Hello, has anyone experienced tingling feet while on prednisone? I mentioned the tingling to my rheumatologist last July, but he didn’t think it was prednisone related. I was on 50 mg prednisone at the time. I am currently on Actemra since late October and doing the DSNS taper protocol - on 8mg trying to get to 7.5 this month. (Not easy...) My feet have been feeling very cold on the “inside”, despite wearing 2 pairs of thick socks and often having my feet wrapped around a heating pad and covered with a blanket. In addition, the tingling has been increasing and even going up my legs in the evening. I’ve been wearing compression stockings, hoping this will help...but unfortunately it’s not.
“Dr. Google” says it can be a serious side effect of prednisone, but before I panic and call my doctor (and have to risk going to her office in this horrible flu season), I thought I’d post this and hear from other people.
Thanks so much!
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GratefulBailey
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Yes it is quite common , it can be from circulation or peripheral neuropathy or nutrient imbalances to name a few of the common causes.
If you feet are cold too in Winter it gets worse , or if you are Hot the same can occur.
Try some Self Care first , just as you have been before broaching the doors of " Sick Bay"!
Try increasing your fluid intake as that helps with circulation and electrolyte imbalance .
Increasing Potassium, Magnesium , B and C vitamins in your diet helps.
Getting a baseline blood test of your Electrolytes including Potassium and Magnesium as well as Sodium is useful . Then you know if you might need to reduce sodium in your diet or have a low salt diet but use a homemade isotonic drink each day.
My small banana a day helped reduce my symptoms .
Magnesium lotion or spray especially at night and raising your feet on a pillow helps stop night symptoms. The light massage of putting on the lotion , along with little foot exercises and toe wriggling all add to reducing the symptoms.
Foot and ankle rotations and light lower leg exercise , walking , can help through the day.
Don't stand in one position too long or stand up for too long without a rest or little potter blood can pool in your legs and add to your symptoms.
Raise your feet on a stool or the sofa when you are sitting down to help circulation and ease Neuro Pain.
Compression socks , tights or leggings can help but don't go too tight too soon and spend time building up wearing them. Don't wear them through the night. You need to be careful and check if they are suitable with your other Health needs. I use toeless ones as I find them more comfortable then put warm socks over them.
Try using socks that are fluffy but of natural fibres as synthetics don't always warm the toes well , especially if you have Diabetes or things like Raynaud's.
If your toes feel numb warm them slowly on a heat pad or bottle of in warm water , not quickly and don't use it as soon as you come in from the cold you can get Chilblains.
Get the bloods in a normal check up and tell the GP why so it goes on your record , and if Self Care doesn't work go back to the GP for more help.
Welcome to the itchy , numb and burning feet crowd xxx
Oh Blearyeyed, , thank you for all your information...and you made me smile (a little) with your closing sentence!
I do take a magnesium supplement daily, as well as B and C vitamins. I had been avoiding bananas fearing their high sugar contact, but just got my bloodwork back and my sugar levels have returned to normal! So yes, the reminder of a daily banana is appreciated. I will add the foot/ankle exercises as well as taking more “raised feet” breaks. Interesting about the compression stockings...perhaps I’m wearing them too long (although they had never bothered me before). After I posted my note last night, I took them off and noticed after awhile that the tingling in my legs had lessened - so the compression must have something to do with it. I’d been wearing the stockings more as I’ve noticed one ankle is swelling; my rings on my fingers are feeling tight so there’s obviously some fluid retention. I watch my sodium intake, so will definitely increase the water intake and keep an eye on the swelling.
Feet are the “regular” prickly this morning, not the awful cold and tingly they are as the day progresses. Thanks for calming me down and for all the good advice. I will monitor/record my symptoms and see my family doctor once this dreadful flu season passes!
Thanks to you as well for calming me down! I will definitely monitor the amount of time that I am wearing the compression stockings.
I am fearing my next visit (early March) to my rheumatologist as he is insisting that I get off prednisone quicker because of the Actemra. However, I am sticking with the DSNS method ...first reduction was bad for the first 2 days after; next .5 mg reduction will be on Saturday...
The speed of reduction applies at the higher doses - below 7mg that no longer applies. And he should know that. And also that not all patients on Actemra get off pred entirely.
The DSNS approach only has you about a month behind - and at this stage you NEED 0.5mg steps, whether he likes it or not.
Thanks again. I fear he has his own mindset with regards to tapering, and especially with being on Actemra. Thank you for educating me that not all patients get off prednisone with Actemra! I will listen to my body as it heals....
The Stress won't help you do it quicker it will make it worse.
I got to the point with most of my issues that I was drawing a line in the sand box about how much Stress I was willing to let my Doctor's put me under anymore.
Call it the , " Oh! Sod You Line" , sort of like the Maginot Line in the War but you are holding off an attack of white coats instead of Pith helmets.😋😂😂😂
I just said it , I will do it what I can do to the level I can. If I get close to your goal brilliant but I'm not going beat myself up anymore , or let you beat me up if I don't.
The relief was palpable. From the moment I made the Conscious Decision to , " Go with the Flow", and only tell myself off if I started getting wound up in Medical Agendas again I relaxed , and , lo and behold , my symptoms and ability to do a test or reduce my drugs improved. I even reach more goal posts.
If I don't get there , I use my Diary if what happened . There is always a reason for not managing , if you write it down they can't really argue with it.
She got stuck on my garage roof the other day. I took the view that if she could get up there herself she could get down again herself, but apparently not! Much yowling and crying! I wasn’t going to go up a ladder to help! Eventually sorted it by opening an upstairs bedroom window which is along from the garage and quite a lot higher up and she did a death defying diagonal leap from the garage roof up to the window ledge, which she just made, and I managed to grab her and pull her in. As you say, nutty cat indeed! Likes a challenge!
Meant to say also that it’s good to have you back on the forum again. I hope this means you’re on the up again? Your posts are always very welcome for their humour and compassion. 😘😘
Recovered from my taper from last weekend just in time to go down again tomorrow. Preparing for a couple of couch days to recover! And to repeat my mantra "It is what it is" ...😖
I'm still picking up , Fatigue , Circulation , Pain but I think most of the infection has gone so not as headachey. Thanks for asking you are lovely , even if you have brought up a nutty cat xxxx
My feet get really cold at night .Have to wear socks to sleep in but by middle of night I get too warm and take them off again. Never gave them much thought during the day because I always wear socks and shoes.
Do you have a glucose meter? It wod be interesting to see when you feet are hot cold or itchy. When my blood sugar was high on 15mg my toes were boiling hot and painful one minute then blue and white the next. Pred ghasnt had big impact since single figures, insulin brought my bg and treatment for neuropathy helps.
Just got my bloodwork back, glucose levels back to normal now that I’m down to 8mg. I had also thought of it possibly being related to blood sugar levels.
I stayed off my feet more today - rested a lot with feet raised, and wore compression stockings only for half a day. Bit better today...
Oh my gosh - it’s my right foot more than the left one as well! We must be feet twins.
I’m thinking the same as you - that being it must be from the prednisone. Mine started last summer on my 50 mg dose; I’m at 8/7.5 taper right now and it’s still bad in the right foot, but has decreased somewhat in the left. Hoping this is something that will eventually go away altogether.
How strange! My Pmr is only 6 weeks in so I’m still on my early taper from 20 mg . I’m hoping this goes away soon, pretty fed up with it already. The foot thing has only just started
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Success! Off of prednisone and Actemra. 
Steroids/Actemra/Addison’s = GCA
PREDNISONE TAPERING WITH ACTEMRA
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