December Medical Update
Over the past few weeks I’ve been knocking a lot off of my medical catch up list. I went to the dentist and got a tooth cleaning. Had to do a follow up a couple weeks later to get a couple cavities filled. I had an ophthalmologist appointment and had a Greek doctor. He said that the only thing wrong with my eyes is that they were a bit dry and gave me a bunch of eye drop samples. That same week I saw an optometrist and got my glasses prescription updated. Though there has been a hiccup with trying to pick up my new glasses. I got a text message that they were ready to pick up but when I went in, the glasses that were under my name were someone else’s. They apologized and said that the manager was going to have to look into what happened during the inspection process. When I called a few days later the manager said they have been extremely busy and haven’t been able to sort it out yet.
I also got in to get a checkup with my PCP. When it was time to get weighed I was relieved to find out that I’m over 100lbs because I was really worried that I wouldn’t be. She looked so tired and overworked so I’m not surprised that she was more concerned about getting me back on my MS meds than with my ADHD/fatigue medication. I had also mentioned that I had been feeling more depressed lately but she didn’t follow up on that. She did however immediately put in the orders for the full STI panel I requested and I was able to get that done in the office the same day.
The office coordinator for my neurologist gave me a call a couple of weeks ago when I sent another message about having run out of my MS medication. She let me know the prior authorization for the medication had expired in April. She had me reach out to Biogen to see if they could send me some complimentary doses but they would not because I had been off the medication for too long (roughly three months now). Luckily, she was able to get me an appointment with the PA really quickly.
At the appointment yesterday I gave the PA a brief overview of my circumstances and situation and for the first time in as many months she made me feel seen and heard. She told me she was proud of me multiple times, it almost had me crying. With another move coming up so soon and because it’s going to be a move out of state she said that she wanted to try a different kind of MS treatment. She’d like me to get an Ocrevus infusion treatment. Instead of taking a pill twice a day, it’s an IV treatment that lasts about 6 months. Though this gives me a more stable treatment option it will leave me more at risk for respiratory infections, breast cancer, and more cold sores popping up.
She was glad to hear that I haven’t had tobacco in weeks but still wants me to work on getting off the nicotine, even going so far as to say she is more comfy with medical marijuana use than nicotine use. She also told me that she wants me to start doing some workout videos from MS Gym and oMS Yoga and to make my drum videos daily. She was also able to get me back on my ADHD/fatigue meds and made sure I knew what resources were available to me if my depression and ideations ever got to the next level of the planning phase. I had to get some more bloodwork done and the lab was in the office right next to hers.
Today is the first day I’ve had the ADHD/fatigue medication in a while. It feels like stepping out of a fog that has been lingering and preventing me from being able to effectively keep up with cleaning and clearing out the clutter (both in the physical and metaphorical sense). I’m trying to reframe and redirect thoughts of shame for “letting it get this bad” when they pop up in my brain and I’m thankful for the friends and loved ones in my life that have been helpful in reminding me to do so. As I start to clean up this clutter, I’ll work on getting out a more personal update for y’all. Things have been tough and I haven’t had the spoons to write about it.
I’m so very grateful for the support that you, my Patrons, have continued to give me even when I haven’t been great at putting out content. I can’t thank you enough y’all! 💚
