Prednisone and major emotional side effects

Do GIs ever prescribe (or refer you to someone) something for major emotional reactions to prednisone? I got solu-medrol in the hospital for two days, and have been on 40mg of pred since Friday. I had to come home from work today because my heart was racing, and I felt light headed. I can't sit still. I'm exhausted, but not sleeping. I sit down for a minute and then get back up and clean or do something. I'm moody and irritable. One minute I'm so revved up and then next I'm sobbing over a commercial on TV.

My GI gave me some ambien to help with insomnia, and I've been taking .5 or .25mg of xanax 1-3 times a day since Saturday. It helps for a bit, but then I'm back to agitated and wanting to crawl out of my skin.

I have always had a hard time on pred, but this seems far worse than ever, and I don't know that I can do this for 6 weeks. I'll see my GI again on Thursday and will talk to him about this. But just wondered if anyone took anything else to alleviate the intensity of the side effects. I have had depressive episodes in my life, and anxiety has been the more recent struggle. It's not unusual for me to have strong emotional reactions to meds; I think I'm just super sensitive. I know these things are all normal, but I don't think it's something I can cope with. I ran across a listing of pred side effects that grouped this all as "psychic derangement." Yep, that would be me!

Thanks for letting me vent, and thanks for any suggestions you might have.

Sarah

I had similar reactions. The doc took me off pred and replaced with Entocort. As I have small bowel issues this was a vaible possibility for me. I had little to no reactions to the entocort
Dave

Unfortunately Entocort does something similar to me as pred. It's not as bad, but close, and I haven't found it to be as effective for me as pred.

Jennifer, I'm lucky that I tolerate the ambien. It's just now the daytime symptoms are so awful. In the past the side effects have increased in intensity every time I step the dose down. So 2 weeks at 40mg, and then 4 weeks to taper off.

I see my naturopath tomorrow, and then my GI on Thursday so I hope between the two of them there's something else to be done. Otherwise there some alternative will need to be found.

Sarah

My emotional reactions and sleepless subsided after a month...I was wondering around in the middle of the night and was extremely emotional..I tapered down to 20mg my the end of the month, and I have not had a problem with these symptoms since. I took benedryl to help me sleep without throwing everything else off..

Cindy

I've been taking entocort since 10/28. The side effects are much more tolerable for me than prednisone, but I still need xanax before bed or I wake up in the middle of the night jittery and unable to sleep. I had headaches the first week, but that has gone away. I was an emotional nut case on Prednisone...this is much better, BUT the Entocort doesn't seem to be helping me all that much either. I'm hoping it starts to work soon, or I might be back to Prednisone myself. You are not alone, but I know that doesn't help all that much. Definitely call the doctor and discuss your symptoms. Feel better soon!