HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

Prednisone Taper

Support Forums
>
Ulcerative Colitis
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 2/23/2017 2:55 PM (GMT 0)
Hello, everyone.

I am currently taking 10mg of Prednisone daily. I took 40mg for five days, then 30mg for five, etc (20 days total). I will take my last 10mg Saturday. I do not seem to have any symptoms, currently. Is this too fast a taper?
Posted 2/23/2017 3:58 PM (GMT 0)
only your body knows the answer to that question - but you should be ok due to the short duration -
Posted 2/23/2017 4:52 PM (GMT 0)
Agreed tapers are the most important when you've been on prednisone for 2 months or more. Shorter term use, the taper rate is almost unimportant.

Has this short course of pred helped at all? Any improvements?
Posted 2/23/2017 7:22 PM (GMT 0)

iPoop said...
Agreed tapers are the most important when you've been on prednisone for 2 months or more. Shorter term use, the taper rate is almost unimportant.

Has this short course of pred helped at all? Any improvements?

It seems to have helped immensely. I suppose it could be the Mesalamine, too. Either way, I am almost symptom-free. 1-2 bms a day, no pain or urgency. I saw a tiny spot of blood Monday morning and possibly one today (so small it's difficult to tell

I am cautiously optimistic. I'm keeping in mind the possibility that my symptoms could return when I'm off the Prednisone.
Posted 2/23/2017 10:02 PM (GMT 0)
"I'm keeping in mind the possibility that my symptoms could return when I'm off the Prednisone."


that's why you do have the option in most cases of holding off the next taper drop if symptoms start to return - or even going back up a bit - keep in mind pred is available in smaller mg's to help facilitate tapering -
Posted 2/24/2017 12:11 PM (GMT 0)
Am I wrong in thinking that I should be seeing some symptoms as I taper, though, if the Mesalamine were not working? I think I'm symptom-free (I'm not seeing any blood) at the moment. I take my last Prednisone pill tomorrow!
Posted 2/24/2017 12:51 PM (GMT 0)
I'd say you're fairly safe, if you haven't seen any symptom creep and you're on your last pred pill. I'd be cautiously optimistic. Just be aware you can flare after stopping pred. I always wait 2 weeks after ceasing pred before saying I'm safe and truly out of the woods. The nature of UC inflammation is it can build slowly until a tipping point is reached and then we see symptoms. So it's always good to be vigilant and aware of your symptoms but don't worry constantly about it.
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply