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!