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September 3, 2021 - Neuro Appointment, Questions Answered



Questions and Answers 
  •  I am still uncoordinated, unbalanced, weak on the right side - it will take time but I am very strong and he thinks I will make a full recovery.

  • I feel like I have had trouble sending messages to the LEFT side on and off for 2 weeks now, when I want to grab it's like sometimes my left hand and wrist don't know how to go about it. It will move forward instead of the back or vice versa - maybe I am having trouble because I am scared my left side will fail me and now I depend on it. I do not agree with him but will humor the idea. 🙄

  • Disability - I need it since I couldn't work for the last 3 months. What is my disability score? - he will try to get it going but he is not sure he can do it for California since he is an Oregon doctor and based in Oregon.

  • Work note - he will call me next week and see if I still need it

  • MS Specialist - he will send the referral 

  • HSCT - I didn't ask. I will wait for the MS Specialist.

  • Muscle Spasms and menstrual cycle - show video - He watched the video and said that wasn't a regular muscle spasm. It is called it Hemi dystonia I believe. He prescribed acetazolamide to take in the morning and in the evening. He said that should help prevent them from occurring. Give it one week and if not, there is one more medication I can try.

  • Should I be taking a multivitamin? - I don't have to. Mainly I need to take vitamin D.

  • How long will this flare last? - can't really say, every single one is different.

  • How long does it take for the Tecfidera to start working? 3 months and during that time I am vulnerable to relapses.

  • Tecfidera is hard on the stomach, burns, stomach ache, nausea, eating makes it worse. - he is going to send an appeal for Vulmerity to my insurance. This does not mean I failed Tecfidera, just that it isn't right for me. He prescribed Famotidine which is generic for Pepcid until I can switch to Vulmerity.

  • How many lesions were on the last MRI? - he showed me the MRI and the lesion were huge! I will post a picture of it soon. He pointed out the 3 lesions. Two were small spots and one was a large mass, towards the middle of the brain. I wanted to ask more questions but seeing it pretty much wiped them from my mind.
During the appointment, I got the impression that he didn't feel completely comfortable treating Multiple Sclerosis patients and wants to transfer me to an MS Specialist. I am fine with this and he seems very intelligent and I do trust his opinions, knowledge, and skill. He was patient and answered all of my questions. Most importantly, he didn't rush the appointment and was in no hurry.













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