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Author Topic: Hi "Team"  (Read 4344 times)

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Offline nemesis

  • New Member
  • Posts: 1
Hi "Team"
« on: July 10, 2010, 06:26:06 pm »
... I never thought I'd "be one of you" - but here I am: HI ALL  :-\ I have been knowing that I am HIV positive since March'10. I was stupid a couple of times during 2009 - let us call that "Hybris" -  and I guess my daily meds will remind me of this pretty much until I die - let us call that "Nemesis" (and that is my handle as of now).

I guess my post here is for the record really. I don't seek any help nor comfort in particular. Honestly I am not quite sure why I share this with you. Still... here goes:

Went to the doc because of swollen glands. I suspected something COULD be wrong - perhaps even unconsciously that this was HIV. Sure thing, it was. VL 17.000, CD4 380, CD4% 21. Not THAT bad my doc told me. Since I had a HIV test end 2008 which was neg, this infection must have occurred in 2009, and I there were a few incidents where I knowingly and willingly engaged in unprotected sex during that time. In my naive mind HIV was something that other ppl. got - not me: I am highly educated, got a bf, a cat, a job, etc. etc. What seems a bit strange is that that some ppl seem to live for a decade(s) or more with an infection before reaching the numbers which I have got. Doc told me that this happens: I could be a fast progressor.

My doc told me that there was no reason to take meds right away (unless I was really bothered by my swollen glands), but that with todays meds there would be really no reason to postpone it, provided that I would adhere to my therapy, which he thought I would (yes sir - I bet ya'). Of course I browsed the internet before deciding: what I found there was to a large degree outdated information on HIV, AIDS, side effects, etc. After "filtering" my search results to not include stuff prior to 2005 I guess newly infected ppl. definitely would get a more more correct view (and quite optimistic view) of HIV treatment as it is today. In particular - poz.com and hopkins-hivguide.org are excellent up2date resources btw!

I determined that I was ready to start therapy end of April. It turns out that i was partly resistant to NNRTI's. This ruled out Atripla (because of Sustiva) right away: "damn" - I thought. This would have been so practical. After reading more about Sustiva I  am now glad that I dont have to deal with potential side effects of Sustiva.  In the end I was given Truvada+Isentress which was another "preferred regime" for treatment naives since 1st of April here in Germany. 

Oh well... what can I say: It took me merely 3 weeks to reach UD (which is VL < 20 at least here in Berlin) and an increase in CD4% to 33. I honestly can say that I do compare my meds with m&m's - no side effects whatsoever: nothing - nada. To be honest I am feeling absolutely fine! and hardly think of the virus anymore. Taking the pills have become part of the daily routine - when brushing teeth in the morning and in the evening. Soon my doc will chk. my liver, kidneys etc. to see if the meds don't mess up my body - don't hope so :O

What worries me now is that ONE day I will have to worry about the virus. That ONE day the meds will fail or that the meds have long-term effects that will get me down. Or that the dormant virus will influence my health in one way or another - perhaps in an unforeseen or unexpected way. It DOES worry me that the meds we/I am on are pretty new and that it must be damn difficult to extrapolate the effects that all this may have on ppl. living for decades to come. Me being 35 I would like to live a PROPER life until 70++,  just as "the rest". I am aware that this a luxury position newly HIV infected ppl are in compared to the ppl. who were infected in the 80's/90's, but I see no problem with being more demanding than just wanting to "survive". Is this wrong?

Guess I could keep on writing. Well, perhaps another day in another thread. At least now you all know that I am here and that I do intent to participate on this board the "years" to come :)

cheers from Germany!
Denys




Offline mecch

  • Member
  • Posts: 13,455
  • red pill? or blue pill?
Re: Hi "Team"
« Reply #1 on: July 10, 2010, 07:01:09 pm »
Hi from switzerland. Welcome. Glad to here your combo is great and your mind doing well.
“From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need” 1875 K Marx

Offline WillyWump

  • Member
  • Posts: 7,367
  • EPIC FIERCENESS!
Re: Hi "Team"
« Reply #2 on: July 10, 2010, 07:02:18 pm »
Welcome Dennys, and Howdy from Texas! Look forward to ahving you around.

-Will
POZ since '08

Last Labs-
11-6-14 CD4- 871, UD
6/3/14 CD4- 736, UD 34%
6/25/13 CD4- 1036, UD,
2/4/13, CD4 - 489, UD, 28%

Current Meds: Prezista/Epzicom/ Norvir
.

Offline Boze

  • Member
  • Posts: 477
Re: Hi "Team"
« Reply #3 on: July 10, 2010, 07:22:34 pm »
Welcome, I also found out in March 2010, similar age group to you.

"What worries me now is that ONE day I will have to worry about the virus. That ONE day the meds will fail or that the meds have long-term effects that will get me down. Or that the dormant virus will influence my health in one way or another - perhaps in an unforeseen or unexpected way. It DOES worry me that the meds we/I am on are pretty new and that it must be damn difficult to extrapolate the effects that all this may have on ppl. living for decades to come. Me being 35 I would like to live a PROPER life until 70++,  just as "the rest". I am aware that this a luxury position newly HIV infected ppl are in compared to the ppl. who were infected in the 80's/90's, but I see no problem with being more demanding than just wanting to "survive". Is this wrong?"

A few words on this topic.

First - the drugs continue improving. So the regimen we'll be on 10 years from now is probably going to be pretty different from what we are on today. Reason is largely money - patents expire and Big Pharma need to put out new drugs (that will have to be more effective) to justify high price tags (as opposed to cheap generics).
Also - regarding life expectancy, read this: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/723870
==========
Aug08 - Seroconversion
Mar10 - Diagnosis; cd4 690 - VL 19,000
Apr10 - cd4 600
May10 - VL 4,500
Jun10 - started Atripla ; VL 113
Jul 10 - UD vl, CD4 590
Aug 10 - UD, CD4 810, 52%
Nov 10 - UD, CD4 980

Offline hotpuppy

  • Member
  • Posts: 555
Re: Hi "Team"
« Reply #4 on: July 10, 2010, 08:00:12 pm »
Welcome to the forums.... reaching out and interacting is taking control of the situation... and that is a step towards a more normal life.  I commend you for having the strength and courage to do so.

You will find a variety of opinions some right, some wrong, some inspiring, others less so... so take everything with a grain of salt, including what i say.  :)

I would encourage you to think about the current numbers that the US CDC and comperable agencies in Europe are publishing.  With treatment and a healthy lifestyle, the average life expectancy is 44 years with HIV.  That is a very long time and just 10 years ago it was much less.  HIV is becoming a chronic condition like diabetes.  In 20 years we can expect further advances.  The current drugs work extremely well and if you are willing to commit to taking them as prescribed you shouldn't have resistance or failure issues.  The side effects exist, but they are manageable and tolerable for many.  When compared with initial AZT the side effects are minimal from what I understand.

Again, welcome to the forums and thank you for sharing your story.  A thought for you.  We cannot change yesterday, and today is already unfolding.  We can however change tomorrow for the better.  With HIV we cannot undo our infection, and we have a limited amount of change we can make today... but we can affect what tomorrow brings by planning and acting in ways that bring us a better tomorrow.
Don't obsess over the wrong things.  Life isn't about your numbers, it isn't about this forum, it isn't about someone's opinion.  It's about getting out there and enjoying it.   I am a person with HIV - not the other way around.

Offline Billy B

  • Member
  • Posts: 392
Re: Hi "Team"
« Reply #5 on: July 11, 2010, 09:00:06 pm »
Denys- Hello from North Carolina. I am taking the same meds and am very happy with the outcome.
Billy
VL 4420 CD4 340 CD4% 24   3/15/10 Started I&T
VL  UD   CD4 340 CD4% 26.5 05/13/10
VL  UD   CD4 360 CD4% 27.1 08/3/10
VL  UD   CD4 310 CD4% 28.4 11/22/10
VL  UD   CD4 420 CD4% 27.9 02/11/11
VL  UD   CD4 370 CD4% 26.4 06/08/11
VL  UD   CD4 360 CD4% 27.7 09/23/11
VL  UD   CD4 370 CD4% 28.3 01/20/12
VL  UD   CD4 430 CD4% 28.8 05/11/12
VL  UD   CD4 370 CD4% 28.1 09/07/12
VL  UD   CD4 390 CD4% 32.3 03/14/13
VL  UD   CD4 450 CD4% 29.8 09/10/13
VL  UD   CD4 430 CD4% 31.0 04/29/14
VL  UD   CD4 520 CD4% 34.8 11/05/15
VL  UD   CD4 440 CD4% 33.5 03/10/15
VL  UD   CD4 450 CD4% 30.5 08/23/16
VL  UD   CD4 510 CD4% 34.0 07/21/20  (Biktarvy)

Offline peteb

  • Member
  • Posts: 203
Re: Hi "Team"
« Reply #6 on: July 11, 2010, 09:53:05 pm »
Hi Denys
welcome to the forums its a great place to learn alot
hugs
Pete Tucson Arizona

 


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