hi all just a quick question. is it normal to be on a few different drugs to control this horrible disease. im on mtx, naproxen, plaquenil,

[jaqi1]

citalopram, folic acid, andomeprazole. and can you take some of them together or do you spread them out through the day. I know not to take my folic on mtx day. also has anyone taken naproxen before and what do you think about this drug. thank you for any advice x

[Hidden]

Although not on any of the drugs that you mention, I tend to split my drugs to either morning or night. At Breakfast I take one tablet before I eat, then another throughout the meal then another after breakfast. Last thing at night I take two sets of tablets. However when I was taking MTX I took these after my main meal at night.

Hope this helps, others may offer other views. At the end of the day you have to take your medication when the time is right for you as you are the only person who knows whether they are upsetting the apple cart so to speak.

[Hidden]

I'm on a whole lot of tablets - I take most of them in one go at breakfast & the rest with my evening meal - it all depends on what they are.

MTX I take in the evening; but things like andmeprazole need to be taken in the morning as it's is an antacid.

Talk to your pharmacist to see what he suggests.

[Pands]

Hi I am on a whole load of tablets too -think lots of us are! I tend to take my 'daily' ones in the morning after breakfast but my weekly methotrexate I take after my lunch. I also am on some iron tablets 3x day which is bit more of a faff at the moment...

[Ozzy]

My husband's just been put onto naproxen which has already starting helping him after 5 days, he has also been given a tablet to protect his stomach. I have been taking celebrex for 7 years which has given me no problems as an anti inflammatory, we both have to take one tablet in the morning and one at night.

[Bazzypants]

Hi there I am on naproxen was prescribed it to be taken twice daily was also told to take a stomach protection tablet also by the RA team at the hospital. But unfortunately my GP has refused to give me the protection tablet saying its only needed if you suffer from stomach problems and who am I to argue, I am due to see my RA team next week and will get this in writing to take to my doctor. Sorry long winded there but I only take one a day when im feeling really bad but also take co codamol and I am on humira injections to. I find the naproxen helpful.

[lab-lover]

I have naproxin too, it is an antiflamatory drug, and MUST be taken with food...I do this and have had no tummy problems, so haven't had to have tummy pills

[jinirules]

Just joined this group. When I was diagnosed with ra last may I was put on naproxen Maybe it was a placebo effect I felt ok for few weeks but because of the constant tiredness I am not sure how effective the drug was bcoz my esr didnot come down. My friend didnot react well to it. For me it didnot make any difference. I would suggest you to give it a try for atleast 6 weeks

[Riedenise]

a lot of us are on a combination of different drugs. I take MTX,hydroxy,Sulfa, Naproxen, Omepraxole, folic, Amitriptiline. I take some before brekky the others after & again in the evenings. & take my MTX all at once on a sunday night. Omeprazole is my stomach protector.

[Kerigrace]

I take plaquenil, celebrex, enbrel, methotrexate, folic acid, lo loestra (hormone), baby aspirin. I have to take meds twice a day. I take them after breakfast and before bed. I've always taken the methotrexate in the morning and never had any side effects. My friend who takes it says she always feels so tired the next day, but she takes it late in the day. From my perspective, taking it in the morning means the "tired" effect happens when I'm going to bed, so I don't have that experience. I was diagnosed in 2003.

[julie_warwick]

I take leflunomide , prednisolone ,bisoprolol , omeprazole , and naproxen , just shovel 'em all down at breakfast , used to take mtx at bedtime , no ill effects but not convinced narproxen doing much more than ibuprofen was ,think you just have to experiment with what suits you and be guided by doc.

[helixhelix]

All in all I take about 90 pills a week, and I guess most of us do. The labels on the packets you get from the chemist should say if there's anything special about how you are supposed to take them - like take with food, or one morning and evening, or take at night. Otherwise choose what time of day suits you best. I find it easiest to take everything together so I take one lot in the morning after breakfast and the second lot after dinner. But the important thing is to take them regularly, at roughly the same time of day each day, so I've found it helpful to have a weekly pill box . I fill it up on Sunday for next 7 days and then much easier to remember to take them as it sits beside the teapot.

[oldtimer]

You can have a free medication review with your pharmacist. He/she will go through all the medications you are on and can explain what each is for and whether it is possible to leave any of them off.

Often you have to take one pill to counteract the side-effects of another more important one - like omeprazole to protect your stomach from the side effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or steroids.

[DrWhoFan]

My pharmacist looked at the drugs I was taking and told me which could be taken together at breakfast, and which at mid morning, and at night. The know more about drugs and their effects than most. I made an appointment to see mine to discuss my drugs. Hope is helps. Anne