Becky
Hi Catherine, I'm writing in regard to prednison. My Husband has been on it most of the time the last four years and the Doctor has had him taking 1200 to 1800mgs. of calciun daily. In about the last 9-months he also started him on Fosamax tablets(5 mg.)1 tablet per day. This is to help him absorb as much of the calcium as possible. He was just checked for osteoporosis and he had lost less than 1 % during the last 4-years. Also the moods swings are pretty bad with the prednison so he also takes 150 mg. of St. Johns Wort each day. I hope this will be of some help to you. My husband has just in the last month been diagnosed with IPF and it is indeed very scary to think about what could be ahead. Hope your mother is doing okay and is not having too much trouble breathing I know that is so difficult because when they are having a hard time there's not much you can do to help them. Best of Luck. Becky