Poison sumac symptoms and conditions

I have just finished my first day of taking Methylpred. So far
so good. I just want to know if it will cure a really bad case
of poison ivy/poison sumac and how long does it usually take.

my 15 year developed systemic poison sumac/ivy this summer and was put on high dose prednisone....he became a different kid. Paranoia, angry bouts, aggression, heart pounding, "heard voices", insomnia.....I could not believe it. I am very relieved to have found this website...because it seems that there are a LOT of people who have experienced similar episodes. It has taken a few months....but I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have my son back or not....it was as if he had been snatched away!!! The scariest time in my life was this summer with him.

Chest pain, perhaps heartburn (or gas?) so bad that I can barely breathe...this only happens when I attempt to stop taking prednisone altogether. This time I tapered down from 50 mg to 25 mg (for a week) to 0 as of Sunday.

I had been taking prednisone to combat an allergic reaction to poison sumac. I began taking 50 mg/day for a week, doubled it for another week, cut back to 50 for a third week, quit cold turkey and the rash "caught fire," so I started up again. This time I'm determined to stay off, but I wonder how long I have to put up with this horrible chest pain!