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Author Topic: My first post here. Tested poz 2 months ago. Started Atripla 1 mo ago  (Read 4265 times)

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Offline YeahImPoz

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  • Posts: 4
 I lost my life partner to AIDS a few years ago. I also have several good friends with HIV so I am knowledgeable about the meds and opportunistic infections etc.  I used to get tested every year, but I guess after 15 years of negative tests and no change in my sexual practices I got complacent.  Got tested 2 months ago for the first time in 6 years and was positive.  I was surprised but dealing with it okay til my labs came back and my T-cells were 77.  I was shocked and confused.  To this day I have never had a single symptom associated with HIV that I know of - not even thrush. No night sweats, no swollen lymph nodes, hell I don't even remember having a fever in the last 5 years.  Every person I've ever known with HIV has begun to have illnesses when the CD4 got in the 200's - thrush, shingles, TB, Crypto, sweats.  I'm not complaining but how common is it to drop all the way below 100 and never have a noticeable symptom? I'm encouraged by that fact but scared to death I will get something serious or life threatening b4 my immune system can reconstitute
« Last Edit: July 13, 2011, 01:30:27 pm by YeahImPoz »

Offline spacebarsux

  • Member
  • Posts: 1,350
  • Survival of the Fittest
Welcome to the forums.

I am sure things will turn around for you very soon.

Wish you luck :)
Infected-  2005 or early 2006; Diagnosed- Jan 28th, 2011; Feb '11- CD4 754 @34%, VL- 39K; July '11- CD4 907@26%,  VL-81K; Feb '12- CD4 713 @31%, VL- 41K, Nov '12- CD4- 827@31%

Offline wolfter

  • Member
  • Posts: 5,470
First, welcome!  I can't provide you the answers from a statistical POV, but I know a lot of people who got their HIV diagnosis at the same time as their AIDS diagnosis.  I was asymptomatic until I was in the single digits.  Ditto for several friends.  Hopefully your doctor is prescribing something to combat OI's while waiting for your numbers to rise.
Being honest is not wronging others, continuing the dishonesty is.

Offline drewm

  • Member
  • Posts: 1,248
I lost my life partner to AIDS a few years ago. I also have several good friends with HIV so I am knowledgeable about the meds and opportunistic infections etc.  I used to get tested every year, but I guess after 15 years of negative tests and no change in my sexual practices I got complacent.  Got tested 2 months ago for the first time in 6 years and was positive.  I was surprised but dealing with it okay til my labs came back and my T-cells were 77.  I was shocked and confused.  To this day I have never had a single symptom associated with HIV that I know of - not even thrush. No night sweats, no swollen lymph nodes, hell I don't even remember having a fever in the last 5 years.  Every person I've ever known with HIV has begun to have illnesses when the CD4 got in the 200's - thrush, shingles, TB, Crypto, sweats.  I'm not complaining but how common is it to drop all the way below 100 and never have a noticeable symptom? I'm encouraged by that fact but scared to death I will get something serious or life threatening b4 my immune system can reconstitute

Hi, welcome to the forums. My CD-4 count was 8 and my VL was a half million. I had NO symptoms two weeks before my dx. I was admitted to the hospital because I thought I had an upper respiratory infection that I could not shake.

This disease is weird. There are folks with fantastic numbers who have more chronic illness than those with worse numbers.
Diagnosed in  May of 2010 with teh AIDS.

PCP Pneumonia . CD4 8 . VL 500,000

TRIUMEQ - VALTREX -  FLUOXETINE - FENOFIBRATE - PRAVASTATIN - CIALIS


Numbers consistent since 12/2010 - VL has remained undetectable and CD4 is anywhere from 275-325

Offline aztecan

  • Member
  • Posts: 5,530
  • 36 years positive, 64 years a pain in the butt
Hey Yeah,

As others said, it is not uncomon for people to have low T cell counts without symptoms.

I would count my lucky stars.

I presume you are also taking Bactrim as a prophylaxis, or if you can't take the sulfa drugs, then Dapsone?

Glad you have joined in, by the way.

HUGS,

Mark
"May your life preach more loudly than your lips."
~ William Ellery Channing (Unitarian Minister)

Offline YeahImPoz

  • Member
  • Posts: 4
Thanks, I very much appreciate the input and encouragement.  Yes, I'm taking Bactrim and Azythromycin in addition to my Atripla.  Got my first labs back yesterday and my viral load is already down to 33 copies or essentially undetectable.  My doctor said be patient with the CD4 increase.  He said a reasonable hope/goal would be go from 77 to 200 in one year, and eventually back to as high as 400.  But drewm, please confirm that  I am looking at your numbers correctly.  You had a CD4 count of 8 in May / June 2010, and 323 six months later ??  Good for you - that's awesome !
« Last Edit: July 13, 2011, 03:28:02 pm by YeahImPoz »

Offline Assurbanipal

  • Member
  • Posts: 2,177
  • Taking a forums break, still see PM's
It's great you are having a good reaction to the meds.  Do be careful about too much sun this summer though (Bactrim can be a bit nasty with that).

And welcome to the forums

Assurbanipal
5/06 VL 1M+, CD4 22, 5% , pneumonia, thrush -- O2 support 2 months, 6/06 +Kaletra/Truvada
9/06 VL 3959 CD4 297 13.5% 12/06 VL <400 CD4 350 15.2% +Pravachol
2007 VL<400, 70, 50 CD4 408-729 16.0% -19.7%
2008 VL UD CD4 468 - 538 16.7% - 24.6% Osteoporosis 11/08 doubled Pravachol, +Calcium/D
02/09 VL 100 CD4 616 23.7% 03/09 VL 130 5/09 VL 100 CD4 540 28.4% +Actonel (osteoporosis) 7/09 VL 130
8/09  new regimen Isentress/Epzicom 9/09 VL UD CD4 621 32.7% 11/09 VL UD CD4 607 26.4% swap Isentress for Prezista/Norvir 12/09 (liver and muscle issues) VL 50
2010 VL UD CD4 573-680 26.1% - 30.9% 12/10 VL 20
2011 VL UD-20 CD4 568-673 24.7%-30.6%
2012 VL UD swap Prezista/Norvir for Reyataz drop statin CD4 768-828 26.7%-30.7%
2014 VL UD - 48
2015 VL 130 Moved to Triumeq

 


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