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Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR): Meet others & Share Your Story
Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) | Last Active: Jan 27 8:38am | Replies (1879)Comment receiving replies
Hi @pmrsuzie, Welcome to Connect. I'm sorry to hear that you have been dealing with PMR for 5 years. That is definitely the pits. My first time with PMR was 3 and half years and then six years later when my PMR came back, it lasted for 1 and half years. You mentioned low fat, low sodium, no caffeine diet. Here is some more diet related information that you might find helpful.
--- Diet and Supplements for Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR): https://www.arthritis-health.com/blog/diet-and-supplements-polymyalgia-rheumatica-pmr
What helped me reduce my time on prednisone the second time around with PMR was eating healthier, eliminating as much sugar as possible 🙂 and adding more moderate daily exercise. I also take blood pressure meds so pretty much have eliminated any added salt and try to avoid high sodium foods.
Some people that have struggled to taper off of prednisone have been successful using the following tapering plan found on the HealthUnlocked website.
--- Dead slow and nearly stop reduction plan (Tapering)
https://healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk/posts/131189593/dead-slow-and-nearly-stop-reduction-plan
Do you keep a daily log of your pain levels and prednisone dosage?
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John, thanks for your comments. I will read the links tonight. I have been following an anti-inflammatory diet as much as possible. And I do limit sugar. I read every label. I have found it necessary to pick and choose from all these diets. Some foods and ingredients are hard to find and too expensive. These diets are all different.
I was splitting my prednisone dose but found that less than 5 mg made tapering difficult. I was down to 1 mg when the hand inflammation started. I thought the pmr was gone. The inflammation just went somewhere else, not my hips and shoulders. This is the second time I had a hand problem, and it elevates my WBC count. The first time the pain was so bad I cried in the Dr office. I ended up in the ER and they did every imaginable test for an infection, could not find anything and gave me 60mg medrol in an IV. Sent me to a hematologist. Had a lot of bloodwork but no explanation, my hand got better.
It's s rollercoaster ride for sure.
suzanne