Day one~solvadi and ribavirin--12 week plan

Forever,
I'm sure your sick feeling was compounded by not eating or drinking and hopefully you are feeling better now.

I'm with Mae on the "complaining"/venting. Everyone has a different experience and pain threshold. Forums allow users to read of all experiences and relate their own for future users. I wouldn't want to hear that no one is having side effects when I'm feeling like I could give Rip Van Winkle a run for his money! So relax and use this forum to help others by giving a truthful account of your experience.

I try to "frame" the side effects instead of going to the dark place. If I'm sleeping a lot than I just put it towards my body needs rest to kill this virus. If your liver area hurts, maybe you could think of it as something is fighting to get unjammed. Obviously, if it's agonizing and lingering, you should call your doctor but most people seem to have the sides come and go.

Let us know when you get your GB results, as that may help to explain what's going on.

Hold Fast

So quiet on posts I've been following--wondering how AIF is doing...

I'm still on hold for more GB tests and I'm closing in on finishing my 6th week of treatment, almost halfway there!

Biggest difficulty right now, EXTREME irritability and exhaustion. Plus feeling like my existence right now revolves around my daily doses of medication and it does--all else is secondary to me right now.

Keeping my eye on the prize~one dose at a time ;-)

Thanks for sharing your experience and wisdom Music.

It's good to know this is common and temporary....I've been in recovery programs for almost 30 years now and it seems all my self improvements have been tossed out the window! I can't believe how mean I am/feel...I can see it but I can't seem to stop myself from spewing venom either with looks, attitude, and words. "I'm sorry" is my constant companion on the flip side. Sheesh.

I do get waves of anxiety too and my tolerance level is so low....

If it gets any worse since I still have a month and a half to go, I will seek professional help too. Thanks again~

"Happy Happy Joy Joy"

Thanks Miz -- The Ribo Rage, eh. Good name for it....

Altho I sure hope it really doesn't continue four or five months after treatment! I never considered that.

Now that I'm thinking about it--how long after treatment did anyone feel better than before treatment? If we get rid of Hep C we DO feel better, don't we?

Thanks for your encouraging words Mama. So glad your partner finally recovered--you guys sure went through ALOT to get there!

In truth I was getting "grumpy"(?) for a few months prior to treatment which I attributed to hormones or lack of, chronic pain, and getting old and crotchety, haha, but yes, the Ribo Rage has bumped it up more than tenfold for sure....it's good to know this is a side effect and can hopefully be managed somewhat.

If only I could isolate myself

Thanks~

Forever,

Some doctors order a VL at 4 weeks into treatment. That is why you see the results for some. It seems your plan is for end of treatment (EOT) and 12 weeks after EOT.

I feel for you with the RibaRage. It is miserable. My husband was given an anti-depressant, but his treatment was 24 weeks. We would not have lasted 24 weeks with Riba Rage. He quit the AD too soon post treatment and Riba Rage was still there. But it gradually eased out of his system. I can see you know the drill with water and some fat with Riba...so I will spare you the 50 cent lecture ;)

My husband treated the nausea like any other gastric problems...saltines, bland diet, chicken soup. His GB also became infected and removed. The water was difficult to get in with nausea. He gagged through it, because the sides were better with the water. You are 4 weeks from the end...almost there! Excited to hear your results. Big Hugs

Hi all... I am beginning the first dose of Solvaldi and Ribivirian tonight. I am co infected with HIV and have been very healthy from HIV diagnosis for years.. But... My hep c is out of control. My VL is through the roof, in the 8 millions. In 2007 I did interferon and ribivirian for 12 months, went into remission for a week and almost died behind it as it came back with a vengeance. I swore I would not ever attempt the treatment again as it took 7 years to feel normal again. Well here comes Solvaldi, with a chance to cure or remission my 2b Hep C diagnosis. I have been holding the pills for 2 weeks, again fearful that I will experience the same side affects. I am ready because of the responses that I have seen on this board. I am clean since 1995 and feel blessed that I have made it to age 57. Please continue to tell me about any side effects that I should prepare for. Thanks Millions....New York Pat

Thank you so much for your welcome notification. I am checking as many blogs as I can and see lots of positive, easier and more tolerated results with Solvaldi. Thanks again and I will stay connected.
Best to you and your...
NyPat

Well folks, I'm happy to report I finished my treatment Saturday night--Hip-hip-hooray!!

I keep thinking I've made a mistake but it's true, it's over.

Sometime today I go for my bloodwork and tomorrow my doctor appointment...fingers crossed for "undetected"

I just want to say another thank you to all of you "vets" here who are so supportive, it was an immense help to me, truly (you were the knot at the end of my rope-thanks for that Music!)

Very few people in my real life even know I have Hep C (hopefully soon I can say 'had') much less that I was on treatment. The reason? Because I've found over the years that when I've shared that info with friends and coworkers I've received fear and judgement in return, so I've learned to keep it private. I really don't care anymore, humans are just that way about stuff they don't understand, so-I keep it private. And don't even get me started on some people's reactions about the cost of Solvadi and "how dare you have insurance that covers it, blah, blah, blah"--so, I don't talk about it unless it's to share with someone who can be benefit from my experience.

Why am I on a soapbox? I must be getting back to normal! Hahaha.

I'm so grateful to have had this opportunity to take this new medication and hopefully 'get on with my life' free of hep C--it's a privilege indeed.

Allen's posts were the first I read and now I have to agree with him...in hindsight my issues and difficulties were mostly in my head (ok I'm paraphrasing-in case I got it wrong ;)

What I mean is, even though my symptoms were very real the extremity of them was related to my immense fear and vivid imagination! Again all seeming very real, but definitely tolerable.

So for any of you thinking about going on treatment--just do it! It's like jumping into ice cold water, you just have to hold your breath and do it! I was absolutely terrified to start treatment and am still amazed I did it--and am doubly amazed it's over.

Peace~

Thanks Mama-so happy for you and Mike! You guys have been through a lot, and yes hopefully this disease will no longer be a death sentence for anyone.

Now for me "life after treatment" and hoping I'll feel better soon, although the relief of finishing the medicine has made me feel happier already for sure!

Thanks Miz~

I will for sure post when I get the results. Thanks for your support my dear!

Forever, Mike is in the same boat....cleared, but if there is a relaps, his Hep promises an additional treatment can be offered. But fingers crossed that this is behind you both. Mike, at almost 65 is virus free for the first time in 45 years. What a relief.

Hugs,
Mama Lama