I am here day & night, so don’t be hesitant in contacting me. I have posted, but probably not in the right spots. H2Triver has helped me to get around on this site! My thanks to him, or I would never had made it. I too have Hep C. My biopsy showed that I have carried it for over 30 yrs. I really had no symptoms other than being extremely tired all the time and I had hives. I have treated 3 times, with all 3 different interferons, over 100+ wks., I still carry the disease. Now, cryoglobulemia has added on. As a result of the interferon, I have Neuropathy (hands, feet & legs go numb, all the time.) I have fallen 16 times & have been lucky enough not to have broken anything. I tell everyone that the God Lord gave me enough padding to protect myself. I am 10 mths. post therapy & still have alot of sides left. Short term memory loss included, also many bone & body aches. I keep wondering if it’s ever going to end. I am1B, grade 3, stage 4, 64 yrs. old, and believe me I feel it with this disease. I am considering Plasmapheresis-but no more interferons until something less inavasive comes along. I wish you all well & good luck on your treatment & believe me I know what your going through! It takes a very strong, disciplined person to even attack the therapy. But, the good news is, that alot of people reach SVR, and that’s where we all want to be. I hope you are all having a good 4th. of July. God Bless our country!
SJL
Hello! I live in Ventura, Ca. I have HepC(non-responder) to treatment. I have fibromyalgia (connective tissue) kind. and I am bi-polar. I am depressed alot of the time due to my pain and symtoms of my medical conditions. I pray for a cure to this devastating disease. The doctors cannot really do anything for me…having a bad liver they will not give me pain medication and meds for depression are also hard on liver so it really sucks! to have to suffer sometimes I just wanna blow my brains out but I know I have to go on, so I tell myself every minute do not give up!! I actuall do have a good day every so often and than it makes it all worth it!!
I would like you to know that narcotics have no negative effect on the liver.
They are not processed through it. When I was going through treatment I had
Vicodin and later, toward the end Percocet - due to the leg aches I suffered
as my muscles dehydrated into jerkey. I will hold a place I my heart for you
that you will find peace.
In love and light,
Patsy
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Patsy,
You’re kidding, right? everything is filtered thru the liver. if your doctor and pharmacist gave you the RX for the pain meds and they know your condition and treatment it’s probably no big deal but YES, the liver is our filter for we put in our bodies.
peace
M
Yes that is true - but some things go through the kidneys i.e. - most cancer
chemotherapies - and others the liver. At any rate - my docs at the
University of Washington told me that as weird as it seems - you can do all the
narcotics you want - and they won’t damage you liver - but watch out for that
tylenol.
In love and light,
Patsy
well my name is jamie and i am one of the many fellow hepcats around here . i am fairly new to this and always willing to help who ever when ever. i have also noticed that there isnt alot of people on here and i am on delphi for the most part. i found out i have hep c in may of 2006 and have yet to start treatment because i moved 3 weeks ago to oklahoma form new mexico and they are haters here and trying to figure out where to start. when it comes to information on hep c in new mexico i know alot and know which people you need to get a hold of . loves all you and we fight together because alone we cant beat this dragon
howdy all
i’m new here. i’m starting my 1st round of meds. treatment for HCV early jan. '08 at UCLA. i posted a MY STORY last night. open to replies or comments.
peace
KM
Hi my name is Jill and I too suffer from Hepatitis C. I also was too ashamed to post as I am posting for my daughter on the pancreas website, and don’t want to be lookede at as a “bad mom”, but its been so long since I’ve taken care of my own needs that I think the time is now for me to reach out for me. My own recovery is running on fumes. If I don’t start taking care of me as well, I’m afraid I may go nuts if I’m not already there. I’m not sure how you people contracted this diesease, but I know how I did, and if I don’t start taking care of my own recovery, that 100000 pond gorilla sitting on my shoulder waiting for a weak moment will be more than happy to show mw a thing or two. I’ve also put the treatment off and nowmy viral count is in the 6,000,000’s. Is that sometrhing I’m supposed to be afraid of, cause it sounds pretty scary. I was supposed to have another spinel fusion before the treatment, but I don’t know if I can put it off any longer. I’m seeing my infectious diesease doc next week. I haven’t looked into this diesease because I haven’t been taking care of self, just daughter. I really need to find a balance in my life, and hope to get support for me here.
Jill
My name is kat. I am new here. I just found out recently i have hep c. i haven’t started any kind of treatment yet becasue i a scared. i am 23 years old. I haven’t talked to anyone yet except when my doctor told me. I am not sure what i am gonna do now.
My daughter is named Kat and she is 23. Her full name is Katherine - is
that yours. The first thing to do is go to HCVadvocate.com. There is so much
information there to help you. Also there are some really good books out
there. I went with the naturopathic way as long as I could and I believe this is
what made the treatment work when I did have to go through it. At the time
I was diagnosed- my viral load was huge, but had minimal damage to my liver.
I don’t know what town you live in - but in Seattle they have naturopath’s
that specialize in HCV. Also acupuncture is helpful and they are really good
at advising about diet and what to eat and not eat to lower inflammation of
the liver which is what HCV basically does.
It is a very individual decision - but you need to make an informed choice.
I would look to find the best doctors in your area that specialize in this.
It is an epidemic - as it is silent often and folks have it but don’t know
it for years and it lives outside the body so long it is very easy to spread.
You should feel much better once you get informed. Although it is a very
dangerous disease - it is somewhat manageable, and can be followed and with
good medical following you should be able to make an informed decision when the
time is right. If you were infected recently and became sick - you may have
a lot of time to decide what to do. I firmly believe they will come up with
a less invasive testing process and an easier treatment process. I had a
friend recently - in his late 40’s diagnosed - and he only had to have 4 months
of treatment. My treatment sent the little buggers into hiding after the
first month - but I was advised and continued treatment for 45 out of 48 weeks.
I was at the University of Washington. You need to find a good hepatologist
or gastroenterologist - who really knows what they are doing.
I send you love and strength Kat and knowledge will bring you peace.
In love and light,
Patsy
Yes, my whole name is Katherine, but i have always gone by Kat. Thank you for the information. I am feeling very overwhelmed right now, kinda like i have the plague and i have to go into hiding and can’t tell anyone.
I am scared, but i hope to feel better after i read some more maybe…
Kat:
please do not to worry too much. many people are in the same situation as you , millions. me too.
there is a lot of moral support here for you if you need it.
there is a lot of information available to you on line if you want it.
we think i got HCV when i got a tattoo when was 19. that was 40 years ago!! i knew i had a chronic problem early on and i watched it for decades. DECADES, GIRL!! the whole time i’ve lived a healthy, happy very active life with HCV always there.
i just started treatment 4 months ago and it’s working. 1 month to go.
i don’t know your specifics but you are so young. do not worry too much now. you have a lot time to find out what’s up with your liver and to do something about it.
but for now, chill.
peace
KM
That is natural. It’s still hard sometimes hard for me to tell people I
have it - like when you get a manicure or pedicure - you want to always make
sure they have sterile equipment to protect you and other’s as well - this is
one way it is spread. I always tell them when I go to the lab. Only your
blood is dangerous. I have gotten over this as my virus has diminished to be
undetectable (it never goes away completely) - but I felt creepy I guess just
thinking that my blood is dangerous to others - felt like I had something in me
that was bad or something - you are going through this now and I’m sure we
all do. It’s not unlike Aids in that way. And Always, well almost always -
the first thing someone asks you when you tell them is “How did you get it?”
or “Do you know how you got it?” - and the best answer there is “no.” It is
impossible to know - there are so many ways - even if you have racked your
brain and have some experiences that could have exposed you - you don’t know.
In my case I got it in the 70’s - they didn’t know what it was back then. I
assumed it was gone all these years as I cleared Hep B which I contracted at
the same time. Then it snuck up and bit me some 30 years later. Back 30
even 20 years ago the sterilization techniques used by the medial community were
not good enough to kill the virus - so even if i did have some risky
behavior - who knows? So the easiest and best answer is “no.”
You will feel better once you start reading - I wish I could remember the
names of the books my sister gave me - they were wonderful - they are still
packed as we moved to the forest while I was doing treatment - two years ago -
and someone else packed all my stuff and unpacked and unfortunately my books
are still in the loft in our garage/shop - along with a lot of other stuff.
Once you find good medical care - you can get more tests that will help you
decide what to do. Knowledge is power.
Sorry this is so long - I have not been stepping up to help others that much
- guess I’m ready and have a lot to say.
In love and light,
Patsy