Hep C Discussion Forum

Hey Sticker...still waiting on my RNAs too!  Since its a holiday weekend will probably be Tuesday.  Like you, I havent felt bad at all...knock on wood!  All my regular comprehensive labs are good so Im also hoping for a good RNA.

Yay Sticker!!  Great enzymes!  Cant wait to hear what your viral load is...Im anxiouly waiting on mine too.

Yay! Really nice Sticker, that your ALT/AST are finally within normal limits (for once - as you put it) - that has to feel reeeeeally good.  Won't be long now, your inevitable success is forthcoming.  : )  C.

oh yea, lets get the party started here! good liver enzymes are a great way to know that the medicine is taking over and eating up all those bugs. 

Well only a portion of the labs have shown up so far! The result I was most interested in, the HCV RNA hasnt shown up yet, I have to wait a bit longer, dang! My liver enzymes were in a normal range for once:

AST 20

ALT 18

I will update the HCV RNA as soon as I receive it. Hopefully soon, Im waiting with baited breath!

Hey Sticker,

I have to agree, the dizziness sounds like a hydration issue. I was amazed by the action that simple water had on the side effects profile of these new DAA’s. When Harvoni became the first all oral weapon in this fight, we learned quickly that increased intake would eliminate most of the uncomfortable stuff. We discovered what most people consider normal intake, wasn’t near enough. I’m convinced that these drugs require water to be the friendly cure we all have sought through the decades. If extra water is all it takes, so be it! I think this recommendation, aside from taking your meds as ordered, is probably the most valuable.

I was in Amarillo a couple years ago and they had one of those prairie dog parks, too. I didn’t see any holes through the pavement though. That would be a hell of a pot hole to hit!

I‘m looking forward to your results. It’s always a joyous moment when you see those early results. They will be the confirmation you’ve been looking for. These treatments work. 

Hi Sticker,

Look forward to seeing your lab results. Those little prairie dog critters look like they are waiting for something too...humm, your lab results? Glad to hear the dizziness resolved itself,,the water drenching helps flush that ole' virus out of the system...along with the Mavyret. I love those prairie doggies and I'm a meerkats fan too.

Keep drinking ye ole' H20 sticker!

If this doesn't come through, search meerkat math class on youtube..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjQ2V4CdSsg 

ps

sticker, that is good to hear that your dizzyness resolved

and what a cute little critter that prarie dog is , thanks for sharing

I think it was no big deal Missus B, perhaps a one-off occurrence. I just wanted to post because I do think being dizzy was likely related to insufficient water intake. 

I just had labs drawn for the mid-point of Mavyret treatment. When I get the numbers back I will share. I assume that you will have 4 week labs as well? Tig has spoke about this before, that it is relevant to treatment and efficacy. I am hoping for a big fat zero on the PCR! Im not gonna sweat the results though. Either way, I am going to finish this course of treatment.

There was initially some small doubt in my mind about proceeding with treatment in particular due to the discomfort of my initial attempts to kill this virus. I certainly consider it worthwhile to slay this dragon though rather than attempt peaceful coexistence, who knows if it will attack me in earnest in the future; so lets murder it now. 

We can allay the fear of future complications, fibrosis, granulomas, cirrhosis, liver cancer. Additionally, it could allow me to increase my life insurance coverage upon SVR. I have a lot of fight left in me. 

Im one of those idiots who goes scuba diving. People on dive boats often ask about large dangerous marine life and I always think: its the sharks that need to watch out for me, not the other way around. Its nonsense of course; but it makes me feel better to believe that I am the threat, not them. Trust me, if a shark decides to bite me, there is very little that can be done about it. I apply that same logic, or illogic, in the case of this fight to slay the HepC dragon. WE GOT THIS!

Sorry, I have been away for a little bit. I had to move my youngest daughter into a new apartment for her last semester at Texas Tech in Lubbock. She graduates with her bachelors degree in December. She took me to Prairie Dog Town, a city park created for the indigenous little critters. We hand fed them, it was really fun, lots of laughter!

No more dizzy spells. I think it was just a water intake issue, my BP was a little low that day. One of the benefits of my work is that we are all paramedics and have access to diagnostic tools not to mention a wealth of knowledge concerning emergency medicine. 

The second shipment of Mavyret arrived on time and I am on schedule with the meds. 

I appreciate everyone sharing their kind words about loss and grieving. It is a reminder that we are not alone in our suffering and provides some perspective for our own personal journey. Thank you!

-- Edited by Sticker on Thursday 22nd of August 2019 09:53:20 AM

-- Edited by Sticker on Thursday 22nd of August 2019 09:55:37 AM

Gee Sticker, I wish I had known Eric.  The world needs more people like that, no less of them  I think it's good that you talk about him, too. You see, you are already carrying him forward.  One of the good ways to honor someone lost is to be more like him.  It's seems that he will always be a part of who you are.

Awww sticker, getting dizzy is not fun. I hope more hydration helps you avoid any more of  that.

Sorry you lost your mom.

It was odd timing for my mom to die on the day we had all been waiting for so long for.

She had been at home (out patient) but her blood pressure crashed during a procedure at the hospital and we couldnt bring her home again. She went quickly...just enough time for grandkids and kids to all travel to visit, the last thing she said to me was I just know youre going to get cured .  I wish shed seen me cured, she was my dearest friend 

Im very grateful that I spent time with her every day for her last 18 months. I gave her foot and leg massages most days back massages on other days and always baked treats and prepared enticing meals to get her to eat something (and make sure my dad ate too). 

I have all good memories

sticker, i had dizzy spells at work, that is scary. yep, more rest and water and make sure it's not inner ear related.

My initial delivery date was delayed 5 days riding around in a UPS truck...Im going to call pharmacy well ahead of needing my 2nd 4 week delivery to make sure it arrives on time.  Either that or drive 2 hrs to pharmacy and pick up.

Thank you Observer. Im sorry about your mom. Thats a tough one. I lost my mother as well, in 2006. Time has aided my memories, the faults and flaws have all faded and I am left with the happy memories. I hope this is true for you as well. 

Iris, youre a dear! Thanks for your understanding and encouraging me to share about my sweet departed one. Eric was a first class firefighter but by no means was he a knuckle-dragger. Did i mention, he was huge! 6 foot 4 and probably 270 lbs of muscle, an intimidating form. He was a renaissance man, a deep thinker, a philosopher and a gentleman. Not one for small talk about the weather or politics or the mundane, he wanted to talk about consciousness, the meaning of life, the existence of a divine creator, the importance of how we all mean something. While my views were more pragmatic, agnostic, maybe even utilitarian, we never clashed. We shared the ability to question one another without judgement. The first time he told me that he loved me, I was floored. Never had another man, particularly in our profession, been capable of expressing himself so honestly and completely, without shame or misgiving. I think modern men need more of that for I recognized it as a sign of considerable strength and fearlessness. He feared nothing, literally nothing.  We weathered tragedy after tragedy, seen so many lives shattered or simply taken away, seen things that nobody should have to see, grisly things. We bonded, inextricably woven together, unbreakable. Shemp was right, time will help, but it moves so slowly and the pain is so great. I know that in the future a day will come where maybe I forget to think of him, seems such a betrayal. It will be the first sign that I am healing. Right now, the HepC seems so trivial, inconsequential. Its going to be alright. Thanks for letting me type these words.

Ah, round two coming up.  Yeah, what a difference in the new treatments, eh?  And you deserve it.  You are among the pioneers who went through so much to get us to the new DAAs. 

I know what you mean about waiting for tests.  Our brains are full of "what ifs" so try to stick to the facts when you can.  You're really doing great.

I am so heat intolerant.  I live in the Northwest and couldn't take the Texas summer climate at all.  It's been in the 80s and we are whining away up here.  The days are long and the night cools everything down.  It's really so beautiful here -  if you forget about the doldrums that come in February.

Keep up the good work, Sticker.  You've got this.

Sticker, I am truly sorry. It's never easy dealing with the loss of someone close to our hearts. How we move forward is what defines us. He is gone for now but, he will live forever in your heart I know it doesn't feel like it now but over time your pain will diminish. In the future when faced with a problem or task,you'll ask yourself What would Eric do. The answer will warm you and make you smile. Stay strong.

Sticker,

it's a good thing that you speak of him. Not annoying at all. It helps to process with the tragedy... after all this man was family, your fire family. What an honor to be able to play bagpipes at the service, I'm sure he was beaming with pride, that instrument never fails to rip the tears out. 

And he will know when you reach SVR.

May the memories of his laughter, his smile and all you two been through stay green in your heart. Much light to Eric for his journey Home.

Bright Blessings, Iris

How very sad for you, Sticker.  We are just never ready for a loss like this.  Carry on your good memories.  They help with that feeling of being kicked in the gut.  Ouch!!  So sorry.

sorry for your loss sticker. i hope you manage well while you are still on tx during this sad time.

Thank you for the comforting words. My departed friend was married to a woman who had  HCV. Years ago we all lived in the same town about 100 miles from Dallas/Ft. Worth and his wife was treated by a physician at UT Southwestern Medical Center, she was cured after a 24 month course of interferon/ribavirin. She is without a doubt a very strong lady. I was being treated locally by a doctor in our town and she encouraged me to go see her doctor in Dallas. Well, fast forward to today, I am now a patient of her former doctor. She will be thrilled when I tell her. 

I say all of these things to you fine people because, oddly.......it makes me feel better. Somehow it helps to type these words. Thank you for reading.

Sorry for your loss sticker. 

So sorry for your loss