stopping a probiotic

Ellen....don't get the taper annoyance because I'm one who disagrees with you being at 6 asacol and for you to continually try to taper the enemas and the Canasa.

I think you should up the asacol to 8 daily for now...yes, you can take them with meals and the psyllium.

The Reuteri isn't cheap...nor is the UFCC.

I use both because of the combo of probiotics.

I personally wouldn't use the Align, but many have good success with it it seems.

q

If the symptoms don't alleviate in the next few days, I'll up the Asacol and keep the raised level of Canasa and Rowesa.

I thought you said, you taper and if you have symptoms you go up for two weeks, or until symptoms stop and then wait a week and then start to taper.

I always go up for a while when symptoms come.

If you don't think I should taper at all than I won't and my maintenance regime will be higher than.

I have a doc appointment on Dec. 2. He liked me at enema every other day and canasa every other day. He said taper from 9 to 6 on asacol. I can go up to eight, I guess.

Honestly, we all need different levels of maintenance meds, so if anyone is telling you to taper (and I'm not pointing fingers), ignore it. Heck, when I switched from Asacol to Apriso, I didn't even realize how much of a drop in mesalamine it was. I just assumed it was like Lialda, and all that mesalamine was crammed into four pills instead of twelve. I don't think I ever would have switched if I HAD known. Yeah, I tapered the rectal meds, but that's more of a given than tapering the orals, I think, because of the research showing that two/week is an effective maintenance dose. There is no research that I know of that sets such an effective maintenance dose of oral meds.

Personally, I'd go back up to where you were doing well and just stay there a long time. It seems like you've tried to taper enough times with no success, so it's clear that you need to stay at a higher dose from maintenance. And so what if you do.

For years my maintenance dose of Asacol was 12. My son's is 8. about 8 years ago I guess I had a stubborn flare (I don't even remember) so my GI had me go up to 16 Asacol and he thought I should stay there.
Enemas.... My scoping a few weeks ago showed some mild inflammation, so I stepped the enemas back up (I'd been doing them once every 3 days or so.) Frankly, I have for years wondered if the Rowasa worked for me. I really want them to, so I'm trying them..... but then I start seeing blood again, and I use a cortenemas to stop that.

My regimen at the moment is, nightly: Rowasa, Rowasa, Cortenema, Rowasa, Rowasa, Cortenema.

The days after I use a Rowasa I poop 4-5 times and often see blood. The day after I use Cortenemas I poop 1-2 times, no blood. Or so it seems - I'm really trying to ascertain this Rowasa effectiveness for me at the moment. I've read all the studies and it's a great med - but unless it's just a food-induced fluke, it looks as if it doesn't do much for me.

Canasa has been wonderful, however. Oddly, my GI prescribed only 30 for me for a 3 month period...... grrrr.... do need to call him, get more, describe how my 3-month prescription thing works.

I'll go up to eight and to rectals daily for a while. I did well at every other day regime and nine Asacols daily.

It took a year to find the right balance of psyche meds after I got UC and it threw my existing psych regime off kilter.