strange

[SpringinJune23]

I just made 23 and have been positive since i was 19. I've taken many different med combo's but most of them made me too sick or i was allergic to them. Since 2011 i have been taking isentress and truvada. Isentress twice a day and truvada once. I began to get headaches but after two months i was undetectable so i delt with it. Well really not really. I decided to take half of what i was originally prescribed of isentress. So i take one at night with one truvada. Bad right? well i have been doing that for a year now and i still remain undetectable. My t-cells are like 400 and something which may seem low but that's what they were before i tested positive. Something i should note is that my ex-boyfriend the man that infected me in the first place went 20 years without taking meds and rarely got sick. In which he convinced himself that he did not have it though a positive test in the 80's. Have anyone else experience anything of the sort?

[Ann]

Hi Spring, welcome to the forums.

It sounds like your ex was what's called a Long Term Non-Progressor (LTNP for short). It's not all that uncommon.

I've been poz for fifteen years and I'm only just about to start meds - not because my numbers are terrible or because I'm sick, I'm not. My numbers are still ok but not as good as they used to be and as I'm not getting any younger (I'll be 50 in November), I feel it's time for me to start.

There are other members here who are LTNPs - and a few LTNP who started meds after years of being well and med-free. So yes, what happened to your ex is not strange - it's just not as common as people who need meds within a few years of becoming poz.

If your combo is working for you the way you take it, then that's good. The goal of treatment is to remain undetectable. Just make sure you're being regularly monitored in case you experience viral rebound. And make sure you never miss a dose - on your lower dose that could spell trouble. Be careful!

Also I wonder, have you ever tried taking the full isentress dose at night? You may not experience the headaches that way and you'd at least be getting more of the med into your system. Once a day isentress was trialed but stopped as it didn't seem to work for all.