"Reaction. Twenty Minutes to Live"

My good friend Michelle was on national TV this week as she's in the process of releasing her new book. She said she was very nervous after coming out of the studio, but I think she did really well.

I became interested in Michelle’s story last year, when recovering from the intense allergic reaction to medication. Over the months she spoke to me about the book she was writing and her own experiences with allergies. 

She in the past had had a severe peanut allergy and was constantly in danger of exposure, as the amounts involved to bring on an attack were microscopic. Although she told me about it during these discussions, I had no idea really as the extent of the condition. Not until reading her book. In it she described some of these anaphylaxis attacks. They were attacks that were triggered by unimaginably small amounts of allergen but which sometimes nearly killed her. 

Despite this she was able to become allergy free by following her own path. I was of course interested after my particular episode. It’s not every day an allergy nearly kills you. Getting HIV seems to have affected my immune system into becoming hyperactive. This may reduce I guess when I start meds again, but I certainly don’t want to be allergic to anything else used in treating HIV as my medication options have become limited now. 

So I bought the book. I in fact was the first one to do so, and Michelle signed it for me. It’s an entertaining tail of courage and a journey to find her own path. The importance of living your life true to who you are and in harmony with yourself is a goal we can all share, particularly in living with HIV. 

You can find out more about her book here:

http://www.reactionhq.com.au/

I've also made a separate page for it and may be adding bits and pieces to it every now and then.