Adventures in Prednisone Tapering

I finally got the approval to start tapering my prednisone! It is a "very fast taper" according to my rheumatologist and both she and I are unsure about how my body will handle it but I am willing to give it a shot. I am tapered to 20mg a day on Sunday and will continue on that until next Sunday. Then I will decrease every week until 10 mg, then 2.5 after that. I see my rheumatologist again in the middle of next month.

All in all I just have been very, very tired but that could be for many reasons. I think the prednisone and my bakery schedule during the summer messed up my sleep cycle so I can no longer sleep in and wake up between 5:45 and 7:00 am every day. Occasionally I can get back to sleep but it is not a restful sleep. I am also extremely busy during the day so I know I am not getting enough sleep as I should.

When I saw my rheumatologist last week she gave my knees the diagnosis of "periarthritis" meaning that the ligaments and tendons are all involved as well as the joints. This is not surprising as I have contractures in my knees and cannot straighten them out all the way. She also suggested I speak to my primary care doctor to see a neurologist again about the increase in migraines/headaches I have been having.

Sorry I have not been posting that much. I am just so busy and all my free time has been dedicated to homework and resting. I hope I can get back to a regular blogging schedule as I have a few that I am working on.