Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
December 02, 2024, 02:23:45 am

Login with username, password and session length


Members
  • Total Members: 37984
  • Latest: Joe213
Stats
  • Total Posts: 775356
  • Total Topics: 66588
  • Online Today: 361
  • Online Ever: 5484
  • (June 18, 2021, 11:15:29 pm)
Users Online
Users: 0
Guests: 309
Total: 309

Welcome


Welcome to the POZ Community Forums, a round-the-clock discussion area for people with HIV/AIDS, their friends/family/caregivers, and others concerned about HIV/AIDS.  Click on the links below to browse our various forums; scroll down for a glance at the most recent posts; or join in the conversation yourself by registering on the left side of this page.

Privacy Warning:  Please realize that these forums are open to all, and are fully searchable via Google and other search engines. If you are HIV positive and disclose this in our forums, then it is almost the same thing as telling the whole world (or at least the World Wide Web). If this concerns you, then do not use a username or avatar that are self-identifying in any way. We do not allow the deletion of anything you post in these forums, so think before you post.

  • The information shared in these forums, by moderators and members, is designed to complement, not replace, the relationship between an individual and his/her own physician.

  • All members of these forums are, by default, not considered to be licensed medical providers. If otherwise, users must clearly define themselves as such.

  • Forums members must behave at all times with respect and honesty. Posting guidelines, including time-out and banning policies, have been established by the moderators of these forums. Click here for “Do I Have HIV?” posting guidelines. Click here for posting guidelines pertaining to all other POZ community forums.

  • We ask all forums members to provide references for health/medical/scientific information they provide, when it is not a personal experience being discussed. Please provide hyperlinks with full URLs or full citations of published works not available via the Internet. Additionally, all forums members must post information which are true and correct to their knowledge.

  • Product advertisement—including links; banners; editorial content; and clinical trial, study or survey participation—is strictly prohibited by forums members unless permission has been secured from POZ.

To change forums navigation language settings, click here (members only), Register now

Para cambiar sus preferencias de los foros en español, haz clic aquí (sólo miembros), Regístrate ahora

Finished Reading This? You can collapse this or any other box on this page by clicking the symbol in each box.

Author Topic: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006  (Read 11020 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline FeralTerminator

  • Member
  • Posts: 5
New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« on: January 29, 2024, 09:59:44 pm »
Late to the party with being able to really talk to anyone and went through my dumb phase that nearly killed me, now on the road to recovery to live a long life.

So like the title say's, I've been HIV positive since Feb 2006... almost 20 years. Thats... something I never thought I would say. Found out when I tried to join the armed forces out of desperation and poverty.

Went to a support group for a little while afterwards but ended up moving a lot and just never kept up with it. I was in denial that it would hurt me... I felt fine and I did for a long long time. Never went to the doctor, took meds... nothing.

In 2021 I started to get SEVERE back pain, it was crippling pain and within a week I had to leave work. I was going to doctors then the ER trying to find the cause of the pain. Everyone brushed it off as someone trying to score pills. They never took it seriously.

Eventually I was bed ridden unable to move due to the pain. I spent over 3 weeks unable to get up, out of desperation I called 911 and demanded they take me to a different hospital because I just couldn't take the pain anymore. I wanted to kill myself to make it end. On a 1-10 I was at a 19.

So they took me to a better hospital that had an MRI machine and did a scan. They found an infection in my lower spine and bone damage. My spine was pinching my spinal cord causing spasms... causing more pain... causing spasms. They did my blood work and my CD4 count was 19.

I would have died if I did not go to that hospital, I would have died screaming in pain unable to move.

They rushed me up to the critical care area and started me on some pretty extreme antibiotics and HIV medication. I spent a week in the hospital and the next 9 weeks in a rehab facility regaining my ability to walk.

Its been 2 years since my recovery in the hospital, I'm about 60% of what I was. I can walk for extended periods without a cane anymore, I can bend down and play with my dog, I can even mildly run on a treadmill again.

My case worker set me up with the Michigan Drug Assistance Program to pay for my medication which was my biggest fear. I made to much for medicaid but to little for decent insurance to pay for it.

Last time I had my count checked my CD4 was at 461. The Biktarvy they have me on has been working great with VERY minor side effects and its just an annoyance.

Offline Jim Allen

  • Administrator
  • Member
  • Posts: 23,165
  • Threads: @jim16309
    • Social Media: Threads
Re: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« Reply #1 on: January 30, 2024, 04:43:02 am »
Hiya.

Firstly, thank you for sharing your story and being honest about the denial.

I'm sorry to hear how things went and how sick you became. Although I'm glad that with support from the rehab facility you have been able to partly recover, walk again, and play with your dog. 

What kind of dog do you have?

Quote
The Biktarvy they have me on has been working great with VERY minor side effects and its just an annoyance.

Do tell, what's the annoyance?
« Last Edit: January 30, 2024, 04:45:59 am by Jim Allen »
HIV 101 - Everything you need to know
HIV 101
Read more about Testing here:
HIV Testing
Read about Treatment-as-Prevention (TasP) here:
HIV TasP
You can read about HIV prevention here:
HIV prevention
Read about PEP and PrEP here
PEP and PrEP

My Instagram
Threads

Offline numbersguy82

  • Member
  • Posts: 617
  • Adrian Alan
    • Instagram
Re: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« Reply #2 on: January 30, 2024, 06:31:01 am »
Wow what a story you have… thank you so much for sharing. I totally understand your initial reaction to just avoid your diagnosis and continue to live a “regular” life for as long as you could. I think that’s a quite normal reaction, and luckily for you that you were able to get back on track with everything now.

Biktarvy is quite the wonder drug, eh? I too am curious about the side effects.

Well welcome and I am truly glad that you’re here and able to share in this experience with all of us.

Offline FeralTerminator

  • Member
  • Posts: 5
Re: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« Reply #3 on: January 30, 2024, 12:14:23 pm »
The annoyance is soft stool. I've never had a problem until I started taking it where after I go #2... in say an hour or so I have to go back in and wipe again... every single time. Its been weird.

But other than that no problems taking it. It's better than before where I suffered from constipation my whole life :D

I have a pitbull terrier, she's a sweet heart and I drove all the way to Florida to pick her up and visit my mom.


Offline Tonny2

  • Member
  • Posts: 3,199
Re: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« Reply #4 on: January 30, 2024, 01:50:28 pm »



          Ojo.            Hi there!…what was the back pain dx?, CMV?… how about taking fiber to help you with this stool… you were so lucky when you start treatment, life-saving treatment, that’s what the new medications
are now. You could have gone blind maybe even could have died… in any event, welcome to the forums in life itself…. please keep us posted…hugs

Offline FeralTerminator

  • Member
  • Posts: 5
Re: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« Reply #5 on: January 30, 2024, 02:55:31 pm »
The doctors believe it came in through a UTI but they were not sure.

The technical term is Discitis osteomyelitis

"Vertebral discitis-osteomyelitis is an infection of the spine that involves the intervertebral disc and the adjacent vertebral body but may also extend into the paraspinal and epidural soft tissues."

Offline Tonny2

  • Member
  • Posts: 3,199
Re: New to the site. Pos+ since 2006
« Reply #6 on: January 30, 2024, 06:48:13 pm »



         ojo.              Thanks for your response. We will learn from your experience…
Hugs

 


Terms of Membership for these forums
 

© 2024 Smart + Strong. All Rights Reserved.   terms of use and your privacy
Smart + Strong® is a registered trademark of CDM Publishing, LLC.