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Posted 6/20/2012 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
Hey guys. Ive been flaring badly for 4 weeks and was given my first prescription for prednisone. Starting at 40mg and tapering 5mg less per week. My question is... How long does it usually take before you start experiencing side effects from this. I am getting married in 2.5 weeks and don't want weight gain and acne for the wedding. But I also can't be flaring that bad for it... Just hopin to get some info.

Thanks in advance
Posted 6/20/2012 7:40 PM (GMT 0)
I normally experience the side effects within a week. Prednisone causes me to eat like a pig, especially salty snacks. Try to avoid foods that are high in fat & sodium and exercise if you feel well enough. You might be able to avoid any prednisone weight gain. Good luck, hope you feel better soon.
Posted 6/20/2012 7:52 PM (GMT 0)
I second everything Indycat said. Especially the sodium rich foods to keep down the face swelling.
Also, try to take it in the morning, will help reduce insomnia a bit, but you might need something to help you sleep.
Usually don't start tapering the Prednisone until blood and mucus have all but disappeared. If you are still having blood and mucus after a week, call your GI and ask what to do.

I've noticed that exercise helps minimize all side effects of Prednisone, but then again we are all different.

Another side effect of Prednisone is irritability. Hopefully you won't be on it long enough to experience this. Just bear it in mind if you find yourself getting upset very easily over things that normally wouldn't bother you.
Good luck with your wedding, hope everything goes well.
Posted 6/20/2012 8:28 PM (GMT 0)
I'm on my fourth week of pred and I think that all of the side effects that I've experienced kicked in by the end of the first week. I haven't had any issues with acne at all. As far as weight gain, my appetite did go crazy almost immediately, but combined with limiting my diet (out of desperation to kick the flare) and a lot of willpower I've only gained a couple of pounds. The biggest issues for me have been heart palpitations/increased heart rate (not really a problem, just freaks me out sometimes), excess peppiness, and occasional insomnia.

Don't be discouraged if you don't see a miraculous improvement immediately. It took about a week for me to see any change, and then blood and mucus didn't stop for another two weeks. I was nervous when pred wasn't kicking in immediately an others on the board told me it took them a few weeks to see results as well.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!!
Posted 6/20/2012 9:14 PM (GMT 0)
reading your posts maybe i should of given it a bit longer. i started them in april and i tapered them normally after 1 week but didnt notice any improvement.
the side effects i noticed were mood swings more anger than anything,
couldnt think clearly
was full of energy, buzzing highs(will come in handy for last minutes stress)
gained a little weight but that fell of again 3lbs i think
i didnt have any skin complaints

these all happened in the 1st week and got better as the dose lowered.

Just stay away from fatty sugary foods and drink loads of h2o to counteract the water retention. and exercise

you should still be feeling pretty good in 2.5 wks

far better than flaring im sure.
let us know how you are feeling

ju
Posted 6/20/2012 11:41 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for all the info everyone. I'm just nervous about the weight gain and stuff.. Wedding pics will be around forever. Don't wanna mess them up lol. I've lost 15 lbs in the past 4 weeks so i can afford a bit of weight in the waist/stomach area but just not in my face. But either way i also can't be dealing with this on that day either.
Posted 6/21/2012 12:03 AM (GMT 0)
I don't think moon face would happen in 2.5 weeks- substantial weight gain probably won't either (not more than 15 lbs unless you let yourself go nuts or Prednisone affects you abnormally).

Given how busy you will be, the extra energy from Prednisone may be a blessing in disguise. Just keep a healthy diet- do NOT forget a calcium supplement- try to sleep, and stay in contact with your dr. If things don't improve significantly, you might not want to taper down right away.

Congratulations! It's hard to get married when you're not feeling your best but don't let the disease ruin your day!
Posted 6/21/2012 9:48 PM (GMT 0)
So I took my first dose this morning. I have been dealing with as much as 15 D bm's a day for over 3 weeks. It bothered me through the night last night as usual and this morning I took my first dose. I have not yet had a bm or a single stomach cramp... Coincidence?? Surely there's no way it worked that quickly?!? I'm going on 9 straight hours lol. I usually can barely go 1!
Posted 6/22/2012 12:11 AM (GMT 0)
I hate to say it but I start getting moon face probably within a week of being on pred. I hope this doesn't happen to you.
Posted 6/22/2012 2:35 AM (GMT 0)

Ram1500 said...
So I took my first dose this morning. I have been dealing with as much as 15 D bm's a day for over 3 weeks. It bothered me through the night last night as usual and this morning I took my first dose. I have not yet had a bm or a single stomach cramp... Coincidence?? Surely there's no way it worked that quickly?!? I'm going on 9 straight hours lol. I usually can barely go 1!

It can work really fast.
Posted 6/22/2012 4:17 AM (GMT 0)
Yes, pred can turn off diarrhea like a faucet, but you have to be taking a back up med with it because you can't depend on pred for very long. It's really important that you stop the diarrhea or it will ruin your wedding. I'm so glad it's working for you. Congratulations on getting married.
Posted 6/22/2012 11:50 AM (GMT 0)
What do u mean by back up med? I was only on Mesasal and the dr told me to stop it until I see him again in 2 week and just take the pred..
Posted 6/22/2012 1:31 PM (GMT 0)
I usually start seeing side effects within the first week of taking Prednisone.

My side effects are moon face, not being able to sleep, my face gets red (not acne, just red), I am emotional- one second I an be happy, the next angry, and then crying all in about a minutes time. I don't really have an increased appetite, but I think that is because of some of the other meds. I am taking. I do gain weight also though. I start to swell up in my stomach and ankles so therefore I take water pills and my blood pressure has gotten higher since I started taking it. I have been on Prednisone for almost 8 months now with a dose of 40-20 mg.

I don't think you will have any seriuos side effects from 2 1/2 weeks of Prednisone. Prednisone can work quick, so I hope you start feeling better. You want to be able to enjoy your wedding and not have to worry about going to the bathroom all the time.

Good luck and Congrats!
Posted 6/23/2012 5:03 AM (GMT 0)
Thank for all the info everyone. So far I feel a million times better. Just hoping I'm gonna be one of the lucky ones who doesn't get the side effects.

I appreciate all the support
Posted 6/23/2012 5:25 AM (GMT 0)
What I mean by a back up med is a maintenance med. As you withdraw from pred, something else (safer) has to kick in to take it's place. Pred is just a short term solution because of all the side effects. So it may b e the mesalamines? Were you having problems with it?

At my first flare, I was put on pred and 12 asacol a day. I've always stayed on Asacol, but had to start the taper over three times because I started showing symptoms at lower pred doses. Now I'm maintaing on the mesalamines

Also, have you tried rectal enemas (mesalamine) They are fantastic! This message board is full of adherents.
Posted 6/23/2012 5:56 AM (GMT 0)
One bad side effect from pred that you can avoid is insomnia, if you take all your pred as early in the morning as possible, it shouldn't cause you any night time sleep issues.
Posted 6/23/2012 11:44 AM (GMT 0)

Ram1500 said...
Thank for all the info everyone. So far I feel a million times better. Just hoping I'm gonna be one of the lucky ones who doesn't get the side effects.

I appreciate all the support

I didn't have most the side effects...in fact I kept losing weight. Never had the moon face either. The only thing I had was the heart palpitations and the irritability. Glad you are feeling better....happy upcoming wedding day!
Posted 6/23/2012 9:05 PM (GMT 0)
     Make sure you take calcium supplements.  Prednisone causes bone loss big time.  I was on prednisone a lot prior to my operation and it gave me full blown osteoporosis.  It took quite awhile before the "moon face" appeared.  Like ByeBye UC, I actually lost weight while on it, but that could have been due to my severe flares.  I didn't have much of an appetite.

     The best of luck on your upcoming wedding!!!!  Many, many years of happiness to you and your spouse.  Our daughter is getting married Sept. 29th!  This is a big year for weddings.

Posted 6/24/2012 8:12 AM (GMT 0)
I actually lost weight when eating pred. I was also very easily irritated when I was tapering.
Posted 6/24/2012 5:56 PM (GMT 0)

journey2health said...
What I mean by a back up med is a maintenance med. As you withdraw from pred, something else (safer) has to kick in to take it's place. Pred is just a short term solution because of all the side effects. So it may b e the mesalamines? Were you having problems with it?

At my first flare, I was put on pred and 12 asacol a day. I've always stayed on Asacol, but had to start the taper over three times because I started showing symptoms at lower pred doses. Now I'm maintaing on the mesalamines

Also, have you tried rectal enemas (mesalamine) They are fantastic! This message board is full of adherents.

I was on Mesasal 8/day before starting the pred. The dr told me to stop the Mesasal until I see him in two week and then I assume he will have me start then back up when I am tapering. I never had a problem with them but they just hadn't been helping much. I have tried pentasa enemas with little relief. My dr is a bit stubborn and doesn't really want to listen to what I think.. (he's the doctor kinda attitude). So far I'm on day 4 of 40mg of pred and i am almost at 100%. I feel great and have no symptoms except maybe a little extra energy which I will not complain about
Posted 6/24/2012 5:59 PM (GMT 0)

Christine1946 said...

<font color=#800080> The best of luck on your upcoming wedding!!!! Many, many years of happiness to you and your spouse. Our daughter is getting married Sept. 29th! This is a big year for weddings.

I am taking 2- 500mg calcium pills and 1000 iu vitamin D while taking the pred. Thanks for the well wishes! Best of luck to your daughter for her wedding as well!
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