I had a patient the other day that came in who has a history of seizures. Her daughter for whatever reason took her medication that can help prevent seizures from her. It also happens to be an anti-anxiety medication. She came in and looked like a total mess . When I asked what was going on she said that she had drank all morning and her daughter took her Xanax from her. She said that she just found out that her daughter was HIV-positive and two and half months pregnant. She explained how this guy her daughter had been dating for a while got her pregnant, and when he found out about her status...
jae001's blog
I do have to say how dismayed I am to see how bad the stigma in healthcare is...I have been at my current job for a very short time. Most of the employees are fine if you are HIV+ and need help...
I try to write very positive things on my blog. I figure that I can reach out to others to let them know that we can live our dreams. I really never talk about my issues and concerns. I do have concerns about getting older and what kind of complications I will have that are different than other aging adults. So now for my questions… 1. For the women. Do you find that your menstrual cycle changed because of HIV/AIDS? The reason I ask is because I can’t get a straight answer from any provider GYN or Primary Dr. Not sure if it is an aging thing or is it related to HIV. 2. Do you find yourself...
There are so many things I am grateful for I just want to share with you all. I am grateful for my husband, he loves and supports me unconditionally. I am grateful for my children, they have truly brought joy to my life. I am grateful for my friends, my cheering section. I am grateful for the ability to achieve my goals, I am able to keep setting more of them. I am grateful for my Doctor for helping me stay healthy. I am grateful for positive thoughts. I am grateful for kindness. I am grateful for generosity. I am grateful for all of you. JAE
Maybe I really don’t understand how ill I am, or maybe I don’t want to. Either way, I keep reading and studying for the (nursing) state boards in a week. There are a lot of AIDS questions in the practice tests. I really am offended how sick they think I am. According to everything I read I should have my head under the covers in my room and never leave… BECAUSE EVERYTHING IS GOING TO KILL ME! If you all don’t know me by know now I am a little hard headed when it comes to doing what I am supposed to… I’d rather do what I want to. I want to eat Sushi, I want to work with sick people, I want to...
I am the biggest advocator of following your dreams. Try to tell that to someone who was just diagnosed with a life-altering illness. I remember being 21 years old thinking my life was over. I decided to spend all my time doing for others. I remember approximately 5 years after my diagnosis, thinking, I am living on borrowed time. 10 years pass and I am still doing nothing with my life. I was taking care of my children, but that was it. I wasn't making long-term goals. I figured I wasn't going to be around long-term so why should I plan. Still, after 10 years! I was waiting for death to find...
What is a resolution? The dictionary says: 1. a decision or determination; a resolve: to make a firm resolution to do something. This seems simple enough right? So I browsed the internet to find out why most of us don’t stick to them. Doing on your own… they say if you are accountable to someone else you have a better chance. Extremely lofty resolutions… Basically you can’t get your PhD in one year. Unless you only have your dissertation left to finish. Giving up too easily… I will blog once a week… seems easy enough, unless you are busy. Sometimes you just need to finish something. It...
I have tried. I might not have tried hard enough. But really, what is hard enough? I have gone and filled out the application to volunteer at the local AIDS service center many times, with no reply. I am not an RN, but I am on my way to be....so I feel I have skills that they might be able to utilize. I have spoken to anyone that will listen to the facts and fictions of HIV/AIDS, especially when it comes to women’s health. I was invited to sit on a panel for the county, the meetings are during the day and interfere with my school/ work schedule. I am not a man. They service mostly men. I never...
Reading the article on PrEP ( Pre- Exposure Prophylaxis) on The Well Project website, it made me think of a situation I had the other day. For those of you that don’t already know, I am in Nursing School. I am doing my rotation on Immunity, HIV and Cancer right now. I am doing my clinical rotation at a local hospital. I had the privilege of caring for a man that was aware of his HIV status for 16 years. He is married to a woman that is negative. We talked for most of the day about how he contracted the virus, why he wasn’t on treatment, and if his wife was aware of his status before they...
I have Hyperadiposity, one of the 2 sub-definitions of this complication of HIV (lipodystrophy), excess fat in my belly and back. Did it come from the Crixivan I took many years ago or is it a symptom of HIV itself? Not even my doctor can answer this. So how does this affect me? I have very large upper arms, no fat at the elbow. I have a lovely buffalo hump and just recently I started having pain at the base of it. My belly fat is hard and even when I lose weight these just don’t go away. My face is thin, so I have injections of Sculptra a few times a year. Has anyone ever had or know anyone...