side effects of the drugs

Prednizone made me very sick. The side affects from it were brutal. I also have had vision problems but I think that they are the disease affecting them. My eyes have become very weak as a result and I have a hard time focusing on anything small even with readers. They also burn all the time and I will wake up with them burning but also watering very badly. The rest of the day they are very dry and I must use eye drops several times a day.

Get her in to see an opthamologist and not an optometrist. They are much better at identifying vision disease and treatment.

The worst side effect for me was how they affected my mental and emotional state. I was very depressed and would cry over very silly things all the time. For me it was a literal hell being on them. I was able to wean off of them over a great deal of time. I am thankful for that.

The side effects of all of these drugs are to be taken very seriously. I have been on biologics a very long time and what I have noticed is that where I never had any issues in the past with side effects or allergic reactions to medications I now have them regularly. I don't know why but it seems to be cumulative. When I take a dose of a biologic now regardless of the maker my stomach swells up like a beach ball and hurts for days afterward. I was not able to take Xeljanz because it was so severe and I recently started taking Actemra and it has had the same result as well. I am worried that I no longer will be able to use these medications because of it but as well none of them seem to help as much as they once did.

I hope that your mom feels better and I hope that her journey isnt too rough with all of this. It is no fun having to constantly deal with these issues. -Don

Sorry to hear that you were dxd. with Glucoma. I haven't researched that one yet.
I do hope that there is a good treatment that works for you CL.

I had no side effects with the exception of MTX, which made me nauseous when I was on very high doses [for RA]. Injectable MTX took care of that.

I've never used Pred pills. There was a long period of time before I was on Humira and the MTX wasn't working anymore, when I had Kenalog intra-joint injections. Kenalog is a steroid. My cortisol levels were affected. They normalized when I stopped getting these injections and started Humira.

I'm also Type II Diabetic and have had several epidurals [steroids] for degenerative disc disease. This sends my glucose levels through the roof for about 72 hours, then normalizes.

Mthx raised my liver enzymes. I had an allergic reaction to Sulfasalazine. I had itchy injection site reactions with Kineret the first year, but it worked so well I didn't care.

I had lung issues with Rituxan, Actemra raised my cholesterol and kept me exhausted 24/7. Simponi I had no side effects, but it only worked 6 months. Xeljanz gave me flares in my ankles, and did not get rid of the flares elsewhere.

As for prednisone, that is my go-to drug. I've been on it for 19 months, and unless I can get mthx to work without raising my liver enzymes, I will be taking it the rest of my life. I have cataracts, but who knows if the prednisone caused that? My mom and dad both had cataracts removed in each eye, and neither one was ever on prednisone.

I had the idea that glaucoma is inherited. I am checked by an ophthalmologist yearly, and also for macular degeneration because I I have 4 aunts on my father's side who have it. Most of them are legally blind now.

I prefer side effects to the flares and exhaustion of RA, any day. But then, my RA is severe!