Rus, glad you are done with tx, and hope you are feeling better.

I only did 24 weeks of tx, but coming off tx was super emotional for me. I started counseling right away, and that was the best decision I made because we all know what tx does to our heads.


I started walking the week after I stopped the riba, and that helped me to get my breath back, got me into a positive frame of mind and helped to sweat out the meds.

I didn't do any kind of cleanse or detox, just started taking vitamins and enjoying the foods I missed eating on tx.

My biggest step was getting back into society. I had been shut in my house for over a half of year. It was kind of tough on me getting back with my friends and meeting new people and talking about current events and not HCV. That's all I had talked about during my tx event.

Anyway, I know that didn't really address your questions. Good luck, glad you are DONE!

Getting back into society is huge! I kept working through tx. but I stopped talking to anyone that I was not required to. This meant that I did not maintain friendships, I did not make new friends, and I did not think about much of anything beyond tx and work. Counseling would probably be a good thing, but I don't even know where to start with that out here in swampland. The local treatment for depression is a 40 oz.

Hey russoul...glad your done with tx & hope your feeling better everyday.

The only meds I took before tx were my bipolar meds & that's all I take now except for milk thistle. Drs. don't want to give me any meds unless they have to. My last appt. a week ago they said I can take an immune system boost supplement.

Probably my situation....doctor won't even let me have over the counter pain meds.


Have a good weekend!

I went to a naturopathic Dr before and after tx. One of the things she told me to do was a drink called Super red drink.She did tell me NOT to drink it while on tx. It is a power made up from plants and fruits. One scoop has more antioxidants than you can eat in a meal. I buy it at Trader Joes.

http://traveleatlove.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/product-review-super-red-drink-powder/

Personally, I felt the best approach was to simply eat a healthy diet and to gradually start getting back into the exercise routines. I'm not sure that doing some extravagant detox is really going to help anything...it seems to be replacing one treatment system for another.

I'm a year post treatment and I can say that I am now pretty much back to baseline. It took at least 2 months post treatment for me to stop having treatment reactions on the weekends and, from there, I gradually got better and better. It's been a very gradual process and I'm sure that I still have room for improvement. I was so glad that I wasn't pumping more tx meds into my system that I took every little bit of improvement as a giant leap.

There were setbacks along the way to recovery too. I would have times when I felt like I was right back in treatment...would last a few days or a week and then I'd be feeling good again. It sort of came and went like that. I still have those but they are less harsh and less frequent.

I am, however, left with achy joints. Some days good, some days worse. Especially my feet. Standing up out of bed in the mornings is painful and I walk very gingerly for the first few minutes before things loosen up.

My thyroid is mess up too BUT we all have to remember that HCV is hard on the thyroid too. I'm not so sure it's the treatment meds that completely mess up our thyroids or if our thyroids were already weakened from the HCV. But, whatever the cause, taking a pill a day is pretty easy and there are no side effects to it. To me, this issue, is simply no big deal.

Socially, I was a recluse while on TX too (except I did have to go to work while on TX). Getting back into the social life has been hard but I'm back into it as much as I want to be. I'm leaving out parts that I don't need...family is my focus.

rus, the main thing is that you made it to the finish line. the detox thing works in different ways for different people and I think you just have to let it work through your system. if you were on supporting meds during your tx, that makes it more complex. during my first run, i was on some junk (lorazopan or something like that.. it was some of the same shit they found in MJ) and dropping that cold turkey was really hard. for 48 weeks you were the patient... now you have to be patient.

taper, taper, taper - I have great support reducing all the drugs that were prescribed prior or during to Tx. Tapered the ambien, off it now and sleeping like a baby, still got 2 x AD's to wean off but have been advbised not to do this until 9 months post tx, however have more than halved the dose on these two at this point and will start to reduce them in a month or two now I'm at 7 months post.

I just want to say: WOW, ARE YOU EVER SMART TO ASK THAT QUESTION!!!!!! Personally, I'd suggest NOT doing a colon cleanse for awhile because, as you stated, there may be some theraputic benefit to allowing the medication to stay in your body for awhile. I'm also very proud of you that you quit taking all of those drugs (who knows what all that stuff is doing to our bodies in the long run). You're on your way to getting healthy! Kudos to you!

Rus - Moineau has a good point abouit the lorazepam (ativan). I'd suggest the easiest way to change to diazapam (valium) and reduce that slowly other the rebound anxiety is a shit to deal with and aslo a headf**k. Your doctor should be able to reccommend the equivalent diazapam dose for what you are currently taking