I had a long appointment today but that was to be expected as a new patient. Dr. Bettler, who is German and has a great accent and is good looking (just sayin'), went over my records but did not want the paper version as he puts all his notes on his computer. This way he can pull up any of my information whenever or where ever he needs it.
He suggested for me to go on Gilenya, which is the first oral drug for MS. I did talk to him about people dying after taking this drug but he said it was only 5 people in Europe and they really aren't sure if it was the drug or something else. He also said the first dose is given in the doctor's office and you have to wait there for 6 hours to make sure you are not having any problems.
So I have reading material and other exams to go through before I start. This process will not be a quick one. Dr. Bettler said that the Avonex I am on now is not a strong medication anymore. Because I have had several flare ups recently, he said the Avonex is not working for me. He even said if he had a new patient, that person would be started on Gilenya. This drug it is to help stop the flare-ups and then I don't have to have steroids. That would be a very positive thing as I have had a lot of strong steroids by IV.
With one doctor down, I now have 5 more doctors to find and make appointments. Several of them are not close by but will require a little bit of travel. Savannah or Hilton Head are two of the locations which are both about a half hour or so away. Not too bad!
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