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why did you want to give up weeks 1 & 2?

I'm starting this weekend. . .
@Mish. I was so nauseous when I started but I persevered & continued with the Methotrexate. The nausea subsided as my body adjusted to the medication. Perhaps the first few weeks were the most challenging. I'm currently still on my once weekly dose in combo with Remicade every 8 weeks. Perhaps, I can recommend patience 😊 Things settled down for me.
 
Thank you.

Were you taking folic acid at the time? I keep seeing posts that it helps with nausea.
@Mish yes Folic Acid has been part of my daily routine since I started the medication regimen. The only day I don't take Folic Acid is the Methotrexate day.
 
So then i would suggest taking it every day, why stop? You cannot overdose on Folic Acid, your body doesn't absorb more than it needs.

Reading this thread has scared the bajeezus out of me! I'm going to start this weekend. I'll do it Friday night i think so that i'll hopefully be over the major side effects (should i get them) by Monday.

I see lots of people complaining about side effects that seem like they would be relieved by MMJ. I take MMJ every day. Does anyone know if it will help with nausea and / or headaches?

In easy read; omitting the folic acid dose on the day you take your metho is to prevent the methotrexate from being less effective. Taking the folic acid the rest of the week helps ease side effects such as gastro issues and prevent liver toxicity.

In my experience it has helped. I skip the folic acid on Thursday's, as I take my mentho injection that evening and resume my folic acid intake the next day, continuing to Wednesdays.
 
Also, I switched back to the 25mg injections of methotrexate as the pill form made me terribly nauseated and my abdomen hurt for days. I don't experience nausea on the injection.
And an update, after seeing my gi specialist, I began Humira today in combination with the mtx. Hoping this combo does what everything else has failed to do.
 
Hows your hair been Dana? We seem to have the same hair type / length.
I take my folic acid each nite. I was going to take my injection tonight so the worst of the side effects would hopefully be gone by monday. So i'll skip tonights Folic acid.

Are we not allowed to mention MMJ in this group? I'm very surprised no one has mentioned it for nausea or stomach pain.
 
I am so nervous to start this! I actually tear up thinking about it and I've been through a lot of drugs over the past 20 years. I think the packaging with a big orange "CHEMOTHERAPY DRUG" kind of freaked me out.

When do most people start to experience the side effects? When should i expect the nausea to hit, if it is going to? Will my hair start thinning right away? I think i may buy the shampoo mentioned in a previous post - it was only $40 for the shampoo & conditioner on amazon.
 
Hi Mish. I haven't had any bad hair issues...I feel like my hair is better because of the folic acid. If anything, I'm just too tired to do much with my hair lol

The side effects are quite individual so I can only share on my experience. I rarely get nausea from the mtx Injections. The pill form definitely did give me bad nausea. I inject in the evening to minimize some side effects. But I do experience what's referred to as a "Methotrexate Hangover" the next day. Basically I feel achy, tired....fluish, really. Sometimes my bathroom frequency increases. I find drinking lots of water helps though..and lots of rest. Sipping gingerale. Tylenol takes a bit of the edge off, though I do have prescription pain killers for my RA pain if I need it. I run fevers as well and honestly, that's the most annoying part for me because the fever just makes me feel even crappier. But I run a fever every day so it's not just a post injection thing.
I know the whole "chemotherapy" part is scary but keep in mind our dosage is a low dose being no where near as high as is given for cancer treatment. Took me a few months to get past that feeling though.
If you do experience nausea, ask for an anti-nauseant. I take Maxeran when needed. Or use your MMJ if you find that helps. I can't do it because I develop paranoia most times and trip out lol
 
Thank you, your post made me feel better. I'll keep tyelonol at my bedside for when i wake up to stop the fluish feeling as soon as i can. I do take a lomotil at night so hopefully that will stave off the diarrhea.
 
I'm glad I read this thread before I start giving myself the injection at home without the watchful eye of the nurses. I'm on week 3 of it now. Feel totally whacked tired. xx
 
I had to stop. my exhaustion was so bad i ended up in the hospital and all tests came back negative.

I was so exhausted that bending over to pick up a sock left me out of breath. And that was the day i was supposed to take the injection.

It was working on my fistulas but the debilitating exhaustion was nothing i could live with. I am not a complainer by nature and i tend to work through my exhaustion that i've had in the past with this DD and its medications but this was on a whole new level.

I have my appointment today. I"m going to ask 1) if we try a new drug to go on a half dose for a while first. 2) a consult with a fistula specialist. I go to a very large city so i'm sure they have specialists.
 
I'm glad I read this thread before I start giving myself the injection at home without the watchful eye of the nurses. I'm on week 3 of it now. Feel totally whacked tired. xx

How about now? my exhaustion got too much to handle after only 1 month.
 
Not sure when I last updated but here's what's been going on with me and MTX:

-I was on 15mg of MTX via injection, had nausea that got worse as time went on
-After about 6 months I got pulled off it due to high liver enzyme levels (ALT:150)
-Was off MTX for a month with increasingly bad symptoms. Asked to go back on due to symptoms and switch to the oral version in an attempt to resolve nausea
-My doctor agreed but at a lower dose (10mg)
-Been on 10mg for 2 months now, symptoms are better than they were off it but not quite as good as the 15mg (though I have never felt as well as I did on Imuran, even on the higher dose of MTX) Nausea has lessened greatly though I am now having day after MTX fatigue which is frustrating.

-Currently: my doc is still not happy with my level of symptom control and wishes me to switch biologics (currently on Remicade, he wants Stelara).
 

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