MultipleSclerosis Rx & Dr options

UGH!!! My RRMS is getting progressively worse.

It’s really frustrating and even more so since it appears to have started to significantly and quickly decline once I began taking the other prescriptions for pain, anxiety, and depression (which makes no sense to me since I’m not depressed). So, I’m on Gabapentin for the pain and the constant tingling, Alprazolam for anxiety (I have a bit of agoraphobia), and Sertraline for depression.

Now, my (current) neurologist, I’m getting another opinion in November, wants an answer when I see him in a couple of weeks as to which medication I have chosen. He gave me three choices of oral medication, Aubagio, Gilenya, and Tecfidera. I read up on each of these. In fact, I spent HOURS reading, researching, and looking up testimonials and reviews from unbiased sites. But even just the “don’t take this if you have…” section tells me they won’t work.

Dr. H (not giving his full name for anonymity) has been pressing me to take the Tecfidera for a couple of years now. This particular drug prescription costs $70,000 USD a year!!!! How can I possibly justify taking a drug that costs more than most people make in a year and four times the amount I was making at the job I lost. This leads me to have to look up the injectable options, which probably won’t cost any less. This is also frustrating because I have continued to ask him for more natural remedies due to the affects of the side effects of the prescriptions.

My reason for looking for another option for a neurologist is based on my not having faith in the type of care Dr H has been giving me, or in how he keeps my records. I recently received a copy of my record for a lawyer to look into regarding appealing a decision bout receiving some benefits as I currently only have my child support and Herbalife, and it was incomplete with regard to complaints when I saw him along with medication lists. I also began to wonder some time ago why he hadn’t even suggested physical or occupational therapy once he saw I was getting worse.

In addition, when delivering the forms needed by the attorney to Dr H’s office, while it was mentioned they were needed within two weeks, it instead took 1-1/2 months for him to properly and completely fill the paperwork out, which was as a result of many phone calls and visits to try to get it all prioritized.I’m thankful the application for my handicap placard was finally completed and sent in to the RMV last week.

Anyhow, the past few months have been very trying with regard to my health. Some days I wake up with my youngest to see him off to school and am okay for the remainder of the day and can then sleep a full night. Then there’s other nights. Those nights I can’t get to sleep until the sun has come up. Then, once everyone has left for the day, my body will finally fall asleep, but only for a few hours. Then there are also those same nights where I don’t get to sleep at all until mid afternoon, sleep for a few hours, wake up again for an hour or so, and then finally sleep until I awake at a normal time.

I don’t know if the sleeping issues are as a result of Dr H upping the dose on my gabapentin from 900mg/day to now 1800mg/day, and yet I’m still in pain as well. I have been extraordinarily consistent with my workouts again…because let’s face it, I went up to Vermont with good intentions of continuing with my workouts, but instead did a single hike the entire time I was up there. Then, of course, because I had gotten out of my routine, I had become lazy and just stopped.

So morning workouts resumed a few weeks back, and with the exception of the nights I didn’t sleep, I would make up for it that next evening, which would sometimes put me at two workouts a night, knowing if I didn’t, I would get off the routine, get lost from the habit, and get back to not feeling well.

I hope that you’re having an amazing week!

Be Blessed!

~ J

❤ ❤ ❤