Budesonide- THAT didn't go well!

[DB]

I was diagnosed with LC about a month ago now, but started with diet changes at least six weeks before that. My GI doctor prescribed Budesonide (full dose- 9mg). I am always cautious about medications, since I tend to react pretty strongly to them, so it took me a little while to get around to trying it. I decided to start out slowly, so took one pill (3mg) the first day, one the second day, and then increased to 2 the 3rd day. Starting on the second day I started getting some really loud rumbling again- something that I hadn't been experiencing much of more recently, and was feeling like I had a sore throat. I was also feeling a bit jumpy and anxious and having what felt like hot flashes. By the third day I was feeling really crappy- flu-like, agitated, and having a lot of trouble concentrating on my work. The rumbling was still there and I started having WD again, which had also mostly stopped before that. I called the doctor's office and they said, well, keep trying to take it over the weekend and see what happens- call on Monday (this was Thursday). On Thursday night, I had worse WD than I've had during this whole ordeal- it was almost like my colonoscopy prep again! On Friday morning I called the doctor again and told them I was going to stop taking it- they agreed.

I'm not surprised that I had a bad reaction to the drug- it has happened before. I just thought it was really strange that it would have pretty much the opposite effect it was supposed to- not only did I have other side effects, but it made exactly the symptoms it was supposed to improve worse. The other weird thing that happened is that the thyroid nodule I recently had biopsied got swollen and painful. It also seemed like it was reacting in the opposite way it was supposed to, and becoming more inflamed by the steroids... or maybe it was something else in the pill. IDK! Once I went off the meds I immediately felt better and the thyroid also calmed down in a few days.

Anyway, I have another appointment coming up to discuss other medication options. I've been doing better enough just with the diet and supplements though that I may pass on the meds. I am down to one or two BM's a day, rumbling is at a minimum, energy levels are up, and over the past few days I've actually been increasing in weight rather than decreasing... I'm feeling cautiously optimistic at this point....