Mild relapse?

I have been on beta interferon (Rebif) for nearly two years now and in that time I haven’t had a relapse. Or have I? Beta interferon is supposed to reduce the likelihood of having a relapse and minimise the effects if you do get one. Back in January 2009, when I came off gabapentin, I experienced

Doublevision

Wahay! I am off to see an orthoptist tomorrow to talk doublevision. Doublevision and eye movement problems in general have been my one constant since I had my last major relapse in 2008. My MS history is littered with symptoms and side effects that have come and gone or have fluctuated with other external factors

Birthday hangover

It was my birthday at the weekend and now I’m hungover. I must have had a good time… Hmmmm… Yes, I guess I did… Saturday started by taking my eldest to her dance class and back. I started my pottery tuition in the afternoon and on Saturday evening, I ventured into Sheffield to see Reverend

How deep is remission?

Someone once said to me “MS is a companion, but not a friend.” These words ring true. I have been in remission for a while now, but I still haven’t shaken most of the symptoms. The dizziness and fatigue have been pushed into the background but they grumble along, just to let me know they

One year on …

Today is the first anniversary of my diagnosis (see MS History – part two). Health professional bodycount so far. Starting with the first GP visit last year, the bodycount is as follows GPs 4 Practice Nurses 2 MS nurse 1 Ward nurse 1 Occupational Health nurse 1 Phlebotomists 6 (estimate) Physiotherapists 1 Neurologists 5 Neuro-psychologists

MS Awareness week – Limboland haiku sequence

Hello all It is Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Awareness Week across the globe. To mark this, I have written the following haiku sequence. Regular readers will know that I was diagnosed with Relapsing Remitting MS in 2008. Limboland was inspired by the journey to diagnosis. Limboland no hint of a smile –for once my doctor says“take

My MS History – Part Five

Between visiting the two consultants, I needed to do my research and also go for a lumbar puncture. I hated the steroids, they had the dual effect of causing severe heartburn, while simultaneously making me incredibly hungry. At the time it seemed that they didn’t do me any good. Particularly as in the following weeks,

Relapse spotting

Well, I guess this goes to show how difficult it can be to spot a relapse, sometimes. I spoke to H (my nurse) today about the optic neuritis and heavy legs that I have been experiencing over the last few days. She thought the optic neuritis sounded like I was experiencing a small relapse, but

So long Gabapentin!

With the backing of my GP, I have ditched Gabapentin. It has been making me feel crap for a while, now. The main side effects being fatigue and hallucinations. I was starting to fall asleep by 7pm every day. As an experiment, I tried a couple of days over Christmas without taking the pills and

Weird new symptom alert – update

The on-and-off hot foot sensation from the other day has now been replaced with an ice cold foot. For most of my drive in to work this morning my right foot felt as if I had been kicking snow around with inadequate footwear on. I worry about my right foot and leg. I often think