Aaron55:
Thanks for the comment Kent…while I’m not having any side effects yet I am hoping to be off the Bactrium as soon as feasible. Not a big pill person but I’ll do what’s necessary to get my numbers up and keep them there. It was a great support meeting so thank you guys for making me comfortable.
leatherman:
--- Quote from: Aaron55 on January 16, 2023, 01:03:26 pm ---I’ll do what’s necessary to get my numbers up and keep them there
--- End quote --- I believe that it often helps to look at something from a different angle to make it more manageable.
Really, all you want to do at this point it take your daily HIV med to keep your viral load DOWN. that's the different angle ;)
HIV meds don't do anything to directly effects cd4s or anything else in your body. The only thing HIV meds do is block/suppress HIV by interrupting (at multiple levels) it's ability to reproduce. So as the amount of virus dies out (measured by your viral load going down), your body is able to recover over time building back up a supply of cd4s.
Now the cd4 count is a count of how many you have; but there's no way to measure how strong/effective those cd4s are at doing their job. Most times, even a handful of cd4s can fight off a lot of stuff. It's just when the count is below 200 that an opportunistic infection might happen. The general thought is that the more cd4s you have the more your immune system will fight off diseases. But if your cd4s are good fighters, maybe all you need is 250. I lived with that low of a count of over 15 yrs without being sick. I'm up to 550 now and while I don't feel twice as healthy (dang it! ;D ) I'm still not sick and I am as healthy as I've been the last decade.
The range for a "normal" cd4 count is 400 to 1200; but besides the regular stuff (stop smoking, reduce drinking, exercise, get more sleep, lose stress, etc), there's nothing we can do to improve our cd4 count. It's all based on how sick you were/are, how effective your immune system is/was, and your genetics. You could not be sick with only 300 or you could be sick at 900. it's all about what you're sick with and how your genetics have combined to make your immune system to work.
So, take your meds, keep you Viral Load Down, and talk to a doctor about any other low/abnormal blood counts you might have because everything isn't always HIV-related.
--- Quote from: Aaron55 on January 16, 2023, 01:03:26 pm ---It was a great support meeting so thank you guys for making me comfortable.
--- End quote --- we've been doing these for a number of months and I really enjoyed this one with so many people. Some of the meetings we just bs'ed about our lives. some we've talked about advocacy work some of us have done. sometimes we've joked around about the crazy that is the 'am i infected" forum; and sometimes we've even talked HIV, treatment, and access to services.
I hope you can be in the meet again next time. ;) Make a list if you have questions; we've probably got answers ;)
Aaron55:
Thank you for this info, much appreciated. Hope to see you all next month!
Aaron55:
Six week check in with ID Doctor and things look good so far according to him. 2/15 Cd4 ct. 290 from 165 1/4/23 2/15 VL 121 from 21,000 Next appointment 3 months away and outlook is promising . Biktarvy seems to be doing its job, and hopefully be off of bactrum (sp?)after. My appointment in May. Fingers crossed !