CHEM SEX & HIV!

"When I did get a chance to connect with others in this madness we sometimes talked about being HIV positive. People would say that they felt the disease was treatable now and that they had a second chance. That seemed to be the general attitude to HIV – that it was no longer a problem for them personally." --- http://www.beigeuk.com/2014/02/chem-sex-revealed-part-one/

nakakalungkot! pero parang nagiging ganito na rin ang sitwasyon dito sa pilipinas... me mga naririnig na akong ganito ang pananaw sa chem sex at pagiging positive kaya wala na silang pakialam. :(

stay safe everyone!

 

ako si BONG

ito ang aking diary

 

 

 

 

 

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Life Expectancy for PLHIV

Many patients taking HIV drugs can now expect to live into their 70s

Michael Carter

Published: 25 July 2008

A large international study has provided evidence that people taking HIV treatment can now expect to live into their 60s and beyond. The study is published in the July 26th edition of The Lancet, and showed that an individual starting successful HIV treatment aged 20 would be expected to live to be 63, and that a patient initiating an anti-HIV drugs regimen aged 35 could live to the age of 67. It also provided evidence of the dramatic and continued decline in the risk of death amongst people with HIV since effective HIV treatment became available.

What is more, the researchers found that starting treatment with a CD4 cell count above 200 cells/mm3 would mean that a person aged 20 could expect to live to be 70, and that a 35 year-old could survive into their 72nd year.

Nevertheless, they still found that even in their most optimistic estimates, the life-expectancy of HIV-positive individuals was approximately ten years shorter than that of an HIV-negative individual. Furthermore injecting drug users and patients who started HIV treatment with lower CD4 cell counts had lower life-expectancies.

The author of an accompanying editorial calls these findings “exciting” and believes that they underline the importance of prompt diagnosis and treatment of HIV. He also suggests that the risk of death would be diminished and overall prognosis further improved by starting anti-HIV drugs with a CD4 cell count of 500 cells/mm3.

Almost immediately after multi-drug antiretroviral therapy became available in 1996, doctors observed dramatic reductions in rates of illness and death in HIV-positive patients treated with such drugs. A number of studies have shown that antiretroviral therapy has the potential to dramatically improve the prognosis of HIV-positive patients, but they have only considered patients in single cohorts or countries.

Therefore researchers from the Antiretroviral Cohort Collaboration which involves 14 large HIV cohort studies in Canada, Europe and the USA, looked at rates of mortality and the life-expectancy of over 43,000 patients who started HIV treatment for the first time between 1996 – 99, 2000 – 02 and 2002 – 05. They also looked at whether there were any patient characteristics which affected the risk of death or prognosis.

A total of 2056 (5%) patients died. The mortality rate fell from 16 deaths per 1000 person years between 1996- 99 to 10 per 1000 person years between 2002 – 05.

They also noted significant improvements in the prognosis for HIV-positive patients in the ten years of the study. Overall, a 20 year-old starting HIV treatment between 1996 and 2005 would be expected to live another 43 years. Between 1996 and 1999, they calculated that such a patient would live to be 56 years old, but in the period 2002 to 2005 this had improved to a little under 70 years.

There were also impressive improvements in the prognosis of 35 year-olds starting treatment, with an expectation of a further 32 years in life after HIV therapy was initiated. But, once more, prognosis improved over time from an expectation of a further 25 years of life in 1996 – 99, to 32 years by 2002- 05.

Patients who started HIV treatment with a low CD4 cell count (below 100 cells/mm3) had much higher mortality rates than patients initiating antiretroviral therapy with a CD4 cell count above 200 cells/mm3 (aged 20 – 44, 20 per 1000 person years vs. five per 1000 person years).

Furthermore a 20 year-old starting treatment with a CD4 cell count below 100 cells/mm3 would have a life-expectancy of 54 years compared to a life-expectancy of 70 years for a 20 year-old starting treatment with a CD4 cell count above 200 cells/mm3. The importance of CD4 cell count at the time of therapy initiation to prognosis was also seen in 35 year-olds, with patients with a CD4 cell count below 100 cells/mm3 expected to live until they were 62 compared to a prognosis of 72 years for patients with a CD4 cell count above 200 cells/mm3.

The investigators also found that women had a better prognosis than men, but that injecting drug users had a life-expectancy that was up to 20 years shorter than non-injecting drug users.

“There has been an improvement of outcomes with combination antiretroviral therapy between 1996 and 2005, characterised by a marked decrease in mortality rates” write the investigators. They attribute such reductions in mortality and improvements in life-expectancy to “improvements in therapy during the first decade of combination therapy.”

But they note that their study suggests that the prognosis of people taking antiretroviral therapy is still not normal. Picking up on this point, the author of the accompanying editorial highlights the findings of the SMART study which showed that patients with lower CD4 cell counts had a higher risk of serious non-HIV-related illnesses. The SMART study’s conclusions were one of the factors leading to HIV treatment guidelines recommending that antiretroviral therapy should be started at a CD4 cell count of 350 cells/mm3. The author notes the “clinical mischief of untreated HIV infection” and looks forward to the results of a clinical trial which could show if there is any benefit in starting HIV treatment at a CD4 cell count of 500 cells/mm3.

Reference

The Antiretroviral Cohort Collaboration. Life expectancy of individuals on combination therapy in high-income countries: a collaborative analysis of 14 cohort studies. The Lancet 372: 293 – 299, 2008.

Cooper DA. Life and death in the cART era. The Lancet 372: 266 – 267, 2008.

 

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ANNIV NI DAN!

 

hi everyone

aun, kaya nga pla ako nagsulat ng story kc aniv ko na sa pagiging HIV + gusto maging memorable ang experience and ma share ito

kc until now marami pa akong d alam at gusto matutunan about HIV

nakakaloka dba pero wla na kong magagwa eto na ko....

ako nga pla si Dan 25 yrs old pero pag nakita nyo ko am look like 17, gaya ng sabi sakin dun sa HIV seminar namin baby face kasi ako eh, small built white complexion tska appealing ( uy am not making my self proud ah hahahahhaha description lang) going back i want to share my story kc gusto maging makabuluhan ang pagintindi ko sa sakit natin at matuto ng sobra.. takot eh... TAKOT AKONG MAMATAY

i was diagnose last 2012 April un the second un ang pinaka malungkot na pangyayari sa buhay ko, gusto ko lang mag patest nun sa HEPA B kc para un sa ojt ko sa hotel requirement eh, so i went to my auntie aun di ko alam she tested me for HIV aun sapul ako, i went to several test lahat positive, nakakalungot dba, ako nga di ko talga alam ang aggawin, i can't even tell it to anyone.

limipas ang mga buwan, days, and weeks, nag start ako mag pa baseline test awa ng diyos lahat negative until now ni hindi ako nag kaka sipon or ubo, even any sympthoms wla. healthy tlga siguro dhl wla pang manifestations, early detection eh

pasensya na pero magiging emotional na ako, gusto ko lang malabas lahat na alam kong un din ang nararamdaman ng marami sa atin...

lumipas ang araw at buwan naramdaman ko na ang sympthoms ng sakit ko i had lymph node sa leeg, sa armpit at sa shoulders siguro mga 10 sila lahat wla nmn akong nararamdaman kya deadma lang... i took anti boitics kc sabi nila mamwawala daw ang lymph pag ng anti bacterial mali pla ako

pang 7month ko na andyan parin sila nakatatak na sa leeg, balikat at dibdib ko, nakakatakot, nakakaalarma

pumunta ako sa treament hub ko sa alabang

pinagpala ako wla nmn findings kc sa totoo lang ni hindi ako nagkasakit or what even khit wla akong vaccine ( thank you lord )

pero di nagtagl nakakaranas na ko ng back pain upper part it almost last for now cguro mga 8 months na di nawawala di nmn ganun kasikt tolerable but mararamdaman mo

natatakot ako, ayoko nmn mag pa xray bka may lumabas at di ko nmn matanggap, kc honestly nung nalaman ko na meron ako gusto ko gumanti at i kalat ito, para patas patas tyo, kso naisip ko ako nga di ko matanggap hahayaan ko pa bang maranasan to ng iba?

di pa ako nag gagamot kc last CD4 ko 567 pa sya naun di ko na alam kung anu scheduled para para sa susunod na CD4

nagyoyosi at nagiimon pa ako

at malala kc di ko na maiwasan mag yosi at maginom

pasensya na pero simula ng malan ko to nalungkot parang ninakaw nya sakin lahat

ung kababtaan ko, ung kagustuhan kong i enjoy ang buhay ko, ang paginom at pakikibarkada

lahat un nawala na

pero alam nyo ba ginawa ko parin sya madalas pa din akong maginom at mag yosi

un na siguro ako

pero natatakot ako madami sa kaibigan ko ang namatay dhl din sa HIV

maswerte ako dhl wla pa akong OI anu ba gagawin ko? para matigil ang mga bisyo kong ito PLEASE HELP ME

naun gagraduate ako sa HRM ang saya ko nga eh, pero malungkot pa din kc wla pa din tyong gamot

nga pla marami akong kilala sa mga kaibigan ko parang positibo pero nahihya ako iapproach to take test anu ba gagagwin ko dun?

gusto ko sana matulungan nyo ko about sa situation ko kc nahihirap ung back shoulders ko may something tlga

atska natatakot tlga ako mamatay alam ko na alam nyo rin di lang ako bka kyo rin may mga kaibigan at mahal sa buhay na namatay dhil dito

natatakot din ako para sa sarili ko, na parang wla na akong karapatan maging bata at ma enjoy ang lahat, ung tipong iinom makikisalamuha ta makikipag yosi sa iba

wla na INAGAW NA NYA

ayoko mamatay, gusto ko mabuhay pero may bisyo ako anu ggwin ko?

naiiyak akokc parang wla na tyong silbi. uu meron tyo HIV pero anu it will eventually become AIDS, mamamatay, tapos paguusapan at pastsitsismisan

nasaksihan ko kc yan sa mga pumanaw kong mga kaibigan na kgayan ntn

alam nyo kapag naginuma kmi at HIV ang topic natatamemme ako, pero pag nagsalita na ko nakiknig sila,sana na aabsorb nila

ang irap noh, ung tipong paniwalain ang sarili mo na wla ka kahit meron ka!

lasing na ko, nagkalakas lang ng ako ng loob na ikwento to dhla natatakot ako sobra... SOBRA d ko na tlga alam ang ggwin

sana di katulad ang istirya ko ng istorya nyo

bsta KAPITBISIG TYO

sana may gamot na

sana paggalingin nila tyo

sana wla na lang ganito

Dan

Hello dan,

salamat sa iyong pagsulat, masaya ako dahil pinagkaabalahan mo ang pagsulat sa akin. hindi madali ang mag share ng ating mga nararamdaman.

lalong masaya ako at mukhang medyo mas upbeat ka na ngayon compared nung makilala kita sa training natin dati. newly diagnosed ka pa lang yata nun di ba at kamamatay lang din ng bestfriend mo? at sa buong batch ikaw nga ang pinaka bata at pinaka maganda! pero ikaw rin ang pinaka mukhang pinagsakluban ng mundo noong panahong yun. kaya sa tono ng sulat mo eh mukhang kinakaya mo naman, kaya masaya na rin ako.

ilang ulit mong sinasabi sa sulat mo na "ayaw mo pang mamatay" - ay maganda yan, ako rin ayaw ko pang mamatay, sinong bang me gusto nun. at sino bang nagsabi sa yo na mamamatay ka na, o mamatay na tayo? hindi ibig sabihin na positive tayo eh mamamatay na tayo. sa panahon ngayon sa tinagal tagal ng panahon na may HIV sa mundo, wala na dapat namamatay sa AIDS related complications. dahil epektibo naman ang mga gamot na available ngayon. kaya lang marami pa rin ang namamatay eh dahil too late na ng madiagnose sila. totally wala silang alam na positive sila, o mas pinili pa nila na wag malaman dahil naduwag sila, or alam nila pero ayaw magpagamot ng maaga, o mas pinili pang madepress, o natatakot sila sa sasabihin ng ibang tao at ituring silang outcast --- pagkaduwag, wala o maling kaalaman, stigma at diskriminasyon sa ating komunidad --- ito ang mga tunay na dahilan kung bakit marami pa rin namamatay sa AIDS. leche kasi ang mga moralista at self-righteous nating kababayan, nakakalungkot nga eh. kung me mga namatay ka ng friends, mas marami sa akin, i lost count na, mga 12 na yata sila. nakita mo ba akong naglulupasay at nawawalan ng pag asa? hinde! dahil the more i feel bad about my being pusit, the more am risking losing points on my cd4 ;) kaya dapat happy lang girl.

maswerte ka, maswerte tayo at maaga pa lang eh alam na natin ang ating status, ngayon pwede na nating alagaan ang ating sarili... sayang naman ang ganda mo kung magmumukmok ka lang dyan.

potah ka! ;) antaas taas nga ng cd4 count mo no. 567 ka pa... pinakamataas ko eh 499 lang. ngayon am down to 382 (feb 2013)... nirerecommend na nga ni doc na mag ARV na ako. sabi ko pagiisipan ko muna. sa next test ko sa august will be my big decision. sana tumaas ulit.

every 6months dapat ang baseline tests teh, baka due ka na for lab tests, go back to alabang na - bakla dont lose your FOCUS, ngayon kelangan mas maging masinsin tayo sa mga health issues natin. pay attention sa lahat ng sinasabi ng duktor.

maganda at ur always paying attention sa mga sakit sa katawan mo, everytime na may nararamdaman, visit your HIV doctor agad, ganyan din ako. madalas nga eh sinasabi ng duktor sa akin na dont worry dahil halos lahat ng ibang nararamdaman ko eh di naman related sa HIV status ko. normal na yatang maging paranoid tayo sa maliliit na bagay. pero dapat iwas stress, wag masyado magworry, basta check up lang lagi ang katapat and trust your doctors.

www.thebody.com --- yan ang bibliya ko sa lahat ng concerns ko, plus meron akong mga kaibigan duktor at nurses na lagi kong napapagtanungan pag kinakailangan. marami ring kaibigan ang nag aalaga sa akin at alam nila ang staus ko kaya kampante ako na di nila ako pababayaan.

sa ngayon am just concentrating on staying happy and living a productive life. living my life as if everyday is my last. masaya lang.

marami akong kilala na mga pusit na matataas ang posisyon sa kumpanya, maganda ang trabaho, malakas, maganda tulad mo. kaya girl wag ka magiinarte na wala ka ng kinabukasan at inagaw na ng HIV (kukurutin kita eh). you have your whole life ahead of you, maaaring mas mahirap ng konti ang landas na tatahakin natin subalit hindi ibig sabihin na sadyang mas kont ang oportunidad na ilalaan sa atin ng mundo. it's all about your attitude sabi nga nila, ikaw lang ang gumagawa ng iyong kinabukasan kaya tigilan na ang kaartehan at rumampa ka na at mabuhay sa matuwid na daan.

matuwid na daan means healthy life, which is what it should be naman, positive or not. minimize if not abolish your bisyo, kung di kaya ng bigla, unti unti. anything na makakapagpababa ng resistensya ng katawan natin, dapat iwasan. ituring mo na lang na mas babasagin ka kesa sa mga tropa mo. mas alagaan mo ang iyong sarili. pwede namang mag enjoy na hindi pinapabayaan ang ating health. sorry na lang tayo dahil pusit tayo, nagkamali tayo, nabawasan ang ating freedom kumbaga, alang alang sa ikahahaba ng ating buhay.

pwede pa rin i enjoy ang sex ng safe, hay naku teh, ang sarap din kaya. ;)

hihi.

madam, baka matagalan pa ang himala! wala pang gamot! how i wish meron na, pero ang kawalan nito ay hindi magiging hadlang para mabuhay ako ng masaya. papaano kung hindi ito dumating sa lifetime natin?

anung gagawin natin?

NGANGANGA*¥^<{}#<~~]{^???

happy anniversary dan, lets hang out soon...

 

ako si BONG

ito ang aking diary

My CD4 Count

 

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Use of Poppers

Jan 13, 2013

I have an undetectable viral load and high CD4 count. I now want to try to try to put myself back into the dating scene. I know that if it gets sexual I need to wear condoms. I just need to know is it safe to take poppers to loosen up before sex. I am currently on Isentress and Complera. Would it be a deadly cocktail and what can I do, because I can't normally maintain an erection being penetrated nor do I ejaculate. I heard men with HIV should not to use poppers. Please advise.

 

Response from Dr. David Fawcett

Thanks for writing. Poppers should be used with caution. They don't mix with protease inhibitors (although neither Isentress nor Complera contain PIs) because of interference with liver enzymes, creating the potential for increased blood levels of certain medications. You mention erectile dysfunction. Poppers are a dangerous mix with ED drugs such as Viagra. The combination can cause a drop in blood pressure, increased heart rate, and even more serious problems like heart attack or stroke.

In my practice I see a high number of men who rarely or never have sex without poppers and/or mood altering drugs. Sex without the benefit of something to "loosen up" can be intimidating and intense for some, but a drug-free experience will ultimately be more much more satisfying (and safer).

Enjoy!

David

www.thebody.com

 

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ANG AKING CD4 CHART!

Click Chart for LARGER VIEW

kakabalik ko lang from RITM ALABANG, while i was totally scared that my CD4 have dropped, i was totally amazed that in fact it has increased to  499.  no meds. no nothing,

after hearing about it, a PLHIV friend texted:

L: Wow congrats, ano secreto mo?
Bong:  Lot's of safe sex! hahaha!
L: hahaha. adik!
Bong: seriously, i live my life like i don't have it.
L: haha, nice.

___

let me explain that further... syempre hindi naman totally like normal life... of course as much as possible i eat healthy na rin and watch what i eat. kung di man makatulog on time, i make sure i sleep 8 hours a day.  minsan stressful pa rin ang trabaho ko, madalas pala... but what i can proudly say that i've been very 'positive' sa pananaw ko sa buhay that sometimes pati ako nagugulat (eversince naman ganun na ako, mas lalo pa ngayon), like nung HABAGAT, bumabaha na lahat, i still felt okay, habang nagkakagulo at nadedepress at nagpapanick na ang lahat. i was so calm and relaxed, naglulutangan na ang mga gamit ko sa tubig, i was sooo cool about it, nasa isip ko lang nun i have to stay "positive and cheerful" and so i did.  minsan nagugulat talaga ako sa sarili ko, immune na yata ako sa negative energy.

minsan lang talaga nagwoworry din ako (konti lang) lalo na kapag nagkakasakit ako --- like 1 month ago nagkatrangkaso ako, high fever at sakit ng katawan, 1 week ako house arrest, gumaling ako sa co-amoxiclab --- tapos this week konting ubo at sipon, under antibiotics ulit ako.... eh hindi naman ako sanay sa ganito na nagkakasakit kasi for 30 more years hindi naman ako nagkakalagnat nor sipon talaga, kaya syempre nagwoworry din ako ng konti - baka bumababa na cd4 count ko.  nung nagpatest nga ako nung isang araw eh ready na ako sa sarili ko na magsimula ng gamot (ARV) kung talagang bababa ang count ko -

pero ayun nga tumataas pa --- swerte lang siguro ako --- sabi ni doc baka member ako ng mga taong hindi talaga masyado naaapektuhan ng HIV (magdilang anghel ka sana doc) kasi considering na walang meds, eh tumataas pa rin ang CD4 ko at perfect pa rin lahat ng mga baseline laboratory results ko.  sabi rin ni doc, ang mga trangkaso at sipon ay normal lang na occurance kahit sa mga healthy na tao lalo na sa panahon ngayon na tag ulan -so i dont have to worry about it. ang importante daw at kumonsulta agad sa duktor everytime may karamdaman para magamot kaagad.

kaya ngayon happy ako, im on the right track, sana eh tuloy tuloy na.

btw. everytime i visit RITM Alabang, maraming revelations, syempre di maiiwasan makasalamuha ang mga pasyente dun, lagi ako may nakikitang malapit na kaibigan, so ayun nakakaron na ng disclosure na di inaasahan.  para sa akin okay lang masaya nga...

"ay ikaw din!!!"

tapos ayun chikahan na

ansaya


ito ang aking diary
ako si BONG


..... and yes, i do have lots of safe SEX (hahaha), i dont want to go into details pero masaya ako, super saya, medyo salat sa salapi pero dinadagsa ng pagmamahal!

MR. UNSURE

Hi, Bong

I'm ben, hindi ko totoong pangalan, nais ko sanang maliwanagang tungkol sa HIV. actually hindi nman ako sexually active. peru pra ma sure ung status ko, nagpa test ako sa RITM leon ginto, ke kuya Lean. and Thank GOD. it was negative naman nagpatest ako 36 days na sya after ng exposure ko, peru my condom nman at hindi naman napunit. it was my first time. my assurance nba ako sa result ko?

maraming slamat, nawoworry pa ksi ako. peru gusto ko pa bumalik after 3 months pra super sure. peru my nagsabi na sken na sa loveyourself na pwede na, na hindi na ako bumalik after 3 months. peru worried prin po ako.

Sana po matulungan nio po ako. maraming salamat po! God is Good!
He'll always protect you and guide you!

BEN

hello BEN,

maraming salamat sa iyong sulat, medyo naging busy lang ako kaya ngayon ko lang masasagot ang tanung mo.

mabuti at nagpatest ka sa RITM Leon Guinto, isa ito sa pinaka maayos na testing sites na inirerekumenda namin.  masinsin ang kanilang proseso at sinisigurado nila na naiintindihan mo ang  pinagdadaanan mo.

"36 days after ng exposure"  --- anung ibig sabihin mo rito?

36 days mula nung nakipagsex ka ng safe???

exposure saan???  may HIV ba yung kasex mo???

unang una, kung nagcondom ka naman at hindi naman ito nasira/nabutas -- ito yung tinatawag natin na safe sex --- low risk ito sa HIV.

pangalawa, hindi mo naman sigurado kung may HIV ang kasex mo, low risk pa rin yun

pangatlo, nag "non-reactive" ang test mo sa RITM.

with all the three - you have all the reason to celebrate ben...

dapat nagtatatalon at super happy ka na...

bakit worried ka pa rin?

base sa kwento mo,

i think ang pagiging UNSURE mo ay dahil naguguilty ka sa sexual practices mo... particularly anal sex sa kapwa lalaki?  (tama ba?)

wrong attitude yun sa aking pananaw, sex is a natural thing, its a biological need, dapat di ka maguilty, dapat di ka matakot sa sex, or magworry sa consequenses nito --- mas lalo pa ngayon na educated ka na sa HIV, alam mo na kung paano ito maiiwasan at paano mo proprotektahan ang sarili mo.

with all the new knowledge that you gained that came with the pre test and post test counseling, you should be confident sa sarili mo ben.  alam mo na ang risky at hindi risky.  put it to good use.

nakalulungkot namang isipin na mukhang nagiging paranoid na masyado ang mga tao at mga kabataan tungkol sa sex (maybe because of all the bad news or misinformation that they've been hearing about HIV or how it is related to man to man sex)

ibig sabihin lang hindi pa rin nila naintindihan ang HIV, mali pa rin ang kanilang kaalaman, kaya mas kailangan paigtingin ang pagpapalaganap ng edukasyon tungkol sa HIV.

remember that IT IS NOT WHO YOU ARE THAT MAKES YOU SUSCEPTIBLE TO HIV --- IT IS WHAT YOU DO THAT PUTS YOU AT RISK!

OKAY LANG MAKIPAG SEX - BASTA PROTECTED - BASTA SAFE.  LAGI NATIN TATANDAAN YAN.

wag maguilty, wag mag alala, wag magworry.

you can have an HIV test every 3 months for the rest of your life, if you want to be sure. libre naman sya.  pero kung alam mo naman na safe ka, why bother?

salamat ulit

ito ang aking diary

BONG