feeling like i relapsed

[JAY0914]

So worried i relapsed due to symptoms lately...i go in this friday for 3 month PCR...Having the burning eyes, achy back, flu like feeling all the time, fatique, yawning alot mid day...these are all the symptoms i had before treatment  anxiety like crazy thinking the worst ...i  really thought i beat this thing with all the great results...my question is if did. relapse       .what are my options now?

[DoubleDose]

Don't worry yet!!!  I was SURE I had relapsed after tx...my symptoms were worse after tx than before.....only to find that I was totally undetected on every interval test....3 months...6 months...1 year,....2 years...5 years...and 9 years!!!  The downside to that may be that you may have some post-tx sx for awhile...hopefully not long!  Mine got nasty about two weeks after ending tx, and have more or less remained in the 'nasty' category over the years.  

This pattern of feeling like you have relapsed after tx is very common...and many have found that their post-tx symptoms seem to have NO correlation whatsoever to being SVR!!!!  In fact, I will bet you big odds that you are indeed SVR!!!  Relax, and feel confident!  No reason to worry yet.  Hopefully your tests will confirm the SVR.  I hope your sx also fade quickly.  Good luck!!

DoubleDose

[Dee1956]

This is the best group of people ever!!
Thank you so much for always being there when someone needs you.

@OH I really liked your comment about the mind fretting, mine frets all the time, I get really scared about many things as I am sure everyone does
Curious Lady, you are so right about anxiety and what it can do.  

@ALL You are all wonderful and have been more help to me than any family member with the exception of my poor husband who has stuck by me through all my sx
Is clumsy on the list?...or is that just genetics?  I want to make sure who to blame. LOL

[DoubleDose]

Just a PS to my post above:

I think your symptoms are very much in the post-tx, after-effect category.  Your immune system has been over-revved, and does not stop immediately after stopping the drugs.....The drugs DO actually leave your system fairly quickly, contrary to what many think...but the systemic after effects can remain for varying periods of time.  The interferon makes your immune system go hyper, and that really takes time to iron back out to normal.  You are feeling the symptoms of an ongoing immune system lashing out, so to speak....it will insure the complete destruction of any stubborn HCV virions hanging out...but also will cause lots of funky symptoms...especially the extreme anxiety....fatigue, burning eyes....joint pains...etc.  They all are symptoms similar to a 'lupus-like' auto-immune blitz...and are part of the post-interferon syndrome.  Keep the faith...I bet you are good to go.

BTW, my anxiety attacks were horrendous the first year or so after ending tx.  I did not understand any of it back then, but in retrospect, I see where it all came from.  I became panicked about many odd things....thought I ate poisoned food a few times....worried about a terrorist attack for no good reason...had a number of unreasonable huge fear attacks that each lasted for days to a week...all due to the post-interferon buzz.  Also, lots of rashes, deep joint and back pains, vision issues, deep fatigue, etc.  For most SVR's, these issues should clear our fairly rapidly...or even in months.  Stay healthy, eat well, exercise, and keep optimistic!!!

DoubleDose

[nygirl7]

I think your problems might be the same non-hepc related problems you were having before treatment.  Just because you treat the HCV does not mean that your GI problems will go away, they could and probably are two separate things completely and totally.

Especially colitis - as far as I know that has nothing at all to do with HCV.

[DoubleDose]

But Jay's initial comment at top was that the problems involved:  flu-like feelings, achy bach, fatigue, and lots of anxiety....the colitis was a separate issue.  I still think the symptoms are very typical of post-tx or 'post-interferon' syndrome.  Its expected for most people, and goes away fairly quickly in most treaters (so they say).   My post-tx problems began about 2 weeks after ending tx, and I saw a slew of specialists over the next 2-3 years trying to sort it all out.  Net result:  interferon after effects.  Still SVR though...and approaching 10 years.  

DoubleDose

[nygirl7]

these are all the symptoms i had before treatment"  

If he had them pre-tx then they were not post-tx symptoms was my only thought, I doubt he has relapsed a lot of people feel punk during and after treament but he had these symptoms prior (although they dont necessarily relate to HCV relapse at ALL),