“Medicine is a science of uncertainty and an art of probability.” ~ William Osler

For the past few weeks, I have been feeling run down. I even had moments when my left hand stopped working. It just didn’t respond to anything I wanted it to do. I thought the problem would pass but it never did. So I finally made an appointment with my neurologist. I told him about the difficulty I was having with my fine motor skills and how I was more tired than usual. He gave me a routine examination. Then he prescribed the standard MS go-to treatment of steroids.

Being a veteran at receiving Solu-Medrol, I opted for the in-home 5 day IV infusion. That way I could stay in the comforts of my living room instead of traveling to a clinic or hospital.

When the nurse arrived at my home, he had a pile of papers for me to sign. The last thing he needed to know, before starting the treatment, was all of the medications I was taking. As I read from my drug list I keep on my phone, I noticed he ran out of room on the form he was using to document my answers. Then he said, “That’s never happened before. I’ve never run out of room”.

So I asked him, “Do you think I take a large amount of medicine?

He very diplomatically said, “If that’s what you need then it’s not a lot.”

That encounter got me thinking. Do I take a lot of prescription drugs? I know I ingest a whole heap of pills. But is it more than others with MS? Or am I in harmony with the norm? It just seems I take a pill for every ill.

Below is my list of medications that help me manage my MS and it’s symptoms.

Rituxan® – MS Treatment
Clonazepam® – 2mg
Mybetriq® – 50mg
Baclofen® – 20mg
Nudexta® – 20mg
Alendronate® – 70mg
Reglan® – 10mg
Effexor® – 75mg
Trazodone – 50 mg
Ultram®- 50mg
Ritalin®- 20mg
Cambigan® – Eye Drops
(This list excludes my vitamins)

So I want to know, do you come close to the amount of medicine I consume? Do you take more? Do you take less? Or do you think I should not compare myself to others because everyone’s MS is different?