tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post2799544419487684345..comments2009-11-29T19:28:06.829-05:00Enjoying the Ridehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05043136383875458616noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-2434248627416724652009-11-29T19:28:06.829-05:002009-11-29T19:28:06.829-05:00My life has become one big cliffhanger. What can I say? <br /><br />We just restocked the wine fridge in anticipation of your visit. Now if I can just keep Kim away from it this week, we can partake next weekend.Enjoying the Ridehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05043136383875458616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-35536063281562044162009-11-29T19:22:33.577-05:002009-11-29T19:22:33.577-05:00Cliffhanger? Wait, I need resolution of the conflict and closure at the end of these things!<br /><br />See you next weekend.dapulpguyhttp://openid.aol.com/dapulpguynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-50170109539293649012009-11-29T14:24:14.074-05:002009-11-29T14:24:14.074-05:00Darren,<br /><br />Great stuff! I&#39;ll dig into it more in the next couple of days and get back to you. <br /><br />MitchEnjoying the Ridehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05043136383875458616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-11512834560959106402009-11-29T14:15:39.007-05:002009-11-29T14:15:39.007-05:00Hmmm - well my old Unit System post I linked you to is outdated so I&#39;ve written up a new post describing the current system - http://guttyr.blogspot.com/2009/11/update-on-unit-system.html<br /><br />Cheers!Darren Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03427862034167955344noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-35149903796268270992009-11-29T12:39:53.571-05:002009-11-29T12:39:53.571-05:00Our life stories are similar. I am (was?) an electrical engineer, working on a PhD in biomedical engineering at Hopkins back in 1999 when I was Dx. I ended up with RRMS so was able to work until 2006 before becoming disabled enough not to be able to.<br /><br />In my time of thinking and planning I&#39;ve tried to engineer a &quot;Unit System&quot; to keep track of what&#39;s important on a daily level while tracking things that need to happen over time. Here is a link to give you an idea - http://guttyr.blogspot.com/2007/12/update-on-unit-system.html<br /><br />As a fellow engineer I would love to know how you decide to spend your time during each day. On one hand it&#39;s terrific to have almost an infinity of free time without a j-o-b, yet on the other hand it seems tragic to &quot;waste&quot; so much free time. Striking a healthy balance while planning for the guaranteed crappy stuff on the way takes some effort.Darren Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03427862034167955344noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-32999630422184530242009-11-29T07:37:13.589-05:002009-11-29T07:37:13.589-05:00Darren,<br /><br />I&#39;m glad you are enjoying my blog. <br /><br />I visited one of your blogs and found an Excel Spreadsheet describing your exacerbation history. It&#39;s nice to know I&#39;m not the only person out there who uses spreadsheets for, um, uncommon purposes. <br /><br />Good luck with your MS.Enjoying the Ridehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05043136383875458616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-58994642007872426382009-11-28T20:39:39.189-05:002009-11-28T20:39:39.189-05:00Fellow MSer here. Found your blog via Google Reader suggestions. <br /><br />I have appreciated your writings and am glad to read that you have come to peace with MS. Thanks for sharing your experiences. It really helps to read about other fellow travelers.Darren Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03427862034167955344noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-85582960477481798602009-11-27T07:06:14.741-05:002009-11-27T07:06:14.741-05:00Lisa,<br /><br />Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. <br /><br />This is an excellent use of Rituxan...killing two birds with one stone. <br /><br />I think the lightness you feel is from the steroids. Steroids act much more quickly on you than Rituxan does. <br /><br />I bet you will have no negative reaction on your next Rituxan infusion. Do you plan a second one? <br /><br />My Rituxan story is a long one...will take me weeks to get to the end of it in this blog. I won&#39;t make you wait. Send me an email at this website and I&#39;ll give you the whole, condensed story.Enjoying the Ridehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05043136383875458616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70213346585285454.post-21338982147365096072009-11-27T00:41:02.289-05:002009-11-27T00:41:02.289-05:00One week ago today, I had my first Rituxan infusion. Since I have RA in addition to MS, it is &#39;on-label&#39; for the arthritis but really we&#39;re hoping that it also stops the break-through relapse activity. I am RRMS and had been on copaxone since diagnosis. My MRIs look pretty good (and stable) however the relapses keep coming.<br /><br />I had moderate (grade 2) infusion reaction at about 45 minutes into the infusion, even after pre-medication with benadryl, steroids, and tylenol. We had to slow the infusion down to a crawl and administer more benadryl and steroids. The entire infusion took about 9 hours!!<br /><br />The day after, I felt barely &quot;lighter&quot; in my limbs, just enough that I wondered if it was my imagination or not. Today I realized that I had leaned on the bed ON MY KNEES, which is something I haven&#39;t done in so very long.<br /><br />Fingers crossed that this will help the MS and RA. It is disappointing to read that Rituxan didn&#39;t prove to be overwhelming effective in PPMS (at least from what I&#39;ve read in journal articles). I hope that you will continue your story....I&#39;d like to hear what else happened during your time on Rituxan. :)<br /><br />LisaLisa Emrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10862232056342347990noreply@blogger.com