Well, the answers will likely be:

"You still have MS, you still have lesions, and you have lesions on your brain stem like we thought". lol.

Every six months for an MRI? That's certainly not the case here. I'm actually quite surprised my GP is sending me for this one. My neurologist never suggested it, and he knew about the persistent head pain that I continue to have.

I don't mind the MRI at all personally. Gimme warm blankets and I'm good to go. Slide me in and I will fall asleep in the tunnel. I just imagine myself as a beautiful butterfly waiting to escape a cocoon....

... hey, we can dream right?!

I do agree about the DR. And she wrote me scripts for Clonazepam/Gabapentin that'll last me a year. So I'm not scrambling in there every 2-3 months for more drugs. She even wrote me a larger script for Clonazepam because she knew that I was skimping on some days with the worry I wouldn't have enough to last me until the next refill date. So now I have lots and won't need to worry about running out .

But that's exactly what you are.

Awww, you're a sweetheart!

If I am a butterfly though, some days I feel like my wings are more fragile than others.

I think this thread is turning into poetry in motion!

Given your symptoms, and that you perhaps didn't have lesions in the brainstem area before (?), he should be checking this out. MS isn't the only disease that can cause these symptoms ....

He knows you've opted out of Copaxone for the time being, right? If there are lots of new lesions, then he would know that Copaxone hasn't really been working for that purpose anyway. He, of course, would want you to try something else if there is negative activity too . . .

Good luck, Laura.

Cherie

Well, my neurologist is kinda in the dark about all this. The MRI results will be sent to him. I'm sure he's going to soon know that I'm going FOR the MRI, but it's the GP who's ordering it.

The headaches are not new, but since they're almost daily, along with the burning pain (heck, burning mouth since June or July of 2007) they want to explore the brain stem area. It was never imaged originally.

I don't know what they'll find there. In a way part of me is hoping "oh, a mass that they can remove maybe!!" and symptoms will go away. But a mass of whatever can also be very bad, and if it's in the brain stem, perhaps inoperable.

In any event... we've pretty much ruled out a blood disease/anything to be detected in the blood. Now we move on to other areas I guess .

It seems likely you had brainstem involvement early on, given your symptoms from the get-go, so it makes sense they get a baseline.

Good luck, Laura . . . and hopefully everything is relatively stable.

Cherie