The Battle - Part 10

September 6, 2024

Once I was diagnosed, I pretty much just threw my hands up.... the neurologost told me i needed a certain drug and i just accepted it. Not something I thought I would ever do, but I didn’t know what else to do and just felt like I was given no choice.

My neurologist sucked. He barely spent 10 Minutes with me and just rushed me out. He gave zero shits.

So I sat with his nurse so they could set me up to take a drug called rebif. They had to set up an appointment with a person who worked for the drug company to come to my house and show me how to administer treatment. I had to take 3 injections a week. And I had to do it myself.

I learned how. I began my treatment and I was ok at first. I found an MS specialist to go see a few months later. I didn’t like my first neurologist and was referred to this certain specialist. I had to contact the other places to get my mri and spinal tap records to send to the new specialist…. But for whatever reason, when I had my first appointment with the MS specialist, she didn’t have that info. So she went through the motions of her exam. Once completed, she said “I don’t believe you have MS”

So another MRI was ordered. Third one. Without contrast of course.

Second visit with her, she showed me everything she saw on the MRIs. She pointed out every lesion I have in my spine and in my brain. She was wrong. I did have this stupid disease.

And that was it… I just continued on with my meds and I had my super special specialist now. So I was set down the right path of medical guidance. Perfect!

A few months into treatment, I started having major issues. I felt worse. I was depressed, riddled with anxiety, and just wasn’t doing well at all. The depression and anxiety affected me so much that I had to cut my hours at work and also take a leave of absence. I was a fucking mess. I hated the injections. I had to choose a different location on my body each time and rotate. I had 4 areas on my stomach and one on each hip. Every injection left huge bruises so by the time one was almost gone, there were three more still showing. At one point, I found myself shaking and shivering and just sick. I didn't know what was up so I just got myself to sleep and was fine the next day. Nick even found me in bed once, shaking terribly and in bad shape and he said, " this isn't right. Its not cold in here at all." and went to grab me some ibuprofen. I finally found out that the rebif caused this and I was to take 3 ibuprofen before my injection each time becuase the rebif caused high fevers. So, I had to take drugs before I took drugs. Great!

During this time frame I was trying to get ahold of my MS specialist. I emailed, texted, called the office. Nothing. I just wanted to end this medication. Finally, close to 3 months after trying to get her, I had an appointment coming up so at least I knew I would finally get to her....but upon arrival I found that my appointment had been canceled and they claimed that they contacted me. They had not. So I had to reschedule my appointment for another month out.

I was so done with these drugs and I was soooo frustrated that I couldn’t get the help I needed. So I slowly stopped taking the meds on my own.

With Nick being on second shift and Joe being young, I didn’t do much. I rarely went anywhere after work. I just made some dinner for Joe and I, watered the plants and watched tv. Just kinda lived this single mom style of life. One night during all this Dr fiasco BS, I found a documentary called Living Proof. It was about alternate/dietary ways to battle MS. I sobbed when I watched this. I started digging more for other natural lifestyles in the fight against chronic illness. Especially anti inflammatory lifestyles. And I just felt that this was the right thing for me. And because I didn’t want to make this decision without someone else’s eyes and thoughts, I asked Nick to watch Living Proof. After he was done, he told me he fully supported my decision to go with it.

By chance I had already been workin' toward over all health and had done a food intolerance test which just so happened to come back to me that day. It was 2.5 pages of things I had to stop eating for a bit. It was a lot. So along with my dietary changes for MS which was extreme in itself and the intolerance foods, I found myself in tears after spending over an hour in the grocery store. But I wiped those tears and moved forward. I did almost throw a jar of spaghetti sauce on the floor in isle 14 though!

So at this point, the only prescription meds I was on was for my migraines. They were still really bad and the meds I took were barely enough for the month but they worked!!!

After gathering all my info and making lists and really wrapping my head around what to remove, my new diet began. It was hard and still is, but luckily I enjoy cooking and have very few foods I don’t like. I just love food!!!! So I tried to make it fun and new and interesting. It became a fun challenge!

I was doing good. By day 7 I wasn’t pulling myself up the stairs anymore and I felt like I could hop. It was like night and day. I was shocked. I was feeling better than i had been in quite some time.

About a month after I changed to this new lifestyle of food, I got a call from the pharmacy that my migraine med was filled and ready for pick up. And there it dawned on me, I hadn't had a migraine in a month. Between this anti inflammatory lifestyle and the removal of the intolerance foods, I found something magical. It was food that was doing it. There were other issues I was having that I realized were from some of the foods on the intolerance list. It was ridiculously eye opening to me.

I finally got to go see my MS specialist. Just a a few days after she finally responded to one of my messages. I told her everything I was doing and how good I was feeling. I was excited. But she rolled her eyes so loud I could hear it and said “it’s not the diet that’s helping you…. that diet won’t heal you… it’s that you stopped taking the medication… that’s why you feel better.”

Wait. What? Did ya listen to what you just said to me, Dr? I mean, I heard it loud and clear.

I walked out of that office without looking back.

My lifestyle forever changed. Nutrition has become the center of my being. It’s hard and I fall off the wagon sometimes and I am by all means not perfect with my health but when I fall, I get back up. Brush it off and keep going!!

About 6 months later, Nick finally got moved to first shift. And that’s when stuff started getting really fun!!!

-AJ

For anyone who is interested in more of my story towards nutrition over meds and about the intolerance foods testing, please comment below with questions. I would love to expand the blog of The Silva & Ore Story to more than just the this!!