hello hope you are all having a good day and looking forward to easter! i have just been to see my rheumy(finally) and he's started me on methotrexate (15mg per week) but he didnt say whether i should continue taking plaquenil or not? i guess i should as he didnt say to stop...does anyone know of any reasons why i shouldnt take them both together or do any of you take them both? xxxxxx
mtx and plaquenil?
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Hello Mooks
Lots of people take them together and there is no reason why not to. That way you get the benefits of both
I hope the methotrexate proves really helpful in relieving your symptoms and gets you stable.
Didn't he suggest folic acid? It's almost universally taken to help reduce some side effects. Prescriptions vary in amount but it's usual to take every day except the day you take the metho. You should check the folic acid out with him if nothing was said.
Good Luck
Clare
Lots of people take them together and there is no reason why not to. That way you get the benefits of both
I hope the methotrexate proves really helpful in relieving your symptoms and gets you stable.
Didn't he suggest folic acid? It's almost universally taken to help reduce some side effects. Prescriptions vary in amount but it's usual to take every day except the day you take the metho. You should check the folic acid out with him if nothing was said.
Good Luck
Clare
hi clare thanks for your reply.that is reassuring to know. Yes he has given me folic acid but its just one tablet to be taken the day after i take the mtx. I really hope this works for me as am sick of being ill and still havent recovered from last summer yet and the next one will be here before we know it!! hope you are well love michele xxx
Mooks,
If you don't feel well after taking the Mtx then talk to your doc about increasing the folic acid. I take one mg. everyday, including the day I take my Mtx. I just recently bumped up to 2mg/day because after two years I started to get quisy feeling. Also, did you doc start you on 15mg.? That's a high dose to start out with. I worked my way up to 15mg. over a few weeks. The first few weeks I took 7.5mg/week and then 10mg/week and then 15.
And yes, I still took the Plaquenil for two years until I had to get off for other reasons. Good luck to you.
Sharon
If you don't feel well after taking the Mtx then talk to your doc about increasing the folic acid. I take one mg. everyday, including the day I take my Mtx. I just recently bumped up to 2mg/day because after two years I started to get quisy feeling. Also, did you doc start you on 15mg.? That's a high dose to start out with. I worked my way up to 15mg. over a few weeks. The first few weeks I took 7.5mg/week and then 10mg/week and then 15.
And yes, I still took the Plaquenil for two years until I had to get off for other reasons. Good luck to you.
Sharon
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Hi Mooks ...sweetie, I take both plaquenil and Mtx. at the same time and have since Dec.01/07. Please take more than 1 mg. a week of folic acid. I take 1 mg. everyday plus the day I take my mtx. Hopefully you are taking a Calcium supplement to dear...just what you need hey...more pills..lol
I now do a jab / needle to get my mtx , as the pill with the pill form your body only absorbs a certain amount of the drug ( 20% to 90% my Rheummy told me...everyone is different ), and the pill form wasn't really helping me noticibly.
Good luck with everything Mooksie... (((hugs)))
Ps: I really like the "new" photo of you.....mmmm lol
I now do a jab / needle to get my mtx , as the pill with the pill form your body only absorbs a certain amount of the drug ( 20% to 90% my Rheummy told me...everyone is different ), and the pill form wasn't really helping me noticibly.
Good luck with everything Mooksie... (((hugs)))
Ps: I really like the "new" photo of you.....mmmm lol
:hehe: I take the shot of methatrexate, plaquinel and folic acid, and am trying to wean off of prednisone, but not really going all that well so far. I find that the shot and folic acid lessons any stomach upset I might have had, the shots are actually quite easily done now, thankfully. Hope things settle down for you really soon and you're feeling better. Karly
hi everyone thanks for your replies. you have worried me now though! im sure my doc knows what he's doing he's pretty good usually and trained at tommys. he did say he was going to start off low and take it up...so does that mean im going higher than 15mg? what kind of doses are other people on?
the folic acid tabs he's given me are 5mg, im just worried if you say 15mg is quite high to start with! I did want to have it in injection form as i suffer with bad nausea anyway but he said see how i go...ive got to go to the "gold clinic" every month so he said if the side effects are bad the nurse there can change it to the injection. cheers for all your help...im going to take the first one on sat eve x
the folic acid tabs he's given me are 5mg, im just worried if you say 15mg is quite high to start with! I did want to have it in injection form as i suffer with bad nausea anyway but he said see how i go...ive got to go to the "gold clinic" every month so he said if the side effects are bad the nurse there can change it to the injection. cheers for all your help...im going to take the first one on sat eve x
Hi Mooks,
I think different docs have different prescribing habits as far as Methotrexate and Folic Acid. It sounds like you have a backup plan anyway should this not agree with you.......i.e. the injections. It's very variable what they advocate in Folic Acid.
My late husband was on the regime you are starting on, he then went up to 20mg, then 25mg of Methotrexate. I think 25mg is often the max for most people, occassionally we hear of others on 30mg. He was also only on a 5mg tablet of folic acid per week.
Good luck I do hope this settles things down for you, you havent had a good period for a while now :luck:
love
Lily
I think different docs have different prescribing habits as far as Methotrexate and Folic Acid. It sounds like you have a backup plan anyway should this not agree with you.......i.e. the injections. It's very variable what they advocate in Folic Acid.
My late husband was on the regime you are starting on, he then went up to 20mg, then 25mg of Methotrexate. I think 25mg is often the max for most people, occassionally we hear of others on 30mg. He was also only on a 5mg tablet of folic acid per week.
Good luck I do hope this settles things down for you, you havent had a good period for a while now :luck:
love
Lily
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8,577 Posts
Mooks,
Methotrexate is a wonderful medication. It enabled me to continue working for many years in the early-mid 1990's and I believe contributed to me going into a long remission. Take the folic acid the way your doctor prescribed it. My doctor has me take 1mg every single day, other doctors say no folic acid on the day the Methotrexate is taken. They all go by what they have seen as the most sucessful for their patients.
As for the dose I imagine you must be pretty ill right now and your doctor figures you will need at least 15mg so why not start there. You may experience more nausea the first few times you take it but don't let that concern you. For me the nausea went away by the 3rd week and when my dose was raised I only had nausea the first week or two. My nausea came on about 36 hours after I took the dose and just lasted throughout that day, it was not ongoing day after day. I take mine at night after my evening meal since it is my largest meal of the day. I am currently on 20mg which is the highest my doctor prescribes oral methotrexate, I forget if I started on 7.5mg or 10mg which is where most of us have started dosage wise.
Let us know how you get on.
Take care,
Karen
Methotrexate is a wonderful medication. It enabled me to continue working for many years in the early-mid 1990's and I believe contributed to me going into a long remission. Take the folic acid the way your doctor prescribed it. My doctor has me take 1mg every single day, other doctors say no folic acid on the day the Methotrexate is taken. They all go by what they have seen as the most sucessful for their patients.
As for the dose I imagine you must be pretty ill right now and your doctor figures you will need at least 15mg so why not start there. You may experience more nausea the first few times you take it but don't let that concern you. For me the nausea went away by the 3rd week and when my dose was raised I only had nausea the first week or two. My nausea came on about 36 hours after I took the dose and just lasted throughout that day, it was not ongoing day after day. I take mine at night after my evening meal since it is my largest meal of the day. I am currently on 20mg which is the highest my doctor prescribes oral methotrexate, I forget if I started on 7.5mg or 10mg which is where most of us have started dosage wise.
Let us know how you get on.
Take care,
Karen
thank you! i am hoping this will help me to continue working too as my life is just such a struggle right now..and on top of everything im having to fight nail and teeth to keep my job! i am slightly concerned about starting it as i am already really nauseous at the moment. i havent really eaten much since last friday and have been feeling really quite under the weather...although i know its not a bug and its just my lupus flaring. do you think it'll make the nausea even worse or will it just be unnoticable because im so nauseous anyway?! xxxxxxx
Hi Michele
I was put on methotrexate a few months ago, but it made me feel very sick, so I now inject it which is a lot easier. I started on 7.5mg metho then 10mg and now I am on 15mg as well as 400mg Plaquenil a day. I only take 5mg Folic Acid once per week, 3 days after the Methotrexate. I am also on Prednisolone, I had got down to 5mg a day, but have had to go back up to 10mg until the 15mg Metho takes effect. It is all trial and error in the beginning, but I must admit I do feel better on the 15mg Methotrexate.
I also have fortnightly bloods done by my GP to make sure I am ok with the Metho and it is not causing me any other problems. I also had a chest Xray before they put me on it.
Take Care
Meryl
I was put on methotrexate a few months ago, but it made me feel very sick, so I now inject it which is a lot easier. I started on 7.5mg metho then 10mg and now I am on 15mg as well as 400mg Plaquenil a day. I only take 5mg Folic Acid once per week, 3 days after the Methotrexate. I am also on Prednisolone, I had got down to 5mg a day, but have had to go back up to 10mg until the 15mg Metho takes effect. It is all trial and error in the beginning, but I must admit I do feel better on the 15mg Methotrexate.
I also have fortnightly bloods done by my GP to make sure I am ok with the Metho and it is not causing me any other problems. I also had a chest Xray before they put me on it.
Take Care
Meryl
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