Category: Drugs

Drugs

Pills macro
I was a compliant kid growing up. Eager to please and never wanting to incur the wrath and disappointment of my parents, I toed the line through my high school years in terms of alcohol and recreational drugs. Part of this was because I went to a private school and lost connection with my local peers, and part of it was because I was living at home. While I was a pretty good actor, I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide the fact I might be stoned or drunk, and it wasn’t worth dealing with the fallout.

That all changed once I went to college though, and I was free from supervision and judgement. I never went crazy, and always steered away from the hallucinogenics or anything I considered hard-core because they scared me, but did dabble with pretty much everything else, primarily out of curiosity to see what they felt like.  None really stuck besides MJ for a variety of reasons, but even that died a slow death once my career started in earnest. My “drug use” resurfaced almost thirty years later in 2010 when I started getting IV meds for my MS.

I had no idea or concern about how these meds would make me feel, partly because I trusted my doctor and partly because I have always been curious about how pharmaceuticals impact one’s body. It didn’t take long however for me to realize that what I dabbled with in my twenties were minor league compared to the kinds of meds dispensed at hospitals or pharmacies.

First there was the steroids. My maiden experience with these were over a three day period at home when a visiting nurse came to the house to hook me up and explain what to do over the next few days.

The initial impact was immediate and somewhat miraculous. Compared to where I am today, the leg at that time was a lot more functional, and probably eighty percent stronger. I didn’t have any major balance issues, but I could not walk without a limp, my foot dragged and I could not run or jog. Within twenty four hours of the day one infusion, I noticed an immediate improvement, and after day three I was walking normally. No limp, no dragging foot, and I could jog easily. It was as if the MS magically disappeared. I was astounded! Unfortunately, this respite lasted about ten days before the symptoms started coming back.

Be that as it may, within twenty-four hours of the last infusion, the side effects came. I was flushed and felt warm, and my face looked like I had been in the sun all day. Plus I was ravenous, and no amount of food I stuffed down my throat would satisfy the craving. I was uncomfortably bloated and felt like beached whale. I woke up the next day greeted by a case of  chronic hiccups that lasted for three entire days, and I literally mean morning noon and night. I would occasionally get a respite of twenty minutes or so, but that was it. Sleep was next to impossible. It was once of the worst experiences of my life.

I’ve never done the three day course of treatment since, even though I have always had that option, because of that one experience. I continue to get a smaller dose of steroids every time I have the plasma transfer, but the hiccups that result are confined to one day and they are episodic, so I can deal with that. If they get really bad, and they usually do at night the day after the treatment, a healthy dose of the medical MJ stops them in their tracks.

Then there were the chemo meds. Every month without fail for about seven or eight years, I received an infusion of 600mg of Cytoxan. I jokingly called them “flu shots” but was warned that this was no flu shot, and I would be wise to take a day or two off after the infusion to rest.

I received the infusions on Friday. I would feel like I was coming down with the flu by Friday night, and I was absolutely useless on Saturday and Sunday. I believe one for the first posts I wrote, entitled Zombie Land, described its effects in addition to all the other treatments and procedures I had put myself through up until then, so I won’t rehash history.

But I had no energy whatsoever. I couldn’t even lift my head off the pillow, and walking to the bathroom felt like walking though a vat of liquid caramel. Speaking took a monumental effort as did anything else remotely physical. And the dreams! They were intense, and while the sex dreams were fun, many of the others were bizarre bordering on hallucinogenic.

I vividly remember having a dream where I was in my bedroom, feeling tired, sweaty and aware. The room would start spinning for a minute or two, then stopped. Once that occurred, I could feel my body levitate off the bed. I couldn’t open my eyes because I didn’t have the energy, but there was no doubt I was hanging in mid air, floating as if I were on a cloud. I hovered that way for a few minutes before I felt myself being lowered and coming into contact with the mattress and pillows.

This “dream” happened every single Sunday morning of my infusion weekends for years, before becoming a once in a while thing. It felt so real because of the awareness I had when I was in the middle of it. I could feel the bedsheets draping over my body, cascading downward like a loose shroud. I heard the same household sounds that I would if I were awake. Everything I felt seemed like it was actually occurring. To this day I don’t know if this was a dream or a hallucination, but it was one of the most bizarre experiences of my life.

And this was after getting only 600mg of the stuff. Cancer patients get hell of a lot more, so I can’t even begin to fathom what that must feel like.

After being on the Cytoxan for a while, Saturdays became manageable while Sundays remained a waste of a day. But it still killed one weekend a month, which is primarily why I switched to Ocrevus. It reduced the number of times I’d be infused each year from twelve to two. I don’t get the weird dreams or crushing fatigue like I did with the Cytoxan, and I have a little more energy, but my body still gets hot, my head still feels like mush, and if I overdo it the room starts spinning and into bed I go. It also takes about a day or two longer before the side effects are completely gone.

The curious thing about switching to Ocrevus is the difference in how I feel after receiving the plasma transfers. Perhaps that is because I used to get the plasma transfers and the Cytoxan on the same day every month, and I what I felt was mostly because of the meds. Without those meds, I feel  physically wrung out and mentally fuzzy later that evening. By morning I may feel a little burnt-out, but that fades quickly.

These meds are designed to address physical issues, but there is a host of drugs for mental health issues that focus on brain chemistry. Knowing what my head and body feels like with some of the meds I have mentioned, my heart goes out to anyone who struggles with their mental health and needs psychotropic drugs to survive daily life. I can’t fathom what they must endure, and hope I never learn.

While I am certainly no expert, if you are faced with a chronic illness that requires pharmaceutical intervention, and the only experience you have with drugs are of the recreational variety, understand that the difference between what you know and what are about to receive, particularly if it is done intravenously, is like the difference between night and day. And if you don’t have that experience to fall back on, be prepared for a potentially wild ride.

Make sure you ask your physician what some of the side effects might be, and how you can expect to feel. I personally don’t recommend reading the literature that comes with the meds because it will scare the shit out of you. All it does is tell you all the bad things that could occur, including death.  Who needs that anxiety?  Besides, could and will are two different things, and your MD should be able to explain what the norms are. You need to get the low-down from them, and should find another provider if they won’t or can’t provide the information you need to feel comfortable.

It is better to learn that way than experiencing it without any prior knowledge, and wondering if something dangerous is going on in your body.

You can’t heal if you’re stressing out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Immunosuppressed In a COVID World

decisions

Being immunosuppressed in a COVID world definitely presents complications the average bear doesn’t have to navigate. MS is particularly tricky, because the reason I have the condition is my autoimmune system is on overdrive. In theory that means I should be more protected than most. After all, in order to treat the disease, the goal is to put the immune system to sleep so the body stops cannibalizing itself.

Once I started taking the intravenous meds over ten years ago, I assumed a suppressed immune system would mean I would catch everything known to mankind.  I would have bet everything I owned that I’d be sick with a cold , flu, or some godawful thing from Thanksgiving until Spring, but that never occurred. In fact, I can count the number of times I have been ill during this span on one hand, which I still think is odd, and I have no idea what this all means.

The reason this is becoming an issue is because while last month’s plasma transfer provided immediate relief from the weakness and the falling, the relief only lasted ten to fourteen days. Since then, I have been struggling with my balance and ability to move around. I literally have no strength in my ankle, my leg feels like it has no bone in it from just above the knee down, and the weakness gets worse with each passing week.

So while the plasma transfer helped, it appears my condition has regressed. The only thing I have done differently in terms of treatment (other than going two months without doing anything instead of the normal one)  is that I suspended receiving the Ocrevus infusion that was due in March. It has been over nine months since my last infusion, and the gap between treatments is supposed to be six.

So my dilemma is to whether to bite the bullet and get the damn thing. This is not the first time I have stopped taking something to my ultimate detriment, and while I cannot clinically prove the infusion has been helpful, my not getting it certainly fits a historical pattern. But I know from lab test results that this drug shuts down cells that fight infections, and that doesn’t sound like a smart thing to do.

What is most irritating about being in a high at-risk group is that you have to think about and analyze everything. This is cumbersome because nobody knows if the decision they are about to make is going to be the correct one. I go through a line of thought that asks if the decision I am about to make is balanced and thought out or impulsive. Is it selfish? It is overly conservative? Is it rational or based on fear? Is it what is best for me? Is it what is best for my family? The process can be draining.

For instance, do I avoid any kind of crowd, even if I wear a mask, if I get the infusion? Do I stay home and not visit anybody or have anybody visit me? Do I live like the boy in the bubble? Or do I throw caution to the wind and say fuck it! I was taking a lot more immunosuppressing meds than I am now and rarely got sick. Why should this be any different?

Well, the difference is the potential consequence, which could be tragic for myself and those around me. That is the rub. One bad decision and the dirt nap can become a real possibility.

While I don’t have any plans for the summer, I like to have options. A group of good friends from out of state have talked about getting together this summer, and while I’d really like to do that I’m not sure how smart that would be if I go ahead with this. I’d also like to go back to a restaurant at some point in time, and be able to visit with local friends. Part of me says why worry if the necessary precautions are taking. Then again, there is that nagging little voice that whispers, “what if?”

My gut tells me to get the infusion sooner than later. I would like some assurances, but I know there are no guarantees. I suspect that I will be reduced to a prisoner in my own house for a minimum of three months if I get the stuff, and I really don’t want that.

But what good is having options if you can’t walk more than ten feet without holding onto or grabbing something? What good is freedom if it means a complete loss of mobility and a quicker date with the wheelchair. Is the risk worth the reward? I’m thinking not, but we are heading into the best time of the year, which would make my confinement seem exponentially longer.

Do I risk being completely disabled or risk being completely dead? I obviously don’t like either choice, so the middle ground is to get the drugs then hide from the world. That is the sober reality of the situation.

I’m waiting to hear to see what my neurologist has to say about my quandary. Meanwhile, I’m trying to figure out how I’d cope with the restrictions I know the infusion would place upon me. One option that crossed my mind is to increase my MMJ intake and live in a comfortably numb state, except when I am working or sleeping, until a vaccine is developed and my sentence is over.

Now there is a thought!

 

 

 

 

A Once-Familiar Routine

IV

Later this morning, after having spent a couple of hours sitting in a comfy chair hooked up to a centrifuge for the apheresis procedure, I will receive my second full dose of Ocrevus. There is nothing remarkable about this, other than the fact that I don’t remember how I am going to feel for the remainder of the weekend. This is ironic because there was a time when I knew exactly how the weekend was going to play out, and planned accordingly.

From 2009 through last September, a span of over eight years, getting a Friday infusion was a monthly ritual. The drugs were different, but the routine was the same: get hooked up for the apheresis, sit for an hour and a half or so,  then have the sewing needle in the crook of my elbow in one arm removed while the remaining smaller needle in the other arm would be hooked up to an IV bag. Then I’d sit another couple of hours, napping for most of the time, while the drugs were administered.

When it was over, I’d drive home and settle in for the weekend. Friday evenings were spent lounging as a heavy fatigue set in. Other than dealing with periodic hiccups and feeling very warm on Saturday, I putter around the house or do a few errands that weren’t too taxing, just to make myself feel useful.

Sunday was a lost day, when the brunt of the chemo’s side effects hit. My head felt like mush, crushing fatigue would set in and I’d spend all day in bed, either watching television or nodding off. One of the first posts I wrote for this blog described in detail what those Sunday’s felt like. Refer to the chemo drug paragraph of that post if you want to refresh your memories.

The worst thing about this regiment was that it killed one weekend a month. This may not sound like a big deal, but trust me, it was. An every four or five week commitment doesn’t sound bad on the surface, but these infusion weekends often fell at an inopportune time, especially during the holiday seasons.

What appealed to me about Ocrevus, besides the fact it was supposedly designed to help those of us with the progressive form of MS, was the infusions only occurred every six months. The idea or losing two weekends a year instead of twelve sounded like Nirvana. If I’m being completely honest, that fact by itself swayed me to make the switch.

I still get the plasma transfers every month, so it isn’t like I’m appointment free. But those only last an hour and a half and, other than being very tired the evening after the treatment, there are no side effects, and I am as good as new the following day. I have more freedom because I don’t have to worry about having to reschedule a weekend event or the infusion itself because a personal conflict. I also feel less of a burden to K, who had to plan her weekends around an absentee husband.

I’m a little more apprehensive about the getting these infusions than I used to be, and I attribute that to not remembering what tomorrow and Sunday will be like. I have a hard time remembering what I ate for dinner yesterday, so trying to remember what the weekend following an infusion I had six months ago was like is futile

I believe today and tomorrow will be fairly benign, and that Sunday will suck, but what will the degree of suckiness be? Will it be a shutdown Sunday where I don’t leave the bedroom except to go pee, or will it be worse? The first few times I had my original infusions, I could barely open my eyes, my head felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, and when I was mobile, I felt like I was walking in quicksand.

Will it be that way again on Sunday? Will I have a better experience because my body isn’t saturated with the stuff? Or will it be worse because my body isn’t used to having these heavy duty meds infused?

This leads to the question of whether taking these meds is worthwhile. I have never felt remarkably better after the infusions, and while I assume these meds are helping my condition, I can’t say for a fact that they are. What I do know is my progression has proceeded at a snail’s pace for the past eleven years, but the big question is if that is  because of pharmacology,  or is it simply the nature of my MS beast, and taking or not taking meds doesn’t influence it one bit.

One of these days I’ll either learn the answer to that question, or simply get tired of taking this stuff and get off the pharmacology treadmill. For now I will stay the course, but maybe I should take notes about how I felt this weekend that I can refer to next March, when the next infusion is due.

That way I will know what to expect instead of guessing what it is going to be like. The more anxiety I can eliminate from this equation, the better.

 

 

A Date With The Wizard of Oz.

MJ

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh, we’re off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz. We hear he is a whiz of a Wiz if ever a Wiz there was. If ever oh ever a Wiz there was, the Wizard of Oz is one because, because, because, because, because, because……Because of the wonder things he does.

Over the last ten plus years this body has ingested or been shot up with a host of pharmaceutical products. The ones I can remember are:  Interferons (Betaseron and Copaxone); Steroids (solumedrol); A variety of pills (Low Dose Naltrexone, Super Biotin, Ampyra); Chemotherapy Agents (Cytoxan, Ocrevus). Add apheresis (plasma transfers) to the mix and you can see that I’m not shy or afraid of trying different things to try to contain this beast.

There has however been one product that I have shunned for years, and I’m not sure why. It is one I was intimately familiar with for a ten year period starting my freshman year in college, but I never pursued it because I didn’t think I needed it. Going that route would simply be taking advantage of the fact that my condition allowed me to. In other words, I’d be taking this product for the wrong reasons, and while this may not have been as strongly entrenched when I was young, I am very big on what is right and what is wrong.

But I finally relented, and will be visiting what I have coined the Land of Oz., and I don’t mean Oz as in the movie. The Oz. I am referring to is the abbreviation of ounce, or in this case, ounces. Yes, I will be visiting a medical marijuana dispensary for the first time Saturday morning.

There are several reasons for the change of heart. I ran them all  by my neurologist and got the thumbs up to proceed, otherwise I would dropped the matter. As a matter of fact, their office processed the paperwork, sent their portion in, and sent me the link for the stuff that I had to complete the next day. Those items were completed and submitted on-line within twenty four hours, along with a non-refundable $100 payment, and I received my temporary permit via email last week. The entire process took about two weeks.

Why am I doing this? My restless leg is becoming increasingly annoying and uncomfortable, my back and hip are aching constantly, my leg foot and toes often cramp, I think I am more anxious, and K has repeatedly said my level of crankiness and intolerance is increasing. That was news to me, but when she pointed this out I began paying attention to my moods, and wouldn’t you know it? She was right. So we will give this a whirl and see if any of these things improve.

I’m looking forward to the visit, primarily to see what these places are like. I have no idea what to expect, no idea if the “product” will be displayed, and have only a rudimentary understanding of the options available to me. If I’m not mistaken, there will be a lot of items to choose from, which will be fascinating. The last time I was involved in this kind of purchase, it was over thirty years ago, an ounce of the “product” was in a baggie, and the cost was $40. That seems like a lifetime ago.

Now I can legally purchase two and an half ounces of the stuff every month without any felon’s guilt. From what I understand, many of the options don’t even produce a buzz, which is probably the way to go. But there is a part of me that would like to get the product that has the highest THC content so I can once again go cruising with the blimp, an expression from my college days, and completely tune out. Maybe I can get a little of this, and a little of that, something for any occasion.

Having said that, I really don’t know what is or is not allowed. What I do know is that I will be meeting with one of the pharmacists when I arrive for what I presume will be an orientation, a review of what they have, and what might work best for what I am trying to address. I wasn’t even sure if would walk out the building with anything, or have to wait and come back when whatever they ordered is received, but the person I spoke with made if very clear that I was to bring cash, a debit card or a checkbook. No credit cards are accepted. From this I have drawn two conclusions.

The first is that I will be bringing a month supply of something with me when I return from the visit, and the other is that I am in for sticker shock.

To be continued….

 

Thoughts On Pharmacology and The Search For A Cure

Cash

In the ten years since I was diagnosed, I have tried eight different medications to manage my symptoms and progression, and never gave much it much thought or questioned my choices until the last few weeks. What changed? I’ve noticed a number of posts from various bloggers about their experiences with the drugs they take for MS and other chronic conditions, and two truths have become painfully obvious.

The first is that pharmaceuticals are the primary, and in some cases, the only option provided to us. The second is that trying these drugs is similar to purchasing a lottery ticket, in the hope of hitting the jackpot, only to be left with a hangover.

I’m not anti-drug, just anti Big-Pharma. After all, doesn’t it seem ludicrous that the entire idea of legalizing marijuana, medical or otherwise, still meets a ton of resistance as it’s labeled as a gateway drug, yet scripts of opiates are dispensed like candy, creating an addictive culture that turns to heroin when the supply is cut off, and the outrage is muted? Don’t get me started.

As I was saying, I’m not anti-drug, and there have been a handful that have helped me, but let’s be honest. Even with the drugs the FDA has approved, we’re still participating in a never-ending clinical trial, serving as lab rats or human petri dishes for Big-Pharma and the medical community in general.

Is that a harsh assessment? Maybe, but we willingly take stuff we know may not do a damn thing, and make us feel like shit in the process, but don’t think twice if that occurs, and gladly move onto the next option. Maybe that option will be better, but if not we keep trying other things until we find something that works even a little. After all, what’s the alternative?

I know that the stuff that I’ve been putting into my body all these years isn’t healthy. The chemo I took for over eight years isn’t good for the liver, and necessitated monthly blood tests to ensure my liver enzymes weren’t all fucked up. I know Ocrevus isn’t much better. So yes, I do think about what the long term health consequences of what I’m doing might be, but that does not get in the way of continuing the path I am on or trying something new. It’s a safe bet I’m not the only person who feels this way.

That may sound desperate to someone not living this life, and I know holistic options exist, diet for one, that might be worth pursuing. But I’m brainwashed like everyone else in thinking that pharmacology is the best option. Either that or I’m following the gospel of my neurologist without reservations. I trust him and think, perhaps foolishly, that if the drugs were doing more harm than good he’d tell me.

Having said that, I believe that pharmacology is not going to provide the ultimate solution if a “cure” is ever discovered. I’m of the opinion that if a cure is out there, stem cells will provide the key. After all, if you’re going to try to regenerate myelin, I doubt a pill is going to do it. Doesn’t it make  sense that something organic will create something new and better? Be that as it may, I’m not holding my breath hoping that a cure will either be found in my lifetime, or happen before I’m primed for the Dirt Nap.

As far as brain lesions are concerned, I don’t think they will ever crack that nut. That organ is the final frontier in the medical community, and we are light years away from truly understanding how to treat it.

I suspect all of us ultimately reach a point where we’ll get off the medical treadmill of procedures, injections, infusions, and pills. I know the day will come where I’ll jump off and focus on rest, diet and more holistic approaches. But I will first have to conclude the results no longer justify the effort, and am tired of going to hospitals, tired of getting poked, prodded and stuck, and tired of the expense.

Reading the posts I mentioned also made me reflect on the economics surrounding finding a cure for anything. More specifically, there are millions being poured into research through grants and donations to find the elusive cure for various chronic and deadly diseases, cancer and MS to name two,  but don’t you sometimes think it isn’t in a lot of people’s best interest to actually find one?

If Big Pharma found the answer, which I doubt will happen but let’s stay on that thread, then that premise doesn’t ring true. I mean, can you imagine what they would charge for the magic pill or shot that prevents cancer or cures MS? They could name their price and nobody would flinch.

But what if, as I believe, the answers do not lie with pharmacology. What would happen to the big organizations that champion the chase for a cure? How much would they lose in funding and donations?

My intent is not to imply that those who run these groups are only in it for the money, but let’s be realistic. Isn’t it in their best financial interests to keep chasing that cure than to actually discover one? After all, a significant percentage of revenue goes to overhead for some of these organizations. What happens if the money runs out or the flow is reduced to a trickle? Maybe I’m in a cynical mood tonight. I’d like to think it wouldn’t matter, but isn’t that naive?

It’s an interesting discussion, but probably pointless. After all, the medical community would actually have to find something that works, and in the immortal words of the neurologist I saw at Johns Hopkins during the early stages of my MS journey, when has medicine cured anything?

 

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