Geno 2b, no cirrhosis, mainly just had joint aches & pains from HepC, and was diagnosed with Cryoglobulin in 2009 (something that arises with HepC which tells docs in the know why we experience pain more heavily than would be expected - a RheumDoc was the one who tested me for that in 2009)...

Anyway, so TODAY is the FIRST DAY without any Ribasphere or Sovaldi - and here is a synopsis of my journal on side effects:

Only 4 very mild headaches (maybe as many as 6, but that's about it, truly!), as I made sure to drink about 4-5 bottles of water per day. And, I must add, I have rarely suffered headaches my whole life.

Fatigue & Brain Fog, mainly in the first 2-3 weeks, then I adjusted to the new norm & just went with it, allowing it to be what it was going to be (I've been disabled since the end of 1996, so it took some doing, but by about 2004, I ventured into a new world of "knowledge" and began doing breathwork & other things to fortify my overall health).

Skin Rash on elbows began about 1/2 way thru, and I became just slightly anemic, so Doc lowered my Riba from 1,000 mg/day to 800 mg/day. That skin rash is already clearing up - it finally took Apple Cider Vinegar to keep it manageable the best - everything else I tried (& I tried many diff.things) seemed to just keep it the same, but without itching. I did not heed the warning to stay out of prolonged sun exposure. THAT is VERY important if being treated with Riba.

Riba-Rage - oh, yeah - very bad a few times the first 6 weeks or so. I learned the hard way - do not stretch one's self too thin with other people's stuff (OPS) while on treatment. I have Complex PTSD (& have not been on anti-depressant meds of any kind for that since 1998), I'd say I managed, but my friends just could not understand, for the most part.

Nauseated only twice during treatment. Ginger Ale works for me.

Other than that, at this moment, I cannot think of any other things to comment about, other than how important it was for me to get certain aspects of my life in order prior to treatment. This meant that I loaded up on certain Supplements (I posted a Topic on this 5-6 weeks ago listing which ones) that helped so much, because I never became depressed during treatment.

I started on 5/17/15 and had an old foot problem arise on 7/9, so that kept me inside & out of the sun fairly easily from then on. But today, I couldn't help myself & sat in the sun for about 15 minutes. The Speciality Pharmacist told me Ribavirin has a long half-life & to expect to stay out of the sun for an additional week, and that other side effects will subside much earlier than the old treatments that included Riba.

Thus, I hope to get weaned off Soma & Norco by no later than Oct 1st, even with this possible foot surgery I might be facing (see Podiatrist tomorrow).

I am so grateful that I got the full Grant and had no co-pays, since I'm on Medicare with a great Supplement, that was probably why.

Thanks for putting up with all my wordiness here, everyone. I just type very fast, and really don't have all that much to say, it's just that I live alone & my cat has yet to fully pick up the English Language!

Caio!