Prednisone

Rage_Phish

I will be put on Prednisone for roughly a month. I'm unsure on the dosage. i have heard weight gain can be a side effect. Any idea what i should expect with using it for a month? Any tips on avoiding this side effect?

queenliz99

One month won't make much of a difference, just watch your intake.

Rage_Phish

solid, thats what i was hoping for

mlclark86

Prednisone can cause weight gain unfortunately. But I warn you as a nursing student who just spent time learning about this, even if you start gaining weight keep taking med as directed....the dose will be tapered off to prevent side effects that can be dangerous.

As for the weight gain, I was taking it for 2 wks a few months ago and managed to not gain any noticeable weight. And I wasn't exercising and eating healthy at that point either. But every person will be different. My only advice is to keep doing what you are doing health wise and tell yourself that a few extra lbs isn't gonna make a huge difference and you can get it right back off after you are taken off.

sanfromny

All I can say is that I couldn't wait to get off that crap. Fortunately it's no longer a maintenance drug for me. I only get prescribed it in 5 day increments as needed. That isn't too bad

AmyOutOfControl

I took it for a few months and gain 10 pounds. Of course, I did not regulate my food intake. It does make you hungrier. Just be mindful of your intake and you should be fine.

tomteboda

Log your food. The weight gain is from increased hunger and unregulated eating.

Rage_Phish

mlclark86 wrote: »

Prednisone can cause weight gain unfortunately. But I warn you as a nursing student who just spent time learning about this, even if you start gaining weight keep taking med as directed....the dose will be tapered off to prevent side effects that can be dangerous.

trust me, the issues it should be correcting are far worse than some weight gain lol

i will be taking as directed

momwonyov

Rage_Phish wrote: »

I will be put on Prednisone for roughly a month. I'm unsure on the dosage. i have heard weight gain can be a side effect. Any idea what i should expect with using it for a month? Any tips on avoiding this side effect?

I''ve suffered from a lot of different allergies over the years so I've had a lot of experience with prednisone. From what I have come to understand Prednisone is a steroid and it effects your hormones. You know your own body and you know if you have had any problems with your hormones. If you suffer from PMS or PMSDD (disfuctional disorder) you can run into some problems. I would recommend taking some time off from trying to loose weight. Work on maintaining your weight and eating healthy for the month. Your body is working hard enough dealing with whatever you are taking the Prednisone for. I never really had any problems with weight gain while on Prednisone but it isn't a good time to be loosing.

I was put on Prednisone when my daughter was 3 months old and I had a severe allergic reaction to purple die. The hospital put me on Prednisone while I was nursing and in post par tum depression. Horrible things happened. The pharmacist was the only one who finally admitted that I should never have been on it right after having a baby and that I was put on to high of a dose. He is the one who finally said I was safe to stop it. I'm not trying to scare you but I know that if I were going on prednisone right now my doctor would tell me to just eat healthy and not worry about any weight loss or gain during that time.

Psychgrrl

Prednisone doesn't cause weight gain. What it can do is increase your appetite so you eat more. The difference between causing weight gain and increasing your appetite is small, but it's important. One puts all the blame on the drug, the other requires us to take responsibility.

Pay careful attention to your hunger. Try more satisfying foods to help curb your appetite, or increase your activity if you over eat. And then keep it in perspective, it's only a month.

BuddhaB0y

Ok I'm only giving you my "opinion" and it is based entirely on my own obervation of my mom.

My mom had terminal cancer and was about 5'3 and maybe 105lbs she had been that same slim weight for 30 plus years. They prescribed prednisone for "something" and she immediately started gaining weight. She didn't appear to be eating more although since i wasn't around her 24/7 I can't swear on a stack of Internet bibles. Within a month she had probably gained 30 pounds and had a noticibly fat face and chubby body. What was weird though was it looked like she had been inflated like a balloon, which made me think it was water weight.

When they took her off she rapidly lost weight and was back to "normal".

So basically for whatever reason you want to give it..... Yes you can gain weight, to me it looked like swelling and not fat... I guess just keep recording what you are eating carefully and if you gain anyway it may be fluid instead of fat.

Good luck!

tomteboda

BuddhaB0y wrote: »

Ok I'm only giving you my "opinion" and it is based entirely on my own obervation of my mom.

My mom had terminal cancer and was about 5'3 and maybe 105lbs she had been that same slim weight for 30 plus years. They prescribed prednisone for "something" and she immediately started gaining weight. She didn't appear to be eating more although since i wasn't around her 24/7 I can't swear on a stack of Internet bibles. Within a month she had probably gained 30 pounds and had a noticibly fat face and chubby body. What was weird though was it looked like she had been inflated like a balloon, which made me think it was water weight.

When they took her off she rapidly lost weight and was back to "normal".

So basically for whatever reason you want to give it..... Yes you can gain weight, to me it looked like swelling and not fat... I guess just keep recording what you are eating carefully and if you gain anyway it may be fluid instead of fat.

Good luck!

Sounds like your mom had drug-induced Cushing's Syndrome, which is definitely real. The weight gain is complex in Cushing's Syndrome, involving both overeating and a bodily overproduction of fat to the detriment of supporting tissues. This is something everyone on prednisone needs to watch for, but most people who are prednisone do not develop Cushing's. However, most of them *do* gain weight because the hunger thing becomes unbalanced.

My mom has Cushing's Disease, and how much food she'll pack away if not severely restricted is just stunning. I find so much food when I pick up after her that I'd never know she ate otherwise.

BuddhaB0y

tomteboda wrote: »

BuddhaB0y wrote: »

Ok I'm only giving you my "opinion" and it is based entirely on my own obervation of my mom.

My mom had terminal cancer and was about 5'3 and maybe 105lbs she had been that same slim weight for 30 plus years. They prescribed prednisone for "something" and she immediately started gaining weight. She didn't appear to be eating more although since i wasn't around her 24/7 I can't swear on a stack of Internet bibles. Within a month she had probably gained 30 pounds and had a noticibly fat face and chubby body. What was weird though was it looked like she had been inflated like a balloon, which made me think it was water weight.

When they took her off she rapidly lost weight and was back to "normal".

So basically for whatever reason you want to give it..... Yes you can gain weight, to me it looked like swelling and not fat... I guess just keep recording what you are eating carefully and if you gain anyway it may be fluid instead of fat.

Good luck!

Sounds like your mom had drug-induced Cushing's Syndrome, which is definitely real. The weight gain is complex in Cushing's Syndrome, involving both overeating and a bodily overproduction of fat to the detriment of supporting tissues. This is something everyone on prednisone needs to watch for, but most people who are prednisone do not develop Cushing's. However, most of them *do* gain weight because the hunger thing becomes unbalanced.

My mom has Cushing's Disease, and how much food she'll pack away if not severely restricted is just stunning. I find so much food when I pick up after her that I'd never know she ate otherwise.

Oh wow thanks that is some great info

Nickers5405

Depends how high of a dose you're put on. I had a kidney transplant and am on 5mg for life but I don't notice any side effects. If you're on anything over 10-15 mg a day I'd say you might notice side effects but being on it for only a month it won't really matter.

singingflutelady

I was on it for 4 months with the max dose being 60mg but didn't gain even a pound and I was severely underweight but I have Crohn's disease and during bad flares I suffer from malabsorption. Prednisone is Satan's tic tacs but it saved my life. Thank goodness I only have to take it when very, very sick.

Rage_Phish

singingflutelady wrote: »

I was on it for 4 months with the max dose being 60mg but didn't gain even a pound and I was severely underweight but I have Crohn's disease and during bad flares I suffer from malabsorption. Prednisone is Satan's tic tacs but it saved my life. Thank goodness I only have to take it when very, very sick.

can i get details on this? i really know nothing about it. just found out ill be on it today for microscopic colitis

LKArgh

Rage_Phish wrote: »

I will be put on Prednisone for roughly a month. I'm unsure on the dosage. i have heard weight gain can be a side effect. Any idea what i should expect with using it for a month? Any tips on avoiding this side effect?

I have severe allergies and asthma. I have had to take at times prednisone. You will be fine. One month is nto that much. Remember that it comes with food restrictions and many drs will not let you know: basically the ideal would be to eat like a diabetic with high blood pressure, so limit sugars, monitor carbs and no salt.

neohdiver

Rage_Phish wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

I was on it for 4 months with the max dose being 60mg but didn't gain even a pound and I was severely underweight but I have Crohn's disease and during bad flares I suffer from malabsorption. Prednisone is Satan's tic tacs but it saved my life. Thank goodness I only have to take it when very, very sick.

can i get details on this? i really know nothing about it. just found out ill be on it today for microscopic colitis

I call it both a blessing and a curse.

My daughter was on it for 14 days at age 4/5 (for ulcerative colitis), with a 40 day taper. It took her more than a year before she was emotionally stable again. (Not to mention that she gained 25 lbs in about 2 weeks.) During that year, whatever emotion she was experiencing (good or bad), she experienced it magnified by about 1000. The worst times were when we were driving and something set her off - once it was being picked up from the babysitter. She wriggled out of her car seat and tried to climb out the window to go back to the babysitter - while the car was traveling at 40+ mph. I can't count the number of times I just had to pull over and hold her as tight as I could (the only thing that seemed to calm her).

BUT - it allowed her to go to kindergarten without wearing diapers.

The doctor did not mention any side effects when he told me he would be putting her on it. In retrospect, I would have made the same decision all over again even knowing how she responded to it. BUT no one should start prednisone without understanding the potential implications of taking it.

LKArgh

neohdiver wrote: »

Rage_Phish wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

I was on it for 4 months with the max dose being 60mg but didn't gain even a pound and I was severely underweight but I have Crohn's disease and during bad flares I suffer from malabsorption. Prednisone is Satan's tic tacs but it saved my life. Thank goodness I only have to take it when very, very sick.

can i get details on this? i really know nothing about it. just found out ill be on it today for microscopic colitis

I call it both a blessing and a curse.

My daughter was on it for 14 days at age 4/5 (for ulcerative colitis), with a 40 day taper. It took her more than a year before she was emotionally stable again. (Not to mention that she gained 25 lbs in about 2 weeks.) During that year, whatever emotion she was experiencing (good or bad), she experienced it magnified by about 1000. The worst times were when we were driving and something set her off - once it was being picked up from the babysitter. She wriggled out of her car seat and tried to climb out the window to go back to the babysitter - while the car was traveling at 40+ mph. I can't count the number of times I just had to pull over and hold her as tight as I could (the only thing that seemed to calm her).

BUT - it allowed her to go to kindergarten without wearing diapers.

The doctor did not mention any side effects when he told me he would be putting her on it. In retrospect, I would have made the same decision all over again even knowing how she responded to it. BUT no one should start prednisone without understanding the potential implications of taking it.

It usually does not affect adults the same way though. I have seen it in my kids, a single dose will make them act exactly as you describe for the next few days, never had the same experience as an adult and have never heard anything similar from other adults. It could depend though on dosage.

rosebarnalice

I occasionally have to take a 4 to 6 week course of prednisone. The real issue I have with it is the constant sensation of ravenous hunger. I have eaten to the point of being uncomfortably full, and STILL felt that sensation of hunger.

Loggging diligently to remind myself I'm not really hungry and drinking lots of water -- particularly warm or hot water as in herb tea-- helps me cope with it.

singingflutelady

aggelikik wrote: »

neohdiver wrote: »

Rage_Phish wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

I was on it for 4 months with the max dose being 60mg but didn't gain even a pound and I was severely underweight but I have Crohn's disease and during bad flares I suffer from malabsorption. Prednisone is Satan's tic tacs but it saved my life. Thank goodness I only have to take it when very, very sick.

can i get details on this? i really know nothing about it. just found out ill be on it today for microscopic colitis

I call it both a blessing and a curse.

My daughter was on it for 14 days at age 4/5 (for ulcerative colitis), with a 40 day taper. It took her more than a year before she was emotionally stable again. (Not to mention that she gained 25 lbs in about 2 weeks.) During that year, whatever emotion she was experiencing (good or bad), she experienced it magnified by about 1000. The worst times were when we were driving and something set her off - once it was being picked up from the babysitter. She wriggled out of her car seat and tried to climb out the window to go back to the babysitter - while the car was traveling at 40+ mph. I can't count the number of times I just had to pull over and hold her as tight as I could (the only thing that seemed to calm her).

BUT - it allowed her to go to kindergarten without wearing diapers.

The doctor did not mention any side effects when he told me he would be putting her on it. In retrospect, I would have made the same decision all over again even knowing how she responded to it. BUT no one should start prednisone without understanding the potential implications of taking it.

It usually does not affect adults the same way though. I have seen it in my kids, a single dose will make them act exactly as you describe for the next few days, never had the same experience as an adult and have never heard anything similar from other adults. It could depend though on dosage.

My emotions were a mess and it made my depression and anxiety much worse. It was crazy. Also I did retain tons of fluid until I got down to 50 mg thank goodness I was in the hospital and had no access to a scale lol. I also had bad, bad cold sweats. I'd wake up every time I fell asleep (I only slept about an hour or two at a time because of Crohn's symptoms) soaking wet and freezing. I had to change my Johnny shirt and sheets a few times a night. I had to hoard all the clean linen on my ward

PaulaWallaDingDong

I go on it maybe once a year for athsmatic bronchitis without any ill effects (except for the aftertaste. Have a snack handy! Within your calories, of course).

My sister blew up like a balloon when she was on it and grew body hair, but she was put on a ridiculously high dose by a doctor who eventually lost his license after being sued so many times for doing this to people. He also had misdiagnosed her with Chron's, so that didn't help.

My cat gained a ton of weight after taking it for a bad sinus infection and never lost it again, but we never regulated his diet, either (bad, I know).

I guess the moral of the story is, take it as directed, keep serious tabs on your eating, and if it gets bad, or you feel like the benefits aren't outweighing the side effects, talk to your doctor, and DO NOT just stop taking it. Depending on the dose, you may need to be tapered off.

Jennifer_Chandler

I was put on it for RA and it makes me feel so much better but is keeping me from weight loss. I had a lot of trouble not feeling so hungry. Good luck!