1. Community
  2. Bones, joints and muscles
  3. Fibromyalgia Syndrome

LDN - Low Dose Naltrexone and chronic pain

Posted , 5 users are following.

TeresaJS
TeresaJS

I've been on LDN - Low Dose Naltrexone for a few months now. It's been a bumpy road and the journey has had both positive and negative points.

I've been adjusting the dose but in so far the 3 main benefits I can claim from it are:

- some sleep improvement;

- less pain intensity;

- apparent normalising effects on some blood markers such as LDH (lactate dehydrogenase).

However I feel exhausted to an unbearable point and continue prone to inflammation. I've decided to continue treatment with LDN because I've read extensively about it and many authors say it may take up to a yer to come to fruition.

Meanwhile I've resorted to naturopathic medicine and I'm under treatment as well.

We're all different in the way we react to medications and because I've been reading so much suffering here with so little hope of remission that I thought of encouraging you of not giving up and trying new things.

I would like to share with you a recent study on LDN whose Abstract is:

"The use of low-dose naltrexone (LDN) as a novel anti-inflammatory treatment for chronic painJarred Younger, [corresponding author]  Luke Parkitny, and David McLain

Abstract

Low-dose naltrexone (LDN) has been demonstrated to reduce symptom severity in conditions such as fibromyalgia, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and complex regional pain syndrome. We review the evidence that LDN may operate as a novel anti-inflammatory agent in the central nervous system, via action on microglial cells. These effects may be unique to low dosages of naltrexone and appear to be entirely independent from naltrexone’s better-known activity on opioid receptors. As a daily oral therapy, LDN is inexpensive and well-tolerated. Despite initial promise of efficacy, the use of LDN for chronic disorders is still highly experimental. Published trials have low sample sizes, and few replications have been performed. We cover the typical usage of LDN in clinical trials, caveats to using the medication, and recommendations for future research and clinical work. LDN may represent one of the first glial cell modulators to be used for the management of chronic pain disorders.

Keywords: Anti-inflammatory, Chronic pain, Fibromyalgia, Glial cell modulators, Low-dose naltrexone, Microglia"

Younger, Jarred, Luke Parkitny, and David McLain. “The Use of Low-Dose Naltrexone (LDN) as a Novel Anti-Inflammatory Treatment for Chronic Pain.”Clinical Rheumatology 33.4 (2014): 451–459. PMC. Web. 13 July 2015.

1 like, 75 replies

75 Replies

Next
  • kaz_40
    kaz_40 TeresaJS

    Posted

    Hi Teresa Thank you for sharing with us, we can but try different things to help us, until hopefully 1 day a cure can be found lets hope its sooner rather than later. take care gentle hugssmile
    • TeresaJS
      TeresaJS kaz_40

      Posted

      Hi Karen, maybe several cures ...since  we're all different. Some people have had remissions so we must have faith. XX
    • kaz_40
      kaz_40 TeresaJS

      Posted

      Hi Teresa I went into remission for a short time then it came back with vengance and more worse than it was before. My gp has said Im at the extreme level of fibro.my mobility has been badly affected I know have to use a wheelchair. never mind onwards upwards battle on. How are you doing today? I hope prey that everything you are trying works for you. we can but try different things take care gentle hugsxx
    • TeresaJS
      TeresaJS kaz_40

      Posted

      Hi Karen. A wheelchair?  sad Why don't you try LDN then? I can't swear  by it yet but people with MS that is much more serious have positive results with it. So, why not try it? I know it's not easy but there are sites and groups in the UK that support it's use and doctors that prescribe it. XX
    • kaz_40
      kaz_40 TeresaJS

      Posted

      Hi Teresa I wil look into LDN everything Ive tried so fay Ive had really bad side affects from. so just using hot waterbottles wheat bags.xx
    • TeresaJS
      TeresaJS kaz_40

      Posted

      LDN has to be started at 0,5mg and move upwards 0,5mg a week or every fortnight till a maximum of 4,5mg to tolerance. I'm now on 3,2mg because I couldn't tolerate more than this. It's a chemical and I hate chemicals. But they swear so much for it's many benefits on several organs and body systems that I'm sticking to it. At least for the time being. Yes Karen, look it up. If I were you I you I would. XX 
  • loxie
    loxie TeresaJS

    Posted

    Thanks for the info Teresa.  Every little glimmer of hope is very welcome.  Sorry to hear you're feeling so wiped out by it though.  Here's hoping that it gradually settles down and really benefits you long term.  Good luck with the naturopathy too - I'd be very interested to hear your progress with that as I'm done with pharmaceuticals presently, so fed up with all the really nasty side effects.
    • TeresaJS
      TeresaJS loxie

      Posted

      Thanks! We've got to take the lead in this matter. That's my view based n experience. There's a lot of loss, when you can't funtion. 
  • charlotte1824
    charlotte1824 TeresaJS

    Posted

    Thanks for letting us know. I'm sorry it hasn't worked brilliantly from the start for you, fingers crossed in the months to come it gets better.

    There had been alot of talk about LDN and I personally enquired about it to the LDN organisation so it's great to hear someone's experience with it.

    Do keep us updated with that and the natural treatments.

  • bronwyn97278
    bronwyn97278 TeresaJS

    Posted

    morning Teresa; yes when we hear "how bad so many others are doing", we do want to try and give them alternatives (our survival kits)...so really understand where you are coming from, and will be interested if this helps you....for me, I feel I'm doing fairly well on my treatment....but then, do have it easy (and am able to take it easy, where others can't)....so maybe it is the answer for some of us...and if A Cure..all the better, and will Definately be trialing it........Bronlol
  • Meg53
    Meg53 TeresaJS

    Posted

    Thanks for that information, very interesting, I will mention it to my specialist and see what he says.
    • TeresaJS
      TeresaJS Meg53

      Posted

      He won't probably know about it. If you mention that there are now 2 studies about LDN & fibro from Stanford University Medical School maybe he'll be more cooperative. 
    • Meg53
      Meg53 TeresaJS

      Posted

      Thanks Teresa, will mention the studies. I am seeing him in a couple of weeks time.

       

Back to top
Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.