No. I am no allowed to vote in the upcoming elections but this doesn’t mean that I don’t watch what is going on out there. Personally, I like what the two democrat candidates have to say about health care for everybody. Surely, they both have different views on how to do it – but the bottom line is that things might get better with any of those two proposals. Anything is better than the status quo.
Multiple Sclerosis Log
Personally, I don’t write a Multiple Sclerosis log myself as I don’t always want to be reminded if my MS. But I can see that it helps people who have more symptoms. And for these patients it is essential to know what is going on, why it is going on, what has been tried to resolve the problem and was it successful or not. These are the kinds of information your neurologist needs from you if you see him or her at the next appointment. And I know that once I will have more problems myself — I will start the journal. No question about that.
Best Time to Inject Avonex
I just heard some thoughts about better ways to take Avonex shots. A friend told me about a woman who had suffered from the same Avonex side effects I have been suffering but she had trained herself from not getting affected by those flu like symptoms any longer. She had tried many different ways but found out that it is best to take the shot earlier during the day and fight the side effects during the day. Instead of taking the shot at dinnertime she is taking her shot sometimes after lunch and keeps her regular life going. After a few weeks her body got used to dealing with those side effects until not only the shot but also the side effects were a piece of cake.
Motor Vehicle Accident and Multiple Sclerosis
Two days ago I have been in a car accident and I am scared. I have a cervical sprain and my nervousness results from the fact, that all of my lesions are in the lower part of the brain and in my upper spine. Just were my head was moving around in the accident.
Where are my Car Keys?
Sometimes it can be amusing when I lose things over and over again. It is not funny when I am losing the family wallet with tons of credit cards, drivers license and somehow my whole life every few months. It is a pain to get all those documents back (especially when you are here on a student visa and have no real legal way of doing anything without going to different places (school, social security administration and God know where else). I guess I am just real absent minded. In the beginning I was blaming all of that on my Multiple Sclerosis.
Feeling Guilty and Scared
I know, I know. Or better I know that I should know better. I haven’t been very good with my Avonex lately. Usually I am taking my shot every Friday – but due to moving into a different state, trying to find a hospital who is still willing to sponsor international nurses as well as some personal issues I wasn’t able to find a day where I could take my shot for a couple of weeks. I am scared as the last time I didn’t take my shot for a few months I have been heading down towards an exacerbation. And I really don’t want to get into that again. A few minutes ago I have given myself the shot and wait now for the side effects. The good thing – House will be on at 9. So I am trying to stay up until then, watch the show and then go to bed and hope that my side effects will be covered up by my sleeping pill. I don’t like taking Ambien. But if I only take it one day a week (not even that much if I skip my Avonex) than this s fine. And it surely, does give me a good night sleep. So if you are still suffering from your side effects ask you doctor for one pill each week. Give it a try – for me it makes a big difference in the way I feel the following morning. Without Ambien I feel really bad. With Ambien I feel just a little bit on the strange side – it is a no-brainer to me. But again, after not taking my Avonex for a few weeks, I expect some bigger side effects this week. But we will see how it goes.
My Dog Banjo
Like everybody else, who gets hit with the diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis, I felt depressed and was on an all-time low point of my life. But thanks to my friend I was able to get out of this dark hole much quicker than everybody around me would have thought.
Maybe this article will help some of you to get out of the depression you are in. I know I was deeply depressed after receiving my diagnosis. But there is help out for you. It doesn’t have to come in form of little colorful pills. My help came on four little legs with a fluffy tail.
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Think What You Can Do – And Not What You Can’t Do
Multiple Sclerosis can strike you in many different ways. I am very lucky that I haven’t been hit much and anticipate that it will stay this way for a very long time. I truly believe with all my heart, that I am one of those people that have a mild case. And after having M.S. for almost 7 years now I feel that I am there. I am one of them.
But if your M.S. had made a big break in your life than try find a way to rewire yourself, the way your brain tries to rewire itself after each attack. Maybe you have trouble with your vision and can’t read any longer but you do love books? Did you know how many audiotapes you can get? But audiotapes might not be the only way to go. I still remember when we had Christmas parties in my sport groups back in Germany when I was a little kid. It was just so great to sit in the big gym with just some candles lighten up the room and the instructor reading Christmas poems and Christmas stories to us.
Why don’t you get together with a friend on a regular basis to include a reading hour into your weekly routine. This way you would be able to get to know what other people are reading and your friends will feel that they can actively help you with your multiple sclerosis. Or what about this? You don’t know what you would like to wish for your birthday? How about asking for a personal recording of you favorite book? (Hopefully, it is not War and Peace) I have done this one time for my nieces and nephews back in Germany.
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Respect Can Go a Long Way
I would like to start this post with a quote from John W. Gardner
If you have some respect for people as they are, you can be more effective in helping them to become better than they are.”
Unfortunately, you won’t find that everybody is living by the same principals. And sometimes the people that ask you for the most respect don’t show any in return. But they do take your money.
Here is my sad story.
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My first MRI
Events came to be almost on a daily basis. One day I had to go to one doctor who sent me to another doctor who wanted to try something else out. The day of my first MRI was rather scary because I knew that images can show much more than what my body had experienced. I would lie if I would say that I was calm going into my first MRI.
But let me start a few days earlier. Knowing that I will see some images of my not so pretty brain was one thing, but when I made the arrangements to get those visuals done I was shocked, as I was found out that I need to pay 30% of the cost up front, as I didn’t have insurance at that point of time. So in order to get this diagnostic test done I had to come up with around $600, which I had to borrow from friends. Once I was able to hold $600 in my hands ( I don’t think that I ever had so much cash in my hands before) I was able to hand it over to the place who would tell me what is wrong with me.
