Hi am I correct in thinking the tummy problems and not being able to sleep are due to steroids
The only way I can explain the tummy prob is that it feels like gnawing feeling taking a omerprozle seems to help
Don't like to ring renal unit as I am a kidney transplant patient as feel like I am moaning
Does this go away have been on pills since November for pmr
Thanks
You should really have been offered ranitidine or omeprazole when you started pred as it can irritate the stomach lining. An alternative is enteric coated pred which means you don't need the PPI.
Many of us don't use either - but eat a yoghurt with the pred or take it in the middle of a meal as that seems to help greatly too without adding yet another tablet to the mix.
You don't say what dose you are on - at the higher doses many people can't sleep but for some people it doesn't matter what the dose is, sleep is a problem. It usually improves as the dose reduces but otherwise you need to try all the usual "sleep hygiene" approaches: dark room, bedtime routine, no screens before bed (computer, TV, smartphone), quiet, no clock in the room (so you don't know how long you have been lying there) and a range of other aids. Several people have commented how much better they sleep now they have started having a snack or a milk drink before bed - our granny always had supper!
If you have been on pred since November for PMR then it is high time you were thinking about a very slow reduction - you don't stay on the starting dose for ever, you reduce in very small steps to find the lowest dose that achieves the same result as that starting dose. Has your doctor not explained that?
Thanks
I have cut down from 30-15 mg also tried 10 but pains soon came back I am going to try 10 and if I can't cope will have 15 on that day so is it ok to take operprozole as I have some here or do I have to tell doc thanks
Don't cut in such large steps - no reduction should be greater than 10% of your current dose. At 15mg that means not more than 1.5mg at a time - 1mg is simpler and actually even better. Cutting in big steps runs two risks: you will miss what you are looking for if it lies between the two doses and the big change in dose can lead to something called steroid withdrawal rheumatism which is so similar to PMR you can't tell which is which. For some people even 1mg at a time causes problems and this approach seems to help that:
healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk...
This reduction is being used by one of the top PMR research groups in the UK in a clinical study. However, your doctor doesn't seem very up to date on managing PMR - 30mg is a higher than usual starting dose.
And yes - there's no reason to ask if you can use omeprazole, it is a standard medication along with pred.