How to prevent or quickly end a flare?

when mine is bad enough to need pain meds beyond ibuprofen, I take a 2-3 day course of low dose prednisone. 20 mg for 2 days, 10 mg for 2 days and then 5 mg.

Hi, !

While there is no fool proof way to prevent or end a flare quickly, there may be ways to avoid many flares and to shorten an existing flare. So, one way to potentially head off a flare is to know your triggers and avoid them, when possible. So, some folks find stress to be a major trigger and while it can be hard to avoid all stress, knowing those triggers is a good start. So, knowing your triggers, whether it's weather changes, temperature extremes, certain foods, illness, etc, can help avoid a full fledged flare.

As far as shortening a flare? Well, talking to your doctor once you suspect you are in a flare is a good place to start. Prednisone can be a good short term solution to cut down on inflammation and pain. Also, doing your best to reduce stress and practice self care can help your body focus on calming down and hopefully, bringing an end to the flare.

So, knowing your body's cues and doing what you can to be as healthy as possible (you know the whole advice -- eat healthy, exercise a bit each day, take care of your mental health, etc) is a good way to potentially limit your flare ups. That said, you may never be able to avoid all flares, so be kind to yourself if you do continue to flare.

Best, Erin, Team Member.

Hi . On top of the excellent information from Erin, I want to share with you this article from our contributor Kat on her flare action plan: https://rheumatoidarthritis.net/living/flare-action-plan. I can also tell you that my wife, Kelly Mack (a contributor here), has a plan with her rheumatologist which includes an emergency prednisone prescription. On top of that what Kelly does is listen to her body and take the rest it demands. I know that sounds simplistic, but often time and rest are the best treatments. Best, Richard (Team Member)