POZ Community Forums
Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits => Questions About Treatment & Side Effects => Topic started by: AboutToStart on July 10, 2009, 12:12:54 am
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So I'm fixin to start the big "A" pill soon.. I read a lot about all the potential side effects (dizziness, dreams, sleep problems, rash, fatigue. etc..).
I was wondering if any of you "veterans" can point out some good side effects as well (other than the obvious improvement in lab numbers..)?? {examples: no more inside mouth/tongue sores, no more yeast infections, no more/less colds/flues/ or stress over each caugh...}
Thanx.
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Well I think some might say the dreams are a "good" side affect, at least not negative. I know of one guy who said that his dreams were mostly sexual. Wish I could have some of those!
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Oh Yeah Baby!
- The dreams: Don't for a moment assume that 'vivid dreams' equates to nightmares. In fact, I can't think of anyone I know who has ever complained about having Atripla nightmares; because the reality is that they can be the most amazing Technicolor adventures in time, space and alternate realities (even being a part of a computer game). If you want to, then it is also said that it is even possible to control the content the dreams by being selective about what you are reading, or watching on TV / DVD, immediately before you fall asleep (several of my friends swear by porn, but be prepared for nocturnal discharges if you pick this option).
- The dizzy / stoned sensation: It needn't be in the least bit uncomfortable if you just go with the flow, sit back and enjoy it. Put some music on (relaxing classical / trancy / meditative / jazz / new agey / psychedelic / space / progressive .. or even just pink noise if you have any), sit back, close your eyes and enjoy some of the amazing visualisations that your mind can create. It is way better than any visualisation in Windows Media Player. If you have ever used (and enjoyed) recreational drugs, then this one will probably come more naturally; but if you haven't, then the chances are that it will take a bit of effort to relax into it.
- The Viagra / aphrodisiac effect: Not everyone gets it - and the doctors certainly don't tell you about it - but the simple truth is that, during the first few months, it makes a lot of us horny as hell (and then some .. on steroids) when it starts to hit our bloodstream (about 45 minutes after popping the little pink peril).
Don't get me wrong, the vivid dreams can get a bit much after a while, and any partner may get a bit tired of your turbocharged night-time sex-drive; but you can have a hell of a lot of fun on the way and they are all side-effects that I miss to some extent now that I don't get them ;)
On a more general level:
- I get far fewer colds and sniffles than I used to (even before I was HIV-positive) and the ones I do get tend to be much milder and shorter lived.
- A sudden surge in energy levels which, to be perfectly honest, I hadn't even noticed that I had lost.
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Apart from a drop in VL load, the positive side effect I get from Atripla is a more active dreamtime. I *love* waking up and remembering my dreams. I rarely did pre-Atripla. My dreams are colorful and vivid and mostly enjoyable. They're also pretty insightful for me but not always (last night I dreamt a chipmunk was scampering under my bed-not sure what that meant). I've tried the porn-before-bedtime trick but hasn't worked for me yet. Must try it more often!
I also enjoy the dizzy/stoned sensation and oftentimes stay up for it now. It's funny because I used to avoid it.
Sadly, no viagra effect that I've noticed. Not yet at least ;)
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I've tried the porn-before-bedtime trick but hasn't worked for me yet. Must try it more often!
We have tried it a few times and it never did anything for me. It worked for my boyfriend though .. b*****!
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Thank's for your inputs, guyz!!! I'm actually looking forward now for starting the Atripla, LoL... The final count down has began - this coming Sunday will be my first night!! Kinda excited bout that.. will report how goes :o
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Thank's for your inputs, guyz!!! I'm actually looking forward now for starting the Atripla, LoL... The final count down has began - this coming Sunday will be my first night!! Kinda excited bout that.. will report how goes :o
That's the spirit.
Just one word of caution on the dreams. Allow yourself a few minutes in the morning where you doubt everything - just whilst you figure out what was a dream and what is reality. It is sometimes a bit of a let-down when you realise that you haven't in actual fact just discovered the meaning of life, the universe and everything .. and that nothing really matters probably isn't the most effective approach to life ;)
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{examples: no more inside mouth/tongue sores, no more yeast infections, no more/less colds/flues/ or stress over each caugh...}
Thanx.
1) Sustiva in Atripla - the dreams! Enjoy them!
2) if any of that stuff above is related to having replicating HIV and a stressed immune system, you should see these annoying conditions diminish, of course - but ANY Haart would do that, not just Atripla.
HAART does nothing to protect you from everyday colds and flus, that I am aware of.
You'll feel healthy again. Maybe you wont get any side effects of medication. Time will tell. Enjoy. Be confident!
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Thank you very much - Luke, GNYC09, mecch, PozBryan and others on other threads.. Tonight (finally!!!) I will take my first Atripla and then I won't be AboutToSTart any more.. I would have to change my screenname to something less "virginy"... LoL
You guyz have been encouraging, advising and inspiring to me in the last few weeks since I made my desicion to start meds. It sure helps to know all of you are out there in case I need some support..
By the way - here's a link to an interesting article I found (I don't know if it's been discussed on here before or not..):
http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/hiv_efavirenz_cns_1667_16881.shtml
I'll talk to you tomorrow,
>AboutToStart.
:-*
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Good luck :)
Just stay calm and with a little patience I am sure you will be just fine. Nothing irreversible is going to happen over the next few weeks - and should you be one of the few who just doesn’t get on with Atripla, then it isn’t a personal failure and there are plenty more options out there for you.
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Thanks so much man.. Till the last moment yesterday I was still playin with it in my mind: "Should I take the Atripla? Should I not? Should I take it? Should I not.." knowing - of course - the right answer..
Finally, 11pm last night - took my first pill. An hour later went to bed, not feeling anything. An hour after that, still awake (!!) but don't feel a thing. Finally, sleep. no interruptions or weird dreams (thank you Ambien CR..). Did wake up once to go to bathroom - that's when I fealt dizzy the first time..
This morning (Monday) I had a light dizzyness, somewhat upset stomach and general weakness, so it worked well that I could stay at home.. Nothing too bad thou.. I've never been "stoned" so I can't really compare it with that, but I had my share of sea sickness (motion sickness) in the past, and it feels as a light case of that (except no throw ups..). Later in the morning it all subsided (about 12hrs past intake) and everything went back to normal (appetite, energy, moral..)
Tonight (Monday) - "Take II". Now I'm a veteran.. LoL. If I get dizzy/motion sick again tomorrow morning (prolly I will..) I will try an anti nausea pill just to see if it works.. I'm supposed to go back to work early Wed morning, so I need to know if I can function well (the way I fealt this morning I couldn't even drive myself there..).
So far so good...
>AlreadyStarted (prev: AboutToStart)
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Proof positive that we all react differently to Atripla. I still have bouts with the vivid dreams and no, none of them were scary, just intense.
runk feeling, yes. rash, no. used to it now? yuppers. I used to get this feeling of being out of breath but that passed after about 2 weeks. I can take it ansd stay up late with the best of them and effects noticed at all.
Hi Lukitron!
Good luck and let us know how fast your Cd4 count goes up and VL goes down.
Cheers
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I saw my Dr this week for test results and my VL went down to 221, so keep at it, this stuff works. During my exam she noted a rash on my torso. I hadn't noticed it and it didn't bother me but she gave me some Allegra for it anyway. So it seems that I may have the atripla rash. But unless she had said something I wouldn't have noticed it. Just because you may have side affects doesn't meant that they will be so bad that you won't be able to handle them or that they will force you to change your meds. You need to watch, but not panic.
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I finally got it!!! The BUZZ!!! (the "good" kind)
After my 5th day on atripla I took my pill yesterday a little earlier than usual (9:30pm) and didn't go immediately to bed like before. After an hour I really got the munchies so I snacked on some low fat yogurt, fruit and a granola bar.. in less than 30mins I started to feel buzzed/light headed.. I actually enjoyed it and didn't even want to go to sleep so I can enjoy it some more.. Never been otherwise "stoned" but I guess that's how it feels.. Same like getting drunk I guess..
Finally I went to bed around 1am, without even taking my 'usual' Ambien CR to help sleep. I still slept pretty good.. perhaps not as deep as with the CR (I remember wakig up every couple of hours and hearing the AC cycling on/off) but still slept pretty well and no weird/vivid dreams.. I don't know if it's the buzz from the atripla that helped me sleep without the CR.. I'll have to see in the next few days..
The good news is that I didn't wake up this morning feeling dizzy/weak/nausea as the first two days.. Just a light buzz so I'm sure I could drive/go to work if I had to.. One thing I noticed since starting atripla - my appetite is bigger and sometimes I actually crave for food before/after taking the pill (hope I don't gain weight).. Also - the EARLIER in the evening I take the pill (and eat after that) the better I will feel the next morning.. ::)
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See, it isn't so bad if you aren't expecting it to be ;)
Glad to see you are getting the hang of noticing those little differences and gradually adapting your routines to to minimise the inconvenient side-effects.
Remember that the level of drugs is still building up though, so don't be too unnerved some of the other things start to kick in a bit over the next few days.
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I have been taking the 123 pill for about 5 months now.
The dreams have never stopped. In fact, sometimes I have difficulties in distinguishing the dreams from realty. For example, a few nights ago, I dreamed that my car rear left tire was flat for some odd reason and the next morning before work I was already thinking about getting the tire repaired before work. When I walked out into the garage and noticed the tire was properly inflated, I then realized the senario was yet another dream. This situation has happened on several occasions.
I Don't mind the dreams whatsoever. I just hope they don't ever morph into nightmares.
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very interesting. I sometimes have the opposite effect. During some of my Atripla dreams I realize that I am dreaming. A while back I had a vivid and colorful dream that I walked through a doorway and was in the party scene from The Shining. I realized how crazy this was and that I was dreaming. I ended up staying + having fun and managed to avoid those creepy twins!
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I realized how crazy this was and that I was dreaming.
Yeah I used to get that occasionally - and when you think about it, actually rationalising that you are dreaming when you are still dreaming is pretty sick ;)
More often than not it was the other way around though: waking up and not being quite sure what was reality and what was a dream.
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I dreamt last night that I was in Billings, MT!!!! Of all the places in the world - why there??? I have no clue.. Anyways, this morning it just made me laugh... Dreams are always strange/weired and at least in my case I don't see any correlation between the atripla and the dreams (it's not like I haven't dreamt before or as if the dreams made more sense then..)
PS: no offence is intended to the great residents of MT...
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I dreamt last night that I was in Billings, MT!!!!
So much for me telling you that vivid dreams doesn't necessarily equate to nightmares :-[
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So much for me telling you that vivid dreams doesn't necessarily equate to nightmares :-[
Luke - you crack me up!!!
I just "celebrated" my 1st week anniversary of being on atripla (!!!) and things do get better like you all said they would :)
Much love to all,
>AlreadyStarted (aka: AboutToStart)
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I have a question that relates to all of this. How many of you already experienced lucid and vivid dreamscapes prior to taking Altripla?
I have very colorful, lucid, and imaginative dreams already, and I am not taking any meds right now. LOL can my dreams get more "cracked" out than they already are?
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I have very colorful, lucid, and imaginative dreams already, and I am not taking any meds right now. LOL can my dreams get more "cracked" out than they already are?
I was like that, though each of our experiences differ. I am not on Atripla but taking Sustiva with Epizcom. I already had very vivid dreams before starting and after the first 2 months were pure torture. I could never get enough rest. For a period I had frequent nightmares but right now like a lot have reported I am beginning to learn to control them ..
I have recently been able to wake myself up when the dreams were going into places that I knew would be nightmarish... just last night, I dreamed that a new world war had started and I with a lot of people were being told to pack, each given a number (I still remember mind, 1901) and rounded up in a train station. It was exceptionally lucid, like a film set and I was having conversations with all sorts of people in languages that I couldn't speak (I was speaking a lot of Polish). I guess my brain knew that if it went on it would be horrible I woke up.
Then I remember.. the day before I was reading a short story on New Yorker about WWII...
The porn before sleep never works for me either.. though I did have 2, 3 sexy dreams that were really really good... ;)
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I have very colorful, lucid, and imaginative dreams already, and I am not taking any meds right now. LOL can my dreams get more "cracked" out than they already are?
After 2 weeks on the Atripla I'm still having, let's say, "imaginative dreams" but exactly as you say - you don't need meds for that.. Dreams are always weird and most of the time totally unexplainable as they tend to reflect our subconcious, fears, concerns, that the concious mind puts a side during the day. So I can't realy say if the atripla makes my dreams more vivid and lucid, perhaps some, but mainly rememberfull after waking up..
There's a lot to study/research about dreaming in general, but I don't think they actually last very long (thou they seem to last for ever when you dream them) as your stages of sleep cycle back and forth during the night..
I agree with Komnaes that training yourself to wake up from a bad dream is a great thing, but as with many other skills you have to practice it a lot. For me (way before HIV or meds) the worst dream I could have was one of me falling from a high building, mountain top, airplane etc. The sensation of a long helpless fall in a dream was horrific, so I started telling myself (while awake) whenever I saw a movie with people jumping or falling that this is just a dream, and it worked, twice, after that when I was telling myself WHILE DREAMING of a fall that it was just a dream...
:o
I'm still waiting for a hot sexual dream!! Can it be that I'm being punished by the gods for being overly sexual during my awake time???
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Jcelvis, to answer your question, pre-Atripla I rarely remembered my dreams. Post Atripla I remember them every day (and they were vivid dreams). But this week has been unusual because there have been two mornings when I haven't remember my dreams (including this morning). :-\