Keri, I wish I could reach out and give you a . . . and no, I'm not known for my warm and fuzzy's either. I remember what you are feeling and experiencing like it was yesterday, and that was 17 yrs ago now. However, the truth is that many of us grieve and panic every time we go through another change, and we often go through many ups and downs through the years.

Snoopy is right that there is no way he could know your category as yet. In fact, he is dead wrong if he is suggesting that you may be SPMS, because that category begins with years in the relapsing-remitting phase, followed later by a more progressive course. Since you have not had any notable health problems until know, and have not been having relapses, it is actually impossible for you to be SPMS :

http://www.mult-sclerosis.org/whatisms.html

If he meant PPMS, firstly he doesn't know his categories, and secondly he can not predict that for at least 1 - 5 yrs, when he sees what the disease does over time. Most people with PPMS don't have lots of inflammed lesions in the beginning either . . . so none of this is adding up.

However . . . if you do have PPMS, Tysabri has not yet been trialled on this category of MS, and it is currently believed that it is not going to be of any use to those people anyway. These drugs are for the "inflammation" that comes with relapsing nature of this disease, but it's an entirely different process (neurodegeneration) that goes on once we move into the progressive phase. A drug that specifically targets inflammation is just not intended to help with neurodegeneration . . .

Having said all that, I do not blame someone for trying any drug in the hopes that it might slow down this MonSter . . . I just disagree with a nitwit "specialist" scaring the pants off a patient to coerce them to doing it. In all honesty, my concern is for you only! He absolutely should have given you time to come to terms with HAVING MS first . . .

My story is actually quite similar to yours in that I had no family, was not married, hadn't even considered children yet, was career oriented, only 31 yrs old, and had just returned from 5 yrs overseas (had lost contact with most of my friends in that time). I was only home 2 - 3 months and had just started in a new job (a few weeks) when I was instantly paralyzed. So you know what I did when I found out it was probably MS?!? . . . I went out and found a very handsome German tourist and asked him to father a child for me, no strings attached.

So, about 6 months into this MS journey, and not yet recovered from the attack . . . I was unmarried & pregnant, they had discovered cervical cancer, I was anemic, and I had gestational diabetes. What a fine pickle I had gotten myself into. OH YEAH . . . and there were absolutely no drugs on the market to potentially slow this beast.

When I say I understand how you feel, and that you need more time to come to grips with what is happening to you, I really do speak from experience.

I've raised two beautiful daughters (one is almost 16, the other 12), and I have had some major ups and downs with this disease. I have had to learn patience and tenacity, and so have my kids.

Your neuro should not have scared you like he has, because he can not know where this will take you yet. Get another opinion.

One day at a time, Keri.

Cherie