I have managed to reduce pred dose to 1mg per day. I havenāt really experienced too much in the way of tiredness or the reported slumps. A couple of months ago I broke my knee and although painful it hasnāt been too bad. Although a bit shocked nothing major am now waking almost normally.
My question is does this my adrenal glands are working or have they just given up?? Thanks in anticipation
If they had given up you would feel dreadful or be seriously ill. When they are working properly you go through your daily life with all its knocks and trials without thinking about how you feel. Your broken knee, didnāt make you become a crumpled, fatigued heap unable to deal with the situation. Always keep your Pred with you and wear a medic alert just in case youāre otherwise ok but given a really big shock your adrenals might not pay out as much as they should. I found that sustained stress was what got to me.
Hello, Ana-16. If your adrenals had given up you would be very, very sickā¹ļø. The 1mg pred you are taking is, it seems, keeping everything under control. You wonāt know if your adrenal system is capable of working on its own until you have been off pred for 6 months to a year. The following link will be of interest to you - courtesy of DorsetLady and to be found in FAQs:
healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk...
TY... been out, so only just seen this..
That was so informative! I just made another step down from 2mg to 1.5 and have been wondering about my adrenals. I have been struck by that old sleepy feeling again and have to push to get things done. I wouldn't think at this point my system would react so much to a half mg drop that I slowly did over a couple weeks. Also have been having some lightheadedness but never would have suspected my adrenals were at fault.
Suggest you increase the time it takes to taper from one dose the another -2 weeks is not that slow.
See this- good for adrenals and your PMR once you get to low levels -
healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk...
I have been tapering ultra slow like that up to this point. I guess I got a little anxious to be done with it. LOL I have only been on 1.5 for 3 days no so will go back to the ultra slow pace and mix in some 2mg days again. Thank you for jogging my memory and bringing me back to my senses.
My pleasureā¦ š
If they had given up you would feel pretty unwell. In fact, the way you have got through an injury and recovered pretty well suggests they are doing something to keep you going because injury usually needs a bit of a boost to cope with it.
I think that was what has confused me! I havenāt felt the symptoms described by so many so are they working or given up completely? I will obviously take advice given and continue to wear the bracelet etc. Many thanks
Some peopleās adrenals seem to come back to working with little or no issues.
Mine didnāt cause me any real issues despite having been on high doses (GCA ) apart from the odd random bout of fatigue which covered a timescale of about 8months when I was slowly tapering from 6mg down to 3mg.
Even those random events didnāt seem to be associated to anything in particular..in fact my first solo trip to New Zealand occurred during that timeā¦ no problems.
Like many things I think itās a very individual response- and all you can do is just be aware they may struggle if you are in a stressful situation - doesnāt necessary mean they will.
Thank you so much
Should have said -
ā¦ just be aware they may struggle if you are in a stressful situation - doesnāt necessary mean they willā¦ and know what to do if you think they are struggling ā¦ I.e get medical help if necessary - or take extra Pred [depending on severity].
Just one other thought. My preds are gastro resistant so take a while to get through my system. Should I try and get some uncoated to have in case of emergency? I realise that Iām a severe case I would go to A&E
Might be worth getting a pack- but GP may question why.
Certainly a good idea if you don't get a hydrocortisone rescue pack. If you feel unwell you can take 5mg and it should start to have an effect in an hour. If it is a severe case 999 is probably a better option - the paramedics carry the necessary, But make sure the call handler understands it is a threatened adrenal crisis.
Thatās reassuring
As someone hospitalised for secondary adrenal insufficiency (steroid induced) believe me you would know! I have never before felt so ill, shaking on the verge of passing out etc. in hospital they increased my dose from 12.5mg to 25mg and the rate of recovery was dramatic, and even impressed the consultant doing the ward round.
Adrenal insufficiency? 
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