Hep C Discussion Forum

Hey guys.. I'm just going to write this with hopes it helps someone else along their journey and also have some closure with my own.    Here's my story.    I was 18 years old when I found out I had hep c.  I went for some routine lab work and found my liver enzymes were high and they tested me for hep c.  It was positive.   The doctor treated me like **** about it.  I remember I had my belly button pierced and he blamed that.  I never used drugs, no blood infusions.  I remember being scared to death.  My first love whom I was dating at the time left me soon after that.  (I know I was only 18 lol but it was that first love high school sweet heart puppy love thing) I saw the GI doctor when I was in 12th grade.  He asked me what drugs I did.. When I said none he said no really what drugs do you do?   I got my first biopsy while I was in high school.  I also started treatment when I was in 12th grade.  I remember being extremely tired and depressed.  My GI doctor didnt tell me about the depression that happens with interferon.  I finished high school somehow.  I slept through it pretty much.  I told people about hep c being naive.   People told everyone.  I started getting treated weird.  People called me a whore and all kinds of other things because of ignorance.  I didnt finish treatment the first time with interferon and ribavirin.  My mothers insurance dropped me when I turned 19.  I also wasnt compliant.  I  cried when she'd have to give me shots which made her feel awful.  She still feels guilty about that.   I was extremely depressed.  I graduated my friends that loved me and accepted my diagnosis went to college my real father who i didnt know wanted to meet me once he was on his death bed and my first love left me and i seriously lacked serotonin.   I started smoking alot of pot drinking and doing extacy.  I didnt care if I lived or died.   Eventually my mother talked me into trying an antidepressant.   I started effexor.    I became numb but not in pain so that was a change for me.  I started dating someone else whom I told about hep c he didnt mind.  we didnt last.  When we broke up he told me I gave it to him which was a lie.  He told me later he made that up to hurt me.  I met my childs father.. Told him.. He was fine with it.  We had a baby.  During my pregnancy I had something called cholestasis of pregnancy.  I felt I knew that had to do with hep c and later on researched showed that is correct.  We had a healthy little boy.  I then had another biopsy  everything was fine.  I thought i couldnt afford tx so I waited.  I also feared my ex wouldnt be very supportive at all during the treatment.  He was not empathetic at all. I left his father because he was an angry non supportive drunk and i didnt want to be in that situation anymore. I was so naive before him.   I left and was on my own and too afraid to tell anyone about the Hep c.  I felt very alone and like people would not want anything to do with me if they knew (which i know is absolutely dramatic and ridic now.)  My ex told me he hoped I died from it.  I decided I need to do something about this.  I need to stop just drinking and avoiding the problem and do something about it.   I started boceprevir interferon and rib. As a single mother of a 5 year old working full time 12 hour shifts.  I got financial assistance.  I finally stopped making excuses and put forth effort to do something about my life.  I didnt have to pay anything it was free.  I became so anemic.  I work in a hospital and didnt want anyone to know.  I came close to transfusion a few times but kept pushing through.  I later relapsed....  That was a moment in life i will never ever forget.  I remember the sound of my doctors voice on my voicemail.   I knew it was back...  I accepted it and kept moving.   I had to take iron to fix my anemia and was positive about the new drugs i was following along the pipeline.    I started solvadi rib and interferon.     My white blood cells dropped so much in the first month my doctor wanted me to stop.. We decided to lower rib and lower interferon.   I ended up with mrsa.  I got more labs   even worse anemia and wbcs.  She wanted me to stop interfon.  I told her ok but kept taking my shots haha.  I know i should have listened but I knew id be ok.   I called her and asked if I could start neupogen thanks to you guys on this forum.  She said yes and got it ordered.  It is what helped me through.  I worked 2 jobs  one at a hospital doing 12 hr shifts one at a nursing home.  I struggled with learning a new job.  So foggy so tired.   I finally ended treatment stopped the other job gave myself time to heal.    I felt great 4 weeks post 12 weeks post.. I was UND during both of those labs..  Then suddenly when my 24 week was coming up I kept feeling liver pain again and started over thinking and feeling as tho it was back.  Started googling and thought I had terrys nails liver roll everything lol.   I got my results today.  Still negative...   THIRD TIME WAS A CHARM and the mind is such a scary powerful thing.  You can seriously convince yourself of anything. I hate the hospital setting. I see how people treat people with Hep c and HIV   it doesnt even matter how anyone got it.  No one deserves it.       So    in conclusion of this long ass run on sentence.      I thank this forum... for helping me during my times of over thinking.   For telling me to ask my doctor for neupogen....  For being my support during this time of my life when no one else would every understand what I was going through...... I also want to encourage other people     it is very scary and you read alot of bad **** online about the treatment... you can do it.  you just have to push yourself.   If you want it bad enough you will be able to find a way to pay for it or get assistance or whatever.. YOUR LIFE IS WORTH THE EFFORT...                 I cant wait for this to be a thing of the past and we can all move on..... LOVE AND LIGHT TO ALL