Mesalamine Frustration...

Hi guys,

I've been officially diagnosed for over 3 years with Crohn's colitis.  The first rx I was given was Asacol, which I am still on.  Over the years I've been on 4 - 12/day, up & down.  I never felt a difference until I was given Imuran & it kicked in.  I feel better but I have lots of bad days & don't feel great.  I have big doubts that the Asacol is doing anything for me.  My GI, last week, insists that it's doing "something" but I hate the idea of taking so many pills if I'm not feeling any results. I've never not listened to my doctor but he seems insistent that I stay on it (I kinda stopped taking it last week...)  He mentioned Colazal once to me but seems to have forgotten.  Any advice??

I started another course of Entocort last week.  It didn't do anything for me last time (about 2 years ago) but we're trying it again.

I know it's not smart to just stop taking meds, I've never done it before, but I honestly don't think it's doing anything, that's why I'm frustrated.

Meliskiss I once stopped taking my Asacol because I didn't think it was doing anything. I ended up getting very sick because of it. I went back on it and got back to feeling better. It is a very mild medication and I personally would prefer to stay on these lighter meds if all possible. And for me right now, its working just fine.

Celey has a very good point too that you should never stop taking a medication without your doctors approval. I would hate for you to get worse.

Also, another fact I want to share with you. I once enjoyed a 20 year remission without any medications. BIG MISTAKE!!! I ended up having my remission abrubtly ending with a emergency resection.

Really everyone with Crohns should be on some kind of medication at all times. We need to keep the inflammation at bay or we end up getting even sicker. And Meliskiss, would you rather be feeling well and taking alot of pills everyday or being sick everyday. I personally prefer to have more good days than bad. JMHO

My GI feels that Pentasa (which I'm currently on) is so mild that it's practically useless.  If I ever get to the point where I'm asymptomatic, I'll discuss dropping it with my doctor.  (Don't worry, I'm on LOTS of other pills! )  Until then, I won't go off it, even though he suggested it.

Wow, energy drinks are a really bad idea.  Between the sugar and caffeine, it's a guaranteed dash to the bathroom.  Might as well just pour it straight into the toilet.

I don't really understand the relevance of the energy drink comment...

I have no idea what the energy drink comments have to do with anything either!!!!~ Mesalamine does not have good research behind it that it helps Crohn's, so if you don't think it is helping, you might be right. Go pull some articles and bring it to your GI. I am on Pentasa, and doing ok, so I do think it may help me, but you have to trust yourself and your own symptoms. I don't think you should go off of it without talking to the doc, but you have a right to talk about it and make your own educated decisions.

Meliskiss:

I was on Asacol for awhile and since the caplets are hard and I have an ostomy, they were going in one end and out the other; no absorption. My doc switched me to Pentasa which is a caplet with little granules inside that breaks open for better absorption. Although I did have to take about 24 of them every day. I didn't think either medication was doing much either. Listen to your doc. What's one more pill?

I was listening to a radio show once and the DJ asked when do you think your life is headed downhill? After 30, after 40? One of the responses was that your life was going downhill once you started taking more than 10 pills every day. At the time, I was taking 42 pills each day. I guess we all know better, huh?

My husband has been on Asacol - 12 pills a day - for almost 12 years!  His dr. recently told us that new research has shown that mesalamine is not effective for maintenace of Crohn's and that my husband's disease has been progressing this whole time.  Ironically, after my husband was first diagnosed and he was very sick at the time - he got better almost immediately after starting to take the Asacol and has been pretty much asymptomatic since then.  So we feel like the drug has been doing something all of these years.