A new direction

It has been a long time since I've written, basically because not much has changed. For the last few months I've been stuck around a 4 on Dr.Lerner's 10 point scale. (I was a 4 when I came in.) Basically that means I am off the couch 4-6 hours a day, with minimal socializing or work. I spend most days laying down and have not taken a day off napping yet! (Down to one nap most days though.)

Because it has been 7 months of not much improvement Dr.Lerner would like to go in a new direction. This is standard operating procedure for him at this point in a patient's journey. He would like to put me on 450mg of Valcyte a day. Not every doctor would take this route. Most doctors in the US at this point would say that this is as far as they can take me and that it is time to start to manage my symptoms and learn to live this new lifestyle. They suggest meditation, gluten free diet, antidepressants etc. But, Dr.Lerner and Dr.Montoya (out of Standford) have done extensive research that Valcyte can actually get rid of enough of the virus to life an active lifestyle.

The downside of Valcyte (and of all intense medications) is that there are both risks and side effects. After weighing the risks Jim and I have decided that we'd rather take the risk and ask for a lot of prayer than settle in to this rather exhausting lifestyle. As always, Dr. Lerner will be doing monthly blood tests and EKGs to monitor what he can. Here we go...