I Hate Rebif! Been on it for more than a year now. The bruising and redness from the injections are horrible! I was on avonex for about 7 years prior to Rebif, and though the formula is basically the same, the injections in the muscle caused a lot less reaction with my skin. And I think it was less painful (oddly enough). I had dealth with the stupid side effects while on avonex, and had stopped experiencing them for the most part (flu, headache, fatigue) and felt about the same when i first started on rebif, but the longer im on it the more and more i feel like the stupid side effects are coming back. I have an increadibly hard time getting up after injections, and I feel great on the 2 days i get a break from them... which usually turns into a longer break because i am SO sick of these stupid meds.

I haven't had my BP checked since I
have been taking Rebif. I actually
am quite pleased with it so far, but
I will have to say that I too have
been having some restless nights.
It may be something to do with my
BP...I don't know. I will get back
to you on that. I will be disapointed
if it is, because the medicine really
seems to be working for me in other
areas.

My biggest issue with Rebif is the burn as the med goes in. I have managed to get around everything else by taking Advil and icing down the shot area before my injection. I DO NOT use the auotinjector! No blood pressure issues with this med for me.

I have been using Rebif for over a year. My husband has diabetes so he gives me my injections in my backside and I do the ones in my legs. It does hurt but I havent tried any other form of meds so I can't compare. I normally take mine out of the fridge at 8pm and take it at 9pm. This way I normally sleep through the side effects. I have noticed the side effects start around 12am. I have had those nights of being freezing but my husband heats me up a heat pack and I take a panadol and all is well. I can't inject into my stomach I found that too painful even though it is the fattest part. And my daughter tends to stand on my bruises. I have found the injection hurts more if it hasn't been out of the fridge for long enough. It's like a tetnus you can feel the stuff going in when its cold & those are also the nights I find I can't sleep due to being freezing. I was also told to apply a heat pack after to stop bruising. I have done this a few times but to be honest just put up with the bruises because I am to lazy to heat up the heat pack. I hope I have helped.

This is to Klou on Rebif:

Are you not rotating your injection sites? The nurse and the manufacturer are VERY insistent about rotation of injection sites: arms, legs, tummy & backside, rotate-rotate-rotate. There is always a slight mark that goes away before you make it around to the next injection time.

Take an Advil or generic acetophenomine right before or after your injection time, that should stop the flu injections BEFORE they start.

Throw the Autostabber in the closet and do it manually! It puts the medicine in WAY too fast. The tissues don't have time to absorb it. Slow, slow, slow.

I take my shot out the night before and do it in the morning. I take two Aleve at least a half hour before my shot, then I need to eat breakfast. I re-dose with Aleve around 7 p.m., right around dinner time. My neuro gave me some muscle relaxers, which have really helped with the overnight stomach spasms.

Another thing that helps is I use the end of a water bottle on my injection site. Put the bottle on until it's good and cold. When you take it off, the cold area is red and forms a "target" for your shot. When you do the next shot, just line up the edge of the bottle with the injection hole from the last shot. It's usually still visible after 48 hours. Lather, rinse, repeat. Your shot sites are perfectly spaced, don't overlap, and allow room for injection site reaction. Also, every time I start a new box, I move to a new area. Example:
January: right leg
February: right stomach/hip
March: Left stomach/hip
April: Left Leg

Therefore, each area is used three times per year. Rotation!

Keep us posted!

i have had blood pressure issues since the onset of MS. it became quite a problem for me...a big one. i was on rebif but rebif cannot be blammed for this as the high BP began when i had my first exacerbation.

i have a lesion in the brainstem, deep in the medula where BP is regulated. i had argued all along this happened because of the MS and it wasn't until i went to Mayo that the doctor agreed according to the brainstem lesion location.

keep an eye on this as it can get out of hand. start checking your bp and seek treatment if it's too high.

No matter what RX I have taken- I always have used ice before an injection and it helps. A pain reliever for most people helps as well. I started getting too much in my system and began having rebound headaches. Now that I don't use a pain reliever when injecting fewer headaches. My BP has always been very low, and this year went up so high that my regular doctor put me pn high blood pressure medication. Different with every one- as always discuss with your neuro. Good Luck!

@O/P, I just had my 6mo Neuro check-up and after being on Rebif for about 9 months, I was told my blood-pressure needs to be watched closer now. I was used to low levels, even borderline too low. This time, they were much higher and high for a healthy fit person.
I do not know if the Rebif has anything to do with it at all. The Neuro doesn't know of elevated levels as a side-effect.

One thing we are going to look into is the possibility of any other changes. Because of the horrible Prednisone (x8 rounds in a year) and Solu-Medrol (x3 rounds in that same year), my weight is 20 lbs more than what it had been.

Regarding the other comments in this thread about side-effects and site reactions, Rebif has an acid-based solution which is why they tell you not to let it come in contact directly with your skin. This is why (or so I have been told) the solution hurts/stings at the injection site. I haven't tried the ice-prep but I DO know you can keep Rebif at room temperature for several days - even up to a week. I always take out 1-2 doses in advance and keep in my travel case.

Another tip I have found is to warm-up the tissue at the injection site beforehand. It might be something to do with either adrenaline or endorphins. For example, I might do some of my exercise warm-ups then smack my under-arm (or planned injection site) a bit before the injection.

The pain of the injection thankfully doesn't last long, but even after 9 months I still have the muscle/joint aches 2 hours after the shot. If I would follow the advice of my nurse rep, I would make sure I was very hydrated before the shot, but doesn't always happen. Either way, I try to do the shot right before bed and with a chaser of Ibuprofen or Tylenol. So far, I havent had a significant exacerbation and some minor things such as the extreme fatigue and some cognitive difficulties have improved.

Good luck to you all and I think we can all agree we hope for a cure, but manage the best we can each day.

Well, here is my 2 cents...... I've been on Rebif for 7 months now. Was doing really well until the last month, and now I get high fevers the following day, like 102. Not happy about that, and all they tell me is to take Advil/Tylenol combo, but that can't be healthy taking that all the time either. Took my injection last night, and all of a sudden today, my legs just became so painful and achey..... just hurts. :( I'm changing my whole diet though, and would encourage it to others based on what I've read. My goal is to supplement now, change diet gradually, and eventually go off supplements AND meds. There really are hope-filled stories out there!

Amy

Rebif I take aleve 30 before injection as well .I put that auto stabber up and just do it my self that way I control the medication going in...as far as my BP yes mine went up ...call Ms nurse,CVS ,and Dr they all didnt thjink it was the rebif. DR put me on medication It didnt help...so they did a doppler and I have a right renal artery stenosis .Thats explains my weird BP

Cathy

I have not noticed any BP rise but I take meds for it before I started the Rebif, Fever seems to be the only problem. My doc said if you are in pain that will make your BP go up. I will check after my next shot and see if I see a difference as my BP remains pretty constant