Hep C Discussion Forum

Linuxter · Guru

RE: anxiety about starting Sovaldi and Ribavirin

RAGDOLL · Senior Member

Michele, welcome to the this family, who are truly a gift. Liz you are doing awesome ....thank you so much for your beautiful words and sharing your journey. Michele like all have said you will do great and you have lots of new friends who are here for you.

Enjoy your journey to freedom. Chris

wendyo · Guru

I am not kidding that I teared up when I read Liz's post. Proof that when we get out of self, it (we) get better. Liz I am so proud of you and happy for you.

JimmyK · Guru

Greetings Michelle,

I want to say that I am incredibly proud of Liz who wrote about three hours ago. If feels like just yesterday we were telling her the same things we are telling yo and now to see her jump in and help you demonstrates what we have been saying all to clearly.

Soon, very soon it will be YOU jumping in to help someone new who feels just like you do. Soon, very soon you will be able to set their mind at ease knowing they are not alone with how they feel and that the hope that lies ahead in not just a glimmer, but a solid hope for the cure that is at out fingertips.

Ladies on behalf of all here we are proud of you both.

JimmyK

-- Edited by JimmyK on Tuesday 12th of July 2016 07:42:09 AM

Mitch71 · Member

Alright everyone! Making bagels now to take my first dose of meds! 9am and 7pm are better med times for me, I took a 1/2 xanax this morning just alittle help, I bought my greens from my gym......that **** was alittle expensive, I'll go through Amazon for the next 2 months......HERE GOES GUYS!!! Thank you ALL for your support. I'll be moving to the "On treatment group " this afternoon. Xoxoxo Michele

Sydhanrahan · Guru

Hi Michelle,

we've all been through the fear of up coming treatment and quite a lot if us had had other obstacles thrown our way at the same time. Most of us have reacted with the sane panic abd fear as you.

if I could reach back in time for a second go at reacting to the news i was about to start treatment it would be to let that amazing realisation that these drugs have arrived in the nick of time to save our lives, sink in., Even though they have been invented the vast majority of Hep C sufferers will never be able to afford them.

How lucky are we.

take care during treatment,

Syd

Tig · Admin

Hey Michelle,

By now you have jumped onboatrd the Sovaldi Express! Congratulations for getting your healthy future started. I'm very touched by all of the support you have received already and want you to know that we'll be here all the way. You've got a great bunch of friends here and we look forward to seeing you succeed.

Now that you've boarded the train, start a thread in the On Treatment section. Use the Sovaldi Riba Train thread I mentioned or start your own. If you have any questions about how to do anything forum related, just ask. We'll show you the way.....

One more thing, HYDRATE, HYDRATE, HYDRATE!!! I'm the Water Whisperer around here. It's the most important part of treatment, besides the medication of course!!

It's a new day!

Loopy Lisa · Guru

Hey Mitch,

Sorry to hear about all the things happening in your life.

Giving up smoking is very stressful, and can induce more anxiety as you battle psychologically with addiction. It is really normal to wake up in fight and flight mode as you adjust. I had one panic attack on my medications because my left eye went blurry. It turned out to be an infection non related to the medications and I was fine (it has cleared up now.)

Sometimes the idea of something is worse than the event. I had one rotten panic attack and guess what, I am still here and taking my medications. Sure, it wasn't my best day of the year, but it doesn't matter. Living a long and healthy life is more important than a fleeting feeling.

Tomorrow without over thinking pop them in and swallow. I do this every morning without so much as a thought.

Stay strong and before you know it, its just a distant memory.

Hug x

nightowl · Member

Hi Michelle,

I'm on a slightly different treatment regimen to you in that you are taking Solvadi and Riba and I am taking Harvoni ... BUT ... breakups and fear of anxiety/depression whilst on treatment are most certainly something we share in common. I also share a history of anxiety and depression (and have even written a PhD on anxiety/agoraphobia) - so there's not much I don't know about this subject. Of course, with all this knowledge I too was convinced that I would have an anxiety reaction to my meds and spent a lot of time researching and worrying about this possibility before I took my first tablet.

Added to this, things in my personal life have gone about as badly as you could possibly imagine whilst I've been on this treatment (my partner walked out on me shortly after I began treatment leaving me with emotional and financial worries) ... BUT HERE'S THE THING ... DESPITE ALL THESE DREADFUL EVENTS IN MY LIFE, DESPITE ALL THIS STRESS, I HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED ANY ACTUAL ANXIETY OR PANIC ATTACKS DUE TO THE MEDICATION! Sure I've had moments of feeling sad/overwhelmed, but no scary panic at all! Not one bit!

I was so so scared about taking my first tablet that I drove to my specialists office, took the tablet with him in his office, and sat in his waiting room until they closed and he had to go home for dinner - SIX HOURS lol (a similar story to Mike sitting outside Emergency with his tablet lol). That was almost five weeks ago ... and since then I have taken my meds every day since. No anxiety or depression. None!

My personal experience has been that I felt amazingly good after only a few days (clear headed, really awake and energetic and calm), it was as though I could actually feel the viral load clearing. Then a couple of weeks later I began to feel a bit emotional (not anxious or depressed, just sad and crying a bit ... a little bit like intense PMT ... it felt hormonal ... not pleasant, but nothing unmanageable). Now I'm settling back down to feeling reasonably normal again at the end of week five. It's been a kinda been 'high-low-normal' ride for me, and now I feel like I've plateaued out a bit ...

But here's the thing Michelle ... even though I have cried and felt emotional at times (not surprising given what's been going on in my personal life), and had tummy problems that come and go (for me it's a kind of mild nausea/burning sensation ... but nothing I can't live with, so you can too) ... I HAVEN'T HAD ANY ACTUAL ANXIETY SYMPTOMS FROM THE MEDS!

In almost five weeks, I've only had one melt-down day where I felt truly dreadful, but that was due to a whole bunch of stuff happening all at once, both personal and physical.

I know that hearing that the side effects are manageable from people who do not suffer from anxiety is not very convincing so please hear this ... I DO suffer from anxiety and I have had NO trouble staying on the meds.

If I can do this ... with my history of anxiety ... AND during a painful breakup ... I KNOW YOU CAN TOO!

You are in the right place, the people here are really lovely and very supportive .. they care ... and they/we are proof that you can get through this.

Hugs x

Linuxter · Guru

Hi Michele,

Not to worry, you'll not be "bugging" us in the slightest, that's what we're here for and it's our pleasure to help in any way we can.

You'll do well, I'm glad that you're getting on track. Please feel free to start a new thread in On Treatment or hop on board the Sovaldi Train that Tig gave you a link to below.

Animals are wonderful, it's nice that you have your horse ... they can make all the difference in helping to soothe us and give us hope, friendship and they empathize too. smile

Do post often here, it helps to vent and share your journey with us along the way. You're going to do very well, I can tell.

Dave

p.s. Oh, and thanks for the congrats on SVR ... that's your goal and as soon as you start taking the meds, you're on your way, straight for that goal.

-- Edited by Linuxter on Sunday 10th of July 2016 09:06:57 PM

Mitch71 · Member

Thank you ALL so much!! And congrats on SVR. I WILL jump on the train tomorrow, I hope I'm not to bothersome but I will be bugging ya,ll from time to time when my horse can't help, I have a horse, she is my therapy for anxiety

I will keep the fluids going. Thank you ALL for the support

Linuxter · Guru

Hi Michele,

Welcome to the forum, great to have you here!

I was a Genotype 2b (notice I said WAS) ... LOL, I just went through 12 weeks of treatment (Sovaldi/ Ribavirin) and it's very doable and now I am HCV-Free!

You will do fine too. I quit smoking 12 months before I started treatment. I also had to quit drinking which I VERY much enjoyed at the time, so I understand exactly where you are right now.

It's very natural to feel anxious at this time, I too was very apprehensive and afraid of the unknown, afraid of what lay ahead, afraid of the meds.

First off, stop googling and reading all the horror stories, so much of that is from meds or combinations of meds that are no longer used.

Settle in here, everything you need is right here. This site is a Wonderful resource! We're a very friendly bunch, a great support mechanism and the knowledge base here is astonishing. We can point you to excellent data, information, ways to cope and we'll be right here the whole time ... you can relax, you are among friends.

The Golden Rule of taking HCV meds is to DRINK 3-4 LITERS OF WATER PER DAY (That's a Gallon of WATER). A lot, I know but essential to help fight dehydration (dehydration is your enemy during and after treatment) ... So drinks LOTS of WATER! This is a MUST. (It can nearly, totally keep you from having any side effects)

The first week or two you will feel virtually nothing taking Sof/ Riba, Getting started is only difficult because it's such an unknown (we can help with that so it's not unknown, is predictable and is nothing to be afraid of). Second week you may feel very mild nausea for a few days or perhaps a very mild headache. Then it will don on you that you're not drinking enough WATER (do that and these will fade). Week 3 & 4, if you drink LOTS of Water will be fine, I experienced very few symptoms after those first few symptoms of dehydration.

Week 6 and you may (I say may because we each respond a little differently since our diets differ, our conditions differ, etc) feel a little tired. This is from slight anemia, the Ribavirin may tend to lower your Hemoglobin a little at this point. It's important to eat well throughout treatment. Eat LOTs of fruits and vegetables, especially Greens!

Avoid junk foods, avoid salt (salt dehydrates you and you very much need to stay hydrated). Eat as healthy as you ever have, I highly recommend researching and eating a Mediterranean Diet during Treatment.

From Week 6 on, you may feel some tiredness and some irritability but by then you'll know that drinking LOTs of WATER will help alleviate those and will help you control those. You will learn to predict any rage coming on and know what to do. Changing your environment a little, listening to some music, getting some fresh air and drinking LOTS of WATER will do the trick.

You've got this! You can be in control and make your treatment go smoothly. Forget the horror stories, treatment (Tx) can be controlled and you can do it.

So step on board the Treatment Train, it's the first step to being HCV-Free ... that's your goal! The prize is VERY worth the minor inconvenience of Tx, believe me ... I just got my EOT + 12 wks lab results and achieved SVR ... This is HUGE, and very rewarding, you will be there soon. (Link ----> Forum abbreviations )

You can do it Michele, we'll be right here, visit often and make friends (and you will make friends here). We're all in this together and we will do everything in our power to help you along the way. So you have nothing to worry about, you can do this. smile

Talk to you soon,

Dave

-- Edited by Linuxter on Sunday 10th of July 2016 06:05:03 PM

Tig · Admin

Hey Michelle,

Welcome to the forum! Sorry that you've had such a rough year, consider this treatment as your new beginning! If you are starting treatment with minimal liver damage, that's great, as a 2b, you'll have an excellent response the medication. Now is the time to get this moving forward, while you have minimal scarring and the other niceties that come with long term HCV infection. There's nothing to be afraid of, but the thought of starting such an important journey can seem daunting until you begin. Trust me, once you do, the stress and fear of it will vanish. We've all been there and done that.

We have a section here called the Sovaldi Train and I'll provide a link to it. Take a look at it and read through some of our posts. Perhaps you have already. You'll find that each of us has had highs and lows during treatment. Some days may be difficult, but that's what we're here for. We can turn those days around most of the time and provide you with methods to improve or avoid the side effects altogether. We balance everything with knowledge, friendship, experience and some good old humor. Don't let fear prevent you from the new beginning and healthy life that awaits you. We'll be here to guide you to success.

Sovaldi Train

Mitch71 · Member

Thank you for replying wendyo and jimmyk, those threads are very encouraging.

Especially Mikes, his anxiety at the beginning is exactly how mine is right now, I almost feel like going to the local hospital taking my first dose there lol

I fear what I have read about riba rage, Is the ribavirin going to make me lose control?

JimmyK · Guru

Greetings and Welcome to The Family here!

I am 100% with Wendy and yes please understand you are not alone in how you feel

http://hepcfriends.activeboard.com/t61865391/harvoni/

Above is another example. Folks come in, they are nervous about starting, we do what we can to encourage and the next thing you know they are on treatment and Undetected!

You will one day be able to help someone else that comes in feeling just like you do but for now, let's get you on the path to freedom from something you should be nervous about, HepC and the cure is in your hands.

Again, Welcome!

JimmyK

wendyo · Guru

Hi Mitch,

Welcome. Many folks feel the same way about starting treatment and here is one thread that will share some of that with you:

http://hepcfriends.activeboard.com/t62232080/anxiety-about-starting-harvoni/

Congrats on quitting smoking as we all know how harmful that is and no small undertaking there. (I am a former smoker as well) Your liver appreciates this too

But in order to keep that "I have no liver damage, liver functions are always spot on" you have to start treatment or it will progress as HCV is a slowly progressive disease.

The side effects are quite manageable as long as you drink plenty of water, eat healthy, and rest when needed and did I say hydrate?

You have the keys, insert them, and unlock the door.

Loads of others folks will be on to also share with you ....

all best,

wendy

-- Edited by wendyo on Sunday 10th of July 2016 04:37:46 PM

Mitch71 · Member

Hello, I received my first month treatment of sovaldi and ribavirin, I was going to start it this morning at 10 am and I talked myself out of it, I know I shouldn't be so scared but I am terrified!!!! I am genotype 2b viral load is 4080377/6.61.

This past year has been EXTREMELY stressful for me, I went through a divorce amongst other things, I suffer from anxiety/depression and I fight that monster on my own everyday because the meds they give me are not tolerable. I have a full time job that I cant afford to take off days.

I quit smoking 3 months ago and found that I have sudden bursts of irritability.

I sooo want to get treatment behind me, I have no liver damage, liver functions are always spot on, I have a history of anemia but that was fixed with a hysterectomyand I suffer from paroxysmal afib.

Will someone please send experiences,encouragement anything to get me started?

Thank you

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