There's little to like about prednisone side effects

Kim Deal “kinda” likes prednisone and that makes my head reel.

Kim’s the lead singer of The Breeders, the alt-rock band from Boston known for quirky lyrics and tremendously abrasive sounds sandwiched between beautifully constructed melodies. “Cannonball” was the big American hit. From ’93's album Last Splash.

Deal, the ex-Pixie, says in an interview with Spinner magazine that she got a wicked case of poison ivy while gardening at her parent’s home and got a prescription of prednisone to treat it.

"I was working on the 'Fate to Fatal' song downstairs in the basement, and I was on Prednisone," says Deal. "And I was freaking out over this drug…"

"I was strung out on the Prednisone, man! It was crazy! That drug is nuts!" she says, half-jokingly. "Have you had it before? I kinda liked it. Whatever."

Doctors consider prednisone a wonder drug. The synthetic corticosteroid drug is particularly effective as an immunosuppressant, which is why doctors use it to treat serious inflammatory diseases, including sarcoidosis, and tumors.

Diseases and conditions treated with prednisone include autoimmune diseases like sarcoidosis, inflammatory diseases (including severe asthma, severe allergies, angioedema episodes, severe urushiol-induced contact dermatitis, systemic lupus erythematosus, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, Bell's palsy, Crohn's disease, pemphigus and sarcoidosis), uveitis, various kidney diseases including nephrotic syndrome, mononucleosis Epstein-Barr virus, and to prevent and treat rejection in organ transplantation.

Prednisone can also be used to treat migraine headaches and cluster headaches and for severe aphthous ulcer (cankersore) outbreaks. It can also be used to treat autoimmune pancreatitis.

It is also an anti-tumor drug. Prednisone used to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Non-Hodgkin lymphomas, Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and other tumors in combination with other anti-cancer drugs.

I take 50 mg of prednisone daily to treat pulmonary and cardiac sarcoidosis. I also take 10 mg of methotrexate each Tuesday. Both are relieving the inflammation in my lungs and heart caused by the disease.

Prednisone is doing the job, but…

Since I have been on this drug, I have had mood swings – I’ve even started crying at the end of movies! I last time I did that I was a kid and I cried at the end of The Yearling and Old Yeller. I was, like, 7! (I'm not that old! I saw both movies in '71).

Some days I feel manic; frenzied energy grips me and I can do anything. Some days I feel so depressed I don’t want to get out of bed.

Prednisone makes my blood pressure spike and I have to take the maximum amounts allowed of carvededilol, lisinopril and hydralazine to control it. I take folic acid to guard against possible cell damage that could be caused by prednisone and methotrexate.

Prednisone causes insomnia, which I try to take advantage of by writing or doing on-line research. I have been prescribed Zolpidem (Ambien) to counter that side effect.

I am so tired of pharmaceuticals.

Patients are advised against alcohol intake while on prednisone. It’s rough on the liver and the combination could cause problems, including cirrhosis.

Prednisone causes joint pain; weight gain and facial swelling (moon face!); increased blood sugar for diabetics; pronounced fatigue or weakness; mental confusion and indecisiveness; blurred vision; abdominal pain; peptic ulcer; infections; painful hips or shoulders; steroid-induced osteoporosis; long-term migraines; severe joint pain; cataracts; anxiety; black stool; stomach pain or bloating; severe swelling; mouth sores or dry mouth; and avascular necrosis.

There are other side effects, too. The preceding are the big ones. Doctors prescribe the drug because it works so well and then prescribe medicines to manage the side effects.

Deal’s an artist. She might like mania and depression. I can appreciate them, too, because they can be an artist’s greatest partner. I am a journalist by trade, but I am also a budding fiction writer and prednisone might be fueling one of the greatest creative spells I’ve ever had. My sample readers say the passages I am spinning are riveting.

However, I would be happy to trade getting off prednisone for a case of good-old-fashioned writer’s block.

At least writer’s block doesn’t make you lethargic, achy or prone to wanting to smash things like The Incredible Hulk, or to cry at the end of 50 First Dates. It’s an Adam Sander film for heaven’s sake!

Kim, good luck with the tour. Enjoy the prednisone side effects. I want off!