It's only a flesh wound

Yesterday, I received my first follow-up treatment. Again, now that the loading phase is complete, I will now receive a single treatment, each month, through August, 2007.
For whatever reason, my butt is on fire after yesterday's treatment! I received a half-dose in each butt cheek, and initially, had very little reaction. However, by the end of the day, the injection sites had become painful, hot and swollen. This reaction also occurred during the loading phase, but not as severe. I know this is an expected reaction, so I am not at all concerned. Last time, the discomfort gradually abated over about a week.

While I was sitting in Meridian's waiting room, I had a really interesting conversation with the folks at Meridian's house. I was amazed to hear one prevailing theory about HIV's origins. I was told that, although the jury is still out, many believe that HIV was engineered by the Germans during World War II. As the story goes, the well-known Nazi genocide programs were becoming costly and difficult to manage. HIV presented the supremicists with a stealth means to wipe out the "undesirables" without direct blame. I have no independent verification about this claim, but I do love hearing conspiracy theories.

The other interesting thing that I heard, yesterday, is that the AIM treatment protocol, in third-world countries, is far less intensive. That's because the various AIDS cocktails and HIV meds have, over time, caused the HIV virus to adapt and become much more resilient. US strains, in particular, are much more difficult to treat than those in less developed countries. As they described it, HIV meds only mask the virus, forcing it into retreat. Like an earthen dam during a heavy downpour, eventually the virus breaches the artificial pharmacological "defenses," and when that happens, the patient's health degrades very rapidly. Just one more reason for me to forestall pharmaceutical treatment.