Stribild and Nausea: What Users Say

• tea...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 27, 2014

For HIV Infection "Diagnosed HIV positive in July 2013. Treatment was started immediately after my resistance tests and numbers came back from the lab. September 2013, started Stribild. Viral load 420,000, CD4 220. I was very nervous about a bad reaction to HIV meds. Viral load dropped to 320 after 30 days. CD4 up to 300. Nausea, headaches, and a buzzed, energetic feeling after taking the pill were the only side effects I felt. This only lasted about 3 weeks and came at random times. The wired feeling from the pill took a few months to go away. Dreams are intense sometimes, but not bothered by it. After the drastic viral load drop, it stayed around 100 copies for months. It took me 6 months to become undetectable, which I have remained for 4 months now."

• B i...
• September 13, 2013

For HIV Infection "I started taking Stribild on August 8th, 2013. When I was diagnosed, my viral load was around 160,000 per mL, and my CD4 cell count was around 250. I went in for blood work on September 5th, 2013. I went in the next week to get my results, and I am so astonished. My viral load is undetectable (less than 20 copies per mL of blood), and my CD4 is around 650. This medicine is not as harsh as I thought it was going to be. It is a very aggressive medicine on the virus, but I take it at night with a meal. If there are any side effects, I sleep them off. Only twice did I ever wake up feeling nauseous, which I was able to fix with Pepto-Bismol."

• Ran...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 5, 2013

For HIV Infection "I started taking Stribild in November, so it has been almost 3 months. The first two weeks, I felt like I had a very mild hangover, a bit headachey and queasy. But very mild. It did not affect my work or anything else. After the first two weeks, those symptoms went away entirely, and I haven't had any side effects whatsoever, despite traveling and having a very active life. Before Stribild, my CD4 was around 400 and my viral load set point was around 170,000. My last test, my CD4 was 1201 and my viral load was under 200. I have insurance and a card from Gilead that pays my deductible, so the cost is zero. If you can, I would not delay or put off going on medication."

• Tom...
• September 20, 2015

For HIV Infection "I was diagnosed in April 2015. My VL was over a million, and CD4 was down to 180. I seroconverted for 4 weeks. By the bad luck of timing, every time I got to feeling worse, I went to urgent care on the weekend. Saw intern after intern with no results and none of them asking the right questions. Finally saw my PCP and ran the viral load test. My doctor started me on Stribild the same day. My VL went from over a million down to 700 in the first month and down to 200 two months after that. My CD4 rebounded right away and has remained over 800. Six months into taking Stribild daily, and I'm undetectable. I will say the side effects for the first two weeks were pretty tough. I was nauseous constantly, the awful heartburn. Two weeks later, all is well!"

• Tre...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 3, 2015

For HIV Infection "I was diagnosed in 2005, went on a regime, was undetectable with a normal CD4 count. My insurance changed in 2009, my doctors had to change my regime to covered HIV medicines. This began a 4-year battle to get my virus under control. I went into full-blown AIDS, however, I never contracted an opportunistic infection. However, the virus attacked my brain. My ex-boyfriend/best friend, a nurse, came to see me (he lived 2 hours away). He talked to numerous physicians, Stribild had just come out. I started to see the doctor he arranged for me to see. My CD4 count was 4, viral load >1 million. I'm totally serious: only after one month of being on Stribild, I was undetectable with a CD4 count of 200. I deal with the nausea because of its miraculous effect on my virus."

• Ita...
• September 28, 2015

For HIV Infection "I started my Stribild therapy in March when my CD4 was 270 and my VL was 80,000, and after 3 months I became undetectable! Just a few side effects like nausea, but not too much! I never used other therapy before Stribild, and I can't compare it with other meds, so I'm really happy that I'm undetectable and my life is really great! Important to continue to do fitness, help your body and your mind!"

• Rec...
• September 13, 2014

For HIV Infection "Viral load 950,000 and T-Cell/CD-4 count less than 150. Doctor told me I have full-blown AIDS. I began taking Stribild two days ago (with a hearty dinner) along with Azithromycin and a multivitamin. I felt a tad bit nauseous the following day, but today I feel normal. No side effects. My insurance with Cigna saved me $2,840.09 for a 30-day supply. Doctor wants another blood test in four weeks. She said I should be undetectable in two months... crossing fingers!"

• Sco...
• May 26, 2013

For HIV Infection "Awesome! Been on for 6 months now. Currently, VL undetectable, CD4 in normal ranges. At diagnosis, VL 100,000, CD4 400, and 21%. First 2 weeks were tough for me: fatigue, nausea, out-of-body feelings, diarrhea. Slowly, all side effects resolved after about 8 weeks. Now, no side effects at all, all lab results normal: kidney, liver, blood. Life is truly back to normal except 1 extra pill with my vitamin each morning. Don't delay, start treatment as soon as you can!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 30, 2016

For HIV Infection "I tested positive on October 4th, 2015. My viral load was around 300,000, and my CD4 was 85. I was really sick, feeling like I had the flu and chronic diarrhea. I went from 125 pounds to 108 in a month. It was very scary. I started on Stribild and Bactrim on October 7th. I had side effects of nausea and headaches on and off for the first 3 weeks, but not horrible... No worse than I was already feeling from HIV. After 30 days, I retested, and my viral load was down to 800!... and was feeling much improved. I went back after another 60 days, I had gained back 12 pounds and retested both viral load and CD4. Should have the results back this week. So far, this medication has been a godsend, and with my insurance and Gilead copay card... free!"

• han...
• June 26, 2014

For HIV Infection "I started Stribild one week ago. I take it at night before bed. On the fourth night, I woke up at 4 a.m. with a buzzing feeling in my chest as if something were eating me from the inside out. My mind was racing, and all I could do was lay there and hold myself until it went away. The next night, I woke up a bit later, around 7 a.m., with the same feeling, only it came in waves all throughout the day. I could barely hold conversations without feeling like I was going to pass out from the anxiety. I took it again on the fifth day (despite not wanting to), and I ended up spending the whole next day in bed as my dizzy spells/nauseous feeling were ridiculous and unbearable. I stopped taking it last night and have an appointment tomorrow."

• Wil...
• November 25, 2015

For HIV Infection "I was tested positive on Oct. 04, 2015. My CD4 was only 124, 12%, and viral load 161,000. I had shingles in my right ear, technically, I had AIDS. I started Stribild on Oct. 14th. Just after 4 weeks, on Nov. 12th, my CD4 increased to 171, 16%. The most amazing thing is my viral load became undetectable, OMG. This is such an effective medicine. Just 4 weeks, I am undetectable. The only side effect I have is nausea, but most in the first 2 weeks. Thank Gilead for this medication."

• KGP...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 7, 2013

For HIV Infection "Began in April with viral over 1 million. CD4 was 109. As of May, viral load 606 and CD4 is 265. I've got ways to go. No side effects at first, but the only side effects to complain of now are slight nausea, headache, and slight diarrhea."

• Mal...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 13, 2021

For HIV Infection "Stribild was it for me. I came from Atripla, which was good. It kept me undetectable. But it makes me dizzy and nauseated when I took it, plus weird dreams. I switched to Stribild, and I had zero effects from the start. It was a relief. But now I’m on Biktarvy because my insurance doesn’t want to cover Stribild anymore. And now I’m having rashes and itching all over, heart palpitations, weakness, brain fog, random moments of fatigue, and a lot of sleep. If you can take Stribild, I’d recommend that over the three I’ve tried. I took some three pills, one when I first started, which were good. I don’t remember the names, though. And three pills cost more."