The F Word...

Fatigue. Have you experienced it? I mean the feeling where you are so tired, that your body is heavy and your limbs feel pain because of the exhaustion. Fatigue is a side effect of MS. It does suck sometimes. My biggest trigger is sleep, or should I say, lack of sleep. I've found that a solid eight hours is ideal but 10 makes me function even better. Fatigue plagued me quite a bit over the holidays but it was worth the experiences I got to have! Our family traveled to Tahoe, Phoenix and Las Vegas over the two week holiday break. It was a lot of driving - yes we drove! but it was so fun to see family! Living in California has been quite nice for me especially because I get to see my family so much easier (and cheaper) than in years past. You may be wondering how I am doing on Tecfidera and I'm happy to say that I am doing pretty good. I am sitting here at the computer with flushed cheeks at the moment but I'll take that over the the laundry list of side effects they rattle off in those commercials! The bigger question now is, "Is it working?" The answer... I have no idea. My vision is improved about 80% of the time. My numbness is the same and most likely permanent at this point. Although, miracles happen every day so perhaps some day I'll be back to full strength again. I am glad I chose to get back on medication. I was terrified of the potential interference with my day to day life but so far, so good. The lingering question for me of course is what if this doesn't work? Doesn't slow the disease down? Then what? Well that would mean shots again most likely. I hate shots. Does anyone like them? Please raise your hand if you like shots. For now, I am going to hope that the pill option works and I can continue on with my big blue pill twice a day. My next MRI will likely be at the end of April. It will check for disease activity and progression... if things are quiet, I'll continue this course. If the disease is rowdy, I'll try something else. I've heard about stem cell therapy options but that means chemotherapy to wipe out your immune system and rebuild it... YIKES. Right now there are clinical trials taking place in Chicago for this option. It's encouraging for the future of MS, especially those experiencing the serious side effects of this stupid disease. I am grateful for modern medicine, really I am. I just wish medicine would eradicate diseases instead of just creating band-aids to deal with them. I imagine most of you are nodding in agreement with that one, huh? Peace.