Letter Sender 2: positiveqc

I've been exchanging messages with positiveqc and he said reading my blog was like déjà vu because almost the same things happened to him. I asked if he would like to share his story, and he was very kind to oblige:

Hi there.

Well, sometime in December 2011, I wasn’t my usual self I felt I was feeling weak all the time and when I’m in the mall I get tired from walking easily. Thought it was just age catching up on me or my lack of sleep. But then I started getting low grade fevers which I didn’t mid since once I take paracetamol the fever usually goes away. 

In January 2012, I started getting high grade fevers and felt really weak. I went to see a doctor, got an x-ray since my cough was so bad. Everything was fine and I was given antibiotics. At the same time I had pimple breakouts on my face and back. I even had to see a dermatologist so I can them injected so they would dry up and go away. My face cleared up but the fever was still there. That’s when I decided to go to the hospital. It was a late weekday afternoon I went to the ER of Med city. To cut the ER story short I was confined in the hospital. Then the tests came.

Blood was extracted, sputum was tested and cultured. New set of X-rays and more blood extraction. Was there for 2 weeks and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me. They tested me for Dengue, malaria and were even asked if I went to South Africa or some exotic country in the last few months.

Then one night an infectious disease doctor came in and asked me about my lifestyle. That’s when it all dawned on me. Ito nay un baka nga meron na ako. She asked if I was ok to take an HIV test and whole bunch of other tests related to it. 

A few days later, the CD4 results came in 1st, they were way below normal. That’s when she told me I may be positive for HIV. She asked me to stick out my tongue and saw I already hat oral thrush. I was given a new set of meds and after a few days was discharged.

I went back after a few days for the test results. It was positive. I wasn’t surprised since I was already expecting this due to low cd4 and oral thrush. I then started on my ARV’s one of which gave me anemia. And during my follow up check up my doctor saw me and told me she needs to confine me since I look terrible. 

During my confinement more blood was taken and the results I had low RBC. They almost gave me a transfusion but decided to give me iron supplements instead. During this time the fever was still there.

My doctor changed my ARV cocktail and for months I felt like throwing up all the time. Para akong buntis. I still have occasional fevers mainly because I was also diagnosed to have TB of the lymph nodes. My oral thrush is gone but once a day around 5pm, I feel feverish and weak until about 9pm.

Last august I took my 2nd cd4 test and from a low of 11 it’s now at 81. Hopefully by December it has gone up to more than a hundred.

And that’s my story.