Roll the Credits

Cue the victorious music....now! I'm done, folks! I took my last little while pill of INH this morning. It felt good rattling that little prescription pill bottle, with NOTHING in it...real good in fact.

As I now reflect over the last 9 months and what has happened, I have learned a few things.
1) As much of a bummer as it can be, just take care of yourself while you can. Having latent TB isn't THAT big of a deal, but other things are, so why not prevent when and where you can.

2) Maybe not latent TB, but active TB is a pretty serious thing and should definitely be dealt with. I see the little ladies around this city, wearing masks, especially on the buses, and as silly as they look, they KNOW what's up. They know disgusting viral little things are just chillin' on the hand rails and peoples' cough juices are just lingering in the air. Those wise old kooks are on to something and because I have fallen victim to those lingering cough juices, I now know, too.

3) Alcohol doesn't necessarily have to be avoided at ALL costs while taking INH. I had my blood drawn twice, once before, and once half way, to make sure my liver could tolerate the medication. And let's just say when I wanted to have a drink or two, I most certainly did have a drink or two. I would just make sure you don't have pre-existing liver issues.

4) I now know kind of a lot about TB. That's cool. A friend of mine just came to me, telling me how is brother has recently been diagnosed as having been exposed to TB and referred his brother to my blog...awesome. If I had cool stuff to give away for referrals, I most certainly would.

5) Once exposed to TB, you always "have" it. I underwent a 9 month treatment to decrease the chances of my exposure developing into Active TB. I pretty much now can never have a PPD test again, without some gnarly reaction. From now on, if someone wants to test me for TB, I have to have an x-ray taken. I have never been into needles anyways, so avoiding them when I can maybe not so much of a bad thing.

Thank you, Readers, for sticking around, even when I was a major suck-face and neglected to update you on what's going on. I hope you learned something along this 9 month journey. I am not sure I can really continue writing in this blog, even if I wanted to, anymore. I won't have any TB treatment updates. Well, we'll see.

Love,
Moody but TB Infected

3 Weeks, and Counting

Yes, I said I would write more...yes, I said I would keep you all updated...and yes, I said I would stay on top of everything going on in these here parts. Well, obviously I haven't, and y'all are just going to have to deal. I am not no one is crying over my absence anyways.

Moving forward...I only have about 3 weeks left of the latent TB treatment. Finally, less than a month to go. I have been taking these little white pills religiously for the past 8 months and one week. I am so ready to not have to worry if I have taken them or not, and all that. I don't stress, though, as much as I used to. Taking the treatment through 9 months is a relatively new duration. Typically, the treatment for latent TB was 6 months. So, at this point, I am not as concerned as I maybe would have been in the first 6 months.

I am pretty sure I haven't missed a day, but I am sure there is a pretty good chance I have. So yeah, I just wanted to update you all, and let you know I am still around and doing my thang.

Coming Down the Home Stretch

Good morning readers!!

Well, after looking at today's date...April 15th...yikes for some of you...looks like I have about 8 weeks left of treatment. Awesome!! I am ready to be done taking this stuff. It is not a super huge pain but sometimes I think, "Oh, did I take my INH today?" and then I think and freak out for a second, thinking I maybe forgot, then realize, "No, I did take it. I'm good."

I feel pretty good about the fact that I have had zero adverse affects with the INH. No blotchy, itchy, irritated skin. No liver issues. No stomach issues. All in all, a good experience. It is a relief to know I have cut my chances of developing active TB but 75%.

Thanks, Readers, for hanging in there with me, over the past 7 months. Just two more to go! As a Public Service Announcement to all:

Thanks.

Love,

Moody but TB Infected.

In and Out

Hey.
Just a quick hey, from me today. Feeling a little under the weather. Because my face hurts, I think I may have a sinus infection or something. I don't really feel like talking or anyone, but I have gotten a lot of work done this week.
Anyways, I had my blood drawn yesterday and have an appointment with the NP next week as a typical follow-up and if there are any concerns about the blood work done, they will be discussed too.

I hope all are well. Holla, it's Friday!

Getting Crunchy, and by that I Mean, Hippifying Myself

Hello all,
Thought I would write a quick note, just checking in. I am STILL on the latent TB meds. I don't think I have missed a day, yet. I ALMOST did this past weekend, though. I ended up taking my daily pill much later than I normally would have. Scary? I think so.
I think I am going to go back, though, and check that I haven't missed a day. It will take some skilled math to figure it out, but I know I can do it. I just bought some new multivitamins to continue taking. This batch isn't nearly as fun as my last. The last were chewable and orange flavored. The new stuff is gross and it is like swallowing horse pills. I only got 3 months worth. I am sure it will go by in a flash. After this Friday I will be having some blood work done, to make sure everything is still in order. I probably should have had this done at least a month ago, but the NP isn't always on her A game. Really no surprise there. Oh well.

On a lighter note, I haven't washed my hair for 1 whole month. I have read that shampoo can be super damaging to your hair and strip it of all natural oils. So instead of cutting back on the shampoo sessions, I just stopped completely. I guess I am an "all or nothing kind of person," nothing in between. After about 2 weeks of being a super big fat grease-ball, my hair has finally neutralized and looks decent. I have read accounts where people's hair looks better than amazing. Yeah, I am not there yet. Maybe come week 5 it will. Anyways, fun little experiment. Definitely worth trying, if you can.
The first 2 weeks are down right disgusting, though. You have been warned. There are home remedies, though, that you can use in place of shampoo and conditioners. I have been using those. I am sure my roommates are wondering why there is a box of baking soda and apple cider vinegar in our bathroom. Whatever. Could be other stuff lingering in the bathroom, if you catch my drift. No pun intended. That was TOO easy!!!

I'm out.

That Karen is Such a DB

Well, good day to you all readers. I'm kind of back, but let's be honest, not really. At this point, I feel like a lip service friend. "Oh hey all, thanks for stopping by, I'll write tomorrow and keep you all informed and it will be awesome and great," and then nothing. I am sure we all have THAT friend. I am sure I am THAT friend. Does anyone listen to Dane Cook? I am totally Karen these days.

Anyways, all is well with the TB meds. I DID however go through all my multivitamins, so I need to pick up another bottle. I also meet up with the NP for ANOTHER monthly appointment this Thursday, to make sure everything is in tick-tock shape. On top of ALL of that, I am scheduled to have blood work done this month, to make sure my liver hasn't taken a major dive-bomb in function.

I won't say I am looking forward to meeting with the NP this month. Not only do I deal with her as a working on site NP, but I also actually work WITH her once in a while. There are some butting heads with some issues involving our two parties and I am kind of in the middle. I have a meeting with her tomorrow, not concerning my latent TB. We will see how it goes. If I walk away after kidney punching her, you can assume it didn't go well. I am hoping to come out on top here with some extra monies in my pocket. One can be optimistic, no?

That's it. That's all I have for you today. Be well all.

Recap

For those of you who have recently joined me in this "9 month journey," I thought I would put together a simple little recap, if you have missed anything or don't really feel like reading from the start.

August: I had an annual TB screening, and had a positive PPD skin test. From there, I had a chest exam to show the severity of my exposure. Turns out, my immune system walled off the TB exposed area from spreading, which would mean I have what is referred to as latent TB. I am not contagious and have no active TB symptoms.

September (very early): My dad saw the movie Julie and Julia, and thought it would be SOOO original to make a blog, documenting my treatment, for 9 months. I figured, why not, with the hopes of entertaining his request, and maybe educate and inform some people along the way.

September (early): I have baseline blood work done, to make sure my body can handle the treatment, Isoniazid (INH). It is mainly because the INH is toxic to the liver, so the nurse practitioner wants to make sure I have a healthy liver to start.

September (mid): I started taking the 9 month TB treatment medication, as a preventative measure of developing active TB. Those with latent TB have a 1 in 10 chance of developing active TB. By taking the preventative medication (INH), the chances of developing active are cut by 75%.

October (early): I had my first monthly meeting with the nurse practitioner, to make sure my body is taking to the preventative medication. The INH can be pretty toxic to the liver, so she just checks to ensure I am not having any sort of organ failure. Seems silly to see her every month, but at the end of the day, I appreciate it.

October (mid): The nurse practitioner suggests I start taking multivitamin supplements. I guess taking INH can result in a lack of vitamins being absorbed into the body, so it is suggested people take supplements. My Centerium multivitamins are chewable, orange flavored, and gross.

November (early): I had my second monthly meeting with the nurse practitioner. Same as the first meeting, I haven't had any adverse side affects.

Today: Today is day 66 and I have yet to miss a day of taking my INH.

Well, that is about it. There have been some education sessions along the way, but so far, I am staying on top of it.

"Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going."~ Jim Ryun
In this case, pretty much.

I'm out!

Monthly Check-Up

Good morning, loyal, faithful, good looking readers! I just got back from my 2nd monthly appointment with the NP. If this NP sounds familiar, but you can't quite pin it, she is the one that so artistically relayed TB and its symptoms to me in this little something.

This was just a check-up to make sure I'm not having an adverse effects of the medication. It is pretty standard when being treated with INH. When asked if I had missed any treatment doses, she was visibly shocked when I told her I hadn't. Really, NP, you're shocked?! I'm not building a rocket that requires daily intricate recalibration or anything. I am just taking an INH pill and a multivitamin. I didn't tell her that! To be honest, I think someone like me, with things pretty together, shocks her. Her head is all over the place sometimes.

Anyway, all is well and I can only hope the same for you all, readers.
Out.

Close Call

I just had a small internal fit, thinking I FORGOT to talk my treatment pill today. I straight up panicked. But then I remembered I did take it. Wow. I really thought I forgot. Just a close call.

I usually take it very soon after waking up, so I am a bit foggy in the head at that time. A lot of times I feel like I can't even open the pill bottles. I feel all big and clumsy and my hands can hardly grip and unscrew the lids. Does that happen to anyone else?

Anyways, I am still 100%
Enjoy the rest of the day and other close calls below...

Checkin' In

Good morning, good morning. I am still here. I have yet to miss a day of INH and am still keeping on top of taking a multivitamin supplement. I am successfully 44 days in.

Hopefully everyone is well and TB-free. Is anyone interested in learning something else about TB? Let me know.

Cruising Again

And we're back to our regularly scheduled program. Fear not loyal, honorable readers, I am still kickin'. Latent TB has not taken over nor converted to active TB. Work was a bit busy last week, so unfortunately, and unfair to you all, I had to side line the blog for a few days.

To update you, I have still not missed a TB med dose. I am one day from finishing my first bottle of INH. I also met with my nurse practitioner (NP) last week just as a routine, monthly check-up. Everything is going well and accordingly. I don't have any discomfort, I guess in my liver? and I don't have any weird sensations in my extremities. Because all is going well, I got my second prescription of INH. HOLLA!

Thanks for staying with me during my lull in writing. I am just a girl trying to balance my work, social life, and latent TB and the regimens that come with it.

In the words of my favorite German, Albert Einstein, "Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving."

Keep pedaling,

Moody but TB Infected