Polymyositis...

Hello! I have been getting lots of questions lately about my disease (polymyositis) and what exactly it is, SOOOO, I decided what better way to explain then to post it here! I am going to copy and paste some information from the website www.myositis.org.
Polymyositis is an inflammatory myopathy. These diseases cause swelling and loss of muscle. They are also called idiopathic inflammatory myopathies. “Idiopathic” means the causes are unknown. Inflammatory myopathies are thought to be autoimmune diseases, meaning the body's immune system, which normally fights infections and viruses, is misdirected and attacks the body's own normal, healthy tissue through inflammation, or swelling. All of these diseases can cause muscle weakness, but each type is different.
Signs and symptoms:
Muscle weakness, sometimes with muscle pain
General tiredness and fatigue
Trouble climbing stairs, standing from a seated position, or reaching up
Difficulty swallowing
Is there a cure?
A review of many dermatomyositis and polymyositis cases found that 20% of the patients recover completely, although we don’t say they are “cured.” These patients will never have another active period, or flare. Often doctors will say that people are “in remission” when there is no sign of disease activity. Others will have flares for a long time before the disease is controlled, and some will have periodic flares all their lives. These outcomes depend in part on the speed of diagnosis and treatment. Patients diagnosed with polymyositis who don’t respond to treatment should ask to be tested for inclusion-body myositis.
First of all, let me just say....I PRAY THAT I WILL FALL IN THAT 20%!! Anyway, I think that should just about do it! I hope that helps for those of you who are curious! I feel extremely blessed to have reacted so well to the prednisone so quickly. I don't think those results are typical based on what I have read about others on the forum found on the website above. I also pray that I don't have to go on any other meds and that they are going to be able to wean me off of the prednisone with no problems! Time will tell!
Until next time........