How long does it take steroids to work

I was diagnosed with ITP today and was put on steroids yesterday, (long story) anyway my platelets were lower today than yesterday although it was taken at 2 different labs too. They were 3000 whick I know is very low. Dr (hematologist)said that I am just bruising and not showing any signs of bleeding out so he sent me home with meds and told me to come back next week. How long does it take for the steroids to work needless to say I was really upset when I was told they were worse today than yesterday after 100mg of prednisone. I know it will take longer than a few hours but how long before if they are going to work should I see a difference? SHould i be bummed about today cause I would be lying if I said I am not scared do not understand this and am just needing to talk to someone that has been here.
Please respond just to make me feel better, I have huge axiety...

Everyone is different and what might take a few days for one might be a few weeks for another, i used to notice a difference about after a week, but i have had them that many times, it doesn't work as well for me anymore.

I wouldn't be bummed today because they were lower then yesterday, remember it is not that much of a wonder drug that it only takes a few hours to work, you need to be paitent and just wait it out. It is a scary time when you have only just been diagnosed and you don't know whats going on, but it is something you can live with even if you can't find a treatment that works well for you.

Your well within your right to be upset that you have been diagnosed with it, but say for example only be upset for 15mins a day and then get on with the rest of your day.

Some people respond well in a few days, some in a few weeks, and some people do not respond at all. If you are going to respond, I would bet that your counts would be in a safer range by tomorrow.

Please try to stay calm. Easier said than done, I know. I've had counts that low and survived...you will too. Just remember to breathe and try to keep things as normal as possible. You CAN deal with this.

Prednisone takes a couple of days to work so if that is the steroid you are using, don't expect to see a dramatic rise in platelets in one day. Dexamethasone works faster and you should see a change in platelet counts faster.

However, I have also discovered that that is always not the case I was on 80 mg of prednisone and my counts went from up from 146k to 164k on week and then down to 85k the next week and then back up again to 112k the next week - all on the same dose of the steroid.

Hope you see good results!

Pawee

It took about three weeks at 160mg per day for my platelet count to raise. I started at a count of 2000 and it took me three weeks to get to 10,000. After that my numbers went up quickly. It took 3 months of prednisone to get my number to a normal rate.

First they tried the immuno-globulen stuff but it didn't work at all for me. That's when they started the steroids. My doctor said I had a particularly tough case since it took so long for my counts to raise, but they did.

Don't get discouraged after only one day. My count would go up by 1000 one day and then drop by a 1000 the next day. It went on and on, but eventually it started to work. Best of luck to you!!