Cons of Humira... Go.

The biologic with the best odds of helping patients is Remicade. Simponi has the second best odds. Humira comes in third ; studies show it is more effective for crohn's thsn uc.

My son does Humira, he has Crohn's. He is doing great, working full time, very physical job. He hates the injecting himself, but works thru it twice a month.

I think the success rate for Humira is about 18%.

Humira helped me for over a year. Using Simponi now

cons- let's see, I've been on it for over 3 years now, after Remicade failed. Whatever the stats say, Humira has worked the best for me out of all the biologics. I develop a rash from it sometimes, these itchy, scaly, red patches- I use triamcinolone cream on them, they go away, but it's a hassle- another med! It makes me very prone to respiratory infections- since I started it, I've had 4-6, all developing the week after my injection. And all required antibiotics to treat ASAP, since anything like that on a biologic is a big no-no. And the z-pack wreckcs my stomach, so... A huge con is that it doesn't really work too well- I mean, I feel "ok", but I still have extreme urgency, accidents, & I'm clinically a mess- active disease, ulcerations, strictures, fistula. I find over time, I tolerate it less & less- I notice more side effects & less help. I'm planning on surgery soo, so I hope to only be on it for another few months. Overall it's a decent med- I don't know if it taking it long-term is feasible, based on my own experiences. And yeah, there is the whole lymphoma risk, etc- I also take Imuran, which most people do when they're on a biologic- the double whammy to your immune system is really, really, really hard to sustain! But definitely worth a shot before throwing in the towel.

My new GI was the same as the last one only she went so far as to order it after I argued with her and I told her I finally had proof that a maintenance drug was working ( asacol HD) by way of 8 weeks of self-pay bloodwork.

Seemed to me like they were both ( previous GI ) getting a kickback they pushed it so hard.

Took a phone call when I changed jobs and it was Humira again wanting to know how they can get it shipped to me and I told them not taking it do not bother.

I had a rough year experimenting but glad I did because Asacol HD + Qing Dai + RS navy beans has me quite normal, solid formed waste once per day. Lots of psyllium powder as well and not much need for p-seed.

I did screw it up eating lactose free ice cream and other junk food and the next day I had to get with program quite aggressively, had to tighten things up. Time will tell how far this approach takes me but clinical research as well as my own is on my side.

Simponi is fairly new, so make sure you check that is covered through your insurance. It also does not have as long of a tract record (although it should essentially be the same as the other biologics).

I am not aware of any difference in "how long it works" based on whether it is a mouse protein or a human protein. To me, that claim seems like nonsense. Remicade, Simponi, and Humira are all essentially the same in that they are all medications designed to block TNF-Alpha in your system. They are all protein molecules designed to attach to the TNF-Alpha molecules in your system, make it inert, which stops inflammation from occurring. However, the primary difference is how those blockers are engineered for each medication, the structure of those proteins varies with each medication, and this causes difference effectiveness for each medication.

FYI, the IV thing isn't a big deal with remi. No pain involved, the only downside is stilling there for 2-3 hours while you get your medication every two months.

I think all the meds they use are "band-aids" in reality...until they find us an actual cure, they'll all remain band-aid meds IMO.

I didn't read through this thread but my thoughts on "bad things"

decreased immune system (more susceptible to upper respiratory infections, some weird fungal infections)

slight increase in cancer risk (possibly)

possible surgical complications if you have an emergency surgery due to immune system interference with healing

potential lupus-like reaction (highly unlikely)

possible skin rashes (ranging from injection sight to whole body)

But, with all that I still took Humira.

"...taking a deep breath in when I put the injection in and then slowly let it out as I put the med in..."

That's EXACTLY what I do too. Seems to help me too for sure!

I started at slowly working out again....I had lost so much muscle being sick for so long. I used to squat 155lbs (I'm a female weight around 140)... When I got sick I had two grocery bags in my hand and I dropped my keys, I squatted down and when I went to stand, I wasn't strong enough and my legs gave out and I fell. So literally, I started at ground zero. At least that's how it felt...so I would do like 10minutes of working out 10 body weight squats, 5 lunges each leg, arm circles, it would march in place, it's all I could take.
Then I started doing some light jogging and walking when I needed to, or work out DVDs at home.
I've been back at the high intensity only about 6 weeks....

I think the exercise is a stress reliever for me and just makes me feel better overall. I also have heard it's an immune system booster- I will take all the help I can get!!

So far..so good, I like the Humira (if I had my choice I wouldn't take anything, but since that's not an option- I like the Humira!)! I will say I noticed I do have a harder time waking up in the mornings and occasionally need an afternoon nap- not sure if that's med related/autoimmune related/or too busy related!