Prednisone

Littlemiss · Mar 7, 2009

Hi Everyone,

Looking for some advice here...

I have just started a two week course of Abx for an exascerbation following a bad cold. I usually culture staph and PA, so I am on Cipro and Timentin(neb). I feel as though the nebs are making my lungs more inflamed, sometimes my Dr will put me on a short course of Prednisone for inflammation, so I have some already. It makes a massive difference when I am on it.

What I am wondering is, do you think it's OK for me to start taking prednisone (like a short course) without my Dr actually telling me to? I could wait to see what happens and go on it after my next appt (in April), but isn't it better to take prednisone while on Abx?

I know I should just call the Dr and ask, but the problem is that my usual Dr has just retired [after 10 years looking after me! <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif" border="0"> ], and the one I saw last week who put me on the Abx is a bit of a jerk to be honest, and I don't like him at all (didn't ask for any history from me, didn't even introduce himself to my dh who was sitting right next to me!!)

So what do you think? Prednisone or not?

AJ

Littlemiss · Mar 7, 2009

Hi Everyone,

Looking for some advice here...

I have just started a two week course of Abx for an exascerbation following a bad cold. I usually culture staph and PA, so I am on Cipro and Timentin(neb). I feel as though the nebs are making my lungs more inflamed, sometimes my Dr will put me on a short course of Prednisone for inflammation, so I have some already. It makes a massive difference when I am on it.

What I am wondering is, do you think it's OK for me to start taking prednisone (like a short course) without my Dr actually telling me to? I could wait to see what happens and go on it after my next appt (in April), but isn't it better to take prednisone while on Abx?

I know I should just call the Dr and ask, but the problem is that my usual Dr has just retired [after 10 years looking after me! <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif" border="0"> ], and the one I saw last week who put me on the Abx is a bit of a jerk to be honest, and I don't like him at all (didn't ask for any history from me, didn't even introduce himself to my dh who was sitting right next to me!!)

So what do you think? Prednisone or not?

AJ

Littlemiss · Mar 7, 2009

Hi Everyone,

Looking for some advice here...

I have just started a two week course of Abx for an exascerbation following a bad cold. I usually culture staph and PA, so I am on Cipro and Timentin(neb). I feel as though the nebs are making my lungs more inflamed, sometimes my Dr will put me on a short course of Prednisone for inflammation, so I have some already. It makes a massive difference when I am on it.

What I am wondering is, do you think it's OK for me to start taking prednisone (like a short course) without my Dr actually telling me to? I could wait to see what happens and go on it after my next appt (in April), but isn't it better to take prednisone while on Abx?

I know I should just call the Dr and ask, but the problem is that my usual Dr has just retired [after 10 years looking after me! <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif" border="0"> ], and the one I saw last week who put me on the Abx is a bit of a jerk to be honest, and I don't like him at all (didn't ask for any history from me, didn't even introduce himself to my dh who was sitting right next to me!!)

So what do you think? Prednisone or not?

AJ

Littlemiss · Mar 7, 2009

Hi Everyone,

Looking for some advice here...

I have just started a two week course of Abx for an exascerbation following a bad cold. I usually culture staph and PA, so I am on Cipro and Timentin(neb). I feel as though the nebs are making my lungs more inflamed, sometimes my Dr will put me on a short course of Prednisone for inflammation, so I have some already. It makes a massive difference when I am on it.

What I am wondering is, do you think it's OK for me to start taking prednisone (like a short course) without my Dr actually telling me to? I could wait to see what happens and go on it after my next appt (in April), but isn't it better to take prednisone while on Abx?

I know I should just call the Dr and ask, but the problem is that my usual Dr has just retired [after 10 years looking after me! <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif" border="0"> ], and the one I saw last week who put me on the Abx is a bit of a jerk to be honest, and I don't like him at all (didn't ask for any history from me, didn't even introduce himself to my dh who was sitting right next to me!!)

So what do you think? Prednisone or not?

AJ

Littlemiss · Mar 7, 2009

Hi Everyone,
 
 Looking for some advice here...
 
 I have just started a two week course of Abx for an exascerbation following a bad cold. I usually culture staph and PA, so I am on Cipro and Timentin(neb). I feel as though the nebs are making my lungs more inflamed, sometimes my Dr will put me on a short course of Prednisone for inflammation, so I have some already. It makes a massive difference when I am on it.
 
 What I am wondering is, do you think it's OK for me to start taking prednisone (like a short course) without my Dr actually telling me to? I could wait to see what happens and go on it after my next appt (in April), but isn't it better to take prednisone while on Abx?
 
 I know I should just call the Dr and ask, but the problem is that my usual Dr has just retired [after 10 years looking after me! <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif" border="0"> ], and the one I saw last week who put me on the Abx is a bit of a jerk to be honest, and I don't like him at all (didn't ask for any history from me, didn't even introduce himself to my dh who was sitting right next to me!!)
 
 So what do you think? Prednisone or not?
 
 AJ

soderick · Mar 7, 2009

I always suggest talking to doctors as a knee-jerk reaction. Still, you know your body best, and most of us feel like we know how to medicate ourselves better than doctors who are new to our cases. I've been there.

Honestly, I'm afraid of prednisone. My adrenal system crashes when I'm on it, and it's hard to get off. It was the only thing that seemed to help me when I was younger, so I was put on a maintenance dose for many years with occasional bursts. Now, hindsight being 20/20, we know that it caused me to develop osteopoenia in my teens. Now I'm forced to take Fosamax to try and regain some of that bone density.

Finally, despite nearly non-existent adrenal function, I just refused to take the prednisone anymore. Things worked out; my adrenal glands recovered and I have not used the drug since. So, who am I to say that going on it without contacting a doctor would be bad? Just make sure you know the interactions with other drugs and the risks associated with taking it.

soderick · Mar 7, 2009

I always suggest talking to doctors as a knee-jerk reaction. Still, you know your body best, and most of us feel like we know how to medicate ourselves better than doctors who are new to our cases. I've been there.

Honestly, I'm afraid of prednisone. My adrenal system crashes when I'm on it, and it's hard to get off. It was the only thing that seemed to help me when I was younger, so I was put on a maintenance dose for many years with occasional bursts. Now, hindsight being 20/20, we know that it caused me to develop osteopoenia in my teens. Now I'm forced to take Fosamax to try and regain some of that bone density.

Finally, despite nearly non-existent adrenal function, I just refused to take the prednisone anymore. Things worked out; my adrenal glands recovered and I have not used the drug since. So, who am I to say that going on it without contacting a doctor would be bad? Just make sure you know the interactions with other drugs and the risks associated with taking it.

soderick · Mar 7, 2009

I always suggest talking to doctors as a knee-jerk reaction. Still, you know your body best, and most of us feel like we know how to medicate ourselves better than doctors who are new to our cases. I've been there.

Honestly, I'm afraid of prednisone. My adrenal system crashes when I'm on it, and it's hard to get off. It was the only thing that seemed to help me when I was younger, so I was put on a maintenance dose for many years with occasional bursts. Now, hindsight being 20/20, we know that it caused me to develop osteopoenia in my teens. Now I'm forced to take Fosamax to try and regain some of that bone density.

Finally, despite nearly non-existent adrenal function, I just refused to take the prednisone anymore. Things worked out; my adrenal glands recovered and I have not used the drug since. So, who am I to say that going on it without contacting a doctor would be bad? Just make sure you know the interactions with other drugs and the risks associated with taking it.

soderick · Mar 7, 2009

I always suggest talking to doctors as a knee-jerk reaction. Still, you know your body best, and most of us feel like we know how to medicate ourselves better than doctors who are new to our cases. I've been there.

Honestly, I'm afraid of prednisone. My adrenal system crashes when I'm on it, and it's hard to get off. It was the only thing that seemed to help me when I was younger, so I was put on a maintenance dose for many years with occasional bursts. Now, hindsight being 20/20, we know that it caused me to develop osteopoenia in my teens. Now I'm forced to take Fosamax to try and regain some of that bone density.

Finally, despite nearly non-existent adrenal function, I just refused to take the prednisone anymore. Things worked out; my adrenal glands recovered and I have not used the drug since. So, who am I to say that going on it without contacting a doctor would be bad? Just make sure you know the interactions with other drugs and the risks associated with taking it.

soderick · Mar 7, 2009

I always suggest talking to doctors as a knee-jerk reaction. Still, you know your body best, and most of us feel like we know how to medicate ourselves better than doctors who are new to our cases. I've been there.
 
 Honestly, I'm afraid of prednisone. My adrenal system crashes when I'm on it, and it's hard to get off. It was the only thing that seemed to help me when I was younger, so I was put on a maintenance dose for many years with occasional bursts. Now, hindsight being 20/20, we know that it caused me to develop osteopoenia in my teens. Now I'm forced to take Fosamax to try and regain some of that bone density.
 
 Finally, despite nearly non-existent adrenal function, I just refused to take the prednisone anymore. Things worked out; my adrenal glands recovered and I have not used the drug since. So, who am I to say that going on it without contacting a doctor would be bad? Just make sure you know the interactions with other drugs and the risks associated with taking it.

NYCLawGirl · Mar 7, 2009

There are some drugs that I would say go ahead with, but prednisone isn't one of them. Too many potential interactions, side effects, and tapering issues. Honestly, I've been on pred off and on for years now, I know the doses and the tapering protocol backwards and forwards, and I still wouldn't make the decision to self-medicate on it. It's just not worth the risk in my opinion.

Sorry to hear your doctor is a jerk. That sucks big time. At the same time though, if he's your new doc, you're going to need to work with him, which means you should probably go ahead and get in a pattern of calling him when things aren't correcting themselves or when you have drug questions/suggestions. Unless of course there are other docs at your clinic that you can work with, in which case maybe you should call one of them

I agree that we know our bodies best and that we are often pretty good judges of which drugs work well, but I really don't think self-medication (especially with such a powerful drug that has so many effects on the system) is the right way to go. Just my opinion though.

Good luck!

NYCLawGirl · Mar 7, 2009

There are some drugs that I would say go ahead with, but prednisone isn't one of them. Too many potential interactions, side effects, and tapering issues. Honestly, I've been on pred off and on for years now, I know the doses and the tapering protocol backwards and forwards, and I still wouldn't make the decision to self-medicate on it. It's just not worth the risk in my opinion.

Sorry to hear your doctor is a jerk. That sucks big time. At the same time though, if he's your new doc, you're going to need to work with him, which means you should probably go ahead and get in a pattern of calling him when things aren't correcting themselves or when you have drug questions/suggestions. Unless of course there are other docs at your clinic that you can work with, in which case maybe you should call one of them

I agree that we know our bodies best and that we are often pretty good judges of which drugs work well, but I really don't think self-medication (especially with such a powerful drug that has so many effects on the system) is the right way to go. Just my opinion though.

Good luck!

NYCLawGirl · Mar 7, 2009

There are some drugs that I would say go ahead with, but prednisone isn't one of them. Too many potential interactions, side effects, and tapering issues. Honestly, I've been on pred off and on for years now, I know the doses and the tapering protocol backwards and forwards, and I still wouldn't make the decision to self-medicate on it. It's just not worth the risk in my opinion.

Sorry to hear your doctor is a jerk. That sucks big time. At the same time though, if he's your new doc, you're going to need to work with him, which means you should probably go ahead and get in a pattern of calling him when things aren't correcting themselves or when you have drug questions/suggestions. Unless of course there are other docs at your clinic that you can work with, in which case maybe you should call one of them

I agree that we know our bodies best and that we are often pretty good judges of which drugs work well, but I really don't think self-medication (especially with such a powerful drug that has so many effects on the system) is the right way to go. Just my opinion though.

Good luck!

NYCLawGirl · Mar 7, 2009

There are some drugs that I would say go ahead with, but prednisone isn't one of them. Too many potential interactions, side effects, and tapering issues. Honestly, I've been on pred off and on for years now, I know the doses and the tapering protocol backwards and forwards, and I still wouldn't make the decision to self-medicate on it. It's just not worth the risk in my opinion.

Sorry to hear your doctor is a jerk. That sucks big time. At the same time though, if he's your new doc, you're going to need to work with him, which means you should probably go ahead and get in a pattern of calling him when things aren't correcting themselves or when you have drug questions/suggestions. Unless of course there are other docs at your clinic that you can work with, in which case maybe you should call one of them

I agree that we know our bodies best and that we are often pretty good judges of which drugs work well, but I really don't think self-medication (especially with such a powerful drug that has so many effects on the system) is the right way to go. Just my opinion though.

Good luck!

NYCLawGirl · Mar 7, 2009

There are some drugs that I would say go ahead with, but prednisone isn't one of them. Too many potential interactions, side effects, and tapering issues. Honestly, I've been on pred off and on for years now, I know the doses and the tapering protocol backwards and forwards, and I still wouldn't make the decision to self-medicate on it. It's just not worth the risk in my opinion.
 
 Sorry to hear your doctor is a jerk. That sucks big time. At the same time though, if he's your new doc, you're going to need to work with him, which means you should probably go ahead and get in a pattern of calling him when things aren't correcting themselves or when you have drug questions/suggestions. Unless of course there are other docs at your clinic that you can work with, in which case maybe you should call one of them
 
 I agree that we know our bodies best and that we are often pretty good judges of which drugs work well, but I really don't think self-medication (especially with such a powerful drug that has so many effects on the system) is the right way to go. Just my opinion though.
 
 Good luck!

dirtbike32883333 · Mar 7, 2009