Had a good checkup with the neurologist this week. He wants to see me every 3 months to check on my progress, see if the Rebif is working for me, and to get my blood checked to make sure these meds aren't killing my liver. He called back the next night to tell me that this blood test came back just fine. They all have.

I still laugh when I think about my mother's reaction to an article she read in the paper about Avonex being bad for the liver (back when I was taking Avonex). I just rolled my eyes and said that wasn't news...that's why I was having checkups every three months, because ALL of the drugs can be bad for the liver and needed to be monitored.

Sure, the disease-modifying drugs can be bad for the liver...but MS can be so much worse for a lot more than the liver. It's a matter of perspective.

The weird thing about having MS? I feel a HUGE sense of relief when I'm not feeling well and know it's because of something other than MS. Like this summer when I broke my toe - I didn't break it because of MS balance issues, I just broke it because of normal clumsiness.

I felt like crap earlier today. I was tired, my brain was scattered, and I wasn't in the mood to get much of anything done. I started to worry for a little while...until I noticed how much chocolate I was snarfing down. Oh cool - it's PMS! I was actually psyched to realize I had PMS, and it was a lot easier to be nice to myself.

It's been awhile since the second opinion, and things have been fairly routine. Haven't had any major issues, but have had to deal with some of those annoyances that come along with MS. But I've learned to adapt. For example, I've learned that I better have a spare pair of pants and underwear at work, in case those unpleasant bladder problems led to an accident. It's only happened once at work, but at least I could just grab the spare clothes, change quickly in the bathroom, and get back to my day.

Winter brings a double-edged sword. The cold weather is much easier for my system to handle than the warm, but it is challenging to layer up to go outside and then walk into a heated room with all those layers still on my body. The worst thing is that winter brings colds and flu, and my body does not handle fevers well.

I am relieved, though. After wrestling with whether or not I was on the proper treatment, I've had two doctors agreeing that I should be staying the course. Given how I have felt over a period of time, I'm in agreement.