Was feeling quite good up to end August, cycling carefully, and even mountain biking occasionally. Juicing on a daily basis, then thought I'd play a game of touch rugby, super-breathless, played on and pulled my TFL. Taken a while (plus physio) to settle, also noticing that as it gets colder in England, I appear to be aching more.
Still on 7mg pred. Very achey and almost arthritic in movement at the moment... Not very happy, any thoughts?
Can agree that aches and pains seem to get worse in the cold and probably wet weather, also everything seems to take longer to mend when on Pred. Absolutely astonished you felt you were fit enough to play touch rugby when still on 7mg and not surprised that you now feel achy and arthritic.
Although I do not and cannot share your enthusiasm for touch rugby, I have experienced muscle damage from more sedate activities. I do notice that these injuries take twice as long to recover as when I am disease free. I seem to remember PMRPro advising that with our conditions the blood supply to our muscles is affected negatively. Pacing activities and spending the use of a rotation of various muscle groups might suit you better.
I do have Osteoarthritis and can tell if it’s going to rain by the pain coming downstairs in the morning. I find sitting on the sofa with my feet up really helps. 7 mgs is a tricky stage what with having to produce your own Cortisol. I got stuck there for a year before the disease relented and allowed my taper to continue. Take care.
Tx for info re muscle damage. I have just gone down to 1.5 mg and left shoulder really aching but not like pmr, then I realised I maybe over did the planks at yoga - sparing my right arm as broke this a couple of years ago and probably not sucking my tummy in so most weight going through the left shoulder!
My mind also boggles to be reading touch rugby on these pages. I was a super sporty 54 before GCA, but do notice that my muscles have very little resistance to strain now. I can feel fine at the time too. It feels to me like a combination of Pred effects on muscle structure, autoimmune effects and deconditioning (try as I might not to) over 3.5 years. Do be careful of ligament and tendon damage; it is more insidious and more persistent than muscle damage. I noticed a sudden global problem around 7mg and am only just now coming out of that pit 18m later, but I suspect I may not regain the same condition. Be careful at this dose level because the body needs to start producing its own cortisol after not having to for so long. The body can respond in fits and starts and have long periods when it just won’t. Be aware of sudden collapses when the body can’t cope with any stress at all, risking adrenal crisis. If you insist on carrying on as you are undeterred, at least carry Pred on you at all times for safety’s sake.
I've found muscle pulls do take longer to recover - but they do. I keep trying to convince myself it's a product of aging, but can't quite shake the thought that it's PMR/pred related.
One way to test the aches and pains might be to try adding 5mg to your dosage for a couple of days. You'll very quickly find out if it's pmr related. If so it's easy to drop back down again, probably to 1 or 2mg above your present dose.
This rings so true with my other half. She hasn't injured herself or played sport but has always been so fit and active and hasn't let her PMR slow her down - she is 51 and was diagnosed a year ago. Now she is down to 7mg she is struggling and has good days and bad days. We ripped all the plants (huge and very heavy) out of our pond a couple of weeks ago and she payed the price the next few days.
Her reflection on that 'pond day' is that she knew it was too much when we were doing it but persisted on determined. She has realised she needs to listen to her body more.
I would suggest it's more likely the pred dose being tricky as already mentioned but cold weather is not going to help either.
You are on the same dose as my partner and it sounds like you are having similar issues.
Hi,
You seem to have been having a few issues over the last 3-4 months, so methinks you have reached the level where you need to slow down with your tapering. In fact maybe put it on hold for a month or two to allow your illness to stabilise.
Plus you are entering into the “adrenals need to awaken” range, and yes colder weather does not help! As SJ mentions it does take longer for muscles to recover with PMR as well DINS - have a look at link -
nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/p...
- so all in all a few things combining to make life a bit uncomfortable.
Despite what you may want, or your doctors may say you are not reducing relentlessly to zero Pred, you are trying to find the LOWEST dose that gives you relief......in fact if you’ve gone below it, you may need to up dose for a week it two.
Sounds to me as if the 8mg isn't enough to accommodate all the activity you want to do - or, much more likely, you are simply asking your body to do a bit more than the PMR and the pred is allowing it to do. Your muscles are still being attacked by the underlying autoimmune disorder - they aren't fully healthy even if you feel relatively well (and you aren't by your own admission). Weather also is well known to make rheumatic pain worse. DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) is also likely to be worse and take longer to resolve than you are used to - and if you ignore it and persist with activity it will get even worse and take even longer to go away.
The TFL is described as a "pesky little muscle" 
Thank you, fortunately not experienced DOMS since my massive ve reduction in training. Unfortunately have experienced terrible joint aches instead... Which take plus 48hrs to dissipate, unlike DOMS. You hit the nail on the head, I really struggle to moderate activity, though last weekend, all I did was put family photos in an album and watch films. Didn't even walk my lovely dog, Isla. Interestingly feel much better today, even though it is a Monday. 😁👌
Whilst clearly not as fit as you before PMR I was doing really well for me - 3-4 aqua sessions a week, golf, low impact classes. Last year I foolishly decided to go to a high impact class that involved jumping. Pulled a muscle or more likely damaged a tendon in my foot and it took me more than 6 months to recover. It has fully recovered but I’m much more aware now of what I can do, but equally what I shouldn’t try. We are all different but I do believe things take longer to heal. I’m now on 3.5mg and back to walking, swimming starting today and golf in a buggy. All the best for your recovery but don’t be too impatient 😊
It seems that you were in excellent shape before PMR. To get back to the same level one has to be very careful and do it gradually, with emphasis on aerobic exercise and low to moderate levels. ANY competitive sports is pretty much out, because of intensity. Here is the reason why. PMR causes blood vessels walls to thicken and thus restrict blood flow to muscle and connective tissue ( tendons, ligaments). Mild to moderate exercise increases blood supply to muscles. High intensity exercise pushes muscles into anaerobic zone (breathlessness) and causes muscle tissue damage. In addition prednisone changes protein metabolic process and PREVENTS muscle repair. As a result intense exercise causes muscle wasting ( last thing you intend to do) and possible injuries. You can still exercise, but there are limitations. This is new normal. Also keep in mind that pred dulls the pain, so it is easy to overdo things. PMR may last several years ( average is ~6), so take it easy.
Ditto to all of the above. Injuries take ages to feel better but are not necessarily fully healed. I am currently troubled by a tendon issue in my right elbow which got me when trying to "dig out" a difficult backhand whilst playing tennis way back in August. I'm an experienced player of both golf and tennis and have never had elbow issues in my life, until now. I think the injury is better so off I go and do gardening but even repeated use of secateurs starts it off again. Patience is the only answer I'm afraid.
That's exactly what I do-I feel better, stronger and then think "right, what can I restart..." still learning the hard way. 🤔
Did the same thing this summer..played softball, pulled groin muscle..black & blue from groin to knee...dumb to try to sprint when I haven’t in years...I was on 3 mg pred at the time...after 3 years of PMR pred use....prednisone is not kind to muscles and ligaments which I found out...I upped the pred to 5 for a few days...I currently off of pred...got aches and pains but had them when I was on pred so I tapered off..no bad flairs yet...sometimes I think I have LO-RA...I know I have OA in many joints..
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