Systemic Steroid Taper

Each time you lower your steroid dose, you may experience severe fatigue, muscle and joint pain all over, low-grade fever, poor appetite, or low mood. This is often called "steroid withdrawal syndrome" — a rebound that occurs during the transition period while the adrenal glands are not yet fully awake. It usually eases with time, but if symptoms are severe or worsening rapidly, the taper speed or adrenal function may need to be reassessed, so you should always discuss this with your prescribing doctor. Never raise the dose again or stop on your own judgment.

Our Korean Medicine Clinic's Perspective

In Korean medicine, these tapering symptoms are seen as a state where "the borrowed strength fades and the body's true baseline is exposed." At Dongjedang, assuming you continue to follow the doctor-set taper schedule, we work to replenish sagging energy and address the aches and stiffness so the tapering process becomes easier to bear.