Shar
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                        
                        
                        Hi Ida,       Thanks for posting, Ida!  My rheumatologist decided that I should stay at 7.5 mg of Prednisone for now, until at least December.  I have not been completely pain free, so he said it's best to stay on the dose I'm on now, and that it is a perfectly acceptable level as fas as side effects go.  Last spring, when the Prednisone was tapered to 5 mg, I had a terrible relapse, and it took a month for me to bounce back at the higher dose of the Prednisone.  It will be a year in November, since I came down with PMR, and a year in January that I have been on Prednisone.  The only real side effect I've had is some weight gain (7 pounds).  I guess I can't complain.  It could be a lot worse!         How are you doing?  It's great that you could taper to 6 mg.  I hope I can get my dose down at least in December, but I'll have to wait and see.  I have some pain and stiffness in my upper arms presently, so it seems that I won't be able to taper the steroid for some time. Is that where you have your pain?  How is your energy?  I have more of that, since I dropped the Vioxx over a month ago.  I think it was adding to my fatigue.  Are you taking anything other than Prednisone for your PMR?      Thanks for sharing, Ida!  I look forward to hearing from you!  I hope you feel better with each day!  Shar