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Wednesday, November, 25, 2009
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Good enough news!

Lauren
Lauren
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Living with MS since December, 2003.

Lauren

Friday, June 19, 2009
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So, a few weeks ago, or maybe months ago, I had a doctor's appointment.  Keep in mind, I have been exercising & eating healthy to try to improve my MS so I figured everything would be smooth & simple for once.  My pre-appointment blood tests had come back with no abnormalities which is unusual since something is always slightly high or slightly low.  I was kind of pumped about that!  I had a MRI done prior to the appointment & of course he had the results ready to review with me.  He said that there was a little bit of activity but not as much as there had been in the past.  So I'm thinking this is good news, right?  Well, he started talking about switching medications from Rebif to Copaxone.  He said that Copaxone has just been proven to be "just as good" as rebif & I think he thought that was supposed to spark my interest.  Why on earth would I want to switch from a 3-times-a-week shot that I actually don't mind to a once-a-day shot that has been said to only be "just as good"?  Am I missing something?  He ordered some blood tests for me to see if I had developed antibodies to the Rebif.  So I had the tests drawn & was told that it would take about 2 weeks for the results to come back.  For 2 weeks I was nervous & anxious that my luck would be that I had developed antibodies & would have to switch to taking a shot every single day.  During this 2-week period of waiting & hoping for the good news that I want, my doctor sent me a letter explaining to me that he had talked to a doctor from Duke & this doctor said that he didn't think it would do any harm for me to try switching to Copaxone.  Really?  I know enough to know that it wouldn't do any harm, but would it show significant improvements in my MS?  After all, it has only been proven to be "just as good" as Rebif.  I could be wrong in that statement that it is only "just as good", but that is the way my doctor explained it to me so that's only as educated about the research as I am.  He finally called me to ask if I had gotten his letter, so I told him that I wanted to wait for the antibodies test results before I made a decision.  Well, the results were in.  This is about the point where I need to sit down, no, lay down with a cool, damp washcloth on my forehead.  (I didn't really do that, but with as nervous as I was, I could have)  By way of miracle, perhaps, the results were negative proving that I had NOT developed antibodies to Rebif!!!  Hallelujah!  I told him that I didn't want him to be mad at me but that I wanted to stay on Rebif.  If Copaxone had been proven to be much better that Rebif, sure, I'd consider.  But since Rebif is only 3-times-a-week & so far, has not caused me any major side effects, that's the medication I want to take.  Now I know that millions of people are forced to take a shot every day, but let's face it, I'm being a baby & I don't feel that my situation is so dire that it really requires a once-a-day shot.  In other words, I feel that the Rebif is doing its job & maybe it's because I don't mind taking it so I don't freak out when it's my "shot day".  I've found a medication that I actually don't mind so naturally I want to stay on it!

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