Sick as a dog

Yuck, I feel like garbage and have for a few days now. I ran On Sunday and Monday and my breathing was really heavy both days, by Monday night I was down for the count. I think it might be a flu since I have flu-like symptoms. Oh wait, that’s right, rebif gives me flu-like symptoms, great… Coughing all night (I need to get some cough suppressant or something), constant runny nose, fever (oh wait, the rebif again), sweats (uh, thanks rebif) and sneezing (a little). I know I am supposed to keep taking the rebif even when I am sick, but it is really tempting to skip it until I am better. I am sure that screws up the way it works, so I’ll keep at it.

On a positive note, I have been trying a different strategy for reducing the pain of my injections. I had been icing the area beforehand. Sometimes this would work fine, sometimes not. I got a call from msLifelines and talked to them about my issue and she recommended using a warm compress instead. I had heard this, but the ice was just easier, so I kept at it. Well, so far I am a convert. The warmth works much better. I heat up a washcloth with hot water and apply it to the area. I do this twice before my alcohol swab, hand washing and injection. Apparently it is the rebif that actually causes the pain, not the shot. The warmth allows it to be dispersed better. Well I’ll be. Lastly I massage the area to aide in dispersion.

I am not sure when I will run again, right now it feels like January. But I am sure I will get through this and feel better soon. Because it is so lung focused I am a bit concerned about running again. I think I’ll start out with some short runs to get back into it (haven’t we heard that before!)

Sick as a dog

Yuck, I feel like garbage and have for a few days now. I ran On Sunday and Monday and my breathing was really heavy both days, by Monday night I was down for the count. I think it might be a flu since I have flu-like symptoms. Oh wait, that’s right, rebif gives me flu-like symptoms, great… Coughing all night (I need to get some cough suppressant or something), constant runny nose, fever (oh wait, the rebif again), sweats (uh, thanks rebif) and sneezing (a little). I know I am supposed to keep taking the rebif even when I am sick, but it is really tempting to skip it until I am better. I am sure that screws up the way it works, so I’ll keep at it.

On a positive note, I have been trying a different strategy for reducing the pain of my injections. I had been icing the area beforehand. Sometimes this would work fine, sometimes not. I got a call from msLifelines and talked to them about my issue and she recommended using a warm compress instead. I had heard this, but the ice was just easier, so I kept at it. Well, so far I am a convert. The warmth works much better. I heat up a washcloth with hot water and apply it to the area. I do this twice before my alcohol swab, hand washing and injection. Apparently it is the rebif that actually causes the pain, not the shot. The warmth allows it to be dispersed better. Well I’ll be. Lastly I massage the area to aide in dispersion.

I am not sure when I will run again, right now it feels like January. But I am sure I will get through this and feel better soon. Because it is so lung focused I am a bit concerned about running again. I think I’ll start out with some short runs to get back into it (haven’t we heard that before!)

Non-run day

I have to say, as much as I love running and the feeling I get afterwards, you just can’t beat a non-run day sometimes. It was really nice to not have to worry about getting up early. And it is a lot easier to get out of bed when you aren’t confronted with having to lace up your shoes and hit the road. So here I sit today reading the web, drinking tons of coffee and thinking about doing some yard work. Nothing too big, but a little of that is on my horizon.

So yesterday I did my rebif in the late morning after I had forgotten it on Wednesday eve. Boy, there is definitely a reason for me taking this stuff at night. I was in a fog all day, sort of a muddles feeling (if that means anything). The ibuprofen took care of most of it, but I still felt sluggish and sort of out of it all day.

On a related note, I have noticed that many medicines these days have “flu-like” symptoms associated with them. I wonder why that is? I also wonder if the symptoms are similar across meds. Maybe the pharmaceuticals are preparing the world for their new “flu-like” symptom med. Hmmm.

Non-run day

I have to say, as much as I love running and the feeling I get afterwards, you just can’t beat a non-run day sometimes. It was really nice to not have to worry about getting up early. And it is a lot easier to get out of bed when you aren’t confronted with having to lace up your shoes and hit the road. So here I sit today reading the web, drinking tons of coffee and thinking about doing some yard work. Nothing too big, but a little of that is on my horizon.

So yesterday I did my rebif in the late morning after I had forgotten it on Wednesday eve. Boy, there is definitely a reason for me taking this stuff at night. I was in a fog all day, sort of a muddles feeling (if that means anything). The ibuprofen took care of most of it, but I still felt sluggish and sort of out of it all day.

On a related note, I have noticed that many medicines these days have “flu-like” symptoms associated with them. I wonder why that is? I also wonder if the symptoms are similar across meds. Maybe the pharmaceuticals are preparing the world for their new “flu-like” symptom med. Hmmm.