Diagnosed with Valley Fever

I started working out a lot recently in my home to lose some weight, be healthy, did a bunch of lifestyle changes (no red meat, starchy foods), 1.5 hours of exercise a day and boy did I lose it. Went from 260lbs to 220 in about 6 weeks of strenuous workout. I also ordered a Luke Wilson 15 arm bubbler and hit it hard the night I got it, I was so happy! The next day I woke up extremely sick and thought it was the flu, except after a week I wasn't better and though I was drinking 2 gallons of water a day, I was still sweating out more than I was drinking. I had to stop working out and eventually was bed ridden for about 9 days before I realized it might be my cooler pads. After changing them (and cleaning out the cooler and all accessories), my headache was gone, fever vanished and I felt great, except I could still barely breathe. My wife who's a nurse recommended I finally go to a hospital.

So we have the most retarded hospital on earth. The joke is that if you go in there with a headache, they'll kill you. There are countless horror stories here like that. So after doing a urine, blood, saliva test and a chest xray and a catscan, the doctor comes over to me and has me go into a room of my own. He smiles at me and says, I have bad news, you have valley fever. Relief swept across my face, because I knew I could beat this pos disease. He leaves me in there for about 20 minutes, then, wearing everything he could that resembled a biohazard suit, he comes in and goes, I'm sorry to tell you this, but you have tuberculosis.

WTF?

This means I get to drop out of school(my 3rd year at a university), cancel the house I'm about to buy, and stay away from my family and friends for god knows how long. He leaves me to my fate, telling me it could be cancer in my lung as he leaves. Now I'm trippin, especially since they locked me in the room when they left. He comes back 30 minutes later and this time, not wearing anything, no gloves, no mask, nothing, just says, I'm sorry to tell you this.....it wasn't tb, it was valley fever, our specialist confirms it. My heart sank. I felt like punching this doctor through the wall. They gave me a skin tb test and sent me home. Now I had to get my whole family tested, which I did, and they were all negative. My skin tb test was false and my wife, who's a nurse, printed up my medical records and brought them home to show me just what is wrong with me.

Apparently I have a bad case of valley fever and pneumonia. Laboratory tests confirmed this. I also have a bacterial growth in my right lung that my white blood cells attacked and then sort of crystalized around the bacteria to prevent it spreading. They say that this disease lives in your body for the rest of your life, dormant, but can come back and kill you later at any time. Right now I'm having difficulty breathing, but have an inhaler they gave me and the best anti-biotics and anti-fungal pills that are on the market. These two pills are kicking my ass. My muscle mass has pretty much disappeared and I feel and look like skin and bones. I can barely even walk 10 feet before I have to sit down. I also have this knot in my leg from valley fever which now makes me limp when I try to walk. I'm only 25, so this really fucks with me.

This disease is prevalent in California, Nevada, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. A few studies I found say 82% of the populous in those dry desert areas are infected but 50% will never develop symptoms. Apparently valley fever is about the same size as anthrax and the govt. kept a supply of it during nixon's administration as a biological agent in case of war. It can turn into meningitis and kill a person, spreading to every hole in your body, pours included, causing a severe fungal infection to develop outside as well as inside. I'm no longer drenched with sweat, have a headache or a fever of 102.5, but I still have neck pain, leg pain, and the pneumonia is kicking my ass. They told me not to try to cough up the growth in my lung as it could cause a lung tear that would kill me. Besides the obvious thought of family and my future, every time I walk by that luke wilson piece, it's like a slap in the face. A 320 dollar bong I only got to hit once.... hopefully I get better soon so I can be there for my family as well as an active member of this community. I really miss a lot of you guys. I'll see you sooner than later.

-pokesmot247

 

That's awful, poke. I wish you all the best, and I hope you get well soon.

 

Thanks a lot for all of your well wishes. I've been on antibiotics and antifungal pills now for 4 days and I've been spitting up a lot of the crap that felt like it was killing me, so I guess that's to say I'm feeling a little better

About hitting the bong, my dad called the other day cuz he heard I was deathly ill. He told me pretty much the same thing. He goes, "you know son, one hit of that bong would probably cure that sickness right up!" I loled. Only thing is, it might also make me cough to death since pneumonia is no joke. I figure I got another week before I can break that piece in proper. Thanks again guys, you rock. peace.

 

Yeah my wife has some brownies on her list of things to get, but I was also thinking about possibly making some banana bread. Got A LOT left over from my last grow that just continues to mature. Would be great to help it medicate me through this sickness. I'm kinda scared to even try vaping because even when I go outside, the air is so thick in central cali that I have to use the inhaler they gave me. Think I'll just avoid all forms of inhalation until I feel 100%, especially since college starts in only a few weeks and I need to be as healthy as possible.

 

Well it's been a few weeks and I wanted to update you all. I got better for a while and then was humbled by my sickness because it has seriously kicked my ass. I'm going to have to withdraw from my 3rd year at a university because I'm basically bed ridden most of the time. There are days I can get up and take a few steps but mostly I'm out of breathe, extremely weak, very tired, but unable to sleep. I throw up most of what I eat and I've lost so much weight I look pretty close to amy winehouse when she was drugged out. I blacked out the other night driving home from college and woke up to a diesel beeping at me, so I'm not driving anymore either. The pain in my feet is horrendous and constantly burning and no pain medication, even weed helps at all. Plus I've developed knots in my legs and feet. I looked up these symptoms and a few people said they had it for 3-5 years before it went away on its own. One guy has had it for over 20 years and nothing helps. Yesterday my muscles seized on me and I collapsed and lay in a cramped ball for about 20 minutes until my muscles let me go. My body has turned on me and my health is gone. I'm trying to stay positive but I can't do much anymore except hope for the best.

It's difficult to be positive but when I look at my wife and children, they're my reason for not giving in. It sucks when your health is stolen from you and all you did was breathe.

 

I appreciate your words and your concern. Thank you for being real. I agree, it's crazy that what you don't expect is what gets you sometimes. I guess that's why they say to live every day to the fullest, because you don't know exactly when a limitation will be placed on your ability to do just that.

 

For any person considering smoking mold, read above and dont. Mold is nothing to fuck with.

 

You obviously didnt read this thread. Nope, not better at all. I can function 2-3 days a week. Without serious narcotics, i cant function much, as the pain is debilitating. I have oxygen tanks now to breathe on the difficult days.

The point was that mold is dangerous. To those with moldy bud considering smoking it, tak3 my experience as an example of how mold can hurt you and please throw that shit away.

 

Yeah bro ive pretty much changed my life over this. Bought my wife and kids a house in case i die from it. Stopped going o school, can barely eat, cant sleep, hands and feet swell, urine stinks horrendously, kidneys hurt, at one point i was paralyzed from the waist down for a few weeks, then had to use a cane for months.

Valley fever is a mold that is in the air. You cant avoid it, even with a mask, its the same size as anthrax and its everywhere that dirt exists. The only reason i revived this thread is because i saw a thread where dude was planning on smoking moldy weed. While i didnt smoke mold to get in this condition, i did simply breathe it in. If i had a choice like some do, i wouldnt risk smoking moldy bud ever.