tiredness with prednisone tapering

My son is tapering off prednisone.  3 more weeks to go.  He gets tired around 5pm.  Is there anything to do to help this.  Have b12 shots helped anyone?  He's 17 works out everyday and attends school. He was just diagnosed with UC in September after battling D for a year.  Thankfully on the mend from this flare.

momofkb said...
My son is tapering off prednisone. 3 more weeks to go. He gets tired around 5pm. Is there anything to do to help this. Have b12 shots helped anyone? He's 17 works out everyday and attends school. He was just diagnosed with UC in September after battling D for a year. Thankfully on the mend from this flare.

MomofKB, thats great your son is having improvement, enough to get off of the steroids. Because steroids are a hormones, weaning or tapering off prednisone causes some crazy malfunction as the body begins to awaken its own cortisol and getting the adrenal glands working again. To help with this...

My naturopathic doctor recommended this little remedy:

Find a natural health food store or local herb supplier that carries loose leaf teas and herbs. Look for Licorice Root. Simmer 2tbsp of this in a pot for 10-15mins. Strain and drink! The licorice is glycerhizinated and helps stimulate cortisol production in the body. You can combine this herb with Slippery Elm, Marshmallow Root, Chamomile or Peppermint to make for a good healing mix too.

I'm sure you have heard of DGL for acid reflux/indigestion - well this is quite the opposite of what Licorice Root will help you do.

You have to be careful with glycerhizinated licorice though as it can sometimes have bad side effects, such as giving you high blood pressure and heart problems if not used wisely. DGL is licorice that is de-glycerhizinated. I take it myself. It helps decrease mucus in me but that's about all. The DGL probably won't stimulate the body's cortisol production but then I've never actually heard that so I don't know if that is true or not.