Newbie

[ooandreeaoo]

Hello everyone, I am new to this forum!

Brief history, dx with Crohn's in 2000 and have taken a myriad of medications over the years. Had a bowel resection in May 2009 and since the surgery I have maintained remission on 6mp. My dose was recently just upped from 50mg to 100mg and I haven't been feeling too good. Been feeling really nauseous and dizzy at times and very fatigued. I didn't feel like this on the 50mg. Is this a normal reaction to moving up to the 100mg and any word on how long I can expect this to last? I have thought of splitting the dosage, taking one pill in the morning and one at night, to see if this helps with the side effects.

Thanks for listening and for any advice you may have!

PS How do I create a signature? I have be bopped around the User PC area and for the life of me I cannot figure it out! lol!

 

[SarahAnne]

Any reason that your GI upped your dose of 6MP that much if you were already in remission? It seems a bit high, but I haven't been on 6MP in years. I was never on more than 50mg and I seem to remember the only side effects I had were headache and fatigue, although I know that nausea is one. I just never had it, maybe it comes with the higher doses. I would definitely ask your doctor because I know 6MP is one of those drugs that they really have to watch your liver, I remember getting bloodwork often.

As for the signature, go to User CP; on the left side should be some options, one will say Edit Signature. I'm not very computer savvy; it took me some playing around to get that and pics up. Good luck!

 

[xJillx]

Welcome to the forum! I am also curious as to why your 6MP was upped if you were in remission. Were you starting to feel symptomatic again, hence the increase? If not, I am unsure why your doctor moved you up to 100mg, and question if it is necessary, especially with the side effects. Regardless, you should contact your doctor to inform him that you have been feeling nauseous and dizzy.

 

[David]

Greetings and welcome! As mentioned regarding your signature, go to the usercp (linked at the top of the forum) and then look at the left. But if you don't want to search for that right now, just go here: http://www.crohnsforum.com/profile.php?do=editsignature

It's great to have you on the forum. See you around

 

[ooandreeaoo]

The increase was due to the weight that I have gained since my surgery. He says they like to optimize dosing based on a person's body weight.

I emailed him today and he isn't convinced the symptoms are 100% caused by the increase. He suggested dropping down to 75mg for a week and if the symptoms resolve, then go back up to 100mg again and see what happens.

Thanks for the advice! And thank you for the help with the signature! I haven't been on a Crohn's forum in about six years, back when I was at my most sick. This forum seems really informative!

 

[ooandreeaoo]

And I guess since I didn't really post "my story" I should do so!

I have had digestive problems pretty much all my of life, but it wasn't until I was about 20 that they started to get pretty awful, abdominal pain after eating, weird bowel movements (one day constipated and another day many trips to the toilet with bloody and/or loose stool). The first GI doctor I saw diagnosed me with acid reflux and said I had many, many gallstones, so I started taking some acid reducers/blockers and had my gallbladder removed. But I didn't get any better.

After a few months of not feeling any better I decided to switch to a new GI doctor and he is the one who DX me with Crohn's. I was 22 years old at the time. Most of the time it was under control, a few flares caused me to have to switch meds and add some steroids into the mix, but nothing major. Then I had my daughter.

Pregnancy was a breeze, felt amazing and Crohn's behaved. But afterward I had the worst flare of my life. Got it under control and things were great. Got pregnant again a few years later and after the birth of my son things just spiraled out of control.

Within a few months after his birth I was in nearly constant pain. I was bedridden most days, taking Vicodin, had to be taken to the ER a few times for severe vomiting and pain. A few CT scans were done and I was told that it appeared that the bowel walls were thickening in one spot and that there was a very narrow passage for stool to pass through. My GI prescribed Entocourt and started me on Remicaide. I was getting infusions every 6 weeks at first and then every 8 weeks for about a year and a half. But I was still having pain and vomiting. So I decided to go to the UCLA Digestive Disease Center.

And I am so glad I did! They discovered that my bowel wall hadn't just thickened, it had actually closed in on itself and I had a blockage. So they scheduled me for surgery. Once inside they removed 6 inches of bowel and they discovered that aside from the blockage, my intestines looked good. The Remicaide had put me in remission.

Since surgery I have been feeling great most of the time. At first I wasn't too good at taking the 6MP I was prescribed. After having been on an IV med for a while, it was hard to remember to take pills every day. But I have gotten better! And now, as you can see from my first post here, I am on 100mg of 6MP a day and have regular blood work which has always been good.

So that is my story, sorry I wrote so much! Thanks for welcoming me!