Suddenly dizzy

[orangemax]

I was at 7 mg. of prednisone from 4/4 thru 5/7/22. Then started DL's 5 week taper to 6.5. Got thru 17 days. Then tested positive for covid. Twice. Rebounded on Paxlovid. The second time I tested positive, I bumped my pred up to 12 mg. and kept it there for 6 days. Tested negative and started a quick reduction back down on the pred. Ten mg, 3 days on 9mg, 2 days on 8 and today was my first day back to 7mg. I didn't get enough sleep last night, thanks to my cat. Don't know WHAT her problem was!! Had a perfectly good day today. Went out to lunch, but really didn't do much the rest of the day. But tonight I feel dizzy. And I do feel very tired, which doesn't surprise me. After being so long on 7 mg. in the past, and with no issues, I'm not really sure what I'm dealing with here. Is it the adrenals? And if so, what should I be doing at this point?

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Less than you have been!!! Even if your attack of Covid felt minor, it was, nevertheless, a relatively serious infection and it is likely to take more than a couple of weeks to recover - after all, even very minor infections can result in long Covid. And there are plenty of people who haven't recently had Covid who would find going out for lunch enough for the day, even without having had a bad night's sleep.

[SnazzyD]

My first thoughts for what it’s worth are:1) Just because you had treatment for Covid doesn’t mean to say it’s all dealt with and you’re back to normal.

2) Testing negative doesn’t mean your body isn’t still dealing with the invisible after effects of it

3) Just because Paxlovid helped get rid of something you are scared of doesn’t mean it isn’t having this own effects on top of everything else. This will be individual of course, but it’s not nothing.

4) 7mg is an awkward dose for some adrenally speaking because it can be a bit too low for all your needs but still too high for the adrenals to get the message that they need to work now. Going to lunch at this stage in the game was a dream for me.

5) on top of everything your body is still dealing with a reduction which may or may not be an issue depending on all the other factors above.

Sometimes in our eagerness to move on, we forget to look back and consider what our body is/was actually dealing with. I’d cut right back on activity, rest and see what shakes out so you can work out what’s what.

[orangemax in reply to SnazzyD]

Thank you PMRpro and SnazzyD. I honestly thought I was taking it easy on myself. But I guess not! I'll just play this by ear. So, should I stay at the 7 mg. for now? Or bump it up to 8 again?

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to orangemax]

I think I'd try to give it a few days and see if it catches up - but Snazzy is the expert here, she's got the t-shirt!

[orangemax in reply to PMRpro]

Okay, thank you!

[SnazzyD in reply to orangemax]

I’d rest for a few days and see what happens. Meanwhile if the dizziness continues, make a note of if it is continuous or when it comes on related to what you just did like, does it occur when you move your head? Is it associated with feeling a wee bit out of breath? Worse on standing from sitting? What makes it better? Is it worse certain times of the day? Any pattern really. If you go to a doctor, that sort of information will save a lot of time.

[Sharitone]

I don't know how it affects the pred dose, but I will say that all my7 family members who have had just covid alone have been feeling exhausted for at least a month afterwards. Be very kind to yourself!

[orangemax]

Hi, Sharitone, Thank you for your reply. Yes, I think maybe I've been lulled into complacency because the symptoms weren't all that bad. But it was still kind of a scary experience that I've been dreading for 2 years - not knowing how it would all go down. I'll just have to give myself more time to recoup. 🌺

[remission]

I would suggest you hang in there right where you are, let your body catch up and just get some rest

[Carver63]

hi Orangemax. I can relate to my experience with Pred. It is like riding waves ! So i learned to listen to my body's responses. they were very similar to yours. Dizzy and tired seem to be common esp. as our body adjusts to reduced pred. i had Actemira injection to help but the weekly injection was some what shy in coverage of the withdrawal issues that I had (like yours). The good news is that albeit its a slow road I made progress and I learned to rest more and not get to worried about those dizzy spells. Now that I have been off drugs for almost 6 weeks I still have tired times and afternoon sleeps is still part of my day plan. I do take multi vitamins and try to eat healthy, avoiding alcohol and vegetable oils (like fried foods which still seems to upset my system. I am feeling better and have more energy and so I can say hopefully you are on the same path that I was. Take care and rest.

[Blackcatlover]

Sounds like you have been through a lot. Listen to all the good information you have received here. I found when I had bouts of dizziness that I was not drinking enough water. Prednisone always left me with a dry mouth which helped as a reminder. Be well and be good to yourself.

[orangemax]

Thanks so much to all of you who answered. Today, the dizziness seems to have gone away. Thank goodness! But I will definitely make note of it if it comes back. And yes, I guess I have to go easier on myself. But compared to my life "pre-PMR" I feel like I'm in slow motion!!😂

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to orangemax]

No doubt - but post-PMR the baseline shifted. We do talk about new normals ...

[orangemax in reply to PMRpro]

I guess somehow or other that got by me! In this case, experiencing is believing!!