Has anyone been on welchol and found it helped them? I am on it for what is believed to be mold illness, but every time I take it I get really bad cramps and leg pain and tingling in my legs.
I have also had the same on lyme mediation. My body just doesn't seem to be able to handle anything.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
I couldn't handle CSM or Welchol .. either one.
Posted by tryingtogetwell (Member # 49763) on :
What did it do to you? These are the only binders my doctor uses, so I really don't know what else I could take in their place.
Posted by TF (Member # 14183) on :
Welchol will cause serious constipation. So, you have to take laxatives in order to not get in major trouble. One person on LymeNet ended up in the ER due to severe constipation! So, take this warning seriously.
Try it with lots of laxatives and see if that helps the bad cramps. Wish you the best. Doctor gave it to my hubby to lower his cholesterol. As soon as it caused him constipation, he started yelling and stopped the pill. So, I think he took 3 of them. And, they are not cheap either.
From Burrascano Guidelines, page 13:
"Two prescription medications that can bind these toxins include cholestyramine resin and Welchol pills. When taken orally in generous amounts, the neurotoxin present in the intestinal tract binds to the resin, is trapped, and then excreted. Thus, over several weeks, the level of neurotoxin is depleted and clinical improvement can be seen. Current experience is that improvement is first seen in three weeks, and treatment can continue for a month or more. Retreatment is always possible.
These medications may bind not only toxins but also many drugs and vitamin supplements. Therefore no other oral medications or supplements should be taken from a half hour before, to two hours after a dose of one of these fiber agents.
Cholestyramine should be taken two to four times daily, and Welchol is prescribed at three pills twice daily.
While the latter is obviously much simpler to use, it is less effective than cholestyramine. The main side effects are bloating and constipation, best handled with increased fluid intake and gentle laxatives."
The cramps are in my legs. I am not sure laxatives would help this.
Posted by paleogal (Member # 45991) on :
My LLMD has me on cholestyramine (which I think is similar?) and told me if I got constipated to up Magnesium (which I'm already on).
I take 3 4g packets (1 packet 3x/day) of the CSM, and about 800mg of Mg at different times, and I haven't had constipation issues, thankfully. Mg also usually helps with things like muscle cramps.
I first tried CSM last year around this time and I couldn't tolerate it. Headaches, body pain, etc. and gave up after about a week. A year later after LOTS of treatment, I can tolerate it. So it also might just not be the right thing for you right now.
There are other binders! Search for mold binders here and I'm sure you'll find something. Best of luck.
Posted by tryingtogetwell (Member # 49763) on :
Yeah. My doctor tells me welchol is only 25 percent as effective as CSM, and I still can't tolerate that and I am on one pill a day and need to get up to 6! I don't know why my body is so sensitive. It sucks.