the only side effect I noticed from prednisone was amazingly enhanced alertness... I was prescribed a gradually declining dose over a 10-day period for an acute lung condition. the lungs improved completely for a short duration (5-6 weeks), but the level of alertness I felt was unlike anything I had ever felt in my life; it was a zen-calm-like alertness, not a caffeinated-buzz-like alertness, and it truly felt like this is the way we humans ought to feel all the time; I sorely miss that experience!