Copaxone and Bonnie

I chose Copaxone because the interferon drugs caused flu-like symptoms after injecting, blood and liver function tests have to be preformed during therapy, and there was a higher incidence of depression with the interferon drugs.  I started on Copaxone in February of 2001.  The next summer heat still really bothered me, but some of my symptoms were diminished.  I bought an air conditioner for my house that summer, which meant I could be upstairs, but I still could not leave the house during the day.  The government of Canada takes fatigue so seriously in MS patients, that a portion of the purchase price for air conditioners for cars and residences can be deducted from income tax. 

Copaxone is injected subcutaneously (under the skin, but not into the muscle) on a daily basis.  It is very important not to miss one day of injecting as the medication has to be maintained at a certain level in your body to work properly.  There may be some site reactions to the injections but these will subside in time.  One does not get any flu-like symptoms from Copaxone, as might occur with the other therapies for a day or two.

In the beginning I experienced considerable site reactions.  Most do not.  It is the feeling of Teva Neuroscience, the makers of Copaxone, that I might have a slight allergy to the drug.  This is extremely rare.  My site reactions vary from; small raised, sore bumps and bruised areas that subside in a short time or last for a few days.  I have learned to ice the location that I am going to inject for ten minutes prior to injection and to try to not touch the site for several minutes afterward.  This usually helps.  If it doesn’t help I continue to ice after injecting.  I have also started to inject myself just before falling asleep, in this way I can sleep through the worst part of the reaction.  Teva provides patients with an autoinjector to aid in the injection of Copaxone.  Many people use the autoinjector with great success.

Benefits vary from person to person.  Some people have no significant attacks while on the drugs, and feel they’ve improved; other go on much the same, with recurrent, perhaps milder attacks of neurological symptoms; some people even get worse.  These drugs do not reverse pre-existing neurological symptoms.  Unfortunately, although this is stated over and over, many patients take these medications expecting that their symptoms will go away.  MS is a highly variable condition, and the patient might have gotten better even without the treatment.

I was one of the unfortunate people in whom Copaxone took longer to work its wonders.  I feel that some of that was my fault.  I had site reactions from the injections thus; I would take a two or three day break from Copaxone every now and again.  February of 2003 I decided that this was not allowing my body to fully utilize the medication or become used to it.  So I started injecting myself every day, faithfully.

The next summer I noticed a vast difference.  I could actually go outside for periods of time during the day.  I had more energy and less symptoms.  I was sleeping better.  Life took on new meaning for me.  I actually had a life.  Now I can truthfully say that MS does not have me, I am now in control of my MS.  I still have to take other medications to control some of the symptoms, but that has been cut down drastically.  I still have a problem with fatigue, but not nearly as bad as it was nor as often.  I can easily walk a fast three miles every day.

 “Life has new meaning for me. I am in control of my body and my MS, thanks to Teva Neuroscience and Copaxone.”

Bonnie