so it's more a frame of mind than a graph.

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gilbert56 | @gilbert56 | 4 days ago
In reply to @dadcue "More than likely ... the pain/stiffness is the result of missing your dose. I worried about..." + (show)
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More than likely ... the pain/stiffness is the result of missing your dose. I worried about doing that but PMR had a way of reminding me to take my prednisone whenever I forgot.

Sometimes I couldn't remember if I took my daily dose or not. I strongly recommend those weekly medication dosettes. I would lay out all my medications that I planned to take for the whole week on a Sunday. That way my dose would still be in the compartment of the dosette waiting for me to take it if I forgot.

I think a dosette is especially important when you taper Prednisone. People try all kinds of taper strategies by changing their dose every day. That is fine if it works for them but that just confused me. I couldn't remember what dose that I was supposed to take from one day to the next.

My rheumatologist emphasized a "stable dose" instead of a dose that changed every day. My day-to-day pain/stiffness varied slightly when I kept my daily dose the same for an entire week or several weeks. If I had a dramatic increase in pain in one day it was likely that I forgot a dose. If the pain/stiffness increased several days in a row, it was likely a flare since my dose wasn't changing every day.

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@dadcue I would also say it was from a missed dose, and probably exertion. Here’s the thing- when you suddenly have some energy, lack of pain, and your mobility back, it’s easy to overdue. Be cognitive of what you do, and don’t overwork yourself. And, like what was suggested, get a dose pack. ( I added some vitamins to mine)….

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kjoed53 | @kjoed53 | 3 days ago
In reply to @gilbert56 "@dadcue I would also say it was from a missed dose, and probably exertion. Here’s the..." + (show)
Profile picture for gilbert56 @gilbert56

@dadcue I would also say it was from a missed dose, and probably exertion. Here’s the thing- when you suddenly have some energy, lack of pain, and your mobility back, it’s easy to overdue. Be cognitive of what you do, and don’t overwork yourself. And, like what was suggested, get a dose pack. ( I added some vitamins to mine)….

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@gilbert56
We all have to be mindful of our age even when we feel ready to conquer the world. My wife has to remind me occasionally that I'm not Superman anymore. I used to get mad and try to prove her wrong, but the next day always proved her right.

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etelbela | @etelbela | 3 days ago

I missed a dose, 2mg, about a month ago. I was fortunate that I didn't flare. I may be one of the people who metabolizes the prednisone slowly.
After being on 2mg for several months I've decided to reduce. I am trying to alternate between 1mg and 2mg per day. Today is the second 1mg day. I hope it goes well. I'd like to be done with the prednisone one day - I've been on it for almost 3 years, beginning with 15mg.

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tweetypie13 | @tweetypie13 | 2 days ago
In reply to @p0rtia "@dadcue My plan is to do what my rheumatologist recommends to start my taper, go very..." + (show)
Profile picture for p0rtia @p0rtia

@dadcue My plan is to do what my rheumatologist recommends to start my taper, go very slowly, and be ready to respond when the first flare occurs. I'll talk to my Rh about Kevzara when and if I near that stage. I'm game for the Up Day Down Day tool that has seemed to work for some. Still waiting to get my Rh recommendation, so it's more a frame of mind than a graph.

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@p0rtia shoot for a Kevzara NOW. It helps get off prednisone and easy peasy bi weekly self injections. I wasted 3 months not doing it sooner.

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p0rtia | @p0rtia | 2 days ago
In reply to @tweetypie13 "@p0rtia shoot for a Kevzara NOW. It helps get off prednisone and easy peasy bi weekly..." + (show)
Profile picture for tweetypie13 @tweetypie13

@p0rtia shoot for a Kevzara NOW. It helps get off prednisone and easy peasy bi weekly self injections. I wasted 3 months not doing it sooner.

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@tweetypie13 Thanks! This resonates with me. I will do so.

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mjdcl57 | @mjdcl57 | 1 day ago

Friends:
I'll have to say that the "missed dose" things is quirky. I'm on 17.5 mg per day, with the bulk of the dose (15 mg) taken in the morning and 2.5 mg around dinnertime. If I miss that dinnertime dose, my hands will ache after a night's sleep. Not terribly, but noticeably.

I have missed full doses in the morning and everything was fine. Another time I missed a dose and I was in a lot of discomfort. I've only missed three times in 5 months, so I don't have a huge sample.

As I said, I'm very slowly tapering. I have noticed the "bloating" to some extent. I work out a lot and do about an hour of cardio every day, but I'm still about ten pounds heavier than pre-pred.

Best of luck to everyone.

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