Vaccinated with Sinovac

It's time for people with co-morbidity (priority A3) to have their COVID vaccines. Manila LGU started yesterday. I got mine today. 

Syempre, at first I was a bit apprehensive. I don't know how the LGU will treat sensitive personal information (i.e. HIV status). But what the heck. I don't want to die of COVID, and I don't want to pass it on to my household members.

So I went to a vaccination center at Manila LGU. 7:30 AM para una sa pila. I think they also limit their inoculation to 300 for that day (parang narinig ko sa isang bantay).  For Manila, they require any of these documents as proof of co-morbidity: medical certificate, recent prescription of your maintenance medicine, medical abstract / hospital discharge notes. Other LGUs have other guidelines. Like forPasig, they require a medical clearance from a doctor. 

I brought several documents to be sure:

1. HIV confirmatory (mine was coded though, could be an issue)

2. Prescription of my ARV (mine was old, 2018. Dapat past 18 months lang)

3. CT Scan result with a note that I have HIV as history. 

4. Lab results for my past opportunistic infections (Crypto and PCP).

So, this is what happened at the vaccination center in Manila.

Step 1: You'll enter the school. They'll ask what your co-morbidity is.

I showed Document Number 3. Di ko binibigkas yun HIV. Tinuturo ko yun HIV sa papeles na dala ko para di marinig ng katabi ko. Di naman doctor yun sa first screening. I doubt it she understands everything that's written in the document. 

Step 2. Queue to take the BP.  They'll ask your co-morbidity again. So, di ko pa rin binigkas. Tinuro ko yun HIV sa document na dala ko. Deadma lang sya. Then she gave me this white form to fill-up at isusubmit sa next step. 

Step 3. Queue for another registration. They'll scan your pre-registration QR code and waiver. Doktor na ang nagsscreen dito. He asked me again what's my co-morbidity. Again, di ko binibigkas, pinakita ko yun HIV na sinulat ko sa white form. Yun katabi nyang assistant, isusulat yun details mo sa isang logsheet. She asked the doctor ano daw co-morbidity ko at sinulat yun sa form. Buti sensitive si doctor. He discreetly said HIV in a very low tone. Then ito na conversation namin ni Doc:

Doc: Cleared ka ba ng doctor mo? 

Me: Yes (kahit di naman ako talaga nagconsult sa doctor ko. Wala naman sa guidelines ng Manila na dapat may clearance)

Doc: Ano CD4 mo?

Me: 250 (pero di ko sinabi na 10 months ago pa yun).

Doc: Kaya mo na ba? Kaya mo ha? Baka mag react eh.

Me: Yes!

   

For me, the doctor's comments were unnecessary. If I haven't done my research, I would be worried to continue with my vaccination. Based on what I've read, COVID vaccine is safe and should be given to PLHIV regardless of CD4. Yun lang nga, the higher the CD4, the better. Kasi pag mababa ang CD4 mo, the published efficacy rate might not be applicable for your case. Mas mababa ang efficacy rate sayo.  But that doesn't make the vaccine more harmful to you.

Step 4: Queue for the actual jab. 

Just show your QR code. They'll scan it. Then babakunahan ka na. No need to disclose your HIV status here. May photo op dito. Maraming nagpapapicture, para ma post sa FB nila! Pwede mo rin tawagain si ate health worker na nakaputi sa picture para kunan ka ng picture. hahaha! Then lalagyan ka ng epal band-aid na may "I love Manila, VACCINATED", para pwede mo na agad gamitin sa photo op mo. Buti na lang di mukha ni yorme ang naka-drawing sa band-aid. haha!

Step 5: Go to the waiting area for observation. 

Bibigay mo yun white form na binigay sa Step 1. Yun form na ito, nakalagay na HIV ang status mo. Another disclosure needed. Then papaupuin ka for 15 min. After 15 min, using the white form na binigay mo, tatawagin ka at sasabihin pwede ka na umuwi. Syempre nakita uli nung nagbabasa na HIV ang co-morbidity mo. Pero deadma lang sya. 

Then, it's done. I'm now vaccinated with my first dose of Sinovac! See you again after 28 days. Syempre naki photo-op na rin ako. Pero sa bahay na. lol

Any side effects? I observed some minor ones. Parang medyo nahilo ako ng konti lang naman. Though baka psychological lang ito. Then, medyo sumakit yun ulo after 1-2 hours. Again minor lang. Medyo mabigat rin yun vaccine sa braso. Same feeling ng hepa vaccine. 

There you go... That's my COVID vaccine experience at Manila LGU. Yes, may disclosure ng HIV status na mangyayari, Pero medyo discreet naman.  I just hope they protect the sensitive info na nilagay sa mga manual forms, at di lang basta ikalat kalat. The good thing is I'm now protected from severe COVID, and there's less risk of passing the virus to other people. Looking forward to my next jab. 

 

 

 

 

  

5 Weeks in the Lockdown

We’re on the 5^th week in the lockdown. I open my FB, and I see memes and tiktoks showing exaggerated reactions when the lockdown was extended.  I open my Twitter. I see alters, complaining about not having sex for weeks. Swearing that once this is over, asses will be wrecked, cocks will be vacuumed like hell, and sperm will explode as Fukushima! I relate totally. 

Yes, it is so damn boring at home. No doubt! But I can cope… easily!

No. I’m no home buddy! Before the lockdown, I’m rarely home. On weekdays, I leave home early to work, and get home late, due to work and workout. On weekends, I wake up early, go out, have lunch out, play badminton, go to the gym, do some naughty stuff, meet friends, drink a bit, etc. etc. Then, I get home really late. For some weekends, I would even realize that I haven’t turned on my TV. So this lockdown has completely turned my life upside down, as most of you. So how do I cope?

Let me rewind siete anos antes (7 years prior).

2013, the year I was diagnosed with HIV – AIDS, stage 4!  I got hospitalized for 1 week, then for 2 weeks, then for 1 month, due to AIDS complications. When I got out of the hospital, my CD4 was still very low, at only 16. My immune system was severely compromised. Prone to any deadly infection. So, to  stay alive, I followed my doctor’s advice -- Stay at Home! Don’t Go Out! Else, you might get sick! Hmmmm… Sounds familiar. 

Year 2020, I’m hearing the same thing. Stay at home. Don’t go out. Else you’ll get sick and possibly die!

And that’s how I cope with the lockdown. Let me go back to my previous post --- Franklin Covey’s Circle of Concern and Circle of Influence. We shouldn’t waste time reacting to concerns we cannot control. Rather, we should focus on things we can control (the circle of influence).

Though I obviously don’t prefer this life in the lockdown, I just maximize what I can do while in the lockdown. 

Now… I sleep more, coz I don’t need to travel to get to work. I can work from home. I got time to clear the clutter at home. I got time to try some recipes on Youtube. I get to bake cookies and cakes. I got enough time to do my home workout program. I get to watch series from Netflix and IWant.  I get to watch BL series from Thailand! I can write blogs again. Etc. etc…

This is like déjà vu. My life 7 years ago repeated. The situation in the world is really bad, no doubt. All cities are locked down, economies in recession. And no one knows when will this virus end. But that's the Circle of Concern, which I don't have any control of. What my Circle of Influence though is staying at home and to stay positive. 

Coronavirus - Why am I scared?

So.... we are in a middle of a pandemic which nobody expected we would experience in our lifetime. And, I'm scared... really scared!

This is now our 4th week in the lockdown. Why the lockdown? Because our healthcare system is so weak. We don’t have enough hospital beds to treat COVID19 patients with severe symptoms. Of course, we all know this already. We’ve been hearing this from the news every single day. But why am I scared?

Let me break it down. COVID19 affects the lungs. It could lead to pneumonia. If you got this complication, it means you will have shortness of breath. It means, it’s difficult to breathe! I know how it feels. I had PCP type of pneumonia 7 years ago as an HIV complication. Man, it’s so damn hard! I know how it feels to have difficulty breathing. Walking from my bed to the toilet was a struggle. When I was hospitalized, my doctor even refrained me from going to the toilet, which was only 3 meters away from my bed. I had to stay on my bed all day, all night. I had to do #1 and #2 on my bed. My doctor didn’t want my lungs and heart to exert so much effort trying to grasp for air. If it tires out, it will just give up. Eating was difficult too, as it made me grasp for air! 

That’s how difficult pneumonia is. And that was not the most severe case yet, because I did not reach a point when I had to be intubated due to its severity. Luckily, I got better after a week or two, and got cured from a potentially deadly infection.

Now, how does a severe pneumonia look like? Let me paint a picture. It’s even harder… a lot harder. I personally saw my parent experienced this. Due to cancer, she got pneumonia. When it got so severe, she was literally out of control, as she tried to grasp for air. Nagwawala na sa hospital bed. I witnessed it personally. That’s the time when the doctor intubated her. That means, naglagay na ng tubo as throat para dun na dumecho ang hangin, galing sa ventilator.

Now, imagine this, if our healthcare system gets overwhelmed due to COVID19, as in the case of Spain and Italy, people who need ventilators will not be given one. Because we just don’t have enough ventilators available. What happened to my parent, that’s what’s gonna happen to these COVID patients. That’s not just a few patients… hundreds. thousands… oh, sorry, it’s tens of thousands! It would even reach a point when doctors would have to choose which patient to give ventilators to. They decide who lives, who dies. Isn’t that apocalyptic? Hope we won’t reach that point.

So, I’m really glad that Duterte (though I’m not a DU30 fan) implemented this lockdown thing early on.  This is the only way to “flatten the curve” for now. And, this will only be successful if we all cooperate.

We can do this. Let’s follow our government. Stay at home. Distancia amigo. For our safety. For the safety of our frontliners. For the safety of my fellow immuno-comprised persons.  And, for the safety of our parents and grandparents. Let's flatten the curve, not to eliminate deaths... it's a given that people will die. But to at least reduce the number of COVID19 deaths. 

Splash of Cold Water

Well, I have been complaining and ranting about my super stressful project at work. About working till dawn and losing my weekends for 2 months. Then, came an unexpected news from a close friend. She was diagnosed with a stage 3 cancer. Will undergo mastectomy, then multi-sessions of chemo, followed by daily radiation for weeks. This, plus the huge amount of cash she needs to spend for treatment :(

Truly, an unexpected sad news. But it's like a splash of cold water on me. What have I been complaining about? Yes, I despise the project I'm in, and can't imagine staying longer in this company if this will continue for 1 more month. But hey... I wouldn't and never will I trade my situation with my friend's. Mine is just temporary, and nothing compared to what she's in! Nothing compared also to my situation 5 years ago when I was diagnosed with advanced HIV. 

Sometimes we just focus too much on the negatives...

Stressed at Work

Been working long hours at the office lately. I've only slept for 3 hours for 5 consecutive days. Working this weekend, and on holidays next week. I'm seeing this will continue for the next 3 weeks. 

Fuck, this is draining me. Physically for the lack of sleep, and more so, emotionally for the pressure and stress I'm eating! For the curse my boss is giving. Confidence level is too low now. 

Damn, this is taking a toll on my self-confidence, health and CD4. Last time I was so stressed at work was in 2013, when my CD4 dropped to all time low, got TB and Pneumonia and I found out I'm positive. I won't let that happen again. 

Fine, I've decided, this work pressure is just not worth it! Konting tiis na lang, I'll try to finish this project not to please my boss, but for the team who is staying with me to finish this project. Then, I swear, I'm gonna quit this job. I'd rather earn 50% less but still get a life after 6, than earn 50% more but live a miserable corporate life.  After all, I work to live - not live to work!

New Pillbox

This was my pillbox 3-4 years ago. My daily meds could hardly fit in my 28-slot yellow pillbox. I was literally playing sungka every Sunday to organize my weekly pills. If I remember correctly, these were my meds: Fluconazole, Isoniazid, Azythromycin, Cotrimoxazole, Lamividune-Tenofovir-Efavirenz, Vit B Complex. For some of these, I take more than one tab per day.

Fast forward to 2017 (6 months ago), my CD4 finally reached 285, second CD4 test in a row that my CD4 count is over the 200 threshold. I finally heard what I’ve been wishing to hear from my doctor: "Prophylaxis days are over. No more liver-unfriendly antibiotics!"

Now, my yellow pill box is almost empty. Less meds to take. Good bye Sungka. My yellow pillbox has way too many slots for my one tablet a day ARV. Time to change my pill box!

Thank God! 4 years ago, when I was in my worst condition, I said “This too shall pass!” My new pillbox is proof of that saying! Worst has really passed.

Indeed, HIV doesn’t necessary kill. There’s treatment for it. ARV works like wonder!

So, get tested… now!  Before it's too late. 

Quick Update

No post for more than a year.  Woah.. such a long time. But yes, I'm very much alive. It's just that I'm too busy with my work and personal life. 

Anyway, just a quick updated.  I'm doing pretty good... actually, in excellent condition. 

VL is undetectable. 

CD4 - it's 286 already from a baseline of 16. Because that, all my prophylaxis meds have been discontinued. Thank you Lord! :)

Indeed, ARV works!
So, if you have a risky lifestyle, get tested... NOW!
PLHIV can live normal and healthy lives.