emla and metho

[Guest guest]

Hello Angel:

When Mickey got sick with metho, she was still on the oral pills. We would crush them up and mix them with applesauce. We gave it to her before bedtime on Friday at first. Sometimes she was fine, but often she was sick most of the next day. Sometimes just feeling like throwing up, sometimes she actually would, for most of the morning, couldn't even keep water down, let alone her regular meds. A few times she even woke up sick in the middle of the night, and I'd be up with her until morning. After this happened a couple of times, we started giving her a children's gravol an hour before the metho. That helped a little, at least she would be sick in the night, but Saturdays continued to be rough, she'd feel she was going to be sick, was lethargic - not her usual self. When they changed her over to the injected metho, the nausea reaction pretty much stopped. It only happens very very rarely now, usually when she's in worse flare already.

Mickey has never gone into a meds-free remission... though we keep hoping. When she has had joint injections, it has tended only been to clear up localised pain, swelling and inflammation in the specific joints. Usually just her knees and ankles, a couple of times also her wrists and elbows, and once also her hips. With that one we had to stay overnight in the hospital with her, it was important she put no stress on the hip joint at all, she wasn't even allowed to sit up. Luckily she absolutely loves having books read to her and she enjoyed having me at her total beck and call! It helped make up for it. Anyway, those injections really did the trick with the localised swelling and inflammation, but they kept the prednisone levels where they were... I have to admit I'm not totally clear on exactly which symptoms the pred controls, and which the anti-inflammatory controls. I know the metho was in the hopes of being able to reduce the prednisone.

Something I find really hard is how often the injections mean she gets "put under". I know there can be adverse affects, I know it is always a risk. Luckily, the doctors at Toronto Sick Kids are wonderful, and have a fairly sterling reputation. Still - well I'm sure you all know. It's still a worry. If anyone knows more about the risks, or where I could find more information, I would enjoy that. The docs there always let me hold her on my lap until she is asleep, she is a lot calmer that way. And they bring me back in before she wakes up again. She tends to wake up totally disoriented and panic stricken unless she sees me, and she is usually very nauseated for a few hours. It's hard to see her like that but I know it makes it easier on her.

Regards,

Lynn Young ,

Kincardine, Canada