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Feeling sick and taking my next Avonex shot
I woke up this morning feeling sick , I caught a bug probably from the kids at the school I work at. So my question is... I take my shot of Avonex tomorrow night and I wonder if the side effects will be worse than usual . This is the first time I was feeling under the weather before I take a shot. Its nothing more than a cold, but I feel very run down. Also I have to go for my MRI on friday, . oh joy... I get to do that feeling sick and the day after my shot what fun... Anyway have any of you been sick while taking your shot? How much worse, if at all, was your side effects?
Thanks,
God Bless,
Cindi
Thanks,
God Bless,
Cindi
If I remember right the tech was a jerk last time, so hopefully I get someone else. The good news is I didn't have any worse SX from last nights shot, and I feel better today than I did last night. but still can't imagine being able to not cough while laying down in the machine. oh well I guess we will see..
Thanks for all your help.
Cindi
Thanks for all your help.
Cindi
Something I do not want to happen is having to do a scan over again. Ugh once is enough thank you very much.... They say I can have both the codeine and the valum that it would just knock me out .... Oh Yeah !!! I would love to be like my friend who sleeps during her MRI 's I am in awe of those people..
Cindi
Cindi
Hi Cindi,
Yes, good luck! :)
Be sure you can mix Codiene and Valum. The tech told me to put a cough drop in my mouth before I went into the machine. They also asked me how I was doing and if I needed another cough drop or a bit of a break.
Hopefully your tech will be a good one. Just be sure to do like your doctor said and let them know what is going on. You do not want to cough during one of the scanning cycles because that will mess things up and they may have to do it over.
LA
Yes, good luck! :)
Be sure you can mix Codiene and Valum. The tech told me to put a cough drop in my mouth before I went into the machine. They also asked me how I was doing and if I needed another cough drop or a bit of a break.
Hopefully your tech will be a good one. Just be sure to do like your doctor said and let them know what is going on. You do not want to cough during one of the scanning cycles because that will mess things up and they may have to do it over.
LA
Oh good someone who went in to that dreaded machine with a cough,
I have cough med with codeine and I will bring cough drops, were you able to pop a few in your mouth during the MRI when they took a 2 sec break? I also have some valium so I hope to be so knocked out that I wont want to move much less panic I hate that machine. But I keep telling myself "THE MACHINE IS MY FIREND,"
Its just a cold with a bad cough but I am taking my shot tonight , I just want tomorrow to be over... Did you cough at all during the MRI? or did they give you a break to cough? The Dr. told me to tell them I am sick and ask for little breaks, except to me that means I will be in there longer. oh well.
Thanks for everything,
wish me luck!!!
Cindi
I have cough med with codeine and I will bring cough drops, were you able to pop a few in your mouth during the MRI when they took a 2 sec break? I also have some valium so I hope to be so knocked out that I wont want to move much less panic I hate that machine. But I keep telling myself "THE MACHINE IS MY FIREND,"
Its just a cold with a bad cough but I am taking my shot tonight , I just want tomorrow to be over... Did you cough at all during the MRI? or did they give you a break to cough? The Dr. told me to tell them I am sick and ask for little breaks, except to me that means I will be in there longer. oh well.
Thanks for everything,
wish me luck!!!
Cindi
cindi,
If it just a cold I'd take the shot. If were anything else but the vomiting flu I think it would not make a difference. As long as you can stay hydrated and keep your pain meds down you will be ok.
With vomiting and diarrhea there is no way to stay hydrated or keep pain meds down so I was going through the flu and side effects of Avonex with nothing. it was not the being sick part that was so bad, it was not being able to do my normal things that help me thorugh the side effects that was the problem. It was UGLY.
I would take cough medication and cough drops with me. Anything you can do to keep from coughing. I had a cough with my last MRI and did ok with my cough medication. It had codiene in it so I think that helped a lot.
Good luck!
Lee Ann
If it just a cold I'd take the shot. If were anything else but the vomiting flu I think it would not make a difference. As long as you can stay hydrated and keep your pain meds down you will be ok.
With vomiting and diarrhea there is no way to stay hydrated or keep pain meds down so I was going through the flu and side effects of Avonex with nothing. it was not the being sick part that was so bad, it was not being able to do my normal things that help me thorugh the side effects that was the problem. It was UGLY.
I would take cough medication and cough drops with me. Anything you can do to keep from coughing. I had a cough with my last MRI and did ok with my cough medication. It had codiene in it so I think that helped a lot.
Good luck!
Lee Ann
Heather, I was not even considering not taking the shot I was just curious about what people have gone through when the are sick and taking the shot. My nurse told me it shouldn't have any different effect which I find hard to believe, but who knows maybe i will just feel the way I always feel on fridays. I am the type of person who likes to know up front what to expect so i figured I would get better and more accurate answers from people who are actually living this, then from the nurse who has never had to put this medicine in her body. thank you for your advise it helps to have a clearer idea of what tomorrow will bring thanks
cindi
LATW,
I actually thought about moving my shot a day up, but truthfully then I would worry what will happen if I get worse then I would have to take the shot and I would be feeling sicker than I do now. Past experience tells me that by Sat I am going to feel worse than today and I probably wont be feeling better until monday, If I had gotten sick earlier in the week that might have been an option but this started yesterday morning and this morning was even worse. I don't even want to think about what it will be like taking this shot with the flu, I know I will if it comes to it, just because I wouldn't want to screw with the dose. However you have been there so maybe I will feel different if I had as bad a time as you did. This is just an upper resp. infection ( big words for a cold) i am worried about the coughing because I have the MRI tomorrow and I don't want to cancel if I don't have to, any thoughts on that......
Cindi
cindi
LATW,
I actually thought about moving my shot a day up, but truthfully then I would worry what will happen if I get worse then I would have to take the shot and I would be feeling sicker than I do now. Past experience tells me that by Sat I am going to feel worse than today and I probably wont be feeling better until monday, If I had gotten sick earlier in the week that might have been an option but this started yesterday morning and this morning was even worse. I don't even want to think about what it will be like taking this shot with the flu, I know I will if it comes to it, just because I wouldn't want to screw with the dose. However you have been there so maybe I will feel different if I had as bad a time as you did. This is just an upper resp. infection ( big words for a cold) i am worried about the coughing because I have the MRI tomorrow and I don't want to cancel if I don't have to, any thoughts on that......
Cindi
What you could do, and what my doctor suggested, is to wait a day or two until you feel better and not totally skip the injection for the week.
I should have done that. I was so sick I probably should have gone to the ER for an IV. I could not keep fluid down, could not keep pain meds down.....I really had it bad.
If I had waited a day or two I would have been much better off.
LA
I should have done that. I was so sick I probably should have gone to the ER for an IV. I could not keep fluid down, could not keep pain meds down.....I really had it bad.
If I had waited a day or two I would have been much better off.
LA
When i took Avonex, I took my shot whether I was sick with something else or not. It's really important NOT to miss a dose of your Avonex, unless you are absolutely so sick that you think you are going to die with it. That Interferon needs to be kept at a constant level in your system.
But as is said, each person must do what THEY feel is right. I just don't want to see any of you risk your MS health by missing one of your shots. The shots are all we have to try and keep this monster at bay. If you skip a week, that is a week without full protection of what the drug offers.
I never missed an Avonex shot in three years, sick or otherwise. With the flu like side effects anyway, I CAN tell you there were times I wish I HADN'T of taken my shot, but overall, I know that it was worth it.
Just my opinion and like "you know what's" everybody has one.
Heather
But as is said, each person must do what THEY feel is right. I just don't want to see any of you risk your MS health by missing one of your shots. The shots are all we have to try and keep this monster at bay. If you skip a week, that is a week without full protection of what the drug offers.
I never missed an Avonex shot in three years, sick or otherwise. With the flu like side effects anyway, I CAN tell you there were times I wish I HADN'T of taken my shot, but overall, I know that it was worth it.
Just my opinion and like "you know what's" everybody has one.
Heather
Well, speaking from experence I will NEVER take my Avonex injection again when I feel sick if it is the flu.
My kids had the stomach flu several weeks ago. I was not feeling well but had not vomited. So I took my injection.
I was SO SICK. I could not get up off of the bathroom floor.
If I had any other type of illness I might go ahead and take it, but not if it is the vomiting, fever, running to the bathroom stuff.
LA
My kids had the stomach flu several weeks ago. I was not feeling well but had not vomited. So I took my injection.
I was SO SICK. I could not get up off of the bathroom floor.
If I had any other type of illness I might go ahead and take it, but not if it is the vomiting, fever, running to the bathroom stuff.
LA
I don't think the side effects are any worse ... I write brief comments in the computer after every injection, and several times I've noted that I had a cold or cough, and other times there are references to side effects, but only one I found mentions both the illness and the side effects, and it actually mentions the side effects favorably:
"took PM Tylenol early so to nap due to illness, injection and side effects uneventful."
I injected a couple hours earlier than normal that day and probably slept right away (and I rarely nap, so I must have been pretty icky), then apparently was up at 11:30 because it says I took 2 8hr Tylenol then.
If anything, sometimes a cold/flu will modestly exacerbate my MS symptoms, which can be annoying but actually makes it easier to overcome self-injection anxiety because it's that much more apparent why I'm injecting myself.
In the meantime, best of luck fighting the cold!
"took PM Tylenol early so to nap due to illness, injection and side effects uneventful."
I injected a couple hours earlier than normal that day and probably slept right away (and I rarely nap, so I must have been pretty icky), then apparently was up at 11:30 because it says I took 2 8hr Tylenol then.
If anything, sometimes a cold/flu will modestly exacerbate my MS symptoms, which can be annoying but actually makes it easier to overcome self-injection anxiety because it's that much more apparent why I'm injecting myself.
In the meantime, best of luck fighting the cold!
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