Switching from Cimzia to Enbrel
I've been on Cimzia for 4 years, and up until afew months ago I was fairly well controlled. We started with that one b/c I'm young and still building my family and my doctor felt it was the safest. I had my first baby 2 years ago-- and remained on the meds the whole time. In June I started having increasing flairs, needing steroids and adding back in and now maxing out my sulfasalazine. I would feel better for a week or two, then worse-- and the flares lasted longer and were worse than they have been in years. Still didn't feel as bad as when I first started the meds but I worried it was headed in that direction.
Anyway, my doctor is switching me to Enbrel- and for some reason I'm nervous about it. This week has been my best week in over 6 months, idk why I feel so good - and I'm due for my first Enbrel shot tomorrow. I guess its just making me question if I should switch (but I have had a really rough 6 months- its been so hard to keep up with toddler and I have even had to miss some work due to pain/swelling/stiffness)-- I'm requiring so much sulfasalazine that I'm now having side effects from it and I think the hope is that if the Enbrel does the job I can wean off the sulfasalazine. Knowing I want more kids my doctor said she felt this was the next best safest option.
Just looking for others experiences when switching biologics to maybe help ease my nerves. Also, how long did a biologic work for you before you had to switch?
RA is an up-and-down thief. It steals your resolve when you feel good. It steals your decision-making ability when you think I Coulda, Whudda, Shudda. I know this will be difficult to hear, but there are no guarantees.
My advice is to listen to your doctor and stop rolling it around in your mind. If you trust your doctor trust them. If you do not, well maybe a different doctor is appropriate.
My opinion is that if it were me I would move along and make the change. But no matter what you decide do not let RA steal your happiness, do not let it slide into worrying about the Coulda, Whudda, Shudda of RA treatments.
I know this is a tough decision but follow your gut................. rickso true about it being so up and down. I think the hardest part when I'm flaring is I know how good I can feel when my meds are working well--- basically, almost normal. And, it's just been so disheartening having so many flares, and not being able to enjoy things I did when I wasn't flaring. At least I know with the right meds I have been able to feel so good--which at the beginning I thought I'd never feel semi-decent again-- it definitely gives me hope that with the med tweeks I'll get back to feeling better!
I really like/trust my doctor, she's awesome-- she literally gave me my life back! So I'm just going to try and trust her decisions.I think that is a great idea..................... rick
