Hi Mccourtjs, When I was on MTX, I took the injection one time and felt much worse than when I took the pills. Each person is different. Some people prefer the injections and some prefer the pills.

I always took my MTX on a Friday night so that I could have the weekend to recover before work on Monday. I would also take Leucovorin which is a high dose folic acid the next morning (12 hours) after taking MTX. The high dose folic acid is to protect the brain from the effects of MTX. I would always take MTX with food and two large glasses of water. MTX will cause dehydration, so I would drink lots of water during the week. The high dose folic acid did help me to feel better too.

My doctor had to adjust my MTX dosages during my three years on that med. I do think if you are feeling bad, then consider discussing adjusting the dosage amount of MTX with the doctor. I took 17.5 mg and did well. I later moved to 20mg. MTX hangs around in the body long after you stop the med too.

I know that many people will be able to give their experiences with MTX too. All of the different DMARDs require some time and adjustments to work well.

Hi mccourtis, I am on MTX tablets 15mg (8th week) with Prednisolone (9mg) and Plaquenil. Although I am relatively new to this drug, at the moment I only feel a bit sick the next 2 days but apart from that not too bad at the moment. Was it your choice to have the injections? if so perhaps you could try the tablets? Take care.

Hi McCourtjs. Sorry to read your post. Are you taking enough Folic acid, I can't remember if you take it or not. Lexis is great on the MTX injections. Am sure she will come on when she sees your post and give you great advice. Autumm

I do the injections. In fact, I just did mine for this week about 20 minutes ago. I do equivalent to 25 mg weekly. I was told this is the ideal dose for Myositis but everyone is different. I do my injections right before bed and I allow myself to sleep in as long as I want on the next day. I find I do best if I have a full stomach....full with absorbing food. One thing I found helps best is hashbrowns. Not a baked potato...not toast....not fresh fries. Good old shredded hashbrowns. When I mentioned it to my doctor, he said it probably helps absorb the medication.

I moved from pills to injections because I just couldn't tolerate a high enough dose without feeling totally crappy for 3-5 days. With the injection, I take the day after the injection "off". Some times, I sleep all day. I usually don't have a ton of energy. And sometimes I wake with a headache. Food often doesn't smell good nor taste good. I've found I have the toughest time with protein. Beef or Chicken seem the worst. They smell and taste rotten to me even though I know it is perfectly okay. So I just don't eat it. Or I have it in a sauce like spaghetti or such. I eat lots of fruit and veggies because they taste really good. I take 5 mg of Folic Acid that night after my injection. The icky feeling is usually gone by the next day but if not 100%, it is usually way better the day after that.

I typically take my injection on Saturday nights. I lay around Sunday. Then I am back to work on Monday. Usually Monday or Tuesday I am back on my feet. I have found the side effects have gotten better the longer I take MTX. So if you can, and it is helping you, stick with it.. It will get better but will probably take awhile.

I would talk to your doctor about how you are feeling to see if they have any ideas. When I first started, I was given an anti-nausea medication that helped me with that. Unfortunately, it made me sleep non-stop. I don't usually have that luxury for more than 1 day a week.

Good luck and let me (or any of the smart people here) know if we can help further.

OH and I call my day after the injection my "Dull day". My brain doesn't seem to be too bright. I cut myself slack and take it easy so I don't get frustrated.

Hi All. Thanks for your comments. I am taking 25 mg MTX once a week and 2 mg of folic acid daily.I have been taking the MTX since Nov., and full dose since Jan. I have been trying to drink more water or gatorade to see if that will help and have been making sure that I have something in my stomach. I am wondering if my MTX dose needs adjusted. When I go back to work in the fall, I plan on taking the injection at lunch time on Friday so that I have the weekend to recover. I have also been having nuisance headaches a lot which I believe is from the MTX. I have an appointment later this month but if feel sick again this week, I ma going to call the doctor. I have already tried Immuran and Cellcept and they both made me sick and immuran caused liver issues.