Sunrise On Ocean, Italy Cruise Sept. 2008 |
Dear Readers,
Thank you for following and reading my blog. I am truly very appreciative.
Do you read the side-effects on the meds you take before you start taking them or after you have started them? Personally, I've never bothered to read before for fear they would only scare me and I'd not take the meds. That's what I did with Mirapex, which I'm taking to help with Parkinson's symptoms.
But with the last increase in strength ordered by the doctor and starting to experience more side effects, I thought I'd better check them out. Since I had been taking a lower dose of this drug for years for RLS, I really didn't worry about side-effects. I already knew the drug made me sleepy.
Here's a list of the side-effects that affect me personally. There are about 35 possible ones total, so I won't list all of them and bore you.
Drowsiness - I already knew this, plus my doctor warned me I might have the tendency to suddenly fall asleep anywhere, anytime. Well, it isn't quite that bad for me, but I do start yawning within about an hour of taking a pill.
Sudden Urges - like Compulsive Gambling. Not me, but am eating more and gaining weight.
Dizziness or Lightheaded*** - Yes.
Balance Problems***- Yes, getting worse.
Light Headache*** Yes, most of the time.
Dry Mouth*** - Yes
Stuffy Nose - Yes
Change In Mood or Emotions*** - Yes - Depression sometimes sets in easily.
Confusion*** - Yes - getting worse
Difficulty Walking*** - Yes - getting worse daily.
Memory Loss*** - Yes - getting worse daily.
Weakness*** - Yes - getting worse daily.
Swelling of arms or legs - some.
New Unusual Skin Growths - skin is getting terrible
Trouble Swallowing*** - yes, at times.
Vision Changes*** - Eye doctor a month ago said no. Use eye drops to retain moisture. It does help some. My vision was good he said, but to me vision seems worse.
NOTE: Those side-effects with an *** after are also listed as symptoms of PD. Interesting!
Now some "food for thought." Since some of my symptoms are those of Parkinson's and also side effects of the Mirapex, am I exacerbating the Parkinson's problem by taking Mirapex? That is a question I'll be asking the Nurse Practitioner in a couple of weeks.
I have recently learned that when a doctor does a clinical study to be published in a journal, they do have to list every single side effect anyone noticed - even if it was only 1 person out of 100 that reported that symptom. I did not know that until 2 weeks ago. So maybe the side-effects means nothing - I don't know.
Next blog post I'll talk about what kinds of things I'm doing to "help myself" - aids, classes, etc.
On the pleasant side, a good friend and I went to the Friday afternoon movie and saw "The Help." What a bargain too - $4.00 each. Both our husbands were working, so they were not invited. giggle - a girls afternoon out. We both agreed it was an EXCELLENT movie and we will recommend it to our friends. Did any of you see it and how did you feel about it?
Until next time,
Mary
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