Guest guest Posted December 14, 2000 Report Share Posted December 14, 2000 Good Morning Everyone, Last week I received my first 15mg of MTX by injection. I had a strange reaction where all the arthritic joints (elbows, knuckles, knees, ankles) swelled, reddened, got warm and sore. That only lasted for a few days. Yesterday I received the 2nd injection. When I told the Rheumy about my reaction she said a very small number of people will react that way--so at least I'm not alone. She suggested I immediately take some Robitussin DM. And I believe it worked. It's the 'D' in that medicine that is important. I would like to tell you what the D stands for but the bottle is upstairs and I've been seeing those stairs as a real obstacle for a couple of days now. I also have some disk problems in my back right now and am having some trouble distinguishing one pain from another although I think most of my problems at the moment relate to the back. My husband has been encouraging chiropractic but I have been reluctant. However I have been sick enough long enough now that I may change my mind. Anyway--I came in to let you know about the wierd reaction to the MTX and how to prevent it. I hope all of you are well today, Jeanne in Idaho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 14, 2000 Report Share Posted December 14, 2000 hi jeanne ro here i just read about your reactions to mtx. has it helped at all with the pain yet? i have been on mtx orally 7.5mg a week since sept and have had no results. only coldsores around my mouth!. i also take vioxx which helps some. tuesday i reluctantly began enbrel injections 2xs a week my first was wednesday night. it made me real tired and wed. i was a bit nauesous. but today i feel better and i feel considerable pain relief. so i am hopeful. but the psoriasis is still kickin my a-s! well enought for now later ro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 14, 2000 Report Share Posted December 14, 2000 Jeanne, Listen to your husband and find yourself a good chiropractor. Mine has done wonders for my neck and my wrist. He also works on the pinky which has the PA to keep it moving and get some good blood flow to it. My chiropractor has helped me stay well. You may want to reconsider and go to one. Try to get one, however, that someone you know has gone to and was successful with. I also did acupunture for the pain and it elimianted about 80% of the pain from PA. Good luck and stay well. Edie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 22, 2005 Report Share Posted January 22, 2005 Sierra: My doctor told me that I shouldn't take folic acid the day that I take the methotrexate. There's some indication that it may blunt the effectiveness of the meth. You might want to talk to your doctor about that. gloria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 22, 2005 Report Share Posted January 22, 2005 > Sierra: > > My doctor told me that I shouldn't take folic acid the day that I take the methotrexate. There's some indication that it may blunt the effectiveness of the meth. You might want to talk to your doctor about that. > > gloria Thanks for the suggestion. Doctors do have differing opinions based on the research they've seen or the experiences they've had in the practice of medicine. I trust my doc--she teaches rheumatology at our state university's medical school and seems up on the latest research. She recommends folic acid every day. Sierra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 22, 2005 Report Share Posted January 22, 2005 What I have heard is that it does indeed slightly reduce the effectiveness of the Methotrexate but it also has a strong effect on the side effects, especially when Methotrexate is taken orally. Doctors prescribe an amount of Methotrexate that accounts for the effect of the prescribed amount of Folic Acid. God bless. ----- Original Message ----- From: gloriarex@... Rheumatoid Arthritis Sent: Saturday, January 22, 2005 9:37 AM Subject: Re: MTX reaction Sierra:My doctor told me that I shouldn't take folic acid the day that I take the methotrexate. There's some indication that it may blunt the effectiveness of the meth. You might want to talk to your doctor about that.gloria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 22, 2005 Report Share Posted January 22, 2005 Doctors seem to differ greatly on how soon biologics are offered and I think a lot of it is based on what they think insurance will cover. Many insurances apparently require a patient to have tried one or more DMARDs and had them fail befoe they will pay for a biologic. My doctor started with Arava for about 3 months and then added Methotrexate. I took myself off Arava and about 3 months later we added Remicade. The dose was gradually increased to 6 mg/kg and at that level I finally got relief and was able to get completely off Prednisone. People react differently but that is my experience. God bless. ----- Original Message ----- From: snowdrift52003 Rheumatoid Arthritis Sent: Saturday, January 22, 2005 7:34 AM Subject: MTX reaction Hi, and thanks for the responses about the varying MTX reaction. I'm fortunate in that I don't have any nausea from the med.--my problem is intense fatigue and a very scary image in the mirror on the day after! Glassy eyes, sick-looking, ruddy face, dull expression. In the afternoon, I HAVE to sleep.I have increased the folic acid, but it hasn't helped the "day after".I don't want to divide the dose becasue I like the idea of taking it at night and sleeping through any initial side effects. Also, I don't want to take the risk of extending the time that I'm not quite myself...I hate not being able to think clearly. I do a lot of writing in my job.I took 7 tabs last week and 8 this week. I think 8 may be too much; I felt a little better on the 7.Lately I've been thinking of the biological meds and wondering if/when the time will come to try that class of drug. I believe I have to "fail" on MTX first, and I don't think that's happening.Sierra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 27, 2005 Report Share Posted January 27, 2005 I've been taking MTX since the first of november. At first I felt very " out of it " for 24 hours, but every week it got better, and now I don't have any noticeable side effects at all. I only take 5 pills per week. I take 1mg folic acid every day, except I take 2mg the day before my MTX and no folic acid the day I take the MTX. I have had no mouth sores (the primary reason for the folic acid). The Dr says he might increast my MTX to see if he can get rid of the remaining stiffness in my right hand. It isn't really painful, just stiff and uncomfortable if I make a fist or grasp something tightly. He said I could reduce the naproxen, but when I did, I had a lot of pain in my shoulder. It was originally diagnosed as rotator cuff tendonitis, but now they think it is a torn rotator cuff. I will probably have to have surgery on it sometime. In the meantime I still take 1000 mg naproxen a day. My joints don't need the naproxen any more, but that shoulder sure does! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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