Prednisolone Days
On my desktop calendar at work, certain dates are highlighted with a tiny fluorescent pink dash. Those are the days I have to take my 5mg Prednisolone tablet. I call them my Prednisolone Days. Prednisolone is one of two meds I’m taking for my lupus condition. Right now, it’s one 5mg tablet every four days. But there was a time when I had to take four 5mg tablets a day.
Back in 1997, I had a bad lupus flare which involved my lungs, and in order to fight the flare, the doctor had to increase my Prednisolone dosage.
If I remember correctly, at that time, my lupus was in remission and I was taking just one tablet a day, or what is called the basic maintenance dosage. Having that bad lupus flare meant that I was back to square one with Prednisolone. It would be a long time before I was back to one tablet a day. Along the way, at suitable intervals, the dosage was gradually decreased, from four a day to two a day, to one a day, then to one-and-a-half every other day, until finally, today, it is one every four days.
Gradually decreased …
Why didn’t the doctor put me back on one Prednisolone a day after the flare had been contained? Cuz Prednisolone is one of those medications that cannot be stopped abruptly. To do so would’ve brought back the flare that it had just beaten into remission. Strange, but true.
For a long time, I was very comfortable on one Prednisolone every other day. About six months back, my rheumatologist suggested tapering it further to one every three days. I agreed, but within two weeks, I was experiencing more joint pains that I’d felt in quite a while, so I went back to one every two days, and reported the outcome at my next check-up. He said to try again, I did, and this time, my body adjusted to the new dosage interval without further complaint. Two months ago, the new rheumatologist in my life suggested one every four days. Rather reluctantly, I agreed, and was glad when my body did not complain.
Just the other day, at my most recent check-up, Dr Y suggested tapering the Prednisolone dosage even further to one every five days. But it’s only been two months since I went on one every four days …
Er … let’s stick with the one every four days for a while, doc.
Good thing she agreed.
So, I’m still on one 5mg Prednisolone every four days, and one 200mg Plaquenil a day.
Tomorrow is a Prednisolone Day on my calendar. That means one 5mg Prednisolone and one 200mg Plaquenil after breakfast … if I remember. If not, later in the day …
