Been taking Methotrexate for about six years now. Once a week every friday. I spend the next three days feeling like I have been posioned, nosie, motion and food smells make me sick after the medication. OH and I am freezing after I take it.
My physician says to keep taking it.
WHY????
Just because the medication has worked well for a long time, doesn't mean that it will continue to work. How often have you experience this reaction? what is the likelihood that it is a coincidence? if you have experienced this reaction several times, every time you take methotrexate, it may be that your body no longer can tolerate it and you need to speak to you rheumatologist about other treatment options. I recently wrote a post about self-advocacy that may help you in having that conversation. If your doctor continues to dismiss your concerns, consider getting a second opinion.
I couldn't take Methotrexate, it sucked the life out of me. I stopped it and started doing Enbrel injections (3 months ago) and I feel like my old self again. I hope you find something that doesn't make you sick.
I have had Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis for 6 years, and have been taking mthotexate for the entire time. I, like you, take methotrexate, and i have had no problems with it. i would maybe recomend you think about any of the other medications that you might be taking for treating other things, or even ones you take that help treat your arthritis, and read up on those, because it might be that your doctor has missed read one of the other meds that you are taking and read the little inscriptions yourself to see if there are harmful effects by taking both the methotrexate and which ever medicine you are reading together. Then if there is one that states that there are effects, be sure to contact your doctor with your discovery asap. hope this helps :)
I took meth for 3 years feeling drained all the time and never understood that it was doing it tome. My hair started falling out a year ago so my dr. took me off it and I have never felt better. I have more energy, no more stomach pains and none of the feeling like I just can't. It is your choice what you put into your body not your drs. If you feel like meth is making you feel bad then ask to stop taking it for trial period. I stopped it for 4 months before I needed something else to take its place. I did my research and chose arava and its fabouless. But it was my choice because it is my desease and my insurance that pays the bills. Same goes for you. Your body is tellling you that there is something wrong and it needs to be fixed. Its ok to be proactive.
I been on Metho for a little over a month now, and at first i was experiancing some werid side effects too. luckly you were freezing, i was getting really bad hot flashes, felt like i was going threw meno pause at the age of 21. Any who, My rheumatologist suggest folic acid once a day. So i take my metho pills (6) every saturday. plus 2 prednizon(sp?) pills a day and the folic acid, plus other vitimans with calcium and vit d. the vitimans really help, perhaps the doc can suggest some thing for yah? esp. ask about the folic acid!
hope it helps, keep us posted:
kim
I started on 10mg a week and over 5 years moved up to 17.5 (are you taking a lot more?) - once I had gotton used to it I had no side effects.
I also took 2mg prendisilone in the morning, plaquenil morning and night and celebrex and neurontin at night. I hated taking so many pills but the benefits for me far out weighed my fear of taking them. I lived a completely normal (almost!) life and could do whatever I wanted.
It doesnt sound right that you feel so ill when you take it - not after so long. A friend of mine couldnt tolerate it and was put on enbrel. Can you be referred to another consultant for a second opinion?
Hello Kim,
Sorry it took so long to get back with you I am not on this site as often as I need to be.
I was DX at the age of 21. It all started with disc removal in my lumbar spine. I am now 38.
Not a great deal has changed. I still have all the minor problems. Skin rashes that started when I was ten. joints swelling, and very painful. Oh and my skin on my face even swells a bit (I also have TMJ)
And many other things. No one doctor wants to treat everythign. oH did you know RA hits the eyes also. I have steroid eye drops I have to do also. (yuck)
So you seem to have something helpful.... do you take the vit. everyday or just the days you take the metho.?
Yeah I take the vit. every day. Its basicaly to replenish my body. cause all them meds actually can strip thsoe vits. outta your body. esp. vit. D and calcium.
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I started on 10mg of methotrexate as well. But within the first month my doctor had to up it to 15mg. I think my body is slowly starting to get use to it, and with the folic acid and other vitimans. Im not getting as many of the werid side effects. I hear of alot of people being on plaquenil, my doctor has no spoken of that to me. But my Ra is pregressing quick he said so now i have to go on the biologic meds. And he is leaving it up to me to choose. humaria, enbreal, or remicade are my choices. Im to actually let him know by tomorrow, but i really am having trouble deciding if i want to self inject myself or or go threw with the infusions(IV). I deff hear yah about taking the pills, I dont like it either. but much like you said... the benifits weigh it out. So within the next two weeks every saturday i'll be taking 6 (15mg) mexthotrelate, every day a folic acid pill (mg), ED @ prednison in the am, one in the pm. Plus vitiams threw out the day. I feel like a druggy. I dont think there is any thing at all with going to get another opinion. I really think you should. It took me a bunch of doctors to find out that i had RA to begin with. If i would have just settled for what the piodiatrist said then i would be compeltly sol right now. I knew some thing more was wrong and went serching for answers. You gotta do that for your doctor as well. gotta search for the right one. Best of luck for you! btw what is your age now? when were you diagnosed?
Kim