Naltrxone vs Azathioprine

Hi emo,
I decided not to bother with the LDN anymore as it wasn’t covered by Medicare & really wasn’t helping any with the joint pain. But I do think it absolutely helped settle the skin rash issue.

Totally understand! Especially since you found something else to help.

Thank you. That’s what I wanted the LDN for. To replace the AZA. I don’t have symptoms presently as I’ve been on prednisone, which he’s weaning me off. I’m glad to hear the LDN worked to get your immune system in rhythem. That’s what I’m looking for. TY again!

Yes, he ran tests before prescribing AZA for me. I go in again for another test soon to see how my liver is reacting.

I was one of the lucky ones . I got vivid dreams at first from LDN but not disturbing. Some were like Broadway musicals! I had one nightmare associated with flames (dark red) coming up around my head and when I awoke I had a very painful eye injury. I think the endorphins cause the colors, that is just my guess. Anyway, that is what I hope people will do. Look at the research and decide for yourself.

Hi..I would like to know more about this...I have ulcerative colitis..can you please tell me more about your use of LDN and how it worked for you.
Thanks, Kitty2

I haven’t taken it. My Dr. Won’t prescribe it bc he said it’s used only for pain, won’t help with the immune system. I’ve read statements that counteract that.

I don’t have IBD, but I take LDN and have an inflammatory arthritis. Before I started taking it, I did a bunch of research before deciding. There is some limited (but all research on LDN is limited; there aren’t many of the gold standard double-blind, etc. clinical trials) research specifically that has shown LDN improved IBD. If your interested, I found the study:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5845217/#:~:text=Around%2030%25%20of%20patients%20with,treatment%20option%20for%20these%20patients.
This was a small study ~50 people. They took 4.5 mg LDN, a very common dose. 25% of participants achieved remission, but I didn’t reread this closely enough to see if it mentions what other treatments they were doing.

While it’s true the research isn’t solid, the thing is there are very, very few side effects and very few, if any, would be considered “serious” side effects. My take on it after reviewing the research I could find and talking to my PCP who prescribed it, was that I had very little to lose, other than time and $$ because my insurance doesn’t cover it because it’s from a compounding pharmacy.

I wouldn’t swap it out for the biologic I use to treat my inflammatory arthritis—I didn’t get that much relief—but everyone’s different and that’s a decision between you and your doctor. I feel it’s worth looking into if you’re interested.

It can be difficult to persuade a doctor to prescribe it though. There are some telemedicine physicians who prescribe it, but I’ve not tried any of these. I considered it briefly because I worried we wouldn’t be able to get it for my dad (he has a different inflammatory condition), but in the end I didn’t need to do that, thankfully.

I found it can be hard to persuade a doctor to prescribe it too. Thankfully, my PCP has experience with it and eventually one of my dad’s physicians prescribed it.

That’s weird he said it’s “only” for pain though because my impression was that it’s primarily known for helping fatigue and inflammation, but both can improve pain. It’s her studied in people with RA and IBD.

This was the study I found (though limited) about LDN and IBD: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5845217/#:~:text=Around%2030%25%20of%20patients%20with,treatment%20option%20for%20these%20patients.

Maybe it’s what you read too.

There are some telemedicine physicians who prescribe it, but I’ve not tried any of these. I considered it briefly because I worried we wouldn’t be able to get it for my dad (he has a different inflammatory condition), but in the end I didn’t need to do that, thankfully. There are even some that allow you to choose your own pharmacy. I thought about that because I was concerned about profit and “pill mills.”

Hi, Kitty2. I was on Remicade for my UC, and it had been working well for me. Which is to say, I was pretty solidly in remission. Then for no apparent reason, I had a flare that just wouldn't quit. I had a friend with MS and found that LDN helped restore some of her hand function; she was the one who told me that it supposedly helped UC. My gastroenterologist was skeptical, but he checked the one article he could find in a bona fide medical journal, and decided it would be worth a try. The dosage for UC was 4.5 mg. I took the LDN for about 2 weeks and my flare resolved. I suppose it is possible that it might have resolved on its own, but symptoms lessened very quickly on the LDN. This all happened about 8 years ago, so there might be more current research re: dosage for UC.

Wishing you all the best...