Welcome, n!

[Guest guest]

Welcome to the group, n!

Thanks for telling your cautionary tale about prednisone. So glad to hear

that you have excellent care.

I'll tell you where to go!

Mayo Clinic in Rochester

http://www.mayoclinic.org/rochester

s Hopkins Medicine

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org

Re: [ ] Re: ON THE WAR PATH

>

>

> I would like to second what Anjillah says. I took prednisone for eight

> years because I had a lousy rheumatologist who just gave up on me, so I

> self-medicated on prednisone as the only way I knew to carry on working.

> After eight years, I got my wake-up call. I scraped my shin on a beach

> lounger, and what should not even have been a graze turned out to be a

> really nasty wound requiring 23 sutures. My skin, as thin as tissue

> paper, just sheared, leaving a triangular skin flap with no viable blood

> supply. The wound got infected and refused to heal, so I was referred to

> the plastic surgeons, who booked me in for a skin graft in two week's

> time. In the meantime, a friend recommended a new rheumatologist, who

> assured me that I wasn't a lost cause and patiently helped me to come off

> the prednisone. It took about nine months, and it was a hard struggle,

> but we made in in the end and I'll never look back. I took MTX and was

> able to carry on working until I took an early retirement in 2001.

> Prednisone would be a real wonder drug were it not for its widespread and

> potentially lethal side-effects.

>

> Incidentally, my new rheumatologist advised me to cancel my appointment

> for skin grafting. He said that it would take time, but would heal in the

> end - and he was right. Of course, I was left with a scar, but so what!

>

> In all, I stayed with my rheumatologist for 8 yeard until I moved out to

> France. It took me a while to form a relationship with a new one out

> here, but I eventually managed it and am getting the best care imaginable.

>

> M