From Remicade To Lesser Meds?

If I was in remission and semi-remission on Pentasa alone with supplements, do you think it's possible that the physicians should have used strong IV type steroids for a few days during my last flare up instead of jumping to Remicade, then had me stay on safer drugs??

Now that I am on Remicade I feel like my only option is surgery. I would prefer to not have this be the case, and I wonder if it would be possible to get back to that lesser medicated remission state, even if it took steroids to transition?

Half of my days I don't think about UC much, just feel worn down from mono brewing in me, but other days I face the rock/hard-place reality of my situation and get depressed.

I see a new GI at a research hospital in a few weeks. I hope he can give me hope...

Thoreau,

IMO, your option after you finish remicade is not just surgery;

You can still do LDN, low dose naltrexone, no?

I went from Remicade back to steroids and now I'm on Uceris and Imuran. I seem fine at this time but I dare the moment I'm getting off of Uceris.

There's also Humira.

Thanks to all for posting.

Madcat... yeah, my GI doctor is pretty good at following the "rules" of GI treatment. He tells me he would prefer I stay on Remicade because it is what works the best for patients. Humira is the last option he sees before surgery.

**GI doctor did tell me over a year ago that if it came to it, he would try fecal transplant for me before resorting to surgery.

I'm starting to think that I will grin and bear the body aches (from mono?) and focus on doing everything in my power to be healthy. I will wait until Vedolizumab is approved for UC in the U.S., and then consider that enough options to risk stopping Remicade to try lesser meds.

To the LDN proponents... YES! I want to try it. It is in the mix of ideas I'll be presenting to both my GI doctor and the second opinion in a few weeks.

Hey Luna; I was on Remi for 5 years, and during that time, I had a colonscopy just before my fourth year and then one again into my fifth year. Both scopes showed a clear and healed colon, no ulcers or anything, so my doctor and I decided to stop the Remi, and just do maintenance meds. My last c scope was back in 2010 I believe.

Yes, I was without symptoms the day after I started Remi. That's not to say that I didn't have urgency a few times, but the bleeding and mucous stopped the day after I was treated with Remi. I could tell I was getting better as time went on because I didn't have the exhaustion like I did when I first started...so I suppose the Remi was helping to heal the ulcers. Whatever, I'm grateful I had the opportunity to have the med because now I'm not sure I could afford it...or another c-scope for that matter. Scary times!