HYPER, ANTSY, UP ALL NIGHT LONG, IRRITABLE..POST TX

[darcar]

HELP!
my bf..has been on interferon / ribavirin for 3 years straight...he is now off of it only two weeks and his moods are all over the place.
before he was always sleeping..now he is very hyper, talks alot, cant sleep all night long,
restless.
he is on 20mg paxil a day..and also smokes alot of pot to calm him down..but he doesnt seem any mellower to me..especially since he stopped the interferon/ ribavirin.
Has anyone experienced this?
is this normal?
he was on tx once before and then off it years before for six months but then the virus came back and he had to go back on it again.
He doesnt remember if he was like this the last time around when he was off the meds.
What is going on..
please help.
thanks !
Darcar

[darcar]

he is on paxil..
we are just going to wait out a few weeks and see if this settles down.
he told me yesterday his brain feels all confused and his body feels very jittery.
i really think its mostly due to withdrawal effects of tx/ int/ riba.
i read somewhere that riba can take a long time to get out of your system
anyone know about that?

[whinybutwell]

What is the "metabolic syndrome" you talked about that got worse from tx?  My doc is going to run another test on my throid when he does the 6 mo. post-tx screen, to see if maybe my ongoing fatigue (etc) is hypothroidism.  Is it something like that?

To darcar:  I agree about fine-tuning your b/f's AD.  There are others that may have a more calming effect on him.  They all vary so much...Prozac makes me narcoleptic!

[darcar]

hi again Jody...
well ..his moods are not really up and down..
he is more like grumpy , cranky, irritable sour puss...lol (ask me why i love him?!! lol)
most of the time though he is lovable, good hearted... and
the sleep issue is only a current thing....and i do think thats a result of the med switch.
well time will tell...
see how it the dust settles in the upcoming weeks.
but thanks so much for your feedback too.
appreciated alot!

Darcar

[JodyLynn]

Well even as a little girl my mom said i wouldnt sleep alot, was scared id miss something lol. I do know lots of people with bipolar dont sleep alot and the up and down moods, gets ruff sometimes.

[darcar]

hi Jody...
i dont think he is bipolar....he is energetic by nature..but was not one to be up all night long .
Usually he is a good sleeper and sleeps alot.
While on treatment his problem was he cant wake up!
he is sooo tired.
and even now. this just started a few weeks ago.
but im open to any potential possibilities.
What other symptoms would i see?
Jody how are you when off treatment normally?
sleep patterns ....moods ..etc...
thanks..!
darcar

[JodyLynn]

Could he be bipolar? I am and he sounds like me. I am at 9 weeks of treatment and never sleep....walk the floors all night, so when i come off treatments if it does that to me ill be use to it lol. For my bipolar i take Lamictal 100 mg a night been on it 4 years and Prozac 60 mg a day been on it 10 years or more....maybe thats what keeps me sane lol, they were scared to let me do the treatments because im bipolar, but so far im doing just fine with the moods.

[darcar]

well feel better too jim!
one day at a time!
you cracked me up...you live on the internet..!
dont we all?? lol
and yes..going to strawberry fields might not help with the cutting down on pot!
sometimes i just want to hit him over the head with a pot! lol
hey..sometimes tough love is in order too!
have a good weekend..again.thanks
darcar  :-))

[jmjm530]

Just to clarify, the "metabolic system" is worse from pre-treatment. It's not getting worse every day -- at least I hope it isn't. LOL. The skin problem was mostly rosacea with seb derm and eczema thrown in. Still not back to pre-treatment but manageable.

-- Jim

[darcar]

oh..btw..he was 54 in June and the docs thought he has hep C at least 35 years!
it was detected first by routine chemistry with elevated liver enzymes.
they are all within normal range as is his bilirubin .
ok..i think i have everything covered Jim! lol

[jmjm530]

Thanks for asking. I'm 18 months post treament and SVR (cured). The two problems I had post treatment were with my skin and with my metabolism. Skin took around a year to clear up but what they call the "metabolic syndrome" has gotten worse. But overall, not too much to complain about.

Central Park sound great, just not sure a visit to "Strawberry Fields" will help him cut down on the pot. LOL. Where do I live? On the Internet of course.

Be well,

-- Jim

[darcar]

thanks Jim..
how are YOU doing?
what is going on with you and your health etc?
and where are you located?
we are in the nyc area.
again..thanks to you and Ala and all who responded with great feedback
very much appreciated..and the best support around!
yes..we will take it one day at a time.
and maybe ill drag him over to his favorite place..central park/ strawberry fields.
love
Darcar

[jmjm530]

Give it at least six weeks post treatment before jumping to any conclusions. And even then, like I say, things can take time. "Big hugs" back and a great weekend to you both. Maybe drag him for a walk, if possible. A little bit of light exercise can sometimes do wonders.

-- Jim

[darcar]

well..thats a given..
YEP..HE IS A VERY LUCKY GUY..HAVING ME AS HIS GIRLFRIEND...
LOL

nah..really..i just care about him...and its that simple.
when he is suffering , i know he cant help alot of it.
And sure he made bad choices back in his rocknroll 20's ..but whatever.
he is still a human being..a heart and soul..good or bad..
love isnt just being there in the good times.
its hard to be there for me at times..but learning and understanding this helps me alot..
as do alot of people here..
thanks thanks thanks! big hugs and have a great weekend.

[jmjm530]

I was hoping there was a reasonable explanation for the three years of treatment, and the fact that he had cirrhosis explains it to some extent. Hopefully, the three years on the drugs not only will give him SVR (cure) but will also have regressed his liver damage. You're bf is a very lucky guy having you as a gf. I agree with "ala" that ADs often have to be adjusted, be it dosage or brand name.

All the best,

-- Jim

[alagirl]

He might find a different antidepressant helpful too.  They aren't a one size fits all.  He really needs to let his doc know how he is in order to check with him/her about some tx for his symptoms.

[darcar]

his tryglycerides spiked over 1000 !

not 100  ..

[darcar]

hi Jim.
thanks sooo much for that reply.
my bf, has indeed been on inter/ riba.. for 3 years straight.
he is geno 1a and has cirrhosis, diagnosed by liver biopsy.
he was on paxil only 10mg a day ..but then it was upped this summer to 20mg.
he has never needed procrit .
most of his symptoms were the flulike, feverish, exhaustion, irritability, abdominal,
skin rashes whilst on the treatment.
yes 3 years is a long time but his gastro in nyc is supposed to be one of the best.
Also, this past summer his tryglycerides spiked over 100 so he was put on Tricor for that .
He has only come off the int/ rib for about two weeks and this anxiousness/ not sleeping change seems to have started with the switch.
im a nurse, but not very knowledgeable in HepC , and thats why i came here, ..i know that often the best answers are from the people who are going thru it themselves.
nobody will ever know better than you guys here..and i respect your wisdom / experience in dealing with this disease and treatment.
As a nurse, i do know that for certain,and dont dare underestimate that he is probably having major hormonal shifts and readjustments in his chemistry ..
and yes, im sure it will take alot of time to normalize again.
both drugs are very powerful , with plenty of side effects ..so i really do think it is mostly about this .
of course, the pot is probably not helping either.
thanks jim.
your post really helped alot.
as did all of the others too!!
thanks guys and gals.
u r the best!
:-)

[alagirl]

true

[jmjm530]

Just want to add that some have reported being a bit hyper immed following treatment and then calmed down within a month. Hopefully, your bf will follow suit with that issue. As to the mood swings, hopefully once he becomes less hyper, the swings will also be less. He needs time.

[jmjm530]

I'm surprised no one has picked up on the fact that your husband has been treating for THREE YEARS STRAIGHT. This is an awfully long time, and perhaps a record here. I've only heard one doctor who would treat that long, and only became aware because he has a very high internet profile. It is not standard protocol at all.

If I may ask, how old is your husband and how much liver damage did he have going into treatment? Also, do you know what week in treatment he became undetectible?

Back to your problem, given the nature of these drugs and the very long time he was on them, he may need a lot of time to recover both physically and mentally. Hopefully, you have a good medical team in the wings when and if needed. It may take some time.

All the best,

-- Jim

[darcar]

hi Alagirl..
its not that im not thrilled..
im more confused by  and concerned about it.
he is a good guy who is going thru a rough time, and i think from where he is at..its even harder for him to see it in the detached way that i can.
I hope things will settle down some as he is off the meds longer ..but we will see.
i know that on the meds it can cause alot of mood swings, but how about coming off of them?
that was my original question.
again..thanks.

[alagirl]

I understand.  I think in your shoes I might be less than thrilled with some of the above as well.

[darcar]

hi again..
yes..he was very tired on the meds..but now he seems very wired...and cant sleep at all. and thats not him. and i can see it is bothering him alot too. plus he seems very irritable ..not towards me, but just in general.
Yes Alagirl, it does bother me, and im not sure how much of it is him, his natural personality, the meds, coming off the meds, the pot..the addictive personality.!
im not sure if its a drug issue..medical issue, psychological issue, addiction issue..
OR all of the above combined.
so, im just a bit confused as to what is going on...
thought maybe id get some clarity on it.
All i do know..is its worse since coming off the int/ riba.
thanks

[alagirl]

jmjm - you're right about the xanax.  I've seen lots of people tremendously addicted to it and a friend of mine who takes huge amounts of it all day (I can't even stay awake after 1 so not sure how he does it) tried to detox and just couldn't do it.  I somehow escaped that whole addictive personality thing.  I use it to go to sleep every once in a while.  

darcar - I think anytime you've met someone and they have something very different going on, like they are on this heavy duty medication, you have to look at the fact that their natural personality may be a little different when they are off of it.  Even without anemia my understanding is that the combo tx makes you tired.  Stratera is supposed to work well for adults with adhd.   My son and I have just both been on adderall for years and it works well so we've stayed with it.  But it may not be a good med for someone with an addictive personality.  Anyway, is his new behavior bothering you more, or him, or are you both upset about it, or?