Let the Remicade journey begin

I just spoke to the infusion nurse at my Rheumatologist's office and scheduled my first infusion for next Thursday at 1:30pm. I liked her...which helped as it seems I'll be spending a lot of time with her.

I'm scared...I don't admit that easily. However, she told me since I had no side effects from Humira, I should likely do fine. I hope that's true. I tend to react poorly to meds.

When I read what some others suffer with, I feel like one of the fortunate ones as I don't have morning stiffness and I can go long periods with relatively little pain (though, I sometimes wonder if I've just adapted to a life of never feeling well). I have a lot of fatigue, but often attribute that to a high stress job, a 6 year old and diabetes on top of arthritis.

This will be my 5th medication since diagnosis. Perhaps this will finally be the one I can tolerate and that keeps this thing at bay.

Wish me luck!

~jackie

It always helps to feel comfortable in an environment that will be new to you. When I was in my teens I had to help my father through chemotherapy, which was pretty much experimental at the time. So here I am, 40 years later, finding out I have to sit in an infusion clinic just as my father did. Needless to say I was NOT very comfortable with my first treatment. The folks at the clinic have helped tremendously in making me feel comfortable, to the point of actually looking forward to the relief I will get after a visit. Just a tip, if you need any bloodwork drawn, see if you can get it after the cath is in place. Saves me extra needle pokes.

Sometimes ignorance is bliss. I started my first biological without a care in the world (well except paying for it) I read the possible side effects and understood coming from a family of pharmacists that, that part of the information was written by lawyers not pharmacists or doctors. Had I spent any time on the internet, it may have been different but not likely.Fear begats Fear and fear begats Hysteria. I was a combat medic in a special forces unit years ago (think 40) Since I became a statistician and designer of "studies" If the numbers are right nothing scares me (except "last Call" and my wife saying we need to "talk" (that usually means another foster kid, trouble is they never leave)

This disease doesn't scare me either because we can fight it on so many fronts and so many ways. It killed my oldest sister who decided all she needed do was sit on the couch and refill her pain meds. She always "hurt to much" to do anything else. Oh, she took a lot of supplements and ate a lot of wierd food but avoided most meds because they had too many side effects) Now THAT scared me (and still does) Can you believe she was once a professor of Nursing???? She was simply afraid of what could happen. That kind of fear can paralyze.

I don't see you as scared Jackie, concerned and curious perhaps. Now that may be a strange way of putting it. But truly aren't you really wondering whats going to happen?? and Concerned about it? The difference is some, like you, want to find out, others really don't (they are the scared ones.) The instant you turn this thing to curiosity, it lets go of you no matter what happens. maybe this is the right combo and maybe it will be number six for you. But guess who is control? YOU.

The scared ones take the least approach and the mildest approach. The shrinks down the hall from me tell me its because it has the most predictable outcome. I dunno about that, what I do know is they were the ones who were most frequently were casualties of war, never won a trophy, wound up in boring jobs (or careers they hated)

None of that sounds like you Jackie. You are prepared for the next step. You have heard all the "messages" left the messengers alone if they didn't say what you wanted them to and considered everything. This is gonna work, you will fight this disease and get success and even if you have to do something different in a few months you will do that to.

Just drink all your water and then drink some more. If you get up twice a night to get rid of it, that's almost enough....... have someone drive you the first time. They may well premedicate you with benadryl or similar and you end up sleeping through it all. (and the drive home)