In the dark

Here's my last two days in a nutshell...

First, to start out...Monday night I went to a near-by pub to get some food and watch the football game. I was surprised to find quite a few Patriots fans there. I actually met a girl from Mass who was here for work (she works for Medi-tech).

Tuesday I totally slept in. Well, I guess considering that AK is 3 hours behind Chicago, I guess I didn't sleep in THAT late, but either way it felt awesome! Then I went over to the hospital for my lab work. They weren't able to access my medi-port, but the woman in the lab was great, and I only needed to have 3 tubes drawn this time. Then I wandered Michigan Avenue for a while, ducking into stores as needed to warm up. I did grab lunch, where the strangest thing happened to me.

Waiter/bartender: "When you figure out what you want, just write it down and I'll be back." Swear to god this is what he said as he gave me a pen and pad of paper. It was crazy. It wasn't like I had been there for very long, either. Just long enough to order a Diet Coke. Anyway, I told him that when he decided he wanted a tip to come back and take my order. He did.

Later Tuesday I had my brain and cervical spine MRI. Again, they didn't access my medi-port but the nurse did a great job starting my IV. I had taken some anxiety medication before, so I survived my time in the tube.

Today I got up and hopped on the L to Rush University. I had to cover my hair and my nails for this appointment, which was kind of strange. The neurologist is super funny and a little crazy. He did my EDSS and sent me on my way. After that appointment I went back to Northwestern to see the study doctor. He spoke with me briefly and then his nurse did the same cognitive tests I had 6 months ago. No fun!

Up until now, they have always told me what my EDSS number is. Today, however, they wouldn't tell me. I'm a little frustrated by this, I feel like I definitely have new symptoms since 6 months ago, but the EDSS is a nice way to gauge where I am. It is also what they use to determine if I can cross over into the treatment group eventually. I did get my MRI results, which were much better than last time. No new or enhancing lesions! This is the first MRI I've had that something hasn't changed since I've been diagnosed. I just wish that my symptoms would correlate with my scans.

So, now it's time to head home. One more get up :)