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| Andrea 2007 |
It all start with severe back pain at which time I decided to call my PCP who sent me to STAR Physical Therapy. I was attending therapy for about 2 to 3 weeks when I woke up one morning to my whole body feeling like it was asleep (the feeling you get when your feet fall asleep), I decided to go ahead and go to therapy but when I got there and told my therapist what was going on he would not continue with my therapy until I had it looked at further.
About a week later I went to Mid Tennessee Neurology Assoc. at Summit Medical center. The doctor that I seen was Dr. Noel Lim who sent me to have MRI's done of my back and neck. About two days later I received a call from Dr. Lim's nurse telling me that I had to come in to discuss my results with Dr. Lim. So I made the appointment for the next day, mind you I was on edge all day because when a doctor wants you to come in to review you results you know something is wrong, and went in the next day to discuss my results. Dr. Lim's first comment that came out of him month when he came into the room was "Doing this MRI opened up a whole new can of worms". I mean who want to hear that. I was scared to death, was is cancer, a huge tumor, or something worse. Yes all these could have been horrible, but my mind was racing with thought. My main concern was "I'm I going to be around for my daughter in the future or to see her kids."
That same visit was Dr. Lim he introduced me to Dr. Shan-Ren Zhou was specializes in Multiple Sclerosis. Dr. Zhou sent me for another MRI of my neck and brain. Within two days it was confirmed that I did endeed have MS. My life had turned upside down (so I thought), Dr. Zhou then sent me to have a Spinal Tap done, which I am telling you, I would not wish that on anyone. I thought I could handle it because I had an epidural with the birth of Andrea, the Spinal Tap was worse. The spinal tap was being done to find out what stage of MS I had. There are three stage of MS, Relapsing Remitting, Primary Progressive, Secondary Progressive, and Progressive-relapsing. The stage that I have is the Relapsing Remitting which was a huge relief, as long as I took medication and kept my stress under control, along with doing other things, I would be able to watch my daughter grow up and see her children.
After the insurance ok'd everything I was prescribed a week treatment of Steroid Infusions. That week was different to say the least. I had a port put in
to my arm to receive the steroid and that had to stay in all week. I was fortunate enough because my mom is a nurse and she was able to give me the treatment everyday, so the nurse didn't have to come back everyday and I didn't have to go to the hospital to get the treatment. At the end of that week I had to do a 9 hour drive to Chicago with my Sister-n-law and her daughter and Andrea. I was wired for sound. On top of all the steroid and three Red Bulls, I was able to drive through the night like we usually do. After being up for 48 hours and driving 9 of those hours, we w
ere finally in Chicago, IL which felt great. However, as soon as we got there I sleep for two days almost. I was so thankful for my sister-n-law and my grandmother-n-law because they were able to watch Andrea while, she was able to spend time with her great grandmother.
When we returned home from our week trip, I started with my main treatment. I received my first box of Rebif. I will be taking Rebif for the rest of my life, so three times a week I will be giving myself shots as my medication. That's not to mention the medication for my anxiety, Fibromyalgia, and Migraines, which is all part of the MS. I never dreamed that I would be a walking pharmacy or to have a disease that would run my life.
About a week later I went to Mid Tennessee Neurology Assoc. at Summit Medical center. The doctor that I seen was Dr. Noel Lim who sent me to have MRI's done of my back and neck. About two days later I received a call from Dr. Lim's nurse telling me that I had to come in to discuss my results with Dr. Lim. So I made the appointment for the next day, mind you I was on edge all day because when a doctor wants you to come in to review you results you know something is wrong, and went in the next day to discuss my results. Dr. Lim's first comment that came out of him month when he came into the room was "Doing this MRI opened up a whole new can of worms". I mean who want to hear that. I was scared to death, was is cancer, a huge tumor, or something worse. Yes all these could have been horrible, but my mind was racing with thought. My main concern was "I'm I going to be around for my daughter in the future or to see her kids." That same visit was Dr. Lim he introduced me to Dr. Shan-Ren Zhou was specializes in Multiple Sclerosis. Dr. Zhou sent me for another MRI of my neck and brain. Within two days it was confirmed that I did endeed have MS. My life had turned upside down (so I thought), Dr. Zhou then sent me to have a Spinal Tap done, which I am telling you, I would not wish that on anyone. I thought I could handle it because I had an epidural with the birth of Andrea, the Spinal Tap was worse. The spinal tap was being done to find out what stage of MS I had. There are three stage of MS, Relapsing Remitting, Primary Progressive, Secondary Progressive, and Progressive-relapsing. The stage that I have is the Relapsing Remitting which was a huge relief, as long as I took medication and kept my stress under control, along with doing other things, I would be able to watch my daughter grow up and see her children.
Treatment Starts
After the insurance ok'd everything I was prescribed a week treatment of Steroid Infusions. That week was different to say the least. I had a port put in
to my arm to receive the steroid and that had to stay in all week. I was fortunate enough because my mom is a nurse and she was able to give me the treatment everyday, so the nurse didn't have to come back everyday and I didn't have to go to the hospital to get the treatment. At the end of that week I had to do a 9 hour drive to Chicago with my Sister-n-law and her daughter and Andrea. I was wired for sound. On top of all the steroid and three Red Bulls, I was able to drive through the night like we usually do. After being up for 48 hours and driving 9 of those hours, we were finally in Chicago, IL which felt great. However, as soon as we got there I sleep for two days almost. I was so thankful for my sister-n-law and my grandmother-n-law because they were able to watch Andrea while, she was able to spend time with her great grandmother.
