Rebif/LMX4 Lidocaine topical anesthetic
Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 6:29 am
I must admit, I'm one of the lucky ones so far. I was diagnosed rather quickly after only 1 clinical episode...of course I've been through multiple MRI's and a spinal tap which were all consistent with someone with MS. Anyhow I delayed starting therapy until after my 2nd MRI. I ended up going on Rebif. It wasn't my first choice because of side effects, but it was the most practical choice because of the co-pay assitance plan that Rebif has. I've only paid $100 towards my medication since I went on it 14 months ago! I self-inject 3 times a week and found the best time for me was around 10 pm at night followed by an ibuprofen chaser to help negate the side effects. If I do that, I really don't have much of a problem.
However, I HATE needles, always have. I thought as time went on I would get used to it, but I found the longer I had been doing the injections, the more I dreaded doing them. The thighs and arms are the worst for me...so much so that I stopped doing it in the arm because it just hurt too much. Anyhow I just felt with all the stuff that was out there that there had to be a way of lessening the sting of the shots. After a little research I came across LMX4 which is a 4% lidocaine topical anesthetic that is often used when people get tatoos. I decided to give it a try, and I am so glad I did. I've eliminated about 99.5% of any discomfort and on top of it, I seem to have much less incident of site reactions from the shots. I use to get more redness and bruising...I'm not sure how LMX4 helps with that but if that is another perk then I won't ask questions. If you just follow the instructions on the box, it works perfectly. It is a little pricey at about $28 for a tube, but I'm still on my first tube and it's been about a month. I figure it is worth the money if it eliminates the stress of doing the shots and right now I'm not paying anything for the medication, so I figure I can make this small splurge. Some might find it inconvenient, but it works with my schedule. You need to apply it about an hour before the shot...about the size of a dime, put on thick like cake icing then you put a band aid on it. Before the injection you just clean all the lidocaine off...thoroughly and inject. You want to make sure to get all the lidocaine off to avoid any kind of skin reaction to it. So far so good for me.
I know a lot of people will think it's a silly thing to do but if you really don't like needles and the trepidation the idea of injecting gives you then this is a great solution! Hope someone finds this useful.
However, I HATE needles, always have. I thought as time went on I would get used to it, but I found the longer I had been doing the injections, the more I dreaded doing them. The thighs and arms are the worst for me...so much so that I stopped doing it in the arm because it just hurt too much. Anyhow I just felt with all the stuff that was out there that there had to be a way of lessening the sting of the shots. After a little research I came across LMX4 which is a 4% lidocaine topical anesthetic that is often used when people get tatoos. I decided to give it a try, and I am so glad I did. I've eliminated about 99.5% of any discomfort and on top of it, I seem to have much less incident of site reactions from the shots. I use to get more redness and bruising...I'm not sure how LMX4 helps with that but if that is another perk then I won't ask questions. If you just follow the instructions on the box, it works perfectly. It is a little pricey at about $28 for a tube, but I'm still on my first tube and it's been about a month. I figure it is worth the money if it eliminates the stress of doing the shots and right now I'm not paying anything for the medication, so I figure I can make this small splurge. Some might find it inconvenient, but it works with my schedule. You need to apply it about an hour before the shot...about the size of a dime, put on thick like cake icing then you put a band aid on it. Before the injection you just clean all the lidocaine off...thoroughly and inject. You want to make sure to get all the lidocaine off to avoid any kind of skin reaction to it. So far so good for me.
I know a lot of people will think it's a silly thing to do but if you really don't like needles and the trepidation the idea of injecting gives you then this is a great solution! Hope someone finds this useful.