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Posted 2/2/2012 4:38 PM (GMT 0)

Hi i am a 27 year old male I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in 05 and Hepatitis C in 2010 I have never had any problems from the Hep C yet but I am wondering what I should expect when it acts up also my GI specialist isnt sure what to do because the treatment for my UC will disturb my Hep C and visa versa does anyone else have both diseases and is there a forum here for addiction recovery?

Posted 2/2/2012 5:35 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, UCTurtle, and welcome to the forum. I'm sorry you have hep C in addition to UC. That does complicate treatment. Do you know when you might have contracted the HCV? It usually takes ten years or more for symptoms to appear. The main symptom is fatigue. It is not like being tired from exertion or lack of sleep. It feels like you are walking through molasses. Everything is a great effort and there is a huge need for sleep...though sleep does not diminish the feeling of fatigue. Your liver enzymes will also elevate. Mine took over 20 yrs. to elevate.

If I were you, I would get a 2nd opinion from a hepatologist regarding treatment.

As far as I know, there is nobody here with both hep C and UC, and there is no forum on Healing Well for addiction recovery. You can look up AA or NA online, though. I know that there is at least one AA message board. I hope that you are now abstaining from both alcohol and drugs, as they will exacerbate liver problems and very possibly kill you. It's important that you go to "live" meetings, too.

Hugs,
Connie
Posted 2/2/2012 7:41 PM (GMT 0)
It has been a struggle but i am in a methadone program right now and have been able to stay clean and on a low dose i think i contracted Hep C in 08-09 i will look for a hepatologist ty
Posted 2/2/2012 8:33 PM (GMT 0)
UC, congrats! I got off hard drugs myself in Nov. of '69 (cold turkey) and have stayed clean since then. Sober since '86. It's the best thing you can do for your life and your liver. So I hope you stick with it! You have the rest (and best!) years of your life ahead of you

Hugs,
Connie
Posted 2/3/2012 9:45 PM (GMT 0)
Hi UTC, the good news is that you found out quite quickly that you had contracted a very serious virus. That virus can hide in your body doing its terrible damage for decades before knocking out a liver. When Mike got Hep C, he didn't know, they didn't even have a diagnosis for it. He had gotten off drugs, but continued to drink alcohol for years and years doing a lot of damage to the liver.

With a clean healthy lifestyle, there is good news for you. And with the newer treatements, it is likely those newly infected can be cured before the onset of cirrhosis, heptocellular carcinoma, and end stage liver disease!!!!

Best,

Mama Lama, Caregiver

Post Edited (MamaLama) : 2/3/2012 3:55:20 PM (GMT-7)

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