Adrenal Insufficiency Support Group

Cross your fingers! I have gotten continually worse the past couple of days. I have slept 16 hours a day, and my GI problems started back with a vengence. It took me twenty minutes earlier to "talk myself into" getting up to go pee, because my legs felt like 100 pound weights were attached to them, and I was just SO tired.

I decided to take an additional 2.5mg prednisone this afternoon...I have doc's appointments tomorrow, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and if I have any hope of getting through the week, I will have to do something. I'm hoping the endo sees this as a good thing. I went back and reviewed the symptoms he gave me that are "concerns", and I have most of them still. The bp problem is better, but that's it. Otherwise I'm the same or maybe a little worse.

I plan to bring up the following things with him - if anyone can add anything, I would appreciate it...

•Pre-stress dosing? Exercise, travel, holidays, etc.

•How to get additional meds for these needs

•Up my dose or divide it - crash after a few hours (still healing/e.g./GI problems back?)

•Flu shots?

•Take calcium and vitamin D? Osteoporosis runs in the family.

•Join the gym? Start with yoga or something milder? Or cardio? (At this point this isn't possible, but maybe soon?)

•Practice injections? my stepmom suggested asking for b-12 shots for a couple of months, this way I can practice once at his office, then use them at home to let my husband do one, plus hopefully this would help with my fatigue

•Need a letter of instruction from Dr.to put in my shot bag instructing EMS how/when to deliver

I'd suggest you impress your doctor with knowledge! Say that you have been reading papers from various endo societies (rather than just talking to us lot) and note the following;

- Finding the right dose is not just weight or BSA dependent. Everyone is a little different and finding the right number takes some trial and error

- Say that you want to experiment with stress dosing and matching the diurnal curve better. Ask for the smallest dose size he can give you.

- Mention that you have seen some method differences between endo's (in papers) and want to find out more. Get your dr to expound on the theories out there.

- Say that you are aware that takings steroids can mask symptoms and make things worse. ie you could dose to remove all pain from a cold but in reality you should "feel" sick to get better. This statement gives you credibility to not OD!

- Dont rule out that something is causing a adrenocortical "drain". I have a bad chest cold back that has put me into double dosing.

Good luck!

Bob