My Adventures With Prednisone (or Making Life Better Through Chemistry.)

On Monday, August 23, I had an appointment for allergy tests to discover the cause of a chronic cough from a year ago July. At the end of the tests, I was given two prescriptions: one for Biaxin (which I had taken several times before and already knew it had a terrible aftertaste) and the other for Prednisone.

I don’t believe I’ve ever taken Prednisone before…at least I don’t remember it, and based on this experience I really think I would. My dosage was to be two tablets, morning and evening, for the first four days, then scaling back to one tablet a day in the mornings for the next four days. After that, I would be “weaned” from it, and presumably we would find out if it had any effect on my chronic cough and sinus drainage.

I’m not sure what the verdict will be about the cough and drainage (although that seemed to calm down considerably.) What I can tell you is its amazing effect on the rest of my body.

I had a spinal fusion in early 2007. The pain I had prior to that was enough to convince me to have the surgery. Immediately following surgery, all the back discomfort and pain down my right leg was gone (except for the fact they had cut into my back and muscles!) Even so, my recovery was amazing and complete. No more back or leg pain, and I felt good! Well there was that arthritis/tendonitis pain in my wrists and hands, but that came and went. That didn’t change after the spinal fusion.

A few months ago, I experienced tingling in my left leg and some numbness. I was sent for an MRI and a synovial cyst was discovered on the left side, just above the previous fusion, rubbing on the sciatic nerve. The radiologist suggested puncturing the cyst and letting it drain, thereby relieving the pressure on the nerve. This procedure was performed and for two and a half blissful weeks, there was no pain.

Then it crept back in, only now it hurt on both sides. I had a visit with the neurosurgeon who did the first fusion and he requested another MRI to see what was happening since the cyst was punctured. The results: there was now a cyst, twice as big, spreading across both sides of the spinal canal. The suggestion was made that I schedule a date for surgery and he would remove the cyst and its sac, and extend my previous fusion from L4-L5 up to L3-L4. That’s where things stood when I went for my allergy tests.

The first day I was on the Prednisone I still coughed and sniffled, but by the end of the day, my back pain was less. By the second day, I forgot to take the three Advil gel caps I normally take in the morning to allow me to walk upright and get through the day. When I thought about it, there really was no pain to speak of in my leg or back. Even my wrists and hand didn’t hurt. Not only that, I was bouncing all over with energy and high spirits. My husband chuckled at me several times and remarked I was talking (chattering?) quite a bit. In fact he said I had talked more in the past 24 hours than I had the previous two weeks. On that day, my cough was markedly improved, and when it was there, it didn’t produce all the phlegm it normally did. There was another remarkable change. My ankles were no longer swollen. Not one bit…not at all. During the entire time I took the Prednisone, I had no swelling in my legs or ankles. That alone is a miracle.

By day three, I was in full “get ‘er done” mode. I had a series of errands and appointments crammed together. Normally I would have been hovering on the edge of frustration at the prospect, and by the time the day ended, I would have fallen completely over the side. Not on this day! I sailed…no, glided is a better term…through all the heres and theres and ins and out of the car, maneuvering through traffic with perky efficiency, and smiling to myself at the beautiful peacefulness of rush hour traffic. All was so very right with the world, and I figured I’d just enjoy it while I could. There was the vagrant hope that a mere eight days of this miracle pill would cause me to permanently flip over to the bright side. My more cynical self assured me that was probably not going to happen, but I’d take advantage of the perks as long as possible.

On day four, Thursday, I had an appointment to have an Upper GI with esophagram, and a CAT scan of the sinus. Early that morning I serenely readied myself for the event. I had always dreaded the remote chance I would someday undergo a test requiring the swallowing of barium. Today, no stinking barium would frighten me! I swallowed (no problem), I swallowed again, (no bad taste) and I passed my test. The CAT scan was a blip on the screen, and I never did dread that.

Through the rest of the day, I did chores, bounced around here and there, still with no pain. There was no coughing, no drainage. Life was beautiful. It was good to have chemistry in ones life and system.

On day five, Friday, I only had a tablet in the morning, but I was still on top of the world. I attended a funeral in the morning requiring a lot of kneeling and standing around visiting with people. Standing in one place is normally hard when you have back problems. On this day, it wasn’t a factor to even consider.

On day six, Saturday, my legs were sore (probably from all that kneeling) but otherwise I noticed some occasional small twinges of discomfort in my bad back area. Still, I had plenty of energy to attend an event that evening that included a lot more standing around talking to people. Any pain I felt wasn’t even worth acknowledging. Still no massive coughing…just a tiny bit a few times.

Sunday, day seven, my legs were  really sore (still from the kneeling?) and when I got up that morning, I was doing my old lady shuffle until I’d been up a while and had some Advil. But all in all, it was a good day (except for the cheeriness which was beginning to annoy those people around me who didn’t feel quite so Mary Poppins-ish.)

Monday was my last day…day eight. I took the last tablet that morning with a sincere regret at having to say goodbye to my helpful pal. I still did okay, but the back pain was just a tad more than it had been the previous day, and there were a couple of well-placed coughs. I got a little pissy at the grocery story because I couldn’t find what I needed until the third store I visited. I noticed my husband with his eyes raised toward heaven. It appeared he was asking for divine patience and the strength to get through the rest of his life.

Tuesday morning I girded myself to face a busy day without Prednisone. I did great (except for that part about walking like a 90 year-old lady.) After a couple of hours, I walked just fine, and I did my running around. While shopping that afternoon, I hit an absolute wall of fatigue and discomfort. The joy of shopping was replaced with “Oh God! Why didn’t I use my mother’s handicapped parking card?”

So now it’s Wednesday. The cough is still hanging back, though not as ‘dry’ as last week. By this afternoon I’m still not able to walk without looking like I have a stick up my butt. I think I need to do some gentle exercises to see if that will improve things.

I miss my little buddy, Prednisone. I hope it accomplished what it was supposed to. I look back on this past week wistfully, remembering the terrific mood and the pain-free existence. Having read up on the drug after I received it, I am aware it isn’t a good thing to take over a prolonged period of time. I know it can worsen osteoporosis, play hell with your adrenals, and probably cause you to grow a second head.

Still, it was fun while it lasted.

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