New here

Hi I am a 31 year old mother of 4 and was diagnosed with Crohns Disease in December 2010. I have lived with the stomach pain and other symptoms for about 5 years before I got a final diagnosis. I recently had a dr. appointment to talk about a treatment plan and he is putting me on a medicine called imuran. I am a little bit anxious about the side effects of this medicine. I was hoping that someone else maybe has had experience with it and Crohns. Thank you so much.

Momof4

Hiya, and welcome to the forum. Sorry you have Crohn's, but we are glad to have you here. Given the long duration of your symptoms, I hope that now, with a firm diagnosis, you can begin to find some relief.

Re. side effects, I am on Week 5 of Imuran (it took a while for them to see the full extent of my Crohn's, so I first tried milder meds for several months). Thus far, the only side effect that I have experienced is very mild loss of hair -- you can't tell to look at me, but I see more in the hairbrush and my poor Roomba gets covered in hair. I have also had one cold, which may or may not be related to the immunnosuppressant effects of the Imuran. And my health, including GI symptoms, is only improving and improving!

Hugs to you.

Thank you so much! It is nice to have a place for support and to ask questions to people that are going through similar experiences. I have to wait on my blood test to come back before he will let me start on Imuran( I guess that is normal). Thank you for your response, it eases the anxiety.

Hi momof4
and welcome

As you read the boards, you will find lots of success stories with Imuran. The simple answer is, if you don't like it, come off it!
I was allergic to it, so I came off it. There are other alternatives such as Mercaptupurine or even the biologics such as Remicade and Humira. Meds are a bit hit and miss, trial and error sort of thing, what works for one, may not for another.
Glad you found us, lots of friends here for you
lotsa luv
Joan xxx

Welcome

Thank you Joan, that does make me feel so much better. It is comforting to have a place to ask questions, and have people that care.

Thanks Jennjenn!

Jennie

Hi

I am a new member here too since last week and find it great reading other peoples stories and asking questions. I also was allergic to Imuran and came off it after just over 2 weeks, but reading the stories here it seems to work for a lot of people, so it will be worth giving it a try if you finally get some relief from the symptoms. Your doctor will monitor you closely when you commence it.

Good luck

Hope it works for you!

Take care

Sinead