Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
HIV, Living With Community
This is a forum for individuals who are HIV positive or have AIDS to connect and support each other. This forum is not monitored by medical professionals.
All Questions and Comments posted in the patient to patient forums are provided by individual visitors who are NOT MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS. Their questions and comments reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in any of MedHelp's Forums.
The Common Friggin Cold
by JohnnyXY, Nov 30, 2007 01:52AM
I have been HIV positive since the end of 2002, I am 28, I am currently not on medication, and my counts are decent.
My question is at what point do I deem myself 'sick enough' to go to the doctor for antibiotics? I constantly hesitate (as I did BEFORE I was positive) to go to the doctor for something like the common flu or head cold for fear of becoming immune to certain antibiotics which may be necessary in the saving of my life later. However, I can only take so many sick days from work, and the amount of times I get sick during cold/flu seasons has definitely increased (despite my annual flu shot). SO! At what point do I go get some antibiotics? When I strike a fever? When my mucous turns pretty colors? When it goes from head cold to chest cold? When it gets all up in my middle ear and I can't hear as clearly? I have managed to fight through all of these without antibiotics (the ear one sucked...hard), but I don't know whether I'm fighting smaller battles now on my own to have added ammunition in the war later on...or if I'm simply exhausting my sick days when I could be grabbing a low level antibiotic assist.
Thoughts? Opinions? Comments?
<3 Thanks
My question is at what point do I deem myself 'sick enough' to go to the doctor for antibiotics? I constantly hesitate (as I did BEFORE I was positive) to go to the doctor for something like the common flu or head cold for fear of becoming immune to certain antibiotics which may be necessary in the saving of my life later. However, I can only take so many sick days from work, and the amount of times I get sick during cold/flu seasons has definitely increased (despite my annual flu shot). SO! At what point do I go get some antibiotics? When I strike a fever? When my mucous turns pretty colors? When it goes from head cold to chest cold? When it gets all up in my middle ear and I can't hear as clearly? I have managed to fight through all of these without antibiotics (the ear one sucked...hard), but I don't know whether I'm fighting smaller battles now on my own to have added ammunition in the war later on...or if I'm simply exhausting my sick days when I could be grabbing a low level antibiotic assist.
Thoughts? Opinions? Comments?
<3 Thanks
Post Comment
i'm with you...i am "saving" my antibiotics for later on...lol.
as i'm sure you know, the common cold is viral and not bacterial, so antibiotics don't really help...but when it leads to other infections (ear, chest crud, bronchitis, etc.) the use of an antibiotic can be beneficial. even with these facts, i still have a hard time taking them. i think, with your status though, that you would want to make sure that you don't let things progress tooooo far before giving in and seeing the doctor.
good to see someone posting on this forum...but it doesn't really offer alot. do you post on any other forums? aidsmeds.com???
kim (mother of christian, hiv+)