Just an update

It has been a couple of months and I wanted to catch up with what has been going on. I first want to say that I appreciate, more than you all could ever know the prayers and thoughts and just those of you who continue to check in on me. This is a battle even if the symptoms are not always visible and if I have learned anything over the past few months is it that. I can certainly feel all of the prayers and I know that gets me through many days that I couldn't otherwise.

I had a solu medrol infusion for three days in December and while the side effects lasted a little longer than the first treatment, I have gotten over them and overall had been feeling well until about a week and a half ago.  I have been learning and self journaling about things that cause my symptoms and pain to be worse and weather changes have certainly been one of them. As you can imagine, all of this weather has wreaked havoc on me! I was also feeling some pretty severe pain in my lower abdomen, and, since this is all new to me, Aaron and I thought at first that it could just be related pain but eventually it got to the point where I felt as if I could pass out. After a LONG night in the E.R. they told us they found a cystic mass in my pelvis and sent us to a Gyno in Paducah where I was told I will be having my right ovary removed soon.

Over all, as far as the MS goes, I am tolerating the Rebif injections that I give myself three times a week and the greatest amount of pain that I have is in my legs and somedays I feel like I can't make them work to get out of bed, but I love my job and being with my students, even on the bad days is the best medicine in the world. Please continue to keep us in prayer, not just  me but my husband and children as well. They work very hard to help me so that I can have a little rest time.

Remember, March is around the corner and is national MS month, many dont know this, but just like Pink is the color for Breast Cancer and Red is for Heart Health, ORANGE is the official color for M.S. wear orange in support of a cure for this painful disease!

Another Treatment

Well, no news is usally good news so I haven't posted in a while because I have felt great. About two weeks ago I began to relapse. I started having pain and weakness in my right arm, then in my leg and some days the pain would get so bad I could hardly stand it. The pain also causes a great amount of fatigue so most days I have been completely wiped out but I wanted to push through until Christmas break because I am down to one sick day at school. I visited my doctor today anticipating the start of my three day treatment, however my veins are very weak so after 12 needle sticks, they told me they were unable to start the treatment today. Tomorrow I am supposed to go to Lourde's hospital where hopefully they will be able to start the IV. If they can't then my Dr. has ordered a PICC line to be inserted so that I can get my treatment and hopefully be on the road to getting over this relapse. Please pray for the nurses who will try to give me the treatment tomorrow. I would like to get through this and move on to the holidays! In addition to my relapse, I am getting a horrible cold and I don't have time for this! I have presents to wrap and things to finish up! Keep all of  us in your prayers!

Keepin' On

Since the last time I blogged, I have finally begun my Rebif injections. Today I took the second injection, and I will continue to take them three times a week. I am praying that this therapy will work! For those of you who are not up on your M.S. medications, Rebif is not a cure, but a therapy to slow down the progression of this disease. I am thankful for my M.S. friend Tammy, who also happens to be the mother of my friend and co-worker. Tammy was able to show me how to give myself injections and she is a wealth of information. If there is a silver lining to this disease, I hope that mine is that I am able to support someone in the future who has to endure this diagnosis.  I am supposed to be connecting with a nurse who will help with follow up education as well.
As far as how I am feeling, I woke up this morning, (Saturday) and was having trouble walking. My left leg felt like it weighed a ton and was very painful when I put any weight on it. I felt like I was dragging it behind. Most of you know that I am a pretty fast walker so that was a little frustrating. I know that fatigue and stress make this disease worse and this week probably did it! Anyone who has ever visited an elementary school on Halloween or any other holiday can tell you that it is wild! Even the days leading up to the holiday! In addition, my husband and a few friends were competing in a BBQ competition and I wanted to be able to be there to support him. I am sure that I wore myself out! I am going to try to be a little easier on myself, and know that I have to have a resting point everyday! I am learning what I can and can not do.
I want to say that I appreciate more than I can say all of the words of encouragement that I continue to get from friends and family. Encouragement and Prayers are what will see me through!

I Never knew I had limits!

Last week, the nurse from Dr. Hunter's office called to check on me, when I explained to her that I had been in a lot of pain, she said that is GOOD! She said that means that the steroids have moved the inflamation out of my spinal cord, but that it goes to other places in my body, so it did its job. I am still waiting to get my injectable medication, it takes a little longer due to the mail order pharmacy. In the mean time, they have adjusted everything else that I take to help with my discomfort. This weekend, Aaron and I threw a little family birthday party for our youngest son Logan who turned 9. We had both of our parents and a few others. We worked all morning on Sunday preparing for the party and then partied until about 4:30 p.m. After we took Logan back to his mom Sunday evening, we realized that I had hardly sat down all day.  Normally that wouldn't have been any big deal, but after the party was over and everyone was gone, I felt like I could have dropped. I have always functioned at a maximum level, but after yesterday, I realized that my body isn't going to let me anymore and I have to listen! This is going to be a learning experience for all of us, especially me. I am thankful for the great week and weekend I had this past week. I felt good most days and I feel like I am doing a really good job getting through my school days. I can only hope it continues! Thanks for all of your prayers, I feel them working everyday.

Uggghhh! These side effects!

It is Sunday and I have already had two of my three IV steroid infusions. I have one more tomorrow and then I will be finished with that at least until my next visit in three weeks. I had spoken with other MS patients who gave me many different side effects from the infusions. For me however, I have been lucky for the most part I have not been too horribly moody, but even though my body is aching and I am so tired, I feel like I have to be up doing something constantly! The house is completely straight because of that. I am having trouble with fluid retention and I am hoping that will go away quickly. For those of you who know me well, you know that I eat a fairly healthy diet. I am trying hard to stick to that because extreme hunger is another side effect. I don't want to put on any extra pounds in addition to the water weight! I am also experiencing some pretty severe headaches. I am still trying to smile through this and I am looking forward to coming off of fall break this week and getting back into my routine. I miss my classroom as it keeps my mind busy and off of the fight.

The Beginning

Today I went back to Nashville to begin my treatment. This week of Fall Break has consisted of many doctor's appointments So my trips this week haven't been as fun and relaxing as some! Tuesday, my first trip to Nashville this week was for the MRI. I have already had two this summer so I thought it would be a piece of cake. Not so lucky! I had heard stories about people freaking out when they get into the MRI cavity but I never could figure out why until this time. This time, I had a little panic attack and they had to give me some "calming medication" in order to get me back in there, but I am glad that I did it because it was from this MRI that Dr. Hunter was able to see the leisons that had been missed on the first MRI's. Today, based on the new MRI and the test he did last week, he was able to begin my treatment. This was day one of a 3 day round of Solu Medrol steroid IV infusions. I had the first one in Nashville today and I can have the remaining two in Paducah, one tomorrow (Friday) and the last one on Monday. After that I will begin my daily injections of Rebif. This medication will help slow the progression of the Relapsing Remitting M.S. I will go back to Nashville in three weeks to see if I need another round of steroid infusions. I will have to be on some type of medication for the rest of my life to help slow the progression of the disease. My sister was able to go with me today and she and I talked about what we saw while I was getting my infusion. It was really difficult to see and talk to the patients who were there for treatments who were in different stages of the disease. I am still going to keep a positive attitude and try to keep a low stress level. Keep praying and I will keep updating when I can!

After I read this I remembered that I wanted to add a huge thanks to my wonderful cousin Lisa who took the day off on Tuesday to drive me to Nashville for my MRI. She did a good job helping me when they had to give me the valium! Also I want to thank my sister who took a day off on Thursday to go with me.Its not just my appointments that I have had to get help with though. My co-worker Brittany was gracious enough to take Lyndsey to an appointment that I already had scheduled Thursday and my Uncle-in-law Roy Gene picked her up. As I mentioned before I am not someone who likes to ask for help, but I am learning that I have to. I know that taking off of work can always be costly and I thank God everyday for all of the wonderful people who are helping me especially my wonderful husband who is great with the house and kids.

This is not in my schedule!!!!

The title of this post says it all!! I have been battling some pretty trying symptoms for nearly four months now. Day after day we have waited for a reason for feeling this way. I have had a battery of tests, and on one day I literally had 14 vials of blood drawn. Monday, I finally got an answer. My doctor has told me I have MS. I knew in my mind that this is what it would be, but hearing that, and listening to his findings really made it sink in for me. Now, we figure out where to go from here.

The first thing that I have thought about since hearing that from my doctor, is what is going to change in my life. I coach high school Volleyball and middle school Cheer. My Volleyball season is winding down and I have already made the decision to not coach next year and Cheer was a one year deal from the beginning. It hurts to have to give up things that you enjoy and take pride in, but I feel that I want to reserve my energy for teaching and for my family.  Everyone who knows me, knows that I live religiously by my "MomAgenda" date book, so I looked back and having MS is not on the agenda!! I don't have time for this! That is what I want to scream at the top of my lungs.

MS is a disease that slows you down. I am a person who only has one gear and that is high gear. Try telling someone who hits the ground running everyday and doesn't stop until she falls into bed that she has to slow down. It is very frustrating.

I created this blog to vent my feelings and to help friends and family stay informed about what is going on. This Friday, I will see a Retina specialist. I apparently have some problems with my eyes that are part of MS. Tuesday, I will have another MRI and Thursday I will see the Doctor again. He has mentioned starting a very potent steriod treatment then. Right now we just need prayers!! That is what is going to get us through this tough disease.

I am thankful to have a wonderful family and great friends to help me out and keep me up when I need it!