Oh, What a night!

I've been doing some music discovering lately. I had several months where I just listened to my old stale music. But thanks to the very convienient digital radio we get with our cable package I am exposed to new music. Particularily, Paramore and Marina and the Diamonds. Now I do realize Paramore isn't new to me at all. But Marina and the Diamonds certainly are. So there.

I also have rekindled my love for the oldies by downloading some Frankie Vallee and the Four Seasons. We saw a cover group on the honeymoon and both loved it! (www.ohwhatanighttribute.com if you are interested. See them, they are worth it!).

News.. Married life is just the same as non-married life. Except for the fact that I still am amazed that we're actually married. It is truly weird to look at Tim and see a shiny ring on his finger. It's also weird getting used to a new last name. New signature, new initials, new everything! You don't realize how second nature a signature/initial signing is untill you sign the old one when you should sign the new one.

We are currently in the middle of month one of no MTX. Five and a half more months to go :s I've already noticed a difference in my wrists and ankles. I'm hoping this isn't a sign of things to come later on. But the baby at the end of this all will make it better!

Daycare annecdote for the post: NONE! Today was my day off!

Intro.

I haven't blogged in years. I lost the taste for it. I found that I stopped writing in my paper-journal when I journaled online. But lately there's been so much Arthritis Related issues that i just wanted somewhere to get them all out.

To catch you up, I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, which is commonly referred to as RA.

"RA is an autoimmune disease. This means that your immune system attacks other parts of your body. RA causes redness, pain, swelling or a hot (or warm) feeling in the lining of a joint, the place where 2 or more bones come together. This redness, pain, swelling and heat around the joint is called inflammation. " - www.arthritis.ca

They don't know too much about RA. There's a whole lot of technical jargon that explains why there might be so much inflammation, and talks about a thing called "tumour necrosis factor alpha" which is associated with RA. Lots of jumbled up stuff.

Right now I'm on a shit load of medications:

- Methotrexate: Commonly used to treat RA. Also used to treat cancer. Works by stopping rapid cell growth. Fun side effects that upset me include being forbidden to become pregnant while on this drug, due to the high likelyhood of the fetus having severe birth defects.

- Prednisone: This is also another one they use alot. And not just for RA. It's a steroid which decreases inflammation. Side effects include weight gain, hair loss, thinning skin, and therefore stretch marks, as well as mood swings.

- Enbrel: This one is a once-weekly injection done at home by the boyfriend, Tim. It works to block that tumour necrosis factor alpha that I mentioned. I think. Side effects for this one include reactions at the injection site such as itching, swelling, and general uncomfortableness.

They are currently in the process of switching my drugs. I'll still take the first two, but instead of a weekly Enbrel injection, I'll get an infusion of the new drug, Remicade, every 8 weeks.

I start the new medication on Wednesday, April 9th. I am not excited for it.