Lastest blood results – cause for celebration
Hey Hey,
Just a short blog-post as I did a big rambling one yesterday. I went to the clinic today, which I wasn’t really looking forward to. They took 8 vials of blood from me (as per usual), made me pee in a pot (not easy), weighed me (61.3kg) and checked my blood pressure (122/71) and then gave me four vaccinations:
- Hep B (booster)
- Pneumonia
- Meningitis
- Tetanus/Polio/Diphtheria
After that was out of the way I sat down with my consultant and she took me through my results from last time. I’ve made some real progress (as you can see in the chart below), my Viral Load is now 39 (technically “undetectable”), and my CD4 has risen to 561 (the highest it’s ever been).
In just one year my Viral Load has dropped from 79,000 to 39, and my CD4 has risen from a low of 332 to a high of 561. Proof if proof were needed that Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) really does work.
After that was done I headed to the pharmacist and picked up a four month supply of ATRIPLA and made my way home.
Just that little bit of good news has really perked me up. I’m seeing my best mate on Thursday too for drinks, something to look forward to there as well.
Hope you all have a good evening,
Sam
UKPositiveLad
Posted on 10/07/2012, in Diary, Healthcare, Personal thoughts, Treatment / Medication and tagged 2012, Active, aids, Antiretroviral, atripla, blood, bloods, britain, british, CD4, clinic, doctor, england, english, haart, health, Highly, HIV, hospital, July, lad, load, medication, nhs, positive, Therapy, treatment, uk, ukpositivelad, viral, VL. Bookmark the permalink. 12 Comments.
Oh WOW! So pleased for you, love.
Keep taking the tablets! xx
Glad the results were good. Enjoy the drinks with your friend.
A x
YIPPEE! So glad you’ve had all this great news after your understandable dip in mood earlier in the week. Go you!
Lots of love
Hugh xx
This is really good news and shows that ARVs really work.
Both my husband and I are on Atripla and we are 59 and 60, and my husband had a CD4 count of 8 when diagnosed just over 4 years ago, and they worked for him too.
What you are going through right now is a process, and one that pretty much us all diagnosed HIV+ go through in our different ways.
I identify with a lot of what you say , in fact if you read my blog in the early days I said very similar things.
I felt the same but knew I could not die and did not feel as suicidal or as hopeless as as my husband. He as a heterosexual man who knew nothing of HIV for him it was the end of the world, the end of his world and he offered to book himself into a B & B as far away from me as he could and kill himself.
It was terrible times.
I was not suicidal, as while I did not want to live with hIV, I have a daughter – his daughter also in fact, but he as a father was more detached than me. I knew that whatever I felt for myself I had to live. Because to do anything else would hurt her more and to live as well as I could, even with HIV as she was 17 when I was diagnosed, she is in her early 20s now.
I guess we all have to find our reason to live and to carry on through this process, for me it was my daughter, for my husband it was that I needed him to be able to get through and be there for my daughter.
We all need to find our own reasons , I am sure you will find yours.
You , like me, are going through this process publicly by writing on your blog, as I did.
This is a very valuable thing to do as in my limited experience most go through the very painful time when you are first diagnosed pretty much alone, or at least not putting it out there on the net for the public to read as many with HIV blog but most do not start to blog until they have got over this initial process.
So perhaps it is assumed that we came to some acceptance of living with this easily, when few do. Therefore to have a recording of the thoughts and feelings of initial diagnosis will be very useful for those who come after us.
I am not dismissing the pain you are going through.
I know at least a little how it feels.
No I know VERY WELL how you feel and I had the responsibility of my husband and my daughter and all my family, it was dire.
But it does change, it is a grieving process.
When are you going to join us on the international group on Facebook?
We know of your struggle and are there waiting to support you.
And I for one would appreciate another from the UK in this group.
Love to you
Veritee
By the way. you are doing really good. it took me three years for my CD4 counts to get above 550, some never do _ my husbands are still about 400 and probably always will be I know some whose CD4 counts have been below 300 for many years but as long as they are virus undetectable they do OK – they are healthy
Very well done! I am so happy for you.
Best
Chris xx
Sam this is fantastic news. I’m so pleased for you!
Sam thats really great news. my cd4 is about 560, and has stayed that way for 5 years , touch wood. im pompey to and know hardly anyone in the same position. Email me garyb1980@hotmail.com
Really pleased you had some good news
We are in the UK too
Very pleased to see you up again. I’ve been + for the last 16 years. The first 2/3 years are the most difficult as you come to terms with the diagnosis, and other people’s reaction. Stick with your Dr’s. be totally compliant with your meds, and after a while it just becomes a way of life. Also put your meds for the day out first thing on getting up. I put out my 23 pills a day plus 5 needles (I’m an injecting diabetic as well) first thing, the rest of the day is then a doddle.
Again very pleased for you, and keep enjoying every day.
Best wishes.M.
Hi Sam,
That’s great news! I just wanted to say what a great job you are doing here with your blog. I am 22, and was diagnosed in May, and like you I started medication pretty much straight away (on a brighter note my CD4 count has risen from 260 to 480 in two weeks).
Your blog has really helped me come to terms with my diagnosis, by showing me that there is a life to be had with HIV. The last two months have been filled with tears, anguish and fear but people like you really make a difference by being open and honest (my mum’s even been reading your blog)
I’m writing this because I saw your last post about feeling down, and some of the reactions you’ve received. Nothing I say here can make those dark times any easier (there are whole days when I went to roll up into a ball and scream), but I wanted you to know that you’ve made a really positive difference to at least one persons life and for that you should be very proud.
Josh