Age of hepitus C

[btsmith]

   My GI doc says my Hepatitus C is very old.  Have they always been able to determine the age and if so how close can they get?   I asked him if mine is 37 years old and he said probably, in which case I can pinpoint it to my one and only i.v. drug use.  I know the date as we were listening to the new "Sticky Fingers" album by the  Rolling Stones.  Is this possible?

[medicmommy]

Just wondering...Have you considered other alternatives, the nonconventional kind, just for a bit of maintenance, and to get some life quality back? I used the Japanese hep C tx, SST (sho-Saiko-To) prior to txing, and it brought my liver enzymes into normal range, I had more energy and generally felt better...My viral load also dropped from 463,000 to 16,000....If for some awful reason I don't SVR, I plan on using it again until a better tx is available...I'm not sure this is the answer for you, but it's cost is about $45-60/ month, and it may help...Good luck...((((((((((((((((((((HUGZ)))))))))))))))))            ~Melinda

[btsmith]

  trust me.  you don't want to be bipolar.  Last time I was at my psychs he was telling me how many new patients were coming convinced they were bi-polar.  He spends the whole 40 min. session convincing them otherwise.  We had a good non professional laugh on that one.

[meki]

Wow - that's a really cool description.

[btsmith]

Meki,
   I wrote this over in the bi-polar forum and had some favorable reviews.  
  
" This is how I usually describe being bipolar to people that aren't.
     The brain in a bipolar person is like a nuclear reactor, one thought triggers another thought simiilar to a chain reaction.  If this brain/reactor isn't controled it will have a meltdown.  That is where the medications come in or reactor rods for the power plant.  The more the rods are shoved in, the quieter the reactor becomes which is similar to say lithium, the more you take the more subdued the person will become.  In both instances nothing is done too fast as it takes awhile to see the results.  Once a desired level is obtained they both need to be monitored to keep that level stable as they will try to creep out or completely shut down, both are undesireable results. The power plant is an atomic reaction and the brain is a chemical reaction.
   This maybe an oversimplification but I don't know if  a non bipolar brain can understand a bipolar brain."

Still sound like fun?

btsmith

[meki]

I wouldn't mind the Happy UpSwing --- but the Downswing would make me super sad.. I couldn't handle that.

Would be fun to have all that energy - and desire to do everything.

Hmmmm...

Just curious --- are you thin? If so - have you had your thyroid and pituatary gland checked?

My Girlfriend here was diagnosed Bi-Polar, manic depressive - found out her thyroid was whacked out --- took them 5 years plus to discover it --- by accident, no less.

Anyhow - she's fine now -- on synthroid and something else.

But it's just a thought.

Take care.

Meki

[btsmith]

  Yes I was bipolar befor.  I wasn't diagnosed until about '83 but as far back as I can remember I have always been super artistic, (some say prodigy) and with the depression and wild phases of creativity yes I think forever.  I will say that the more advanced the hep c is getting the more unstable I am getting.  I'll probably increase the lamictal and trileptal on my next psych apt.
   One example of a bi-polar person, Winston Churchill, might explain the disease.  Many great people were bi-polar,  and it would be fine if it weren't for the manic deprerssion side of it