A to Z blogging challenge, I is for imagination...

Lucky lady

Today is my first post in a couple of weeks, that's bad.  Have got things lined up but not had a chance to complete them.  Any hoo, it's been a good day, it was my annual review with my MS consultant and all went well. I was literally in there for about 5 minutes, a case of  'how are you doing, well. Ok lovely, see you in a year' She's really pleased, as am I, how well things are going.  Need to get my blood test results next week which are to check I am not producing antibodies against the Avonex but since I have had no relapses or major problems, it would suggest I'm not.  It's funny that I started my blog after I was diagnosed with MS as a place to work through things and hopefully help people by sharing my experiences but now posts about MS related things rarely feature.  This is a good thing, well actually a fantastic thing.  It means I have been very lucky or blessed, well whatever you want to call it, things have been good and my MS has been under control.

All Tickety Boo!

Yesterday I had my what should of been 3m review with my MS nurse yesterday but it's actually been just under 6m since I last saw her.  I am extremely pleased to report that all my blood tests were normal and apart from that nothing else exciting to report.  So that can only be good. Things are ticking along very nicely indeed on Avonex.  I still take about 2 to 3 lots of painkillers the day of injection to manage some achy joints but effects are minimal.  Although I am get pretty tired that afternoon/evening after work and could quite easily fall asleep on the sofa.  It definitely works well for me having the injection first thing in the morning before going to work as being at work takes my mind off things (obviously this is possible because effects are minimal).  As I said being at work takes my mind off things and I often forget for at least a few hours that I have had my injection.  I see patients up until 12:15 and its only after that time that I usually suddenly think 'oh yeah had my jab today, that's why I'm feeling a little achy now'.  I then take another lot of paracetamol or ibuprofen and carry on with my afternoon which very luckily for me finishes at half 3 and I can head off home to start my weekend.  Woo hoo! Alright for some eh!  Towards the end of the month it will be a year on Avonex and it's so wonderful that the reactions from having it are settling and its keeping my arch enemy, the villainous MS at bay.  I tell you what one injection a week is a small price to pay to keep my health on the straight and narrow.  This leads me to the fact I often feel like a fraud.  I am very grateful things are well under control and MS isn't having any major impact on my life any more.  If you took a look at me you would never guess I had a 'chronic disease', I have not been left with any disability post relapses.  My jaunt with MS has so far been I suppose fairly straight forward.  I first had problems in 2006, had tests done, knew that MS was a possibility.  I happily plodded along until 2010 when I had my first relapse, recovered, 6m later another relapse, recovered , 6m later another relapse, again recovered and then started on DMD's.  Other people are left in limbo for many years or have to fight to have drugs to help with their MS.  Thankfully for me I wasn't left in limbo and I didn't have to fight to be put on DMD's.  Saying that it has been a struggle at times and far from easy, I'm just lucky I have made it through the bad times unscathed.  Unless I have to really admit defeat I'm not the sort of person who will let MS get the better of me.  For example during a relapse back in June 2010 which was affecting my speach and balance I went on a 'wilder' camping trip with Hubby and Spike.  It was an official campsite but we stayed under the stars in our hammocks with a tarp over our heads in the woodland near the campsite.  Never mind the fact I was in the middle of a relapse and when walking had to stop walking every so often because I could feel my co-ordination and balance going.  I wasn't going to let a little thing like that stop me from going on holiday and enjoying myself! No siree! It helped that Hubby does all of the hard work and keeps me safe.  Here are some pics of our trip and where we were camping.  In fact if you want to see more click on the photo on my sidebar called ' Camping at Lone Wolf in Wales'.

So I hope things will continue to be all tickety boo for a long time and I continue to evade that notorious villain, MS!  

Koumpounophobia (Ahhh it's a button!)

Well once again it's been far too long since I've updated my blog.  Since I last updated I have discovered I have a button phobia.   Well actually  it's not really a button phobia more of a phobia of pressing buttons, such as the one on my Avonex pen. I shouldn't joke really, I know two people who have Koumponophobia (phobia of pressing buttons), phobias are distressing so apologies to anyone with a button phobia. So I was being a little over dramatic saying I had a button pressing phobia.  but I definitely have issues with pressing that damn button on my Avonex Pen!  Why I don't know.  I now have a new Avonex device the Avonex Pen.  It's a pretty nifty device.  Great for people who hate needles because once you've attached the  needle it's completely covered so you don't need to look at it.  It uses an orange needle which is normally used for injections under the skin but because of the way the device works it doesn't need the longer blue needle.  It does make quite a loud clicking noise which I find makes me jump or certainly did the first few times I used it.  I say when I used it, but apart from the first time I used it when the Avonex nurse came over to show me the new pen and I managed to do it myself and the time after that when unfortunately it didn't go as well and  I cocked it all up, Hubby has had to do it for me!