Week 3 begins, and another change..

As the title goes, today I started week 3 of light treatment which was my 6th session. Having started at 17 seconds, I have now progressed onto 41 seconds. My skin doesn't feel as sore now, large patches on the front and back of my thighs have proved to be problematic especially when the weather had been so cold. With said problem, I have taken to wearing tracksuit pants, which are softer on my skin compared to jeans which tend to rub and itch.

(Emulsifying Ointment)

Today was also the day I started Cimzia (Certolizumab pegol) which is an injection. It comes in a prefilled syringe, in a pack of 2 and 2 alcohol swabs. It has to be stored in the fridge but taken out at least a half an hour before injecting to reach room temperature (also this means less of a sting upon injecting). I have been used to injecting have been prescribed Enbrel in January, I had used the myclic 50mg pen and had been reduced to 25mg syringe after my skin reacted so badly by flaring. This time around I will be on 400mg, being 2 x 200mg syringes.

It had been 2 weeks since I had last injected Enbrel and when it came to injecting Cimzia today,I froze, to say the least. I think I worked myself up so much that it affected me being able to inject. What if it makes my skin worse? What if it doesn't help my joints? What if I get one of the hundreds of different side effects that was listed on the info pack? (Yeah, that last one didn't help me at all). After building up the courage, I finally pinched the skin on my thigh, stuck the needle in and took my time injecting. I probably gave the biggest sigh of relief and questioned why I had worked myself up so much. Then of course, injection number 2! This didn't work out as well but I took my time and changed location halfway through to be more comfortable. 

The instructional DVD does say it push the plunger that it's done in 10 seconds, but I find it tends to sting so I take my time and take a breather in between. It's been about 2 hours since I injected and I feel OK. The areas I injected (right thigh and left thigh) are a bit sensitive, but that's to be expected. I just have to keep an eye on them to see if I get a reaction on the site. Will be sure to keep update on how I feel, while I'm also recording it on a diary and Cimzia Patient guide. 

Are you on Cimzia? Get in touch, would love to hear of your experiences and what you find helps you.

Til next time....

Sarah