Guest guest Posted June 29, 2007 Report Share Posted June 29, 2007 I've been given a perscription for prednisone for a rash. It is only for 5mg 2x's day for 5 days. From what I've read on here 5mg of prednisone is = to 20mg hydrocortisone. So it sounds possibly dangerous for a mercury poisoned person with adrenal and thyroid problems (which i don't have adequate support for yet). I'm just taking licorice, pregnenolone and pantethine for my adrenals and no thyroid. Any thoughts on this? I was thinking is there a way for me to take it for the few pills i will have (10 - 5mg pills) to somehow benefit my adrenals? Maybe 5mg per day in the morning or would that be bad too? Giving my adrenals support for 10 days & then going cold turkey again? Or maybe doing some kind of small taper for a few days? Anyone that could help? Thanks! Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 30, 2007 Report Share Posted June 30, 2007 > > I've been given a perscription for prednisone for a rash. It is only > for 5mg 2x's day for 5 days. > > From what I've read on here 5mg of prednisone is = to 20mg > hydrocortisone. >So it sounds possibly dangerous for a mercury > poisoned person with adrenal and thyroid problems (which i don't have > adequate support for yet). The doctor hasn't given you enough that it would be considered dangerous. The only problem, as I see it, is that after taking his prescription you will go back to feeling the way you did before taking the prescription and if it alleviated your fatigue you might want to go back to the doctor demanding a physiological dose of cortisol. It might be a shock when you stop taking the prednisone to go back to feeling like you were feeling before. > I'm just taking licorice, pregnenolone > and pantethine for my adrenals and no thyroid. > > Any thoughts on this? > > I was thinking is there a way for me to take it for the few pills i > will have (10 - 5mg pills) to somehow benefit my adrenals? Maybe 5mg > per day in the morning or would that be bad too? In the case of sickness or stress of some sort normal adrenals would put out double or triple the amount of cortisol that they usually do for usually 3 days or so, until the sickness gets better, and then gradually go back to the normal amount that they produce. Assuming that your own adrenals are producing close to a normal amount from day to day but just can't keep up with stress I would think that taking one 5 mg pill for 3 days or until the rash clears would be sufficient and then save the rest for the next time that you are sick. > Giving my adrenals > support for 10 days & then going cold turkey again? > > Or maybe doing some kind of small taper for a few days? > It might more closely approximate what the body would normally do if you took 2 pills the first day, one the second and until the rash clears, then 1/2 for a day, then nothing. Andy describes tapers on p 190- 191 of 'Amalgam Illness'. I don't think that you have enough for what he describes as a short taper. You do have enough if you do as described on p 190 and omit days 1,2 and 3. You could buy a tube of cortisol cream and have it on hand for times when you are feeling really lousy. The symptoms to watch for when cortisol is getting dangerously low is incredible weakness (like not having enough energy to go to the bathroom), vomiting that won't stop, sometimes associated with diarrhea. I have had occasions when I got that low on cortisol (because of stress) and rubbing a small amount of cortisol cream on resolved the problem. If cortisol cream is used more than just occasionally the sites of application have to be rotated so that it doesn't distort the skin cells (from too much applied at one spot). J > Anyone that could help? > Thanks! > Sam > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 30, 2007 Report Share Posted June 30, 2007 Hi , ***** Thanks for responding. > The doctor hasn't given you enough that it would be considered > dangerous. The only problem, as I see it, is that after taking his > prescription you will go back to feeling the way you did before taking > the prescription and if it alleviated your fatigue you might want to > go back to the doctor demanding a physiological dose of cortisol. ***** It was a dermatologist that I saw. I'm still working on finding a doc to help me w/adrenal & thyroid issues. I just thought that maybe I could somehow use this to my advantage. > > It might be a shock when you stop taking the prednisone to go back to> feeling like you were feeling before. ***** Yeah, that's what I was afraid of > Assuming that your own adrenals are producing close to a normal amount > from day to day but just can't keep up with stress I would think that > taking one 5 mg pill for 3 days or until the rash clears would be > sufficient and then save the rest for the next time that you are sick. ***** My adrenals aren't producing enough for my day to day activities (which aren't much). I'm tired all the time. I also get very weak & shakey (this feels different from the hypoglycemia weak & shakey) for no reason never mind during stress. That's why I was afraid that taking the prescription may be dangerous. My understanding is that I'd be jumping on it with the equivilant of 20mg HC (when I see that other people ramp up), supressing my adrenials & then jumping off again (if I took the 5mg/day). I also have had morning nausea on & off for years - maybe that has someting to do with my adrenals. I have digestive problems as well, but that particular nausea doesn't feel digestive in nature. > It might more closely approximate what the body would normally do if > you took 2 pills the first day, one the second and until the rash > clears, then 1/2 for a day, then nothing. ***** I don't understand how this would approximate what the body would normally do. Wouldn't this equal 40mg HC the first day, 20mg the second until rash clears, and then 10mg the last day? > > Andy describes tapers on p 190- 191 of 'Amalgam Illness'. I don't > think that you have enough for what he describes as a short taper. > You do have enough if you do as described on p 190 and omit days 1,2 > and 3. > ***** That sounds like a good idea. I didn't see that in the book before. Do you think it would be better to do the mini-taper rather than what you were suggesting above it? > > I'm just taking licorice, pregnenolone > > and pantethine for my adrenals and no thyroid. > > ***** While taking the Prednisone is it still ok to take the above suppliments? > You could buy a tube of cortisol cream and have it on hand for times > when you are feeling really lousy. The symptoms to watch for when > cortisol is getting dangerously low is incredible weakness (like not > having enough energy to go to the bathroom), vomiting that won't stop, > sometimes associated with diarrhea. I have had occasions when I got > that low on cortisol (because of stress) and rubbing a small amount of cortisol cream on resolved the problem. If cortisol cream is used more than just occasionally the sites of application have to be rotated so that it doesn't distort the skin cells (from too much applied at one spot). ***** Thanks also for this info on using HC cream in a pinch! I didn't know that it could be used this way. Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 30, 2007 Report Share Posted June 30, 2007 > > I've been given a perscription for prednisone for a rash. It is only > > for 5mg 2x's day for 5 days. > > > > From what I've read on here 5mg of prednisone is = to 20mg > > hydrocortisone. > > >So it sounds possibly dangerous for a mercury > > poisoned person with adrenal and thyroid problems (which i don't have > > adequate support for yet). Irrational fear of prescription medications given in a very cautious and benign way is more dangerous than this particular course of prednisone. I realize it is hard for most people to figure out what is reasonable and what isn't, but some cursory checking of standard medical sources (many of which are availble on the internet nowadays) is a good first step to leaven the antidrug hysteria all too common amongst people seeking alternative care. Drugs aren't good or bad. They're just tools. Your doctor seems to be using this tool in a pretty conservative and low risk manner. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 30, 2007 Report Share Posted June 30, 2007 > > > > I've been given a perscription for prednisone for a rash. It is only > > > for 5mg 2x's day for 5 days. > > > > > > From what I've read on here 5mg of prednisone is = to 20mg > > > hydrocortisone. > > > > >So it sounds possibly dangerous for a mercury > > > poisoned person with adrenal and thyroid problems (which i don't have > > > adequate support for yet). > > Irrational fear of prescription medications given in a very cautious and benign way is more > dangerous than this particular course of prednisone. > > I realize it is hard for most people to figure out what is reasonable and what isn't, but > some cursory checking of standard medical sources (many of which are availble on the > internet nowadays) is a good first step to leaven the antidrug hysteria all too common > amongst people seeking alternative care. > > Drugs aren't good or bad. They're just tools. Your doctor seems to be using this tool in a > pretty conservative and low risk manner. > > Andy > Hi Andy, Thank you for your response. I think you misunderstood where I was coming from in my inquiry. It's not out of irrational fear or anti-drug hysteria that I am asking this question. It's more so out of my limited understanding of adrenal issues and not having a doctor to go to for help with them. I was hoping that there was a way (like a taper - which I've only read about and have a limited understanding of as well) to take this that would benefit my adrenals at the same time. Personally I could manage w/o it for the rash. My understanding is that I'd be jumping on with the equivilant of 40mg HC per day for 5 days (when I see that other people ramp up over the course of weeks to around only 20mg, and also from what I've read you should take the smallest dose possible for support), supressing my adrenials & then jumping off again in 5 days (if I took the 5mg 2'x day). It's the jumping on and off suddenly at double of what I understand is a physiological dose that I am concerned about and it's effects on me and my poor tired adrenals. Would it be a big shock for them afterwards? Would such a small course of treatment hinder my adrenals from making their own cortisol as I've read happens with hydrocortisone? I don't know how long it takes before your body starts making less because it is getting it from an outside source. If they reduced production, would they start producing cortisol again, at the very least, the way they were before I did this? Would this short of treatment even have caused a reduction in production? Who knows - I sure don't. I didn't talk to the dermatologist who gave me the prescription about the above since I didn't think she would understand where I was coming from. I did however ask her if it would keep me up at night (taking the 2nd dose at dinnertime as she prescribed, which from what I understand = 20mg of hydrocortisone) and she said no. But that also goes against what I've read here as well. Especially since I have lots of trouble falling & staying asleep at night. So that's my story and I'm sticking to it Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 Patti the pulmonary doc at Penn put me on Cellcept, an immuno that sometimes helps with PF, a few weeks ago. Now she is trying to wean me down to 10 mgs prednisone, by 5 mgs per week. as for the osteoporosis, she has me on a relatively high dose of fosamax because of the prednisone my gyn questioned the dose of fosamax, and the pulmonary doc said that it is because of the prednisone I also take 2 calcium tablets per day But, I have pf, you have other diagnoses too Pink Joyce IPF 3/06 Pennsylvania Donate Life Subject: prednisoneTo: Breathe-Support Date: Saturday, January 3, 2009, 8:08 AM i'm sorry i read someones message about coming off of prednisone.how did you get the doc to take you off. i have been on 20mg since 7/06 and at times go on a higher dose for a short time. Hasn't been any increases since last january. But he will not even discuss it but my body is really having bigger issues with it.. i now have osteoporosis and actually having back pain constantly. any suggestions. he is a good doc and i trust him but i really think we should try a decrease and if things change then go back. help.. patti, 7'06, scleroderma, pulm hyper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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