Part 2 to "Medications and Interactions" Update

I wanted to UPDATE to you regarding my last Blog "Medications and Interactions"

I went in and had my E.K.G. done the day after I wrote the first article. I found out last Saturday, that the E.K.G. Came back showing an abnormality. I have to go through a 6 hours testing process this Tuesday to try to figure out what is causing or where the problem is. The Exact wording was... An Abnormality of the transit Time of Electrical Impulses Across the Heart. Then it was followed with... You are to stay calm, avoid stress and stressful activities, Relax and try to lay down as much as possible. We don't want you standing for long periods of time either, until we go further with the testing.

How do you tell someone this and then expect them to not get stressed, the anxieties, emotional, etc...? Maybe it is just me, but I apparently am not doing so well on the restrictions... I have had a few people recommend going after my Doctor who screwed up with the two medications. What good is that going to do? At this minute all I care about is figuring out why and how to fix the problem. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't scared to death. I mean really, with having MS, Chron's, and Fibro... I am not one of those "LUCKY" kind of person.

The first few days I was scared and cried a lot. Then I had a day or two that, I was pretty calm, and then everyday that I have gotten closer to This Tuesday the anxiety has become worse and worse. I guess, I just wanted to UPDATE you and STRESS the IMPORTANCE AGAIN ~~ To Research and Triple Check for interactions of the Medications You Are On or A Loved One Is On. We trust our Doctors and I have watched them plug in new medications to see if it is flagged for possible complications or interactions and none were flagged. The few that have been flagged the Doctor's changed the medication they were going to use. I don't know how exactly this was missed or overlooked, but it was missed by many Doctors and Pharmacists.

I think I have come to the conclusion that we, with MS or any disease, know that we are on a lot of medications. We hope that they will help treat the disease, the symptoms, the pain, FIX US... But if we all stop and think about it, anytime we are on medications, whether it is 1 or 15, for long periods of time. There is always chances for problems to arise. That is something we all have to live with, but not something we think about when all we want, is to feel better or get better. I will update again, after I find out more, because I hope this can help at least 1 person but mostly to keep us all aware of the complications and interactions from medicines we take.

Medications and Interactions

Wow! It has been a long time since I have posted.. I hope to change that and post more frequently as I have a lot to say..

Medications and Interactions


I recently had a HUGE eye - opener...OK VERY BIG SCARE!! We MS'ers, along with many other people with diseases and illness. Are treated by different Doctors and plenty of medications. We trust our Doctors, our Pharmacists and our own checking and investigating of the medicines we are on.

However, I was on Xanax for probably about 10 years (way before being diagnosed) for horrible anxiety attacks. About 7 years ago I had complained of having Burning and prickling sensations (Which by the way, was the beginning of about 13 more symptoms from my first major exacerbation). My Doctor, Primary Care Physician (PCP) added Klonopin to my medications. As the years progressed and so did my MS and Fibro, she upped my dosage of Klonopin to 1 in the A.M., 1 in the Afternoon, and 2 at night. I also was allowed to continue the Xanax on a as needed basis up to 1 3 times a day. Because of how the scripts were written it did not sound off any alarms to the Doctors and Pharmacy.

The last few months, ok 6 months have been very stressful and the pain I have in my legs had really become very severe. A new medication had been added to my full tray of daily medications, to help with the pain. Norco was added for the severe pains by my Neurologist but because it wasn't enough, I was sent to a Pain Management Doctor. Probably the best thing that I could have ever done. She quickly started a new medicine that really started helping me more than most of all the meds I had been on for years. When you go to a Pain Management Dr. (PMD) they go through all of your meds and try to reconfigure but also try to get you on the meds to treat the symptoms and also start to introduce new things like physical therapy, massage, etc... While researching the long list of my medications she realized the Deadly Combo... In her words " Instant Death". What??? I have been on these for a very long time. A bottle of Xanax usually lasted me a year, I tried not using them too often. However in the last 6 months, I have been using them regularly. She said.. "The combination of the Klonopin and Xanax together could have caused INSTANT DEATH and adding the Norco's with this combo really could have done this". She said, that if you were going to use the Xanax, that I had to choose not to take the Klonopin. "ONE or the other". I was never told this...And this never rang any alarms to the Pharmacy or Doctors... Because the wording said "AS NEEDED ~ take 1 three times a day".

How scary is that... I had to go have a E.K.G. to check for any inconsistencies. But that we will never know if there is any permanent damage done. Of course, she told me to stop the Xanax and not to take it any more... I also had to cut back on 2 other medications... So, besides being scared and angry. I am sick to my stomach, going through withdrawal. Shaky, nauseated, heart racing... Wow, this is fun!

I am sharing this story with you, not because I want you to know what meds I am on, or to laugh at my withdrawal craziness. I consider myself very lucky. I am hoping you will take this story and take a look at all your medications. Research, Call your Pharmacists, your Doctor's, etc.. and Learn about any INTERACTIONS there may be. Be Aware of what can happen and be your own Advocate. Tell this to other people so that they never find out before it is too late.
Link to Drug Interaction Checker:
Drug interations