week 17

Well I am now over a third of the way through. I find it motivating to measure my progress so I keep record sheets to break the treatment down into chunks of time which I can 'tick off' when I've completed them. It also helps me ensure I don't miss any doses as I write down when I have taken my medication & the time. I have made sure I'm being consistent with sticking to roughly the same time each day as I read that if you complete all the doses as prescribed for the full duration your chance of a sustained virologial response is 63% for genotype 1 & 94% for genotype 2/3. I think I may have missed one dose as I hadn't recorded it which I'm annoyed about. So I have 31 weeks to go. If I was having the 6 month treatment I'd only have 7 weeks to go - that seems like nothing! My message to anyone thinking of trying the treatment is give it a go - I really have found it absolutely fine & you might too. It hasn't disrupted my life & all aspects of it have been entirely manageable.

Other thoughts

I don't think I've mentioned that before starting treatment I took advantage of a flexible working policy & arranged to work longer hours on 4 days per week & start at lunchtime on a wednesday (the day after my weekly injection). I did this in case I felt rough on wednesdays. However, I have always felt ok & don't really need this arrangement though I'll continue with it during the treatment. My weight seems to have remained the same. I'm pretty itchy now (but you can't beat a good old scratch!) & I have got some E45 cream which is soothing. Still no other particular side effects, I have had loose stools quite often but not to the point of it being a problem. I think positive thinking & visualisation have helped me with the treatment. For example, on the very few occasions I've not felt fantastic or when I would rather not have to stick another needle in myself I think about how the virus is being battered, how if I feel bad the virus must be really suffering & how the injection is going to send stuff in to kill it. It works very well. As far as positive thinking goes, well there are many, many worse things to be dealing with than this treatment & after all it is time limited with a potentially positive life changing outcome.

week 13

Well the good news is I've tested negative for the Hep C virus! So I will continue with the treatment, I'm really pleased. I had the skin cancer cut out yesterday & am recovering at home. It's quite a big scar but should be very faint. The doctor will send it away for tests to check it is non malignant. But I have 'normal pressure glaucoma' which I'm completely devastated about. I'm worried sick about what it means for my future if I don't respond to the treatment for it & all my hopes & dreams have been turned upside down. I'm trying to remember how I felt like that when I got my Hep C diagnosis & came to terms with that but this feels different because it involves my eyesight & losing that is the worse thing I can think of. I expect I'll come to terms with it all but I'm not there yet.

week 12

I have been diagnosed with a non malignant skin cancer on my nose & tomorrow I'm due find out if I have glaucoma. I'm depressed to a normal degree about these things and will have the cancer cut out in the next week or two, I'm pretty worried about the scarring. My Hep C treatment still isn't causing me any difficulties - I have been away for a long weekend, an 800 mile round trip, driving on my own which I managed with no problems. I will find out this week if the treatment is working.

week 10

Some slight queasiness, tiredness & itchy skin but all manageable, I haven't needed to be off work at all. I have low mood but am dealing with very stressful personal issues which I think are causing it. I'm not sure if being on the treatment is making any additional difference to my mood, I don't really think so.

week 8

I'm now in week 8 and all is ok. I had a bug that was going around the weekend before last & was sick & ill in bed for a couple of days & then I went away for the following weekend. I felt very tired & queasy & thought it was the treatment but it has largely gone now so I think it was just the after effects of the bug. I am due to find out if the treatment is working on 21/11/07 when I get the results of my 12 week blood tests. I'm still not really getting any side effects apart from some itchiness & I feel a bit tired but then I was feeling tired before I started.

week 4

Well I'm nearly through week 4 and I'm fine. I took a paracetamol after the injection as I had a slight headache. There's nothing much to report really but I'm still going to keep up with the blog as I think people stop writing if everything's fine & keep writing if it's not & that would give a distorted view of the treatment - if you never hear when it's ok. I've had a bit of low mood but I think it's entirely attributable to issues in my life & hasn't got out of hand. I've had the same energy I normally have & have been very busy clearing stuff in the house ready for building work. So far, treatment hasn't really disrupted my life at all. The hardest thing is remembering to take the tablets on time. But some people have to deal with that for the whole of their life, at least this is only for a period for me.

update

My kidney test with the GP came back clear. No problems with the third injection so far. I've just had an appointment with the Hepatitis C nurse - I asked her if people were generally worse after the first month, she said she hadn't heard that & that people usually found the first 6 weeks the hardest. She said most people they see don't have a problem with the treatment apart from tiredness which is what I'm finding so far (though I'm not even too tired). My viral load on 4/9/07 was 3.26 x 10 to the power of 6 (3,260,000 units per ml). A negative test is when they can't detect the virus, the lowest reading they've been able to get in a blood test is 15 units per ml. My next viral load test will be in 3 months when they need to see a drop of 2,000,000 in order to deem it worth continuing.

starting week 3

Well I've just completed week 2. After the second injection I had lower back pain which I checked with the GP as it tells you to on the medicine leaflets - she's testing me for a kidney infection. If it is just part of the side effects it's not unmanageable pain & wore off after a few days - I eventually took a paracetamol on the third night as it had stopped me sleeping well. Otherwise I've been ok, I've been busy & working full time & managed it all with no problems. I'm about to do my third injection & have felt very tired this afternoon.
My doses are: peginterferon Alfa 2b 0.5ml weekly injection and Ribavirin 200mg capsules - 2 in the morning & 3 at night.
I've been told it gets worse after the first month, I'll just have to take it a day at a time - whatever happens at least I've had 2 weeks that were ok!

no change

I'm still absolutely fine, no side effects at all that I can tell. I've been carrying on my life completely as normal - apart from trying to be healthier!

so far so good

Well I had my first injection at 11am yesterday. I was suprised by how emotional I felt - taking the first step on an unknown & possibly difficult journey I suppose. And I feel like an experiment. Anyway I've been fine. I was very slightly achey & headachey in the evening but then I had rushed round & done loads of housework after I got back from the hospital & possibly still have jetlag. I took a couple of paracetamol about 8 hours after the injection, not because I felt uncomfortable then, but in case it got worse. I slept well & have worked as normal today & felt fine. I had a very slight headache at some points but that may well not be down to the treatment but because we are shortstaffed & horrendously busy & some of the rooms I work in are so hot, so it's not unusual for me to feel a bit headachey at work sometimes. I've made sure I've been drinking plenty of water & am trying to stick to my resolve to eat healthily. I don't know if I've just been very lucky with how I've been feeling or if it will change but it's a good start. I have a very busy job, some personal problems & have lots of building work due on the house over the next few months so I'll be attempting to manage that while on treatment. My viral load in March 2007 was 6ish x 10 to the power of 6, I'm not sure how to write that but it's the highest reading I've had. I don't know yet what the result was for yesterday. My weight is 10.5 stone.

Fingers crossed I continue with no problems.

Before I start treatment

I am 46, female, was diagnosed with hepatitis C 9 years ago & have probably had it for 24 years. I'm genotype 1a. Biopsies have shown mild disease and I've finally been offered treatment - combination therapy of pegylated interferon & ribarvirin.
I start on tuesday 4/9/07 and this will be my record of treatment.
I work full time in mental health services & live with my husband. I want to be able to show anyone thinking of embarking on the treatment what it may be like & what kind of impact it can have on your life. This is what I wanted to know. I struggled to find positive accounts so this is mine - including what is ok and what is not.
I've prepared for my treatment by having a holiday abroad before I start so I won't travel abroad whilst on treatment and getting some other things done. I haven't drunk alcohol since my diagnosis. I have told my boss (a friend) and our staff care section at work about the treatment so they are prepared if I need support or am off sick (though I won't be off if I can help it). Apart from that just my husband & sister & some friends who also have hepatitis C know. I don't want to define myself by my diagnosis so apart from stigma & not wanting to worry people that's why I keep it to myself.
So here goes . . .