my body is still repairing nearly 3 years after last tx. those muscles have to be rebuilt n that takes time. i know what you mean about the sedatives. every sniffling sob in the world has a zann scrip exept for you and i. guess we dont have anxiety like everyone else. hmmmph !!

My body aches constantly and has since the end of my 3 rounds of tx in '98. I never have been the same..both mentally & physically. But I pummeled my body 3x's very quickly in succession with clinical trials..the last one was even against my doctors wishes. I wanted to be rid of this damn stuff. Didn't happen. Bahhhh! And you guys aren't alone in not being able to get a xanez script or something similiar. I have tried to get something to help me sleep and been turned down everytime. I don't even ask anymore..just lay awake at night. A**holes. Sorry you're having such a rough time hon. Do what you have to do.
What else can ya do.....ptewhhhie!
*hugs*
Josi

I went through the relapse also. Don't underestimate the mental/physical impact of the relapse diagnosis. It hits your spirit like a freight train and the body usually follows. If your crap is wierd like that i could mean that your bloods are out of whack. Better call the doc. Pain on the left side could also be swelling of the spleen as it tries to pick up for the liver. I did get those pains, but not too severe. Hang in there!

i actually did have pain from my left side.....It was from the spleen and what caused it was low oxygen level in the blood. The spleen attempts to create that oxygen by making more blood. This can actually cause a disease called polycythemia vera. Of course which can cause clots. If this happens the doc will ask you to come in and remove a pint......once diagnosed you should be checked periodically to see if this condition has been cleared. Some people have to do this every 3 months and some cases 1 time a month.

by the way......when they removed that pint i instantly felt better that day.

Are you on any meds? That might be a reson as you know everything goes through your liver.

Marty! I've never heard of that before! Thank you so much for sharing that info.

I'm so glad I found this group. I would be completely lost without you all. Actually I had found a different site prior to DS for the HCV and all they did was yak about non HCV related stuff. It really wasn't helpful at all. :(

LUV U!

hi dj, sorry you're having such problems. you better go see your doctor again. i think when your stools get that color it means your enzymes are going up? sending you lots of love and hugs, q

yeah the north is really strict with benzos, go down south and they pass them out like candy. i'm sorry you are going through this scare, but my theory is that since it is 6 months after finishing treatment maybe your body is withdrawing from the ribaviron because it takes that long for it to be fully out afterwards. Hope it gets better, and stay persistant on getting a benzo they definetly help!

You might want to read this article.

http://www.naturalnews.com/Report_Nutrition_Health_America_0.html

Basically it says that if you remove all the crappy food from your diet and eat simply, you'll take the load off your liver and your body and feel better.

I have a list of foods in the order of nutrient density, which is what you need to heal. Less food, more nutrition.

Here are the characteristics of a bad diet:

Primarily consists of dead foods (cooked, microwaved, etc.)

Primarily consists of processed foods (milled, bleached, etc.)

Lacks large quantities of fresh, living fruits and vegetables.

Avoids adequate water hydration (and focuses on manufactured beverages).

Very high in processed sugars and processed carbohydrates.

Contains genetically-modified foods such as corn, soy or sugar from GM sugar beets.

Includes a large amount of processed, pasteurized dairy products such as cow's milk.

Is made with hundreds of different chemical food additives from MSG and aspartame to chemical preservatives.

Is packaged in toxic food containers, including plastics and epoxy resins that contaminate the food with BPA.

Primarily consists of conventionally-grown, pesticide-contaminated foods.

Contains a large quantity of unhealthy oils such as corn oil, soy oil or partially-hydrogenated oils.

Consists of a large number of fried foods or foods cooked at very high temperatures that destroy nutrients while creating carcinogenic compounds.

Is made with many modified, unnatural ingredients such hydrogenated oils, refined sugar (which removes the minerals), homogenized milk fats, and so on.

Consists of a large quantity of animal products.

Perhaps 90 percent of the U.S. population currently eats a diet that's largely consistent with the above description. As you'll soon see, this is destroying our health and our nation.

The most nutrient dense foods are listed in this News Article.

http://www.dailystrength.org/groups/alternative-treatments-for-hep-c/news/view/1661658

I am listening right now to Dr Joel Fuhrman on my iPod, about auto-immune disease. I wish I could post that, it's enlightening.

http://www.drfuhrman.com/

This is a certified doctor that will be giving his patients salad greens instead of drugs. Times are changing.

Interesting discussion. Marty brought up a weird point for me...I had to have my spleen removed some time ago as an attempt to keep my recurring TTP from doing so...which it did. The surgeon felt for my spleen and didn't think it was enlarged and opted to do the surgery with the laprascope (sp?) but he discovered when they went in to that the spleen WAS enlarged...although they still did the surgery with the scope (thank g-d!!).

Since that point in time, I've had a sleep study done and they ran into my room in the middle of the night and put me on oxygen...said I didn't stop breathing BUT my oxygen level dropped to ZERO several times for several minutes.

My pain doc has pointed out that my fingers/nails are "clubbed" which can indicate oxygen issues...I need to get a chest xray done.

I never responded to the treatment all 3 x's I tried. I only completed the first attempt...48 weeks with the old IntronA and the Ribavarin which was still a study drug at the time. The other two attempts were too much mentally and physically for me to handle.

I was diagnosed w/Fibromyalgia when I was in my early 20's and have it on both sides of my family (lucky me!). My pain was definitely manageable up until that first treatment attempt and it's been downhill ever since. I've been on SSDI for almost 5 years now...44 yrs. old. It sucks.

I recently got off of all psych drugs after taking an abundance of them for 20+ years...lost 40lbs!! But, I do need at least something back for the anxiety more than anything. The biofeedback works but only to a certain extent.

What's the purpose of my post...I don't know. Just rambling...but my story sounds so much like everyone else's so I thought if it makes anyone feel better to know that others go through the same thing, then so be it.

I've had this HepC since all of my blood transfusions in 1988, diagnosed in 1996...picked up by a very smart rheumatologist that was just curious about my elevated liver enzymes.

Oh...and my poop is also sand colored...lol!! I'll leave y'all with that and HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE!!!

I would like to comment that you can get Benzos overthe internet. They are pricey. I had to it one time I had to order from Canada, but it saved the day because I was not sleeping. good luck.