Thanks, Stoney.....my daughter had told their doctor about me and she said, too, as long as I had the flu shot 6 weeks ago, I should be okay. Do PsA symptoms typically flare up when a shot is delayed for a few days, or don't I need to worry about that happening?
Stoney said:
You shouldn't have to keep your distance at all. I always make sure to get my flu shot a few weeks before my kids. My son usually gets flumist, so this way I'm covered already.
I hope you feel better soon.
Grandma J said:
Lucky me. I feel like I'm coming down with another cold--this time a head cold. Everyone, well I shouldn't say everyone, but a few people close to me have had back-to-back colds, too. And I can't avoid these people. Another thing, my one granddaughter chickened out of the flu shot and got flu nasal mist instead. I wonder how long I should keep my distance from her? The doctor told my daughter I shouldn't need to worry because I had my shot 6 weeks ago, so I'm immune. But so many sick people everywhere! I think I'll just hibernate for the winter.
A few days shouldn't cause a problem. I did have a flare after I had trigger thumb surgery. I had missed 2 shots (3 weeks in between). But there was not an immediate issue. And remember, I had the added stressor of having had minor surgery on top of missing a few weeks of Enbrel.
Grandma J said:
Thanks, Stoney.....my daughter had told their doctor about me and she said, too, as long as I had the flu shot 6 weeks ago, I should be okay. Do PsA symptoms typically flare up when a shot is delayed for a few days, or don't I need to worry about that happening?
Okay, just got online message from my doctor that if my cough is dry, she would like to prescribe a Medrol Dosepak--whatever that is. My rheumy also answered me online and said to stop the Enbrel and do what my internist is suggesting. So.....ugh, I hate taking pills. I hope there are no SEs and it doesn't conflict with my PsA.
Stoney said:
A few days shouldn't cause a problem. I did have a flare after I had trigger thumb surgery. I had missed 2 shots (3 weeks in between). But there was not an immediate issue. And remember, I had the added stressor of having had minor surgery on top of missing a few weeks of Enbrel.
Grandma J said:
Thanks, Stoney.....my daughter had told their doctor about me and she said, too, as long as I had the flu shot 6 weeks ago, I should be okay. Do PsA symptoms typically flare up when a shot is delayed for a few days, or don't I need to worry about that happening?
Medrol Dosepak??? Medrol is prednisolone a s more active version of prednisone. Wow you have docs who are in tune. You will feel GREAAAAAAT Although you may have a bit of P flare. i will kill the cough and get your PsA under control. i had to hold a gun to both my docs heads last time I wanted one.
I've been on a low-dose prednisone taper for a flare, and it almost completely got rid of my shortness of breath along with a lot of the arthritis symptoms. I'm still not feeling at the top of my game, but I already was flaring and then had to stop MTX abruptly for 2 weeks and put the Humira off a few days because of an infection, so that makes sense. I hope you get back on your Enbrel soon, and that you respond well to the steroid treatment. Tntlamb is right- you will feel great, but sometimes it can be too great in high doses- get yourself to a doctor if things get weird mood-wise- like if you can't sleep, are painting the house in the rain, or start thinking you're Jesus. Steroids can cause strange mental states, but you can catch it early if that does start to happen. Better to be safe and call the doctor, than be psychotic and be forced to see one. :)
Okay, okay, okay. I'm glad you guys responded. I'm not so sure I want to take anything close to prednisone. Not after hearing horror stories of how bad it is for ones body. My husband has a cough that sounds pretty much the same as my cough. No fever. He went to the doctor today and an x-ray showed he has pneumonia in one lung. I am just not a person to run to the doctor for a cough--even if it's frequent and annoying and.... but now IDK. And, my doctor wants to quiet down the cough with the Medrol Dosepak, but I didn't even go in and have a chest x-ray yet. Rosen, I had prednisone a couple times along the way and it makes me feel on top of the world. I loved that, but knowing how bad it is for me, I don't want to take it. And, then tntlamb tells me I could have a bit of a P flare. uh uh---I'm so glad my psoriasis is almost gone I wouldn't do that to myself. So........did I say ugh yet? Okay, so.....ugh.
Here's the thing about prednisone. Looking back, I'm wondering if the few times I took tapering prednisone if that could have triggered my PsA to gradually get worse. Because when I think back to winter of 2012 (I think it was December), I had some prednisone. Felt WOW-FANTASTIC--for a little while--I can't remember how long, but it wasn't too long because just a few months afterwards I was feeling really sick. I held off for almost a year and then started begging my docs for more prednisone, but that's when they refused to prescribe it, and I ultimately found you guys--my saviors! So, it scares me to take prednisone again for its short-term benefits because they are short-lived and could trigger something bad with my PsA.
If I wasn't on a biologic I wouldn't be a bit concerned about my cough. Until this evening I had no body aches that would make me think I do have something more serious than a cold. But my shoulders are starting to ache--that could be the illness getting worse, or it could be PsA symptoms because I'm 3 days overdue on my Enbrel shot. I'm sure I'm making a mountain out of a molehill.
I finally went to the doctor today (nurse practitioner) and in listening to my lungs very thoroughly she told me they sounded clear. She did a chest x-ray just to be sure, and called me later to tell me they looked clear on the x-ray also. I told her I didn't pick up the Medrol Dosepak. She said she likes to prescribe just 5 days 20mg once a day of prednisone instead. I told her how scared I am of prednisone and she tried really hard to convince me it wouldn't hurt me. But I don't trust the stuff. I'm relieved I don't have pneumonia, but I'm sure it's some sort of virus and it has to run its course, but I wish I could take my Enbrel now. I'm not sure what to do. My chest is really sore--that's most likely from coughing so much. But my elbows are starting to hurt and I feel really tired......unfortunately, virus symptoms can be so much like some PsA symptoms that it's confusing and makes me wonder, should I go ahead and take the shot or wait a few more days and hope this cough goes away first? If I get any replies, fine, if not, I can understand how sick of this discussion you guys must be!
I ended up taking the shot about 4 days behind schedule. Today I woke up very stiff and sore. That could be because of the delayed Enbrel, or that I worked my butt off for 3 days getting ready for our Friday Thanksgiving feast, or that I fell on an ice patch on my daughter's sidewalk last evening. It took about two hours of heat and icepacks to get limbered up this morning!
Still coughing, but I think it's slowly getting better. I haven't taken any of the meds prescribed, but just some OTC cough syrup a few times a day. I think next time I have a cold or something that isn't too major I'm not going to delay the Enbrel. I've read some people have remarked they only delay it if they have an elevated temperature. I didn't have a fever. Pretty sure what I have is probably bronchitis and that always takes awhile to get over, without any complications. I've never been too quick to take meds, and once assured it wasn't pneumonia, I realized it's just one of those nagging coughs that takes time to get over. I was just glad to feel good enough to get through the holiday and provide a nice feast for the family. My two married daughters were very helpful, and basically hosted the dinner and cleaned up afterwards. Sometimes they come in handy!
Sorry how I go back and forth with my thoughts....first I say I'm gonna delay Enbrel next time I get sick, then I say I'm not going to delay Enbrel. haha, you can see I'm a confused person!
I read on another discussion someone mentioned something like you don't catch things more while taking a biologic, but once you do catch something it's harder to get rid of. I definitely agree with that. I've been coughing for about 3 1/2 weeks now. Yesterday, the symptoms started going into my sinuses, but I blew my nose a lot and hopefully am keeping that from turning into a sinus infection. Today I'm coughing less. But, just a simple cold has been so annoying this past month, and caused me to worry it would turn into pneumonia because I'm on a biologic, which is something I would never have worried about before. That causes worrying about having to go off the biologic for a long period and psoriasis and PsA coming back.
I delayed Enbrel 3 1/2 days last week, so I'm delaying it again this week and holding off until the cold symptoms are competely gone before taking the shot again.
In the future I think I'll delay the Enbrel shot right away when I get sick. That does make more sense to me now that I've gone through my first time fighting off a virus while being on a biologic. Everybody's immune system is different, but I hope by sharing my experience helps others in deciding what to do when they get sick!
Such inconsistencies. I called Enliven regarding my cough last Thursday. I have a bad sounding cough but no fever and just started Enbrel again. So I called to see if I should postpone the needle and the Enbrel nurse said, “Not unless it is a severe infection” Fever over 100. And i took it too! not getting better, cough is actually worse and I spent the whole weekend lounging around (not too bad actually) but coughing fits every time I move.
I am very angry about the lack of consistency - this is serious stuff. I think I will call back, speak to someone about the different information being dealt.
Exactly--nobody seems to know what to do...there are two opinions from the medical community: stop the biologic right away even if it's a mild virus, or don't stop it unless you have a fever over 100. Now that I've had this experience I'm pretty sure I know how I'll handle it next time. The Accredo nurse had told me the biologic is strongest within the first couple of days after taking it. I had gone ahead and taken the shot as scheduled, which was a few days after my cold started. I might have gotten over the virus a lot quicker had I just delayed the shot right away. It's not really a big deal because I haven't been deathly ill or anything, it's just the annoyance of frequent coughing jags and all the wondering about whether to take Enbrel and how long this is going to last, etc., etc.
We’ll for me it is now pneumonia. Just spent the day in the ER. And the ER doctor didn’t know what to suggest regarding my shot and I HAVE pneumonia. She said call rheumy, who I see tomorrow if I can get there. Sheesh
Nic.Pat said:
Hello Grandma J,
Such inconsistencies. I called Enliven regarding my cough last Thursday. I have a bad sounding cough but no fever and just started Enbrel again. So I called to see if I should postpone the needle and the Enbrel nurse said, “Not unless it is a severe infection” Fever over 100. And i took it too! not getting better, cough is actually worse and I spent the whole weekend lounging around (not too bad actually) but coughing fits every time I move.
I am very angry about the lack of consistency - this is serious stuff. I think I will call back, speak to someone about the different information being dealt.
OMG I would say stop the Enbrel. I'm still delaying my shot again. Every time I go for a few hours without coughing I think it's going away, and then I'll start having coughing fits. For me, my chest feels tight and actually sore, and it keeps feeling like there's lump in my throat, but most of the time I just have this dry cough that's only productive in the early morning. So annoying. I hope your doctor gets you on the right antibiotic. Look out--my husband was supposed to take Levaquin for his pneumonia for 7 days. He quit after the 5th day (a few days ago) because he was so agitated and couldn't sleep. He said he felt really weird.
Anyway, geez, that's scary. I hope you get on an antibiotic and it cures the pneumonia right away. My husband, even though he didn't take his full course of the Levaquin, isn't coughing at all anymore. I think my doctor screwed up and should have given me an antibiotic cuz I think what I have is bronchitis. But, oh well, hopefully it'll just go away on its own. I'll put up with it for a few more days.