
Hepatitis C Support Group
Hepatitis C is a blood-borne viral disease which can cause liver inflammation, fibrosis, cirrhosis and liver cancer. The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is spread by blood-to-blood contact with an infected person's blood. Many people with HCV infection have no symptoms and are unaware of the need to seek treatment. Hepatitis C infects an estimated 150-200 million people worldwide.
Bruce
I tried starting on an anti-D 2 weeks before I started tx. I couldn't handle being on one so I stopped before I even got on tx. I managed to go the entire 48 weeks without an anti D. I'm going to start my second round of tx (relapsed after first) on 12/11. I'll be doing 72 weeks this time and I plan on going through without an anti D.
I was more emotional on tx than I normally would be but I did not have any serious neuro-psych issues. I don't think an anti D is a pre-requisite for treating but if you can handle being on them you may want to give it a shot.
Mouse
I HATE pills and all kinds of meds. Even taking aspirins and that sort of thing bother me. They have always been a last resort for me.
So anyways ... this anti D came up in discussions with my dr before I started tx and I said NOOOO I hate that crap. So I did not take any rx then.
After a couple months into tx, I had super insomnia and was getting a bit edgy. Never mind having a short fuse - I had NO fuse and people at work were really avoiding contact because I was without patience and snapped at everybody.
I mentioned it to the dr and he gave me a very mild anti D so that I could get at least a few hours sleep at nite. I grudgingly said I would give it a try BUT I was not going to take any on the weekend.
Well it made a HUGE difference in that I was able to get a few extra hours sleep each nite and my sleep was less choppy with less tossing and turning. I swear the insomnia was about the worst of my sides. I hated it.
What they did was relax me enough so that I could get some decent rest at nite, so they can have a few uses. You don't need to be depressed or anything like that to get value from them.
There are so many different types with varying uses and sides all their own, so I would say to talk it over with your dr and find out a bit more about them.
If you need to be bright eyed and bushy tailed for work in the morns, then you don't want something that's going to make you all wouzy.
I did stop them immediately after I finished tx as my insomnia went away but I still have not been able to get my original sleep pattern back and it's been a couple years since I was done with tx.
Peace, NoniLv
Best of luck, val
ANYTHING would have been preferable to the way I felt at that point.
Serzone helped. In fact, it pulled me out of the dep of two years in less than two weeks.
But I would leery of Serzone now as I understand that liver damage can be a side efx of that drug.
Whether that depression of 1995-97 was related to underlying HCV, I'll never know.
But I suppose, given my medical and psych history (depression, PTSD, and ADHD and just general COA issues) that I would be a candidate for an anti-dep with tx.
Given my history, doctors may be leery to put me on tx.
But would I take an anti-dep. to stop from experiencing the living hell of serious depression again? In a heartbeat.
I would want to ask how any med would be affecting my liver.
With there being such a wide range of anti D meds, some I am sure are harder on the liver than others. There's not much point taking a med to ease the brain that also harms the liver that we are treating to help it.
Before tx, I was having a horrible time with my joints and my dr hesitated but gave me a rx for some anti inflammatory pills, but only for a short period of time, to get the inflammation under control. Since then, I have gone the non medical way to handle joint issues.
For any rx, be sure to ask what its effect will be on your liver.