Depression as side effect of long term prednisone use?

[bunnymom]

I’m at the 6 and a half year mark for PMR. Currently at 2. Have been struggling with lower energy and feeling blah for weeks. I see my Dr next month and will discuss adrenal insufficiency. But I just read heard on the Prednisone Pharmacist you tube channel that long term use can cause depression. Does anyone have experience with this? I don’t want the dreaded weight gain with anti depressants and have never found one that really helped. That has been years ago tho. I’m able to manage daily activities but I’d love to have some energy. Thank you all.

[SnazzyD]

Could easily be low adrenal function; I spent the best part of a year feeling low and blah and after that had the same after days when I did too much.

Does the YouTube pharmacist say it’s a direct effect at the time or a long term effect? If it is direct one would expect 2mg to have a much lower influence than on higher doses. Also, have they allowed for depression from having the disease that needs steroids longs term and what that has done to self esteem, ability to socialise, take exercise, work etc etc?

[bunnymom in reply to SnazzyD]

It was listed as a long term side effect. She didn’t comment further. Don’t believe that one was tied to dose as some others are. But all that you mentioned could certainly be true.

[bunnymom in reply to SnazzyD]

I keep waiting for the rebound of feeling better like I had at higher doses. What a slog! Thank you for the reply.

[SnazzyD in reply to bunnymom]

Yes it can be a slog, plus you no longer have the artificial kick up the backside from the stimulant effect of Pred.

[piglette]

Adrenals definitely have an effect on your mood. Also any weight gain should be easier to shed at 2mg.

[PMRpro Ambassador]

At the dose you are at it is far more likely to be LACK of pred that is causing the problem if your body is lagging behind in producing the top-up cortisol it needs. The lack of energy and low mood that results from adrenal insufficiency will only improve with the adrenal function waking up or a bit more pred - which will result in lengthening the recovery period.

As I said in the thread about Dr Megan's channel, there are a lot of things she claims that aren't entirely the case! Or not in the way she presents them ...

[bunnymom]

Thank you. She was new to me. I don’t follow this everyday as I did in the beginning years of my PMR diagnosis so this all may be old news. I’ll just continue to plug along. It just helps to know others are doing the same.

[Merryfield]

As a long-term anti-depressant user, I have found that some, like Wellbutrin, can help with weight loss. Everyone has different brain chemistry, so one size does not fit all.

[Bramble2000]

Very soon after starting Pred, my depression became much much worse to the point I couldn’t carry on with the Pred.

[micpenn222]

Yes it hit me about 4 months in on Pred. and was quite severe. It's a known, and listed possible side effect.

[Bramble2000 in reply to micpenn222]

How did you deal with it?