Hi! I saw your post and thought I should give you some information.

My appt. with my neuro was Nov. 3rd, 2010, and that's when I made the decision to stop Copaxone and switch to Gilenya. I had 4 relapses last year that were treated with steroids each time, so I figured it was time to change DMD's.

I actually started Gilenya on January 6th. That's how long it took to get all the testing completed, the starter pack of meds shipped to my neuro, and get the 6 hour appt.

My neuro monitored my blood pressure and heart rate himself during the six hour trial period. Everything went just fine.

I have had problems with copay assistance and my insurance, though. I've had to make many calls to get them to clear my balance. I was getting pretty frustrated because it was affecting my ability to order other medications. This week, it was finally taken care of.

Having patience with Gilenya support is important. Sometimes the nurse navigators do not return phone messages, so you have to be persistant. Once they assign you to one, if they don't help, ask for someone else to assist you.

I've had few side effects since starting, but none too serious. The first couple of weeks I had a little dizziness, and I was extremely fatigued. I'm still getting over an upper respiratory infection, bronchitis and sinus infection which came out of nowhere.

My neuro said he believes it is from the Gilenya and is keeping a close eye on what is happening. After a few rounds of antibiotics and some other symptom meds, I am feeling much better.

My latest bloodwork showed extremely low lymphocyte counts. Gilenya is supposed to do this. My neuro was not concerned at the levels and I just received my second shipment.

I really hope things hold steady for awhile because I do not want to go back to doing the injections.

Is there anything specific you want to know?