New here...hi all.
In Oct. 2005 I was diagnosed with severe progressive RA, active lupus and Sjogrens Syndrome. My RA factor was 4448, my sed rate was 112. I will begin taking methotrexate on sunday and it kind of has me freaked out. I've done a lot of research on it and I don't "hear" good things. Has anyone had good experiences with this medication?
Excellent medication. I have been on it for 11 years. It's halted the progression of my disease. There's lots of bad press about it - and it's ridiculous because it works in so many cases. If you check out the website www.RAFriends.com you'll note that many members of the forum use MTX.
Give it a chance. Be sure to take the folic acid with it.
Good luck!
Lee
You have to remember or think about Methotrexate is a "chemo" and used primarily in very large doses for cancer. For RA we really have comparative small doses. It took about 1-1/2 years to get diagnosed with RA because I don't have a RH factor, the only thing that tested positive was the ESR or sed rate and it was very low.
As lee has been on it for 11 years please listen to her. It is a good medicine for us. It literally saved my life, my job. It enabled me to continue working.
Some do have a hard time with it, and can't continue, but this will show up in your blood tests, before it becomes a health problem. I really understand your fear because I was there too, But I really believe I would be in a wheelchair today without it.
I wish the best recovery and all for you. Hope you get the right meds .
Like Mary said; not everyone can tolerate it, but those that can are very lucky. It has made a huge difference for me.
Good Luck; and Welcome to AI.
Thank you all for your responses. You have greatly eased my mind. I to in october 05.Was diagnosed with RA.My factor was 180 and thought that was high.Like you was very worried about mxt.since reading message boards of other users felt so much better.I started on 3mxt then xmas came went very stiffGlad to hear you're doing well....Hope it continues.
Again, thank you all. I will take my first dose of mtx tomorrow and I will let you all how it goes. My Rhuemy has prescribed only 10mgs. He says this is a low dose and if I don't react adversly (meaning elevated liver function) then he's goin to increase it.
Smurfette, I too was on 30mgs of prednisone. I swear it worked wonders, I could barely move prior to taking to it. Now my dose is being tapered off, I'm down to only 5mgs daily. Some of the pain has returned but it is not nearly as bad. How long is your Dr. going to have you take 30mgs? If it is going to be for a while, ask him/her about taking Calcium and Vit. D
God Bless you all!
Hey, I was a huge smurf fan, too!
I can't speak to Pred because I have never been on it. For me the MTX was started early enough to halt the progression without having to use meds other than NSAIDS [currently using Mobic, which is so-so right now]. I don't have the option of using one of the anti-TNF drugs [Enbrel, Remicade.....] so I'm counting on the MTX to work for a long time - or at least until something different comes out that I can take.
But I'm glad you're giving it a shot. The conservative starting dose is good.
Even after 11 years of it, I still find that I'll be lethargic about 24-48 hours after I take the MTX. I have since learned to plan for one day a week when my energy level will be lower than usual. By accepting it and working around it I never have a problem. On the other hand, some people don't even feel any temporary energy loss.
Again - good luck.
I take my on Saturday night along with my Humira. Sunday's have just been my day of rest for the past few years. At times it's worse than others.....but I've never planned much on Sundays so I can rest all I need to on that day.
I personally think it's a good thing. We all tend to over do it and need one day a week where we relax and take care of ourselves. It kind of forces us to do that. I actually look forward to "My lazy day".
I've been taking MTX for about 14 years. I too was very scared to take the MTX because of things that I had read. It took a huge scare for me to finally give it a try(I ended up not being able to move at all...ambulance had to be called and to take me to the ER...long story and a very scary time for me) After 80 mg of prednisone I was feeling better and didn't want to end up that way again so I took the MTX. Best thing I ever did. Of course it has had to be increased over the years along with adding other meds to it, but it's been a very good drug for me without any bad side effects. Hope it works well for you too. Good Luck!
Kelly