Aa
Newbie
I found out I have Hep C two weeks ago. Im 54 yrs old, female and my first husband just passed away in December from a Varices Bleed after he was banded. He, however, opted not to treat his Hep C I heard, he went Holistic and obviously when he had the chance to treat he did not. Instead he hired a personal trainer. He owned a drug rehab clinic and I think his arrogance told him he could beat this w/o any drugs.
Anway, I am upset and learning so much from reading this forum.
I went to my primary who took another blood test for viral count etc and I have an appt w/ gastro on the 8th of this month. To say Im scared is putting it mildly. I dont have much support at home, children are grown and I care for my 87 yr old mom, I work full time.
I do not know what is ahead of me right now and the future looks murky.
Thank you all for being here and I hope to fight this with the help of you good people.
Peace
Anway, I am upset and learning so much from reading this forum.
I went to my primary who took another blood test for viral count etc and I have an appt w/ gastro on the 8th of this month. To say Im scared is putting it mildly. I dont have much support at home, children are grown and I care for my 87 yr old mom, I work full time.
I do not know what is ahead of me right now and the future looks murky.
Thank you all for being here and I hope to fight this with the help of you good people.
Peace
up at the top of the page there's a green button saying "Post a question". click on that. You'll need a title, and you can ask your question in the box. I wouldn't worry about the "tags". Hope this helps!
If you have questions you'll have a better chance of getting answers if you start your own thread - and you most definitely will get answers, this is a great forum
So sorry to hear about your husband, but you've made the right choice to take command and try to rid yourself of this ugly virus. I felt so much comfort after finding this forum, knowing that others are going through the same thing, and others have cleared the virus and keep coming back to give their support and advice. It warms my heart knowing people reach out to perfect strangers, but we are all in this fight together and have a common bond, one that is difficult for anyone else to understand.
The caring and knowledgeable members hear are beyond what I expected. Best luck to you as you learn more about the treatment options and what comes ahead of you. You are not alone and have plenty of support if things get rough.
Best luck to you.
The caring and knowledgeable members hear are beyond what I expected. Best luck to you as you learn more about the treatment options and what comes ahead of you. You are not alone and have plenty of support if things get rough.
Best luck to you.
I'm very sorry about your husband but very glad you realize the steps you need to take care of yourself. I'm almost the same age and a single mom of two (husband died he had HCV but it was unrelated, mostly). I came here back in 2005 when I was diagnosed and scared to death. The guys helped me get through and succeed. I've been SVR for 5 or 6 years.........the time goes by so fast.
Hey we're all arrogant to some degree until we realize, wow this happened to me too?
You will be just fine. Learn as much as you can and ask questions.......you are lucky the new drugs are out and give you a much better chance to succeed then we had in the 'olden days'.
deb
Hey we're all arrogant to some degree until we realize, wow this happened to me too?
You will be just fine. Learn as much as you can and ask questions.......you are lucky the new drugs are out and give you a much better chance to succeed then we had in the 'olden days'.
deb
I am a 59 yr. old woman who has been living with Hep C since 2001. I was doing fine without treatment but started developing terrible pain. Even though my liver biopsy and enymes are fine my dotor says that the virus can be the cause of my chronic pain. I have been on long term pain meds (which I hate) and he wants me to go through treatment. Hs anyone else developed any stomach pain and pain in joints and ribcage? I'm glad this site is here. I don't know what to do.
B472
B472
Thank you all so very much for the warm welcome and information.
I will be sure to check back here often.
I fell better about not being alone....
Im still not sure what Im talking about so I will wait until the 8th and the blood test results to ask more questions I guess, I want to look into treatments, but they are overwhelming when one does not know what she is looking for....like me. Ive read so much good and bad.....One day at a time and I'll try not to live absorbed w/ this disease as I read above.....Thank you all again...Peace.
I will be sure to check back here often.
I fell better about not being alone....
Im still not sure what Im talking about so I will wait until the 8th and the blood test results to ask more questions I guess, I want to look into treatments, but they are overwhelming when one does not know what she is looking for....like me. Ive read so much good and bad.....One day at a time and I'll try not to live absorbed w/ this disease as I read above.....Thank you all again...Peace.
Don't despair. Women usually have an easier time with hep C than men. Estrogen
is a natural barrier, for some reason. Do you have an idea when you may have been
exposed to hep c? It could have been a LONG time ago.
Do what the doctor says. the new drugs will help a lot, if you decide to treat.
Hello, I'm new here too. I also was just recently diagnosed. I'm 34 and a single mom to two young boys and I work full time. That alone is enough to exhaust me! This forum is great! People are very friendly and knowledgable. I ask questions, get advice, and sometimes just vent! It's nice to know there are people out there who care and know how we feel. Welcome!!
welcome - we are almost the same age, and I have three kids - thank goodness they can take care of themselves, I can't imagine if they were tiny and I had to fuss over them. But I can tell mine fix yourself something to eat, I don't feel well. But this forum has been a godsend, lots of good information, and people in the same situation...
I truly dont know what I would have done if I had not stumbled onto this site. 'Totally by accident. What a god sent!!!!! First dont be afraid to ask questions. If they pertain to your illness no question is a dumb question. Lots of folks here who have already walked the walk and are more than willing to share. Get all your tests done do what EVER you can to get yourself healthy. I too have grown kids and grand kids and work full time. Worry I wont be able to do that but I guess we will find out. One day at a time. Nothing more. Good luck and WELCOME!
I know you are probably scared. I remember how I was in 1999 when I found out. I was terrified. I got online and went to all these hep c support groups and to be honest, they made my fear worse. I found myself totally absorbed in my illness. That was the worse thing to do ever. Best thing is to educate yourself, have a few trustworthy friends with Hep C, and the most important is too keep living your life. Live with hep C not for it.
welcome and as you can see you will get plenty of support here. This forum helped me tremendously and they are a great bunch........ we belong to an elite club.
Thank goodness you are taking all the right steps. The new drugs seem to have so much promise, I just stopped treatment after 24 weeks and treated with the PI's and SOC, before the PI's I would have treated at lease 48 weeks and maybe 72.
I hope the best for you and dont be worried and dont be scared of the sides, you can ride them out....
hugs, Mary
Thank goodness you are taking all the right steps. The new drugs seem to have so much promise, I just stopped treatment after 24 weeks and treated with the PI's and SOC, before the PI's I would have treated at lease 48 weeks and maybe 72.
I hope the best for you and dont be worried and dont be scared of the sides, you can ride them out....
hugs, Mary
Just wanted to say hi and welcome to the forum! Many many supportive and knowledgeable people on here, don't be afraid to ask any questions you may have, someone will answer, and if you need to vent we are here for that as well. anne
Hi Newbie.
I am so sorry to hear about your husband. Yes, varices and other complications of cirrhosis of the liver can be life threatening, and it is nothing to take likely. I am glad you have learned from the experience and have decided to take another path.
I am so glad here are here and are going to be seeing a gastro soon. He/she will find out just how advanced your liver disease is and then will assist you in treating your hepatitis to stop the progression of your liver disease. Your husband was cirrhotic for quite some time in order to develop varices. We don't want that to happen to you. You want to stop your liver from ever getting that damaged. The good news is the most effective treatments ever are now available for you to treat your hepatitis. Since you never treated you have an excellent chance of curing yourself of this illness and living a long full life. Don't worry we are here to walk you every step of the way through diagnoses and treatment. We will give you our advice based on what so many on this forum have already been through. It seems scary now but as you learn more you will see that you can handle it just like the rest of us. It doesn't take a super human to do this. You just need to be committed to doing it one day, one week, and one month at a time. You can do it. You know more then anyone that not doing treatment is no option at all. You are still young and have a lot of years ahead of you. Your future is going to be a good one. It is just tough to see as you have been through a very traumatic period of your life. In time you will heal. The best is yet to come. :-)
Hang in there. You are on the right path now. All the good people here will help you through the ups and downs. You are not alone in this. We have all been scared but we have all made it though and so can you!
Best - Hector
I am so sorry to hear about your husband. Yes, varices and other complications of cirrhosis of the liver can be life threatening, and it is nothing to take likely. I am glad you have learned from the experience and have decided to take another path.
I am so glad here are here and are going to be seeing a gastro soon. He/she will find out just how advanced your liver disease is and then will assist you in treating your hepatitis to stop the progression of your liver disease. Your husband was cirrhotic for quite some time in order to develop varices. We don't want that to happen to you. You want to stop your liver from ever getting that damaged. The good news is the most effective treatments ever are now available for you to treat your hepatitis. Since you never treated you have an excellent chance of curing yourself of this illness and living a long full life. Don't worry we are here to walk you every step of the way through diagnoses and treatment. We will give you our advice based on what so many on this forum have already been through. It seems scary now but as you learn more you will see that you can handle it just like the rest of us. It doesn't take a super human to do this. You just need to be committed to doing it one day, one week, and one month at a time. You can do it. You know more then anyone that not doing treatment is no option at all. You are still young and have a lot of years ahead of you. Your future is going to be a good one. It is just tough to see as you have been through a very traumatic period of your life. In time you will heal. The best is yet to come. :-)
Hang in there. You are on the right path now. All the good people here will help you through the ups and downs. You are not alone in this. We have all been scared but we have all made it though and so can you!
Best - Hector
Hello,
I am new here also, am a 53 year old single Mom of 2 kids. I also work a very demanding job and worry about the future, but it has been great lurking here and reading stories of some very brave fighters. I have only had the RNA qualitative test which came back positive. I am waiting to see the specialist in 2 weeks. The uncertainty and the waiting is tough, but I intend to lean on this group for support. I know that we won't be given more than we can handle!!
Good Luck and hope to see you around!
Vann
I am new here also, am a 53 year old single Mom of 2 kids. I also work a very demanding job and worry about the future, but it has been great lurking here and reading stories of some very brave fighters. I have only had the RNA qualitative test which came back positive. I am waiting to see the specialist in 2 weeks. The uncertainty and the waiting is tough, but I intend to lean on this group for support. I know that we won't be given more than we can handle!!
Good Luck and hope to see you around!
Vann
Welcome to the forum. Sorry for the reason you had to find us tho. We all remember those first dark days when we were newly diagnosed. Learn all you can from reading through the archives. The more you know, honestly, the better you will feel about the upcoming decisions you will be facing.
Come here for support, knowledge and friendship. This place is the reason I made it through my tx and am SVR. Gained some life long friends in the process, too!
Hang in there. We're here for you, so please keep us posted.
Isobella
Come here for support, knowledge and friendship. This place is the reason I made it through my tx and am SVR. Gained some life long friends in the process, too!
Hang in there. We're here for you, so please keep us posted.
Isobella
Hello and welcome. You are in the right place. I didn't have a group like we have here the first two times I went through treatment. Everything is going so much better this time - most of us understand what each other are going through, and if we don't, then someone will find out and share. It's a GOOD kind of family! No one gives you "the look" or judges. We're all in the same boat. Don't be afraid to ask anything - we talk about it ALL. That's the only way to get better, right? Welcome and I'm glad you are here to fight the fight with us!!
Liz
Liz
I remember the fear very well. My dad had alcoholic cirrhosis n died from varices bleed out. I'm treating n plan on making this the year I get rid of hep c. Good luck on ur decisions..Karen
Welcome. I've been on this forum for about 2 years. It's been a blessing to be able to reach out for information and simple support from other humans who do actually care (even if you don't know them). The best advice I have is to keep reading and learning as much as possible. This is a slow-moving disease but not one to hide from. Be skeptical. Double check your Dr's advice here, and vice versa. This group of people is extremely well educated on the subject and can always help out. You will see that no posts go unanswered. Good luck in choosing a treatment, and beating this disease!
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