New Meds

I decided to go on MS medication, Copaxone. I have to inject myself 3 times a week. Could be worse; it could be a daily injection. The medicine cost $1318.57 for a 28 day supply. There is no way I can afford this so my neurologist got me in touch with Shared Solutions that is basically the financial assistance branch of the Copaxone drug company. they cover the cost of the medication up to two thousand dollars. So my Copaxone is basically free every month. They ship it to me in a bulky styrofoam cooler. I have to keep the medication in the fridge. It actually can be left out of the refrigerator for up to 30 days, but the Copaxone rep/nurse said to keep a week supply (3 syringes) out at a time.

For now I keep my injection supplies it in a handy dandy pouch that came with the autoinjector. 

I also got a lot of information pamphlets and "helpful" materials.

The preparation mat is funny to me. They really do make sure you don't screw it up.

Then there is the tracking calendar/planner.

So here is what I have to do 3 times a week. I will be injecting on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. There are areas of the body that are best to inject. You don't want to over do it in one area so they recommend a rotating schedule. I'm probably going to use the app version of the tracking schedule. The app has an alarm that I will definitely need to help me remember. 

Shared Solutions sent a nurse to teach me how to inject myself. Jason was a great guy and was very patient with me and all the test runs I wanted to do before injecting myself for the first time with the real thing. I decided to inject in the triceps of left arm. The needle entering the skin was no big deal; hardly felt it. The medicine is a different story. A few minutes after the injection it felt like I got stung by a bee. The area felt like it was on fire and a welt the size of a silver dollar formed. I freaked out, had a panic attach, and felt very faint. Jason took me to my couch to lie down. He said it's possible that I didn't push the needle in far enough. Turns out fat is my friend. You want to inject the medicine in the fat. Not the muscle or dermis. Those areas can be more painful. 

This the sweet spot you want to hit.

I've heard from other people using this medicine that they always experience a burning sensation and develop a welt. Because of this, many patients choose to do their injections at night so they didn't have to deal with the pain all day. I guess it goes away by morning. I will soon find out because that is the route I am choosing. My injection this afternoon, that I did around 3:30pm, is still tender to the touch. The welt is gone at least and the skin doesn't feel like it's on fire anymore. Some recommend an ice pack immediately after the injection to help reduce these side effects. Side note, I miss my whip worms! They never caused me pain.