My PCP prescribed me Plaquenil (200mg 2xday) and Salagen (5mg 2xday) today! Just took my 1st dose of both - Maybe I'll get some relief...
Oh, he also prescribed Celebrex, but I can't afford it and there is no generic form! I'll just double or triple up on Ibuprofen for the time being!
I have an appointment on 4/18 with a new Rheumatologist and am dumping my old Rheumy because she won't or can't schedule me until mid July.... I don't think so!
So, I am looking forward to this new medicine and to seeing my new Rheumatologist who I am sure will take tons of bloodwork looking for any and all new and existing autoimmune diseases or conditions that I have or may have... things are looking up!
L8R
~Mark
Best news ever, Mark! So pleased for you!
I love my Plaquenil. I take both tabs at once, though, with my largest meal of the day -- actually along with a bite of food to make sure it goes all the way down. (Generic is even dryer than brand-name.) It also helps to have a big gulp of water before taking the medicine to moisten your gullet. :D
It took me a good five or six months to get relief, and fully eight or nine months to get a good result, but I've been on it for about a year and a half and I have a life now.
The Salagen gave me nausea, but I take Evoxac with no problems.
My GP once told me that Ibuprofen and Naproxin are both four-hour medicines, so when I need to I take the normal dosage of one, then two hours later I take the normal dosage of the other, taking them (as we say in the south) turn-about. That way your blood levels of painkiller-slash-antiinflamatory stay more constant. Obvs your mileage may vary.
I love Pilocarpine. Glad to hear some positive news Mark. Keep the failth!!!!
I take my Pilo 30 min before lunch, 30 minutes before dinner, Before I fall asleep and then again around 330 in the morning. I love that schedule and it helps aton.
Beware of naproxin. It can take out your kidneys. Be sure you are getting blood tests! My GP was taking some, the approved dose, and had to quit because it was affecting his kidneys. Sharon
Mark
In the UK, I believe the generic of Celebrex is celecoxib. I've taken Celebrex for 4 years, and it has been a God send. The Plaquenil has been fab too.
Kathyx
I can't take naproxin sodium... I take warfarin. I already have to get my I/R or Pro-time checked regularly and that type of NSAID will really affect clotting factor. I already need to trash my ibuprofen and switch to acetaminophen due to the interaction. However, my I/R was in range today.
You have to be care with the ibuprofen too. It can also cause kidney problems too. I'm a example of over doing it on Advil and now I've been diagnosed with stage 3 kidney disease. My Nephrologist says my abuse of Advil was part of the cause of this.
Any of the NSAIDS can cause bleeding. You need to be very careeful with the ibuprofen also. I have had patients who have almost died from stomach ulcer hemmorhage from ibuprofen. There is not pill that doesn't have a down side. Just use common sense and read labels, etc. Irish ;D
Irish, thank you! As always, you're the voice of reason. :D
Just dumped ibuprofen and picked up some Acetaminophen. I also still have to watch the Prevacid as it can have a moderate interaction with Warfarin. I have to watch what vitamins I take also, making sure they DO NOT contain vitamin K.
I went ahead and reviewed Plaqunil too, and there are no warfarin interactions for this drug type of antimalarial quinolines, antirheumatics.
Mark, keep us posted on how it does for you. I hope you find some relief and start to feel better.
Luna
Mark, you also need to watch how much acetaminophen you take. It can cause you liver problems. The does is either 6 or 8 pills in a 24 hour period. I think it was 8 and now they have lower it to 6 because so many other medicines such as cold medicine have it in them.
I am working on it and am really excited to see my new Rheumatologist!
Thanks everyone for all the support n' stuff!
I'll keep everyone informed.
L8R
~Mark
Hi Mark! Glad to hear your great news! I wish you the best. I was just coming on here for a minute to see if you were around today. I heard the devastating news of the storms in Texas and was hopeful you and your family/friends were safe! Glad to hear you are ok. My heart goes out to you and everyone in that beautiful state. Your fellow Texans will pull through!
@garedenlover
Yep, we're all good here. We are in Mineral Wells,TX...50 miles west of the Ft Worth/Dallas Metroplex. We did have T-storm warnings, hail, heavy rain and high winds. There was a tornado warning for the county east of us (Parker county) during the time my wife had to drive to work in Weatherford,TX(in Parker Co.). She was OK though, by the time she got to work all the bad stuff had passed, but I worried about her and texted to her phone to pull over and wait it out for a bit until it passed...so, she did and made it safely.
I have 3 cousins that live in the Metroplex and they are all OK.
Thanks.
I'm really glad to hear that, Mark. It looks so devastating. I've never been through something like that! Please take care.
Don't forget to ask about getting a baseline eye exam from an opthamologist because of taking the plaquenil.
Winnie
Great news but.... be careful with Acetaminophen as this can cause liver damage. It is in a lot of other medicines too so read labels. Just stick to correct dosage... more is not better in this case! Glad you liked the Dr! It is a wonderful feeling!
Great news Mark! I wish you super luck with your new rheumy ;D and hope the salagen works as well for you as it did for me (minus the nausea, and sweating of course :-X). I had so much saliva I was like a teething toddler in a half an hour :o
@ Gayle, WinnieYeah, Madison Granny,Irish and all you guys n' gals...
Thanks Everyone for the support!
I guess a lot of these meds that help us are hurting us in other ways too...always seems to be the liver,huh?
Oh yes, and the eyes because of dryness with SJS and meds.
Oh well, I'll watch what I am doing and do the best I can with what I've got...
Thanks MissyLouWho?,
Yep, I took my Salagen earlier and I'm making all kinds of slober now! lol!
Quote from: MarkP_1972 on April 04, 2012, 12:01:10 PM
My PCP prescribed me Plaquenil (200mg 2xday) and Salagen (5mg 2xday) today! Just took my 1st dose of both - Maybe I'll get some relief...
Oh, he also prescribed Celebrex, but I can't afford it and there is no generic form! I'll just double or triple up on Ibuprofen for the time being!
Glad to read that your PCP has stepped up to help you. But I would contact your PCP, let them know that you can't afford Celebrex - some doctors will be able to give you free samples. Definitely let them know that you are changing your pain medications and are considering increasing the dose - let them or a pharmacist assist you.
thank goodness you and your family are safe - OMG, the video of those storms were incredible and very scary.
Good for you Mark! I will pray for improvement in your pain and overall health!!! Hope you like your new rheumy!
Thats great news about the Plaquenil and Celebrex. I currently take both as well. Hopefully they work for you:) Hopefully you don't have many side effects from the Plaquenil. Let us know how you go
Mark, good luck on the plaquenil, it took months to build up but it gives me wonderful relief!
I take milk thistle for my liver which my doctor said was great! I have no problems with my liver other than some benign masses I had biopsied (NOT FUN!) but I take it more as a preventative from all the meds I take.
Carie
Mark, it was mentioned briefly in this thread but I want to be sure you know this.
Plaquenil can sometimes -- usually after prolonged use -- cause some changes in vision. That's why those of us who take it should have a baseline exam within the first three months of taking the medicine by either an optometrist or ophthalmologist, and follow-up exams every six months.
I get my eyes checked fairly often anyway just because they often bother me...I've got 2 different eye docs I go to, 1 backs up the other, both are good,thorough and give me prescription eye drop sample medicines if I need them. I've never had to go to the pharmacy with these Doctors! :)
N-Acetyl Cysteine is also good for detox of the liver. It's what they use in the ER if you've had an acetaminophen OD. You can buy it as an OTC supplement. Good stuff, esp is you take acetaminophen on a regular basis.
Nymph, that's interesting...I'll have to research that sometime...
Hi Mark,
Glad to see the doctor prescribed meds for you and will keep the fingers crossed that they kick in soon.
I too take Plaquenil (for going on seven years now), and Evoxac (several months so far). Believe me, if I miss some doses of the Plaquenil, I sure do feel it!
Yeah, I sure do understand having to watch what drug interacts with another and so on... Very frustrating!
Take care of yourself -
Patze
I have been out of Plaquenil for 4-5 days now. It is filled and setting at the pharmacy this whole time, I just haven't gone to pick it up. So here I am....in the bed, missing my grandson's 13th birthday party with a splitting headache, a fever, and my mouth so dry, I can hear my tongue pull loose from the roof of my mouth.
This is what I hate most about my condition.....the fact that I can't mentally make myself do the things I need to do in order to participate in life.
I told my husband, I always took pride in believing my mind was my best feature and now it seems to leave me a little more each day.
I am about to start Plaquenil and am happy to hear everyones good reports. I also have been taking Celebrex - which my doctor gave me a sample of - he told me to take them sparingly because of potential liver/kidney problems. So when days are bad I either take Celebrex or when they are really bad I take Celebrex and Prednisone....and when I'mready to ram my head into a wall I bring out the big guns like Hydrocodone which just puts me to sleep.
Maybe your Rheumy can give you a sample box of Celebrex as well. It wouldnt hurt to ask : )
I'm sorry to hear that Belsey, that is SOOOO frustrating to be sure! Now and then I still fight that monster and thankfully the episodes get a bit further each time.
Hang in there and don't forget the Plaquenil.
Take care of yourself -
Patze
Mark, THere are some very different tests that need to be done for the baseline when you are on plaquenil. It takes some time but is necessary. Have to dilate your eyes of course to do any eye test that is more in depth.
Also, please make sure to talk to a doc before you take the NAC or N-Acetylcysteine as there are some side effects and some drugs that you can't take it with. It sounds safe, but nothing is 100% safe. Always check with a doc cause we don't want to wreck our livers. Irish ;D