What Causes Troubled Sleep And Anxiety After Taking Methylprednisolone?

Posted on Sat, 15 Feb 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sat, 15 Feb 2014 Answered on

Fri, 7 Mar 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : Hello. On Thursday I received 80mg methylprednisolone (total dose in 3 nerve blocks at the base of my skull and neck). Yesterday I had trouble sleeping and today I feel jittery and have had several anxiety attacks. Is this a normal side effect? It's the weekend and nobody is answering the phone at my dr.'s office. How long does this last?

Answered by Dr. Pavan Kumar Gupta (2 hours later)

Brief answer....given below Detailed answer.... I read your query and understand your problem very well. Although uncommon,but trouble sleeping and anxiety attacks are possible with methylprednisolone. Since half life of methyl prednisolone is long,the peak effect of this drug may take 4-8 days and the drug may last in your system for 4 weeks. Considering the situation you are in,I would strongly advise you to go to ER and take a proper treatment. My advise to you would be to stay calm and don't worry as a proper anti anxiety medicine shall take care of your symptoms very fast. I hope it helps,however you may revert to me for any further query. Best of luck Thanks

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar