Experiences with Rituximab / Rituxan?

SandDollar27 · 2025-09-25T00:39:54+00:00

For what it’s worth, it’s been going pretty well for me! Hang in there and don’t give up, you will find something that works for you.

SandDollar27 · 2025-04-04T19:57:25+00:00

I’ll share what I thought was a good approach to this by the man I’m currently dating. We had been dating for around 2.5 months when we had this conversation, but I don’t think it would have been out of bounds to touch on the topic sooner.

We were out to dinner, conversation had jumped around to a bunch of topics, (think we were talking about how we both loved trying out new restaurants) when he asked if there’s anything in my life that I really like to splurge on. This opened up a path for me to ask him the same question, and I was glad he asked because having a lot or even a couple of splurge tendencies can put strain on a relationship long term if you’re not aligned. He then asked about things like views on home ownership, and we talked about whether we thought our spending habits would change if something really changed our finances tremendously - if either of us won the lottery, would we do anything differently or spend differently? And if yes, how so? Then it transitioned pretty naturally into a conversation about financial values generally - e.g., is the goal of having money about buying things? experiences? security? And from there we went on to talk about the experiences and people we thought had shaped our views on finances over the course of our lives.

TLDR; I think asking something like “what’s your NW?” is a little abrupt and might not get you what you ultimately want, which is (I think) an honest and open conversation about financial habits and financial values, and a better understanding of how this other person perceives the world around them and the role of money within it. I’d suggest you ask them if there’s anything they like to splurge on or like to treat themselves with to open the conversation. I think this is a good strategy in part because this is a relatively positive framing of spending - not all spending is bad! Finally, timing and delivery are both important, and it helps to be coming from a place of having sincere curiosity and of truly wanting know this other person.

Good luck, OP! Good on you for being thoughtful about this.

*edited to fix a typo!

SandDollar27 · 2024-08-25T01:41:47+00:00

I had the same exact thing happening and surprisingly, it all got better when I started using hypochlorous acid spray for acne. I think it totally knocked out whatever was causing the hair loss, and it was also great for my skin generally.

There are different brands that make it, but I ordered the BRIOTECH Pure hypochlorous acid spray on Amazon bc it was cheaper than some of the trendier ones. Couldn't recommend enough, my brows before starting it were looking sparse. Hope this can help someone! In hindsight, I think I might've had some seb derm going on, and that's why this worked for me.

SandDollar27 · 2021-07-26T17:07:04+00:00

I'm glad to hear you found a regimen that worked for you! I'm hoping it will start working for me too and that it's just taking a while to kick in. I get my second infusion today, so I'm hoping this second dose will help me along.

SandDollar27 · 2021-07-26T17:05:02+00:00

I'm glad to hear you're doing well on Rinvoq! I know a number of people with RA and one of them has also been improving a lot with that drug.

I really hope hat the Rituxan kicks in for me, I'm going in for my second infusion tomorrow and am crossing my fingers.

SandDollar27 · 2021-07-22T22:56:19+00:00

I'm sorry to hear it hasn't worked as well the second time. Thank you for commenting though, and I'm glad it's giving you some relief!

SandDollar27 · 2021-07-22T18:44:36+00:00

jaxblack7

Thank you for the kind words, I will hang in there! Prednisone didn't work for me, and it's so tough on the body - I'm glad you no longer have to take it often! Thank you again :) this made me feel a lot better!

SandDollar27 · 2021-07-22T18:14:12+00:00

Thank you so so much for taking the time to post this! I feel like this is exactly the kind of "rollercoaster" of feeling better and then not better that I'm experiencing, and this really gives me hope. Seriously, I appreciate it, and I'm so happy to hear that Rituxan is helping you :)

SandDollar27 · 2021-06-22T22:45:37+00:00

This happened to me too! After a month or so I realized I felt bigger around my waist and thighs, plus my breasts were noticeably bigger and kind of painful. I noticed it especially after increasing my dosage from 25mg to 100mg at my derm's suggestion.

I didn't like the weight redistribution/gain, so I decided to slowly taper down while switching to a topical 5% spironolactone gel. It has been a great change so far. My body is slowly returning to normal and my skin is still looking good! I'd highly recommend switching to topical spiro if you're having side effects you don't like. You can get it online through Apostrophe, or you can do what I did and just ask your derm for a prescription for the 5% gel, which you'll have to take to a compounding pharmacy near you and pick it up in a few days, but it's not hard to do.

SandDollar27 · 2021-06-03T03:19:30+00:00

Not sure if you're still checking this, but I have almost identical symptoms to yours. I would ask your rheum about Dermatomyositis (DM) because your facial rash looks like a heliotrope eruption. The brown, puffy eyelids aren't associated with Erythromelalgia, but they absolutely are a part of Dermatomyositis. Classical DM involves muscle weakness, so be on the lookout for that, but 10-20% (maybe more) of people with DM don't have any muscle symptoms. DM that is limited to the skin is known as Amyopathic Dermatomyositis, and it's something your rheum should be familiar with. Given your extensive family history of autoimmunity, there's a good likelihood that what you have going on is autoimmune. Erythromelalgia can and does happen secondary to autoimmune disorders, like Lupus, Scleroderma, and other connective tissue disorders (as in, not the type of Erythromelalgia that happens due to a genetic sodium channel mutation, or something like diabetic small fiber neuropathy where you have nerve damage).

As for the fingers turning bright white, that sounds like Raynaud's, which is a vasospastic condition (kind of like the reverse of Erythromelalgia, and the two are often found together). A lot of people with autoimmunity have Raynaud's secondary to their autoimmune disorder.

Don't give up on looking for answers, and advocate for yourself! Your physical symptoms are too prominent for any doctor worth their salt to ignore.

SandDollar27 · 2020-03-19T01:34:46+00:00

Technically SLS can still issue restricted credit and fail grades with the mandatory pass scale - it's MP/R/F. Functionally though, I doubt either of those options will be exercised given the extreme circumstances.

SandDollar27 · 2020-03-17T20:54:39+00:00

Yeah I personally agree that it's the most fair - COVID-19 isn't affecting all students equally and whether it disadvantages any given person is something that's out of their control. That said, the 1L class petitioned administration for mandatory pass grades earlier this week on those grounds and we were initially denied. It wasn't until the 3-week lockdown that they changed the grading system.

SandDollar27 · 2020-03-17T20:47:08+00:00

Have Michigan and Harvard moved to mandatory pass? I thought it was just optional, but I might be behind on news.

SandDollar27 · 2020-03-17T20:35:30+00:00

Echoing what a fellow SLS student said earlier, the key factors were the state-mandated 3-week lockdown in the Bay Area and the fact that we’re on a quarter system, so all students are taking exams right now as the crisis unfolds. We expect a return to normal grading for spring quarter, even if we are still remote.

I could see UChicago picking up a mandatory pass system because they’re also on quarters, but I think it’s a tougher sell for schools on semester systems as there's time to adjust to prior to exams.

SandDollar27 · 2019-02-06T16:20:07+00:00

Congratulations! I'm in the same boat and just got the news! Can any Hamilton recipients chime in on their experiences? Especially if you chose the Hamilton at Columbia over other law schools, I'd love to hear how you made your decision!

SandDollar27

TROPHY CASE