Yippee!
Remember last Tuesday when I was drained and feeling crappy? Well I decided to take the bull by the horns and go see my internal medicine doctor instead of waiting until October to see the neurologist. I had done some research and found out that the most commonly prescribed medication to treat the pain of peripheral neuropathy is Cymbalta. It’s an anti-depressant, but apparently the way it acts on your brain makes your nerves feel better. So I discussed it with my doctor and she agreed that it made sense to try it for the few weeks between last Tuesday and my October appt. As recently as this Sunday, I was still in a ton of pain and worried that it wasn’t going to work for me but I woke up yesterday feeling so much better and didn’t have to take any pain pills (well, I did take Tylenol once in the morning)! I felt better than I have in probably three months!
I decided I’d wait until today to see how I feel and, so far, I am cautiously optimistic. With any luck the pain relief will continue so that I can toss the Vicodin and, when I finally do see the neurologist, the only issue remaining is how to stop the processes that are causing the nerve damage. Hopefully the remedy for that won’t be too difficult or time-consuming. Last summer I had to do weekly IV iron treatments at the cancer center and that was a real pain in the tushie in terms of time off work.
My positive energy must be spreading because Pumpkinhead decided that 4 a.m. was a good time to bounce out of bed this morning.
I tried to convince him that the better plan would be to return to bed, but he wasn’t having it. So now he’s sitting next to me playing with my hair and watching Blues Clues (thank you Noggin on Demand!) I’m going to log off and get some reading done. Yippee for a clear head and hands that can type!!! ![]()









September 25th, 2007 at 7:34 am
That’s wonderful news!! What a relief to find a medication that works. Way to go on finding your own treatment too. You should’ve been a doctor.
September 25th, 2007 at 8:07 am
That’s great news!! Thank goodness there was something that can help in the interim. Good for you taking the initiative!!
September 25th, 2007 at 9:53 am
Hooray! I’m so glad you’re finally getting some relief.
September 25th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Great news! Glad you’re feeling better and good for you for being proactive in your own care.
September 26th, 2007 at 5:46 am
Hooray! I hope you continue to feel better.
September 26th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
YaY! Wine!