SICK OF BEING SICK! (10/4/07)
Days and months have gone bye and I just lay here, unable to do anything. I'm so tired of feeling this way. Lately, if I have one good day in two months, I'm doing good. But it appears that having a good day is taking longer and longer. This year is almost gone and I've accomplished nothing. . .however, I did create this blog, which took a whole day and then put me down for a week or so. But I'm glad I did it. I just wish I had more comments. There has to be more people out there that's sick and may not even know what they have. Afterall, look how long I was sick before anyone was able to diagnose me correctly. This virus has taken away everything that I am. I'm so pissed off and most of all "I'm Sick of Being Sick"!
LOSING FAITH (9/8/07)
I've always been a strong believer in faith and God. These days I'm not so sure. I have been reflecting on my life, especially where I've been sick for so long. I'm trying to figure out where I went wrong, when I got lost, and why the many, many prayers from family, friends and people I don't even know (from east coast to west), praying for me, on a daily basis, aren't being answered. It appears that they are fallen upon deaf ears. How can this be? Am I being punished for something I've done wrong in my life? It certainly feels that way. I have tried to live a good life, to be a good person, be respectful of others and help people in need and less fortunate and for what? I believed in miracles, now I'm not so sure. I could certainly use one, but nothing. What have I done that was so bad? There has been a black cloud looming over my head for as long as I can remember. It just won't go away. Anything that can go wrong or bad, does. Do you recall the saying. . . If it wasn't "shit for luck, I'd have no luck at all". . . well I have NO luck AT ALL! I don't know what else to do? I pray, ask, beg and plead, but nothing. I'm trying so hard not to give up, but I'm losing faith!
LIVING A NIGHTMARE! (8/20/07)
Do you remember Alien, when the creature eats its way out of the man’s stomach? Well, that’s what the pains in my stomach feels like. How about the Exorcist, when she vomits violently? Yup, that’s me. My body feels like I’m in some horror movie, trying to get away from the bad guy, monster, creature (whatever), stabbing me over, over and over. That’s just the pain and fatigue in my body. The pain in my calves, feels like some sort of creepy crawler eating their way out of my skin. Getting the picture? How gross. The delirium from fevers makes my head spin, feels like things are moving and I go to scream, but nothing comes out. I hate that! A strangler is out on the loose and he’s choking me, oh yeah, that’s just my sore throat. It’s all swollen, red and raw. I can hardly swallow. I feel like I’ve been frozen alive. Silly me, it’s just the chills from fever and being stuck in bed for days, or months for that matter. Will somebody pleae wake me up? I don’t know how much more of this horror I can take!
TREATMENTS/MEDS
Gammaglobulin Infusions (IVIG)
Two treatments. The first treatment did not do much and I had a bad reaction to the second infusion. My body went into shock and rejected the treatment. Cost: $8,500 ea.
Interferon Injections
Two 30 day treatments. Four shots in the stomach for 30 days. There were no changes after these treatments. Interferon is a form of chemotherapy. Cost: $10,000 ea. Insurance does not cover this cost because it is a non-shelf usage. In other words, it's a form of treatments that is not commonly known for this virus. It's an out-of-pocket expense.
Liver Biopsy
A biopsy was taken of the liver and it was determined that Hepatitis A was discovered. However, it did not show up in my many batteries of bloodwork.
Acupuncture with Microcurrents
I tried three months of acupuncture all to no avail. I could feel channels opening up, but two hours after my sessions I suffered from severe headaches and the pain was worse than I started out with. My sessions would include 22-48 needles at a time.
MEDS: Morphine 60 mg 4x a day. Dilaudid 24 mg 4x a day. Tramadol HCL 100 mg 4x a day. Estazolam 1mg at night only. Nexium 20 1x a day. Vicadin max dosage as needed. Fentanyl Patch 100 mcg/hr. Oxycontin 80 mg 3x a day. Epivir (for immine system boost) 3x a day. B-12 injections 1 ml every other day. Many of these medications were taken as cocktails three times-a-day.
Two treatments. The first treatment did not do much and I had a bad reaction to the second infusion. My body went into shock and rejected the treatment. Cost: $8,500 ea.
Interferon Injections
Two 30 day treatments. Four shots in the stomach for 30 days. There were no changes after these treatments. Interferon is a form of chemotherapy. Cost: $10,000 ea. Insurance does not cover this cost because it is a non-shelf usage. In other words, it's a form of treatments that is not commonly known for this virus. It's an out-of-pocket expense.
Liver Biopsy
A biopsy was taken of the liver and it was determined that Hepatitis A was discovered. However, it did not show up in my many batteries of bloodwork.
Acupuncture with Microcurrents
I tried three months of acupuncture all to no avail. I could feel channels opening up, but two hours after my sessions I suffered from severe headaches and the pain was worse than I started out with. My sessions would include 22-48 needles at a time.
MEDS: Morphine 60 mg 4x a day. Dilaudid 24 mg 4x a day. Tramadol HCL 100 mg 4x a day. Estazolam 1mg at night only. Nexium 20 1x a day. Vicadin max dosage as needed. Fentanyl Patch 100 mcg/hr. Oxycontin 80 mg 3x a day. Epivir (for immine system boost) 3x a day. B-12 injections 1 ml every other day. Many of these medications were taken as cocktails three times-a-day.
SYMPTOMS
An accute infection may consist of symptoms that include, but are not limited to: fevers (99.1 - 102 on a daily basis), physical exertion elevates fevers, diarrhea, sore throat, gland and multi-joint swelling, debilitating fatigue throughout the body, flu-like feelings, hot sweats, chills, vomiting, short-term memory loss and concentration problems, tender lymph nodes, dizzyness/lightheadedness, disoriented and confuesd, hepatitis, headaches. Sensitivities to noise, light, foods, medications. Gastrointestinal symptoms, depression, mood swings and anxiety.
ENTEROVIRUS (8/17/07)
What is "Coxsackie Virus"? A virus that grows in the gut, especially in the last part of the small intestine, colon, or in the throat, mild or severe symptoms may occur. The infection is often aborted after a few days when the body has developed adequate immune defense mechanisms and has arrested the virus growth--at least by making antibody that neutralize the newly formed viruses.
If the viruses are not arrested in the first phase, these offenders will grow further and enter the blood stream to "seed" other organs of the body. The symptoms may subside temporarily, and patients would often return to exercise thinking the "flu" is over.
Depending on the particular virus, different areas of the body will be affected. These viruses like to go to the brain and other parts of the nervous system, heart, muscles, skin, pancreas, liver and practically any other organ of the body. Some are caught by our white blood cells (monocytes) that carried the viruses into different tissues/organs.
A number of CVBand ECV can infect muscles causing significant muscle pain or weakness of the involved areas. The involvement is usually greater in patients who are physically active. CPK, a muscle enzyme, is often elevated during the acute infection and remains elevated over several weeks to months. In the Spring and Fall, these viruses frequently cause viral meningitis. Conjunctivitis, pancreatitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, hepatitis, parotitis (involvement of the salivary gland) are few other examples. When the immune defense mechanisms start to deal with viruses lodged in tissues/organs, a myraid of symptoms can occur depending on the site of involvement. Normally, the immune system has a self-control mechanism for controlling the angry immune response so to fine-tune the attack on the virus. Excessive exercise, stress and steroid treatment may shift the balance to TH2/TH1 predoninance that would weaken the immune attack and contribute to the persistence of virus. If the immune response is adequate to arrest the growth of viruses in the second phase, the inflammation response and symptoms will subside. This phase may last two-weeks to a few months.
Most of the enteroviral infections are self-limited. In patients with known problems with their immune system, these viruses can persist and cause major tissue damage.
There is no vaccine, medication, or treatments for enteroviruses.
If the viruses are not arrested in the first phase, these offenders will grow further and enter the blood stream to "seed" other organs of the body. The symptoms may subside temporarily, and patients would often return to exercise thinking the "flu" is over.
Depending on the particular virus, different areas of the body will be affected. These viruses like to go to the brain and other parts of the nervous system, heart, muscles, skin, pancreas, liver and practically any other organ of the body. Some are caught by our white blood cells (monocytes) that carried the viruses into different tissues/organs.
A number of CVBand ECV can infect muscles causing significant muscle pain or weakness of the involved areas. The involvement is usually greater in patients who are physically active. CPK, a muscle enzyme, is often elevated during the acute infection and remains elevated over several weeks to months. In the Spring and Fall, these viruses frequently cause viral meningitis. Conjunctivitis, pancreatitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, hepatitis, parotitis (involvement of the salivary gland) are few other examples. When the immune defense mechanisms start to deal with viruses lodged in tissues/organs, a myraid of symptoms can occur depending on the site of involvement. Normally, the immune system has a self-control mechanism for controlling the angry immune response so to fine-tune the attack on the virus. Excessive exercise, stress and steroid treatment may shift the balance to TH2/TH1 predoninance that would weaken the immune attack and contribute to the persistence of virus. If the immune response is adequate to arrest the growth of viruses in the second phase, the inflammation response and symptoms will subside. This phase may last two-weeks to a few months.
Most of the enteroviral infections are self-limited. In patients with known problems with their immune system, these viruses can persist and cause major tissue damage.
There is no vaccine, medication, or treatments for enteroviruses.
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