Hi Helpful Friends,
I’ve been doing quite well; down to 15 mg. pred. and eyesight is no longer doubled! Hurray for that!
For over a week now I have had very loose bowels. Stomach feels fine, but it seems like digestion is racing and food goes right through me. It’s very unusual for me because I always had tendencies in the other direction. I used to go once a day, now its a few.
Any thoughts? Should I contact my doctor?
Although Pred can make some people on the loose side, you’ve been ok even on higher doses until now. A change in bowel habit is worth getting checked.
I would get it checked out. When I was trying to taper faster than my body liked. I did have loose stools. It was horrible
Should also add have been on Actemra for a couple of months. Not sure if that could factor in.
Always best to get these occurrences checked …
Just a long shot.... Are you on a PPI? When I started this long journey I was put on Lansoprazole and i initially had no problems and then after some time I started becoming quite explosive, was switched from Lansoprazole to omeprazole and it all settled. I think, for some people here it has been the other way round and omeprazole has caused a problem.
As SnazzyD says, worth getting checked.
I’m not on a PPI. I was taking Pepcid, but currently nothing. Just burying my prednisone in organic Greek yogurt.
It could be a bug but yes - any change in bowel habit should be checked out. Suppose Actemra could be playing a part but it doesn't have that effect on me. Any pain or sign of blood?
No pain or sign of blood. Sometimes gurgling in intestines, but no pain.
Have you had a change in diet recently ? Like more Citrus , Spicy food , hidden sugars or artificial sweeteners in a new health food, too Insoluble fibre instead of soluble, more beans , wholegrains or wholefood cereals, seeds and pulses, diet changes can make your bowel movements looser too.
Might be worth keeping a food diary for a couple of weeks just to see if there is a pattern.
And , even if it isn't causing pain or other symptoms yet it's worth discussing the change with the GP.
You might benefit from a change in PPI or something else.
Even a reduction of any inflammation in your body in general , and more activity now you are feeling a bit better can bring on the poops.
Let us know what the answer was, it would be interesting to find out, take care , Bee
Thank you. My diet is pretty consistent healthy keto: low carbs, lots of greens, berries, nuts, yogurt, kefir, cheese, healthy fats and high quality protein. Of course, I might have a minor fluctuation here and there but I mostly eat the same things a lot.
Ah, it could be a combination of changes caused by the meds and the Keto regime depending how strict it is or what fat content you have.Constipation is more common , but as your general inflammation is reducing and you've had a change in gut chemistry with medications you could have started to experience bouts of a Diarrhea specific to Keto called Steatorrhoea, which is a type affected by the type of fat content in the stools and is potentially made worse by a low fibre content.
Thank you; I will research that!
Hi, I read up on Steatorrhoea. It doesn’t quite sound like my situation (the color of clay, floating, etc)
Hi, are you taking a magnesium supplement? Some of them can cause diarrhea.
Hi, good though! I was, but stopped a few days ago, due to the loose bowels.
Update: called my PCP’s office. They couldn’t get me in, but wanted me to go to Urgent Care without delaying a day. While in the waiting area, I reseached side effects of the prophylactic antibiotic I am on (Bactrim.) I read that it can cause C-diff. I mentioned it to the doctor at urgent care. I’ll go to the lab to test for C-diff in the morning.
I had exactly the same problems which unfortunately continued, I was on prednisolone for over 2.5 years and recently tapered and stopped them. My bowels have never been the same but hoping one day they fully recover
I have had some cramps and bloating since finally managing to taper to 3mgs. All tests negative so far, so have wondered if I now don’t have quite enough Adrenalin to make the bowels do their normal thing.
Nausea, diarrhoea or vomiting (gastrointestinal symptoms) are all listed adrenal insufficiency issues .
I had a similar problem but for me was definitely a reaction to Lanzoprazole. I moved to Famotidine, based on a recommendation from this site, and I'm much better now.
I have the same issue. They ruled out bowel cancer with a FIT test. Ask them to test your calprotectin levels (it's a poo sample test). This will indicate any inflammation in the gut. Mine was quite high. I then had a colonoscopy and have to wait 6 weeks (three more to go) for the results of a biopsy to test for microscopic colitis which I'm told is quite common in people with PMR. I can't find any pattern in mine, but moving about in the morning sets it off, so I have to sit still and quiet for a couple of hours after breakfast. No good if you're on holiday!
Good luck with your tests. Let us know how you get on.
I have IBS, which gives me a propensity towards an over active bowel anyway, but I found that the pred caused diarrhoea initially, until I started taking omeprazole. Though now I am on a lower dose of pred, I would say that my GI tract is more settled than it was without it.
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