Welchol (colesevelam hydrochloride) Side Effects, Uses Dosages
Side Effects for Welchol (colesevelam hydrochloride)
Drowsiness, nightmares and I believe worse back pain and joint pain from my osteoarthritis.
Seems to truly help diarrhea due to IBD, and I do need extra sleep, but the horrible dreams seem real. I fall asleep during the middle of the day after sleeping over 8 hrs. at night. That has never been me, ever.
Horrible gas, stomach pain, bloated stomach, headache, fatigue, brain fog, insomnia, horrible scary nightmares. Pain in knees, hands, fingers, feet, ankles. Constipation
Horrible pill, couldnt get anthing done. Miserable, depressed
Abdominal pain/upset stomach, constipation, headaches, ringing in ears, insomnia, loss of appetite
I had taken this medication before but stopped due to severe constipation. When my IBS symptoms got worse my doctor asked me to try again at 1x/day. My stomach pain keeps increasing, even if I have not eaten. And I need sleep. I do not believe I will be able to continue this med.
Insane insomnia. After I figured it out with 2 types of sleeping pills that wouldn't help. It caused of being buried alive. All I could do was walk outside staring at stars to keep my insanitary. Be careful who you prescribe it to. My constipation was absolutely intolerable also but was the least of my worries.
Go natural and never give up trying that way
IBS-D and gallbladder out 6 years ago
Omg this is a life changer for me. I got my gallbladder out 6 years ago. I was diagnosed with IBS 20 years ago. For the past 2 years my IBS has gotten so bad. I've gone vegan 5 days a week and pescatarian 2 days a week. I exercise 2 to 3 days a week. Still if I eat over 500 calories at a meal I would have to RUN to the bathroom and could have up to 6 rounds of diarrhea over the next hour with painful cramping. I started not eating...not getting enough calories a day. Lost 10 pounds. Started feeling scared to eat because of the stomach ache. Stopped eating with friends. After the very first time I took 3 pills with a meal, I knew about 20 min into my meal there was no stomachache coming. It never came. Sometimes it comes the next day but it never came. True I've only been on it for a day but it's a life changer. I called the nurse today to see if I could take less than the 3 pills, twice a day. She said I could so today I just took 3 pills in the morning with my meal and I'm fine! I even ate cheese and chocolate. I'm going to see if I can get by with just 1 or 2 a day as they are huge horse pills. I don't have high cholesterol or diabetes. I don't take any other medicine. This is just for my chronic diarrhea of over 2 years.
A lot of thigh problems and leg cramping, joints were stiff. Always with signs of cough. my eyesight was off sometimes.
It did lower my cholesterol. But I would have to tolerate the stiffness in muscles and the cramping in legs.so I have been off it 2 weeks now.
I'm so thankful that my GI doctor put me on this medicine. It's been a lifesaver, I feel like I have my life.
Aching muscles in arms, legs & neck. Ringing in my ears
Works well for IBS but side effects are bad.
Severe headaches, muscle pain, insomnia
Some tinnitus but not worth stopping tablets
High Cholesterol, statins allergy
Very painful heartburn. I had my gall bladder removed a couple of years ago. I am allergic to statins so my cardiologist wanted to try me on Welchol powder. I get severe heartburn that even makes my throat and the back of my tongue feel like it is burned. Antacid meds don't help either. Ready to quit taking this!
Works like magic. It also help with keeping cholesterol down
Mild headache, gas, diarrhea, joint and muscle pain, severe sinus drainage, severe fatigue, loss of appetite.
After only 8 days of using this medication, my quality of life has gone to ZERO.After only 8 daysI have discontinued it and hope to recover soon. I lost 5 pounds, can't sleep due to gagging and choking on the sinus drainage that continues non-stop day and night, have no energy and can only think about getting home to sleep, oh but I CAN'T. Based on ratings it seems this works well if you had your gall bladder removed, but I can't live like this for a marginal reduction of cholesterol if any. The only thing worse about the statin I used prior, is less leg pain. With Welchol everything hurts.
Constipation and painful gas. Even after passing gas I have pain in my intestines.
If the side effects do not stop by end of next week I will stop taking. I am in work all day in a cubical and this is not easy to deal with!
Constipation and joint pain. Especially in legs and feet.
Lowered cholesterol but had to stop because of join pain.
Cramping, bloated feeling. Itchy anus, became very irritated. Seemed to help lower cholesterol, but may have elevated triglycerides.
Expensive, grateful for good insurance.
Slight muscle cramps in my lower legs. I had a couple of nightmares. My stools got harder, so I started eating prunes, which helped a little. I thought that I might become constipated, but stopped the med due to the cost.
I had gotten terrible leg pains after taking lipitor for one week. I refused to take another prescription statin and instead took Red Yeast Rice. When my ldl started to go up, I asked my doctor for an alternative, which was Welchol. The drug store charged me less money for my 1 month supply. The next month they wanted to charge me about 3x as much. I could barely afford the original amount and definitely could not pay the higher fee. I got my insurance to agree on letting me get a half month supply. After seeing my doctor, 6 weeks later, she gave me 5 mgs of Crestor. After a month of that I quit due to multiple bad side effects. I am going to just keep working on improving my diet now.
I got headaches two nights in a row. Had severe pain all down my left leg and in the night after taking the third dose I had a bloody nose? I also noticed a small dark red bruise on the inside of my right elbow. I am going to try diet and acupuncture and Chinese medicine!
too much bile acid due to gall blad
Vitamin deficiencies even with supplementation, brain fog, muscle pain and weakness, chronic fatigue, hair loss last 2 years, started to have eczema symptoms. Did not help cholesterol.
Worked for bile acids, eliminated diarrhea
Beats statins for borderline issues.
WELCHOL (COLESEVELAM HYDROCHLORIDE): This medication is used along with a proper diet and exercise to lower cholesterol in people with high levels of cholesterol in the blood. Lowering cholesterol decreases the risk of heart disease and helps prevent strokes and heart attacks. Colesevelam is also used along with a proper diet and exercise to lower high blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes. Controlling high blood sugar helps prevent kidney damage, blindness, nerve problems, loss of limbs, and sexual function problems. Proper control of diabetes may also lessen your risk of a heart attack or stroke. Colesevelam belongs to a class of drugs called bile acid-binding resins. Bile acid is a natural substance the liver makes by using cholesterol. This medication works by removing bile acid from the body. This causes the liver to make more bile acid by using cholesterol, which reduces cholesterol levels in the blood. It is not known how colesevelam works in lowering blood sugar. (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)
Related User Reviews
DO NOT TAKE THIS DRUG. IT IS POISON. After taking 30 mg a day for 3 weeks, I stopped. I HAVE NEVER felt so awful as I do today. Started cying and laughing hysterically. Head is so mucked up I can barely move or think. Called doc and he said it's withdrawal. WTF, is this heroine or something? Withdrawal? I've stopped other SSRI's in the past and never experienced anything. This is bullshit. Do not take this poison.
Just decided today that I am stopping this drug. I will continue with my Symbicort and my nebulizer; will also continue with my exercises and hope and pray for the best. I have had some stem cell therapy, which practically saved my life after my 2nd exacerbation (out of pocket-Medicare does not pay). I feel for all of you suffering as well. I think we must be guinea pigs for this company. A class action suit would be nice!
WEIGHT GAIN (6lbs in half a month while on STRICT diet and intense workouts of high intensity aerobics classes 4x a week and the P90X program), extreme irritability, depression, bloating
This has finally given me my freedom back! I was bleeding so heavily and irregularly I had weeks of not being able to leave the house. This has slowed everything down, so I can go out and feel like a normal person again! Unfortunately I was doing well losing weight before starting this and I've gained back, in areas where I didn't have before... it's frustrating. I know that it's recommended to give it up to 6 months before you see results, it's been 4 packs now- I'm still having spotting everyday.
Works well, side effects are tiresome as they are with all of the mood stabilisers but overall the drug does it's job.
my wife was like a zombie always falling it ruined my marriage and scarred my kids for life
Taking for gout flare up. Works a lot better than Advil but makes me dizzy and that's not fun. Using colchicine to help with flare up and indo for swelling/minimal pain relief. Really just use for inflammation not really useful for pain relief, only OxyContin works for severe gout flare up pain.
1st day - no side effects; 2nd - nausea, lasted about 45 min; 3rd day- nausea, followed by numbness and tingling in the left side of my head, hot/ cold flashes in same area with time same symptoms spread out to chest and left arm, they come and go in flashes.
I was a 20 year smoker and by day 6 of taking 150mg I had quit. I still have no desire to smoke. I feel great. I have energy, sex drive, determination. My life at home and at work has improved tremendously. I am usually depressed this time of year due to colder temps and less light but not while on this med. I feel in control of my emotions and I do not get upset/mad at my kids like I used to. I hope this feeling stays with me. I would be satisfied to take this forever if it keeps working for me like this.
5 yo was prescribed for allergies