What warnings were you given about prednisone?

Did you receive any?

Find out what you should have known about prednisone.

Watch now!

Prednisone Warnings

Transcription autogenerated from the video above so some errors are possible

What warnings were you given about prednisone and did they come true?

I have asked this question to thousands of prednisone warriors. What warnings were you given and did they come true? Did they get any warnings and if so, were they the right warnings? 

What are Prednisone warnings?

Prednisone warnings are what you should have been told when you were prescribed prednisone. You should have been warned about the side effects, when to take it or how to take it. All of these warnings are what you should have been told.

The actual number one response was NONE. Nobody was given the warnings about prednisone. That really makes me sad to hear as a pharmacist and healthcare professional. That means my pharmacist colleagues and the discharge nurse and the doctor prescribing it; none of those people warned anybody or they don’t remember being warned.

What should you be warned about?

These are the few comments of people made on my Facebook posts about;

“What warnings were you given about prednisone? Did they come true?”

They will give you the warnings that they wish they’d known. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #1

“None. I had no idea of the ramifications of this med. Only learned after years of taking low dose that my bones are crumbling. Too late now”.

She thought it was too late. Now she wished she’d known earlier and I don’t want you to have that too late. No regrets. 

Let’s find out what these prednisone warnings are so that you don’t have to deal with that kind of regret. You can know that you’re a prednisone where you’re doing everything you can to prevent side effects and the fulfillment of these warnings.

Prednisone Warning Comment #2

“My doctor tried to tell me the only side effect was insomnia”.

That’s completely not true. Prednisone actually has at least 150 side effects possible. I compiled all of the different lists of prednisone side effects into a searchable list. You can look it up to find out whether what you’re experiencing is a side effect or not, and that can really help give you some peace. 

The only side effect is not insomnia and a lot of people do experience it. That is the number one Tweeted side effect of prednisone. But it is certainly not the only side effect. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #3

“I was given no warnings from my rheumatologist. A friend said my bones might be affected. I have osteopenia, high blood pressure, had to have cataract surgery, weight gain, fatigue, weakness, and muscle wasting.”

Seven side effects instead of one or zero from her doctor. That’s a ratio that is all too common when it comes to prednisone treatment. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #4

“Weight gain and messed up sleep”.

Yes, I experienced them. And those are the two probably most common. They’re definitely the two most often tweeted about side effects. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #5

“Pear body, hump back, moon face. All came true”.

The prednisone causes a weight gain and that fat can go to your face and it makes a round circle like the moon. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #6

“Fat, fuzzy face, mood swings, should I go on?”

This is hilarious because maybe that moon face isn’t quite as rocky like our real moon in the sky.

It’s more fuzzy because you can get male pattern hair growth like a beard or a mustache. No fun. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #7

“It may cause insomnia for a few nights. None. And when I discussed my concerts about mood changes and abdominal fat with my tx team, there was no acknowledgement that prednisone was to blame”.

That’s terrible because mood changes in abdominal fat are two of the most common side effects of prednisone. That doesn’t make any sense. Maybe the transplant team is worried about more things than just the side effects of drugs.

But what’s interesting about prednisone is it’s such an old drug, they never did rigorous testing and they never found out exactly what all the side effects are.

The information that is available about prednisone warnings and side effects is actually quite lacking even though it’s been around for so long. It’s possible that your doctor didn’t even know, although you would think a transplant team would be experts on prednisone side effects. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #8

“I had no warnings, none. I had to do my own research”.

Prednisone Warning Comment #9

“If I didn’t take curalin after my 2 meals, I’d be risking steroid-induced diabetes.”

Yikes. Because prednisone is a glucocorticoid. That’s the class of drugs that it’s a part of glucose. Meaning, glucose equals sugar, equals blood sugar, diabetes. It’s directly affecting our metabolism and our ability to process and use sugar. Your risk for diabetes is two times greater than the normal population while taking prednisone weight gain. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #10

“I had no choice it was needed to save my eye from scleritis!”

Your doctor is warning you that you have no choice. And that’s how it was for me, I had no choice. I either took it or I could possibly bleed to death. I’d rather take it right? That was the warning. One of the main warnings I was given. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #11

“I had a junior doc recommend it and give me rules about the flu and vaccines. And then a consultant was brought in to reinforce that message. Other warnings were the blood pressures going up (it’s gone down), weight gain (I was doing okay, but for the lockdown), flu could make me awfully ill and to report to the hospital if I got it. Always have my vaccines – but not the live ones, the chemical ones and don’t miss it”.

Watch this whole in-depth blog post and video all about prednisone and the flu vaccines, whether or not flu shot or not goes through all the scenarios. Watch now if you want to know more about Prednisone and Flu vaccines.

Prednisone Warning Comment #12

“Take it or die, don’t eat sweet things. Don’t put on weight and take vitamin D and calcium.”

Those are some awesome common tips. You can either take it or you can die like in my situation. Don’t sweet things because of that glucocorticoid issue. Don’t put on weight and take cap. Vitamin D, calcium. Perfect.

Prednisone Warning Comment #13

“Weight gain, sleep issues, cataracts, osteoporosis, thin skin, redistribution of fat to certain areas, all of which I’ve experienced.”

That’s a lot of side effects that a lot of people experience and those are all really big words. But essentially prednisone is interfering with so many processes in our body. From our metabolism, weight, bones, skin, sleep, to our eyes. Prednisone is affecting your whole body. These are the side effects I personally experienced and I’m a pharmacist.

Prednisone Warning Comment #14

“Not to take it at night as you won’t sleep. Weight gain and being super hungry.” 

Not to take it at night is a great tip for counteracting the insomnia side effect. Because if you take it first thing in the morning that’s mimicking your body’s natural hormones with cortisol. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #15

“Bone thinning and possible irritability.”

Yes, we can definitely get pretty irritable while on prednisone.

Prednisone Warning Comment #16

“Absolutely none. Then I did my own research and found out what I was experiencing was common. Doctors still downplay when I say I get moon face and swell up and retain water, they say it’s in my head”.

I completely understand how that feels because I knew I had to take it or I could die, right? But the moon face the swelling, those are real. Those are really visible impairing side effects that make you feel like a totally different person. 

If you’re a person who needs to use your appearance to either get a job or keep a job, having moon face just isn’t compatible. They always publish news articles when a celebrity has to take prednisone because it’s like why does she suddenly have a big fat round face? Right? Selena Gomez, she had to take it.

Why does she like what happened to her? A celebrity can’t look like that. While you know a moon face isn’t life threatening and so your doctor doesn’t really care as far as it doesn’t cause other medical issues.

But it definitely causes psychological and emotional issues, right? Like having to not recognize your face in the mirror is not fun. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #17

“Moon face and weight gain. Thinning of bones with long-term use”. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #18

“None. Cataracts when I was 28 was scary thanks to prednisone”.

Cataracts are something you’re not supposed to get to your great great grandma. It’s that’s how old people would go blind, right? Cataracts is when there’s something like blocking vision in the lens of the eye. That shouldn’t be something a 28 year old would deal with. Prednisone causes it. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #19

“Worst drug to wean from. Doctor never told me but I didn’t have any other viable options”.

Prednisone Warning Comment #20

“Weight gain and moon face both came true and several other complications such as damage to my tummy lining and lack of sleep”.

Yes, it can cause all of those things, including that gut lining. 

Prednisone Warning  Comment #21

“I was told nothing about the side effects of Prednisolone. I learned after being on them for asthma for a long time. I so far have developed adrenal insufficiently due to taking them and was borderline diabetic. I have my bones looked at now to check for osteoporosis. They are so far, okay. I’m aware they are good for what they treat, but there are many side effects to them. I do like to make other people aware of the things I didn’t know about them. If you can, an alternative is better, but if they are needed such as for an asthma flare but this can be brought under control in some cases with other medica medications so not as many courses of prednisolone are needed.”

That is fantastic advice when it comes to asthma because there are so many other options that prednisone should really be a drug of last resort. This person said Prednisolone, and that happens to be like almost the exact same thing as prednisone. It’s the drug often prescribed in England and other countries gained weight and bloated face was true.

Prednisone Warning Comment #22

“Gained weight and bloated face! Was true, I only had to take it for a while. Relatives didn’t even reognize me!”

You can still get moon face and gain weight even if you only take it for a short while.

Prednisone Warning Comment #23

“NONE and I got slammed like a bathroom door. Gained 15 pounds, bloated like a dead cow, gut health went down the s*****r (oh the pain!), hair is dry and brittle on and on.”

It can affect all of those things. What’s so funny is prednisone is prescribed for gut issues too, for people with Crohn’s disease ulcer, ulcerative colitis, and hepatitis. 

It’s the prednisone paradox. Prednisone can cause the side effects, and it can be prescribed to treat a condition that is a side effect for other people. 

Prednisone Warning Comment #24

“None. My doctor even said it was my own fault for putting on weight because of overeating”.

No way. It is not your own fault. Prednisone is causing the weight gain. It’s best if you can do whatever you can to prevent the weight gain, but it’s not your fault.

Prednisone Warning Comment #25

“Weakened bone density and yes it came true. Have bounced all around from as high as 50mg to 5mg, which I’m on now”.

This is the most comprehensive list from a person and I wanted to have this be like the height of this from my doctor. This is what she was warned of;

Prednisone Warning Comment #26

“From my doctor: Moon face – yes. Weight gain – yes. Osteoporosis – yes. Glaucoma – no. Insomnia – very bad at 60-30mg but better when I got down to 10mg. From own research: Depression – no. Anxiety – no. Facial hair – yes. Hair loss – yes. Irritability – minimal. Fatigue – yes (when I tapedred down to 20mg. Blotchy ski – at 10 mg every other day. Headaches – at 10mg every other day. High BP – no. High blood sugar – slightly elevated at times. Feels like I’m forgetting something…”

Forgetting something, which is a side effect of prednisone itself. Brain fog, right? That on its own dementia, like the full spectrum of dementia is a possibility when it comes to prednisone. That’s a great list that she came up with. 

Finally, I wanted to conclude with the advice of a prednisone warrior. And she said;

Prednisone Warning Comment #27

“I have learnt you have to be proactive in your own health as I have.. I have been prescribed medications blackboxed against each other.. Ended up with glaucoma requiring lasering to both eyes. Serotonin Syndrome. Have recently had genetic testing which takes into account medical conditions medications prescribed and your genetic markers. Based on genetic results advises best medications for you body called PGX generic testing by Sonic offered by S&N Parholody costs but worth it I think.”

But the most important thing is what she started with. I have learned you have to be proactive in your own health, and I completely agree with that. That’s why I created the prednisone checklist. And you can download it by signing up the form below.

It talks about my side effects and ways to prevent them, plus the top seven warnings that you need to know about prednisone. 

As promised at the beginning that I would share with you some ways to find out about prednisone warnings better. So there’s that prednisone checklist that has a top seven warnings people wish they’d known. Then there’s some things you can do that will get you the warnings you need. 

You know that annoying question they always ask you at the pharmacy?

“Do you have any questions for the pharmacist?”

They don’t do that just for the fun of it. They’re actually required by federal law to offer you to find out about your drug. They’re required to counsel about your medication.

You are entitled to this benefit by the federal government. It’s your opportunity to find out everything you need to know about the medication. Ask what warnings do you have about this drug, what drug interactions you should be aware of, and what supplements you shouldn’t take with your medication.

Ask any questions you have because that’s actually the pharmacist’s favorite part is talking, sharing the facts we’ve learned from six or more years of doctoral level training. It’s fun to actually share our knowledge instead of just clicking, sticking, and pouring the pills. So ask your pharmacist, and they would love to share it with you.

Bonus Prednisone Warning Comments

Do you have a Prednisone Warning you’d like to share? If so, sign up for the Prednisone Checklist above, reply to the email containing the checklist from Dr. Megan, and let me know what Prednisone Warning you’d like others to know!

Here’s the first one shared:

“Mainly warnings about osteoporosis.  Unfortunately, I was on prednisone for years, off and on, for another medical issue, through another health provider and was not warned at all about the long term effects of prednisone.  I now take vitamin D and Calcium.  But, because I started it so late in the treatment, I ended up with osteoporosis anyway.”