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Originally Posted by dmplaura
Weighed in at 119 pounds (I'm only 5'2) so that was nice to see, he was thrilled about the fact that I had quit smoking as well.
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CONGRATS on the weight loss, ESPECIALLY while quitting smoking!! You must have a ton of willpower g/f!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmplaura
He did his look over on me. I mentioned the burning head pain, and I agree with him. I can't be taking Clonazepam long term for this... or else I'll just need more and more, and it's habit forming/addictive.
He refused Nortriptyline. Flat out. Said if I had trouble with the others, this would not help either.
So then I asked about medical marijuana. Boy, did his eyes light up.  Basically he said, only a pain specialist can prescribe it here, and that those who he knows that receive it now, say it's half as effective as the stuff you buy on the street, basically.
So his parting words on the subject were, "If you get caught, tell em your doctor said to use it for your MS symptoms and pain!". |
So, what are you "supposed" to use for the pain then, if the other options are not available to you? Are you on anything else that helps?
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmplaura
Haha! Yes, I love my neurologist. 6 refills on Copaxone and said, "See you in June!". He doesn't expect he'll see me back in his office before then at my rate of recovery. Whew.
He is also sending me for a slew of blood work I requested he do again, including ANA....
Then I only go back for my Copaxone blood work he does in 3 months (February). He talked a bit about that, and he said that VERY few neurologists do that requisition, but that he feels it's important to follow your patient's progress beginning any drug like a DMD. He mentioned a neuro in BC he knows that also does monthly C blood work and I thought of Cherie immediately  . |
HA! My neuro doesn't EVER do bloodwork on me, but that's probably because I use very few drugs, and none that should/could cause problems. I get my regular annual bloodwork (cholesterol, diabetes, etc.) by my GP, but that's it unless it's necessary for "other" health concerns.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmplaura
So it seems.. back to work Monday!
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Good luck!! Are you "phasing" back into the job, or is it back to full-time from the get-go?
Most STD/LTD offer "back-to-work" phase-in plans (still get paid disability for p/t, regular hours for the rest...), which I would personally HIGHLY recommend.
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Originally Posted by dmplaura
I asked why the Tysabri stuff was removed from his office. I was given a pamphlet to fill out to mail to my local parliament requesting the government absorb the costs of this therapy for patients. Apparently (In NB at least) Tysabri is $35,000 annually, and I don't believe is covered by many insurances (could be wrong here), but enough problems to prompt such action as this cry for help. Apparently Quebec has it free through the government now?
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Yeah, I heard that Quebec's "socialized health care plan" is the only provincial plan that covers it, and that happened very recently:
http://www.msrc.co.uk/index.cfm?fuse...ow&pageid=1905
(2nd article on that link)
I'm fairly certain a lot of other insurance plans do now too, but maybe Weeble would know more about that because she was on it here in BC.
I was surprised when Health Canada approved it here so quickly after it was reintroduced in the US . . . but approving it and paying for it is two different things.
Often they wait 2 yrs after a drug has been on the market to evaluate it's effectiveness and risk, before they might "encourage" Canadians to use it (by paying for it).
Remember too that we don't have the TOUCH program here, so there is a possibility of much more risk. Our government doesn't like "risk" too much either, especially if they are paying for it or will be accountable in some way if they don't have a good program to "manage" that risk.
Cherie
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I am not a Neurologist, Physician, Nurse, or Hairdresser ... but I have learned that it is not such a great idea to give oneself a haircut after three margaritas
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