PredniSONE and muscle weakness

I was prescribed medrol by my GP due to an ongoing rash that needed to get under control. I believe I had the 40mg dose/wein pack. The first two days I felt as though I were on speed. Day 2 at the grocery store I stopped to take my blood pressure because I was sure my heart was racing out of my chest. Thankfully, it wasn't and happened to be palpitations that I was having. I had hot flashes where my face and chest would get red like a sunburn. There were the sweats and the leg weakness/soreness. I did have sporadic headaches but, nothing a Tylenol wouldn't alleviate thank goodness. I've read here that numerous people had very bad headaches. My last day on the meds I started to experience the fatigue. Today is my first full day off and I certainly felt flu like. Sporadic lightheadedness, weakness and fatigue that would all come and go throughout my workday along with sporadic energy. I'm glad that I found this site so at least I know that this is normal and will subside in a few days. Other side effects I experienced were worsening of my post nasal drip along with a funny taste in my mouth, mood swings, insomnia, hyperactivity and muscle aches.

They think that I have either crohns or ulcerative colitis. I have tried antibiotics, lialda, mesalamine enemas, with no improvement. After another colonoscopy they put me on prednisone at 40mgs, 30, 20, 10, then 5 decreasing weekly. Well the first week was okay. I had some of the side affects, insomnia, extreme hunger, and crazy. I could deal with that. But then when I decreased down to 30mg, my body flipped. I awoke from the middle of the night with burning pain in the knees. So bad I took 4 ibuprofen and threw myself in the tub with epsom salt. I thought okay that was weird because I have never had a joint pain in my life. I saw the gastroenterologist that day bc I was still having abdominal pain. He totally blew off the knee pain and said he had no idea what that was. I thought okay maybe it will go away. A few days went by and nothing. 3 days later and I awoke one morning crying in pain because of my legs. I called the on call doctor who also said he had no idea and go to the er. So I went crying hysterically for 4 hours. Even after 3 rounds of dilaudid I was still in pain. They suggested a Rheumatologist. So I went to one a week later who said I was going through steroid withdrawals. And there is nothing we can do but treat the symptoms of pain. I am now down to 10mgs have been out of work for 2 weeks and am absolutely miserable with severe leg pain, muscle weakness and fatigue. He also adjusted the drop down increments to 5 instead of 10. Anyway I will never take this drug again and I think they rushed to this one. Just wanted to share. I am glad I found this website because I went from a fully functioning physically fit 28 year old to a crippled crying crazy person. I think I was scaring my husband, honestly, until we both read some of your postings which were similar.

I was diagnosed with Optic Neuritis in my left eye, at the time of diagnosis, I felt fine. Had an MRI to check for lesions on the brain, there were none. I was put on IV solu-medrol for 3 days, then 90 mg of prednisone for one week, with a rapid taper the second week. 6 days into the prednisone, I started have shortness of breath, etc. Went to the ER and my white count was 22,000. Had bronchitis and the beginnings of pneumonia. Because of the breathing problems, I only did 2 days of taper (doctor's advice). I have lost site completely in the left eye and now I have blurred vision in my right eye. Extreme fatigue, and a mental fog I just can't explain. A "twitch" in my left left hand and muscle weakness. I just don't feel "right". How long does it take for this drug to leave your system? Has anyone had a similar experience? My eye doctor was considering another round of prednisone for the optic neuritis, but I am not so sure I can survive it.

I was put on prednisone for asthma. I tapered down from 80 mg to 10 mg over 2 weeks. After coming off of the prednisone, I experienced nausea, extreme dizziness, felt disoriented, and had muscle weakness so bad that I could barely stand up. After several trips to the emergency room, my doctor, and an endocrinologist, they figured that I needed to be tapered off of the prednisone more slowly. The endocrinologist started me back on 10 mg of prednisone and tapered me down to 2.5 mg. Since I have stopped taking the prednisone, I have experienced dizziness,headaches, tremors, a rapid pulse rate, blurry vision and a sensitivity to light. I have been off the prednisone for two weeks now and every day is different. I have some good days and some bad days. Although I have my strength back and the nausea has subsided, the dizziness is debilitating and it seems that my balance and fine motor coordination is off. I feel very mentally foggy. The doctors do not seem to have any answers for me as to why all of this is happening. It has been a very scary and frustrating experience. I am concerned that the prednisone has done some serious damage to my nervous system. Has anyone ever had these side effects? Do they eventually subside and how long will it take? It has been the longest month of my life dealing with all of the effects of this medicine. Any advice would be appreciated.

Hi I am a 44 year old asthma patient. I have had asthma since the age 2 and have been on & off prednisone since that time. As a child until age 20 I was on predinsone daily. My question is has anyone experienced nerve problems due to long time use? I do have muscle weakness and spasms, but I am interested in if anyone has had nerve problems. Please email me at ****** and refer to prednisone.

How interesting to find this site! I, too, was diagnosed with temporal arteritis on February 29 (no more leap years for me!). Because I was already blind in one eye (had no idea) and losing sight in the other eye, I was put on 100 mg daily of prednisone. I had no idea of what I was in for. Since that time I have been able to taper down to 42.5 mg daily, but I don't think I've missed a single side effect. Horrific headaches. A 25-pound weight gain so rapidly it was unbelievable, moon face like I've never seen, was thrown into diabetes right away. My blood pressure went haywire, my cholesterol went haywire (had never had problems with either of them). I think I agree that the most debilitating has been the muscle weakness and leg cramps. I have no balance, have had 3 serious falls. The latest is my skin is breaking down and I'm losing my hair. What hair I have is like somebody held a match to it and frizzed it. I'm short of breath, keep trying to exercise and it's like climbing a high-altitude mountain. Swelling of my feet to where I can wear NO shoes except for Crocs in about three sizes bigger than I ever wore in my life. Now I have a liver problem, am being sent to an "ultra-specialist" for this. The good news is that my remaining eyesight has been stable, and I am very thankful for that. I have been assured by multiple specialists that I would have been blind by now if not for the prednisone. Although it is very difficult for me to read by the time night arrives, and that was my chief "hobby." The other part of this whole sad saga (ha) is how much money my husband and I have been out this year -- unbelievable. Lab tests or doctors every single week and sometimes every single day. I am now under the care of 5 different specialists (ophthalmology, rheumatology, cardiology, hepatology and internal medicine), and it has been so incredibly expensive. This is even with fairly decent insurance. I have been told that I have at least six more months to go on this treatment, and then possibly another year on methotrexate. Thank God I have NOT experienced the depression that seems to be a common thread here. I am trusting in Him to get me through this itme and to come out on the other side completely cured. But it does get difficult in the meantime.

im a 20 year old male who was given prednisone to reduce the inflammation around my spinal cord in my neck from a herniated disk. 60MG in the morning for 4 days and 40MG in the morning for 3 days...... no real weening process which im seeing probably should have been administered. while i was on it the mood swings were nuts and i noticed feeling muscle weakness and joint pain along with the occasional burning or tingling. ive been off it for 6 days and now the muscles in my legs and feet twitch and im still crazy in the head with little sleep and sinus headaches that don't quit. how long does this shit go on?

I'm a 22 year old who was diagnosed with dermatologists a couple months ago. I've been on different doses of steroids ranging from 5mg to 60mg for 5 months now. i was on 60mg the longest and just went down to 40mg. i go down to 30 mg next month. so far my side effects are moon face, swollen areas around my neck and collar bone, weight gain like 15 lbs, always have to wake up in the middle of the night and pee, my knees get shooting pains sometimes at night, light hair by my ears like sideburns, tired, helps with my muscle weakness a little, my eyesight seems blurry sometimes, chest always feels tight. I'm also on Methotrexate, Bactrim, folic acid, and Fosamax. it might be a reaction form all these but i think its mainly from the Prednisone. i cant wait to get down to the lower doses. i look like a different person and even tho all my family and friends know its still embarrassing. i fell like a whole different person. i cant wait to be normal again.

I started taking 60mg of Prednisone two months ago and one week ago it was lowered to 40mg a day. I have gained 10lbs in that time, have the moon face, acne on face and chest. My face has grown black fur on it. My mood swings are terrible. I feel like a time bomb waiting to go off. I feel like I am always angry. My anxiety level feels like I am about to jump out of my skin. My doctor has agreed to start tapering me off of the Prednisone as now I am also on Imuran, Cytoxan and Methotrexate. Does anyone know how long does it take for these side effects to go away after you are off the Prednisone??? Do any of them lessen with a lower dose???

I started taking Prednisone in late November for inflammation of my lungs, a complication of influenza A. I started at 50 mg daily, then went to 75, then was hospitalized and went to 160 intravenously. After about a week, I was reduced to 120 then 75 by mouth a few days later. After 15 days in the hospital, I was released only to come back two days later with internal bleeding. I was released two days later and my doctor knocked several days off my withdrawal plan. About midway through all this, I started having a constant mild headache. After my second release, the headache started to get worse. The headache became debilitating and I spent some time in the ER where codeine helped. (I'm allergic to morphine which would have been their choice). The codeine helped for a day or two, but when I got to 60mg of codeine with no effect I gave up on the pills. My doctor gave me some sort of anti-inflammatory shot which helped.

I've been off Prednisone now for over a week and still have a constant headache, but most of the time it's not bad and only moderate at times. On average I see a gradual improvement.

I have had increased appetite and energy (in the beginning) followed by face and neck swelling, headache, nausea, blurred vision, internal bleeding and large muscle weakness.

I know that I needed something to stop my lung inflammation, but the cure has been worse than the disease at this point.

My Mother was diagnosed with Rheumatoid arthritis 30 years ago. She has been on prednisone at low doses since then. About 3 years ago she started imagining things, and hallusinations. About 2 years ago her prednisone dose went up to 60mg a day due to a stroke of the optic eye nerve. She has since been tapering down, now at 15mg a day. But tapering down makes her arthritis more painful. She has developed diabetes, loss of sleep, loss of apetite, loss of muscle tone. When she gets bumped, it's a big opened gash, rather than just a bruise. With the higher dose she was more moody & would get angry easier. The hallucinations & paranoia continue & are making me more & more concerned. I haven't read about this in any of the stories. Has anyone else experienced this side effect? I spoke with her Rheumatologist who suggest a psychiatrist to prescribe anti-psychotic drugs. She's already on 11 pills a day, does she need another?
Please let me know if anyone has experienced this as well.
Thank you.

In January I was diagnosed with polymyalgia rheumatica and temporal arteritis (giant cell arteritis). I was put on 60 mg prednisone and an array of other meds to help with pain, inflammation, water retention, and stomach problems from everything. I've lost some vision from the TA. I've experienced the weight gain, the moon face, stomach problems, depression, fatigue, muscle weakness, lack of memory and concentration, and generally feel miserable. The brain fog is awful! I don't trust myself doing much of anything these days!

When I was first put on the prednisone it completely took away all my TA and PMR symptoms. I could walk and get up and down again, didn't have the headaches, and didn't hurt all over.
My doctor tried to taper my dosage about 6 weeks ago and all my symptoms returned and increased as I went down on the prednisone. He upped me back to 60. That time the symptoms didn't go away. They lessened but were still there.

He's trying to taper again, and I'm down to 30 mg now and feel worse and worse. My sed rate has been normal, so the doctor thinks it's from the prednisone. Does it mimic all the TA and PMR symptoms? I also am having a lot of hand and feet cramping.

Does anyone else have these two illnesses? I would be interested in your experience. I want off these meds! Anyone found an alternative approach that's helped?

God bless!

I began taking prednisone in nov06 for TA. I started at 70mg daily. Side effect were minimal (moon face, problems sleeping, muscle weakness..) untill Feb07 when the weight gain averaged 2lb a day!!! and I had already began to wean off it. I started my own reduction plan because the Dr only had me going down 5mg every other week. I am on 5mg this week, 2.5 mg next week and I'm done, I hope I start to have more energy soon. I hope I never have to take this crap again! I am on methotrexate to replace the pred.
Good Luck to all!

I've been on and off Prednisone since I was a little girl. I'm 23 now and have been off of the terrible stuff for 10 months. Prednisone and I have a love/hate relationship. It did save my life several times when I was having chronic, lethal asthma attacks. I almost died several times.

I suffered much when taking the drug. I had every side effect known to man: sleeplessness though moderate fatigue, depression, anxiety, fast heart rate, increase blood sugar levels (I was even given insulin), moon face (didn't recognise myself), increased weight gain (20+ lbs), horrendous abdominal strechmarks, heartburn/acid relux (which I had to be medicated for in order to continue taking Prednisone), mood swings, muscle pain, bone pain (I now have osteoperosis), muscle weakness, hot flashes, increased sweating, pale yellow-ish skin, bad acne, and water retension. There may have been more side effects, I just can't recall all of them right now. Thank God I'm not on this stuff right now!

I was recently hospitalized for an acute episode of polymyalgia rheumatica and discharged on 60mg of prednisone/day. I have taken smaller doses in the past but this amount has really affected me negatively. For the first 2 weeks, I felt an inability to think clearly. The dose has been reduced to 50mg/day and the thinking has improved. After 1 month, I have the moon face and severe bruising. However, my biggest concern is that I am now experiencing extreme muscle weakness. I feel like my muscles are detiorating. My dose is being reduced to 45mg/day now. Has anyone experiences a similar side effect?

Have they tested you yet for dermatomyositis, Guest #14571?

Sometimes this crops up after a bad infection to the skin. My mother has just been diagnosed with it. Do you experience muscle weakness when your prednisone dosage is lowered or do you know?

Hi i had been on Predisone since Jan and it has been a total nightmare. It was given as to help with Pulmonary Sarcoidosis that i have. I have suffered from numerous side effects
- night sweats
- frequent urination
- acne breakout
- upset stomach
- body cramps and muscle weakness
- hair loss
- mood swings
- weight gain almost 50 lbs
- lack of sleep
I have now been off of the Predisone for 15 day and is still dealing with a few sides affects and withdrawl effects....i have notices...since the i have a very bad trembling affect to my hands

I was on prednisone only for two weeks on two different ocassions, (after an out-patient surgical procedure) but the side effects and withdrawl symptoms are so intense I hope I never have to go on it again.

While on it:
sweating, hands that feel like they're never going to stop swelling up, tingling and muscle weakness in my lower legs, extreme moodiness, and low self esteem.

After two days of going off of it:
I still have leg tingling (mostly in the morning), knee pain, a sense of jitteriness overall, and my hands shake a little, and I still am pretty moody (my wife can attest). I get startled really easy too. I found this board becasue I did a web search on prednisone withdrawl, because on my way in to work today I thought I was havig a stroke or something! All those symptoms hit, plus my lip and jaw were quivering, and when I got scared, that just sent my mind racing.

Also, I hadn't had coffee in a long time, and this morning when I did, it seemed to magnify the reaction.

-John

Weight Gain, Muscle Weakness, Fogginess

I've been on 90mg of prednisone for about a month and a half for nephrotic syndrome and have had some of the more common side effects like the round face, some weight gain, dizzy spells, and some others.

I started to feel better after about 3 weeks on the drug then I started to get a weakness in my legs almost to the point that I can't support my own body. I know that prednisone causes muscle weakness but this seems excessive. I have to keep myself from falling nearly every time I try to walk, even short distances. My doctors are looking into it just to make sure it's not something else but I think it's the drug.
Has anyone else had this problem and does it get any better? As far as my blood work goes, I'm not dehydrated and my potassium levels are fine so we know that is not the problem.

Also, I'm starting to have some heart problems. Before the prednisone my resting heart rate was in the 60's now it's in the upper 90's and even goes up into the 100-120's. And if I even walk to the bathroom it goes into the 150's. And my blood pressure is extremely high. Anyone else dealt with this. It's worrying me and my primary doc seems really worried about it but my kidney specialist just wants me to wait it out and stay on the high dose as long as I can.

I'm at the point where my kindey specialist says if I go off the prednisone it could lead to kidney failure but my primary doc says that if I stay on such a high dose I'm at risk for a heart attack.

Extreme Fatigue, Insomnia/Disturbances of Sleep Patterns, Increased Appetite/Weight Gain/Fluid Retention/Increased Fat Deposits, Changes in Mood, Nervousness, Increased Blood Pressure (now need RX), Depression, Bruising, Extreme Facial Redness (all over), Inflamed Esophagus, Muscle Weakness, Profuse Sweating (especially entire head and face), Distended Abdomen, Swollen Eyes, Acne on Back (excessive), Sun Sensitivity, Increased Thirst, Roundness of Face/Moon Face, Thick Neck/Double Chin...or more, Messed Up Sense of Taste, Teeth Sensitivity, Moodiness, Hair Loss....
SEEMS LIKE I'VE FORGOTTEN TO INCLUDE SOME OTHERS!
This is RUINING MY LIFE!

I have been on prednisone since end of February/05. 50 mg for a few months then down eventually to 20, had to go back up to 30, symptoms all came back.muscle weakness , and since I already have that with Dermatomyositis, it was a little confusing if it was helping at all.

Weight gain , moderate, but definite swelling of the face. Acid reflux a problem, hair loss.

A little discouraging, but necessary. I am now at 15 mg and going down to go off. Plaquenil has been prescribed and I have been on that for 2 months.Not really seeing improvement but have to get off Prednisone.Far too scary! Hopefully I am able to stay off it! I have always been a relatively healthy woman and I want my life back!

To Guest #10748......Yes, I had terrible side effects while I was reducing my dose. In fact, I ended up in the emergency room one Sunday because my blood pressure and heart rate went sky high. I am a person with anxiety and panic attacks anyway, so the prednisone really put me over the edge. I am now down to .5 (1/2 of a 10mg tablet) a day until they are all gone; and they are almost all gone, thank God!!!!! I am feeling much better these days; not to say I don't have my bad days. I am taking the prednisone for sudden hearing loss in my right ear, so I still have my days where I feel weird because my head feels lopsided. It is the strangest feeling ever. It's very hard to explain to anyone unless they have experienced it too. I had the muscle weakness, mostly in my shoulders and arms; the extreme hunger, (I still can't believe the food that I could put away) and just a general LOUSEY feeling. I was a nervous wreck. Hang in there; it will get better. I can say this.......I will never take it again. Even if I end up in a wheelchair someday for some reason....I will NOT TAKE IT. Oh, and I had extreme sweating; mostly at night when it was time to go to bed. I would have to get a cold washcloth and lay it on top of my chest to cool down my core temperature. It was awful!!!! I guess it was pretty much a NIGHTMARE. Like I said, Hang in there!!!!!!

i am so glad i found this site. i thought i was losing my mind,i have and am having almost all side affects listed. starting at the top and working down i will list the affects it has had on me:headaches, neck pain, eyesight blurriness, lump on back of my neck,shoulder pain, stomach pain, hip pain, muscle weakness, racing pulse, feeling of anxiety,skin tenderness,unable to process thoughts and sentences,mood swings, severe sweating,the feeling of having a hangover. these are not all of them but had i known what this drug could do to your body i would have never agreed to the injections. most days i feel like dying. i never sleep it seems. and iam so tired of the way i am having to live. cannot work, or do the things i would normally do. thanks for listening
tami

i had a neck injury and was getting cervical spine epidurals withprednisone. i started having night sweats , trouble thinking an bad bad mood swings. to keep the list going ,terrible headaches ,muscle weakness,numbness in my arms and fingers. i thought i was going nuts and then was told it was a reaction the the drug. nice that they told me. if i had known the sid affects before i would not have gone ahead with the epidurals. does anyone know how long this will last?
thankstami

On an 8-week taper down from 80mg for ulcerative colitis. Lost 30 pounds from UC and was bedridden, miserable, and fully dehydrated for about 3 weeks before hospitalization. I was very worried about taking Prednisone due to past reactions (primarily insomnia and associated extreme emotional distress). My UC responded immediately to the Prednisone, and I went from 20+ daily bowel movements to 2-3 in a matter of 3 days. I'm now 2 weeks in to the taper, taking 30mg and feeling completely refreshed.

Definitely having some negative reactions. I've been taking Ambien nightly for 2 weeks, permitting 6-8 hours of restless sleep, waking every 15-30 minutes. The first time I took predinose, I did not take any sleep aids. I did not sleep for over 3 days and extremely sporadically for the following 2 weeks, with frequent auditory hallucinations.(So 6-8 hours of restless sleep is fine by me). My face is very bloated, acne breaking out worse than ever, insatiable hunger(gaining my weight back too quickly), muscle weakness-spasms-cramping, abnormally pulse/blood pressure, and fatigue/unnatural energy. Had severe dizziness and headrushes for the first 3-4 days before tapering to 40 mg.

All in all, I'm very thankful for the results. I feel considerable relief. My apartment is spotless, I have heightened concentration and motivation. Hopefully the negative effects will dissipate by the end of my dosage, and I won't be too far overweight.

Mood swings, upset stomach, WEIGHT GAIN (50+LBS!!), forgetfullness, paranoia,hallucinations, feeling invincible, muscle weakness, high blood sugar, high blood pressure, thin skin, fatigue, not caring about anything, talking a lot, feeling hot all the time, excessive sweating resulting in body odor, not liking things that fly( I was especially freaked out by bugs and birds) lack of tactfullness, I'll add more when I think of them.... and heres the clincher......

one day when I was driving on the highway, I was suddenly convinced my car's engine was on fire.

Muscle Weakness....I have been getting muscle weakness in my upper arms and thighs. My one doctor thinks it is a side effect from the predisone...however, I was put on predisone initially for this. My question is, the muscle weakness from predisone??? is it generalized...all over? Or concentrated in upper arms and thighs like polymyositis? I am on 15mg. and can not function.... I need 40mg. for the muscle weakness to go away. Please help....thanks

I had been on 60mgs of prednisone for a month and a half for ITP. Initially it brought my counts up slightly but they crashed back to where they were when I started after a month of the treatment. I did my research, and demanded I be given anti-D treatment (win-rho). My hematologist (blood vampire) gave me it and it brought my counts up considerably. Three weeks later they fell and he won't let me be weaned off the prednisone saying that its jepordizing my counts. The prednisone did not work for me, dropping as it did while on such a high dose. He says he won't advise me to go off the drug nor will he write me a perscription for a tapering dose. I go to a clinic because I'm a poor 23 year old that just graduated from college. This drug has made my life a living nightmare. The first two weeks it gave me severe depression and I did not eat. Gave me horrible mood swings, killer fatigue, joint pain, double vision, skin and acne problems, nasty taste in my mouth, muscle weakness, fat distribution on my stomach, waggy skin, etc. I am so ashamed of my body. I got edema all in one place my stomach one night and I could barely breathe and my heart was pumping so hard. It stretched out my stomach permanently and gave me stretch marks. I have gained 17 lbs dispite following a strict diet - I went off sugar and watched my salt and carb intake. My idiot of a doctor won't let me get off this drug from hell. I am so miserable and depressed. I basically threw any chance away of growing into a healthy person when I am older, I think. I think that because of this drug I am facing irrepairable damage. I am not even married or have children and yet who knows what damage it is doing to my reproductive system. If I knew what I knew now, I would never put that drug in my body, or I would have never even seen anybody for my disease, I would rather bleed to death. This drug should be taken off the market. It's handed out like it is candy. If I was just given the safest treatment for my disorder (anti-d) and seen that it worked then I would have never had to gone through this. But preds are nice and cheap let's give it to a 23 year old and ruin her life. What do they care what it does to me? They ignore me, even after telling them it made me suicidal. I feel like a shell of a person and haven't been myself since. I'll either have to find another doctor or taper myself off which I hear isn't too good since I'm on 20mg pills and can't accurately measure a taper. I'm lookin foward to premature aging with prednisone.

I am almost finished taking a 3 week course of Prednisone- thank goodness! I am in my early 30's. I have had quite a few side effects that I didn't even originally know were from this drug - but now am convinced. I have had a dry mouth and a bad taste in my mouth (for about a week), had an increase in urine output, increased urination, night sweating (at back of head and base of neck especially), inability to sleep through the night, frequent urination at night (previously I never woke up at night to use the bathroom), off and on blurred vision (only in one eye), & muscle weakness of the bladder (mild incontinence) only at night. The things that bother me the most and cause me concern are the urinary issues (waking up at night to use the bathroom is disturbing my already hard to get sleep).

I have been on pred for 2 years off and on for Temporal Arteritis that the doctors at long last have decided that I don't have. They started me out on 60 mm and now they are taking me off at 1mm every other week. I am down to 11mm now. I have experienced all the side effects except the acne and problems with periods. I gained 40 pounds and have such bad pains in my lower back that I can't stay on my feet for long. And I'm always hungry though I try to control it. My main withdrawal symptom is extreme itching from my neck to my wrists and thighs. especially where there is any pressure on the body such as waist bands etc. I tried to get off it once but it was at a faster rate and that is when the itching started. I will gladly put up with the itching as long as I can get off this "Satans curse" of a medicine. I also have jerking in my hands and a general feeling of shakiness. I was glad to read that someone else had painful sensitive teeth I didn't know it was connected to the pred. I too wonder if I will be able to lose all this weight after I'm off the pred. I do know that the moon face goes away because it did the one time I came off the pred then had to get back on it. I also have weakness in my thighs and arms. and my arms are always getting big ugly bruises or torn skin on them to the point that I have to wear long sleeves in hot weather.feel free to email me with your story. Especially if you are off of it so I can have some idea what might happen to me

I have been on 10-day prednisone tapers twice for severe asthma flares. The first time the worst side effect was the insomnia-- starting out at 60 mg/day, I didn't sleep for the first 4 nights, and it was at least 6 months before I got a decent night's sleep. The second time, it made me so wired and jumpy that every noise was like a spike going through my head, and I developed an extreme startle reaction, also a body rash, bloated stomach and moon face. The first few days of the second taper, I had an enormous appetite increase, but a few days later I lost my appetite completely and had constant nausea, diarrhea, and stomach acid (not heartburn, no reflux) as well as muscle weakness and pain.