Aa
STARTED triple therapy today.
I took my first dose of pills this am at 8am. First injection tonight after dinner. How soon will I feel any side effects (normally)? Kinda just lounging around, not sure if I should expect something or not. Scared really. Glad to be back on here :)
Welcome to treatment. I wish smooth sailing for you all the way. When I think of the side effects I have right now I realize they just sort of sneaked up on me. It wasn't like one day I just got winded walking my dogs and felt hassled. The feeling physically gradually came about. I just felt different.
I encourage you to come on line every day and not isolate. Feeling some kind of connectivity with others who HCV is important and can make a huge difference.
I encourage you to come on line every day and not isolate. Feeling some kind of connectivity with others who HCV is important and can make a huge difference.
treatment affects everyone differently. i hope you have mild sx. remember to drink LOTS of water. it'll help with your sx. good luck to you. belle
Thank you for that post. Ditto on your symptoms and the relief of them. "weird" is a great descriptive word.....I am wasting too much energy in the anxiety area of what might happen to me. My symptoms are really okay. I just keep waiting for something horrible to happen. Am gaining more trust in the process as I find, I really do wake up in the morning. HA.
Hi Journey, and yes, it is definitely a journey.Not sure if you are SOC or triple tx, but my first 3 Inf injections were the worst, by the second one I decided not to do anymore heavy ezxercise, because the shot made my musclea ache more then. so now I just walk, 3 times a day.
What I notice is...if my stomach gets empty, I feel weird. If I forget to sip water thru out the day ( about 8 oz's per half hour) I feel weird. Sometimes, out of the blue, I will start to feel strange sx, but they tend to pass, in bout 20 minutes, if I eat, drink, take a walk, and then take a rest. Also being on here, with fellow sufferers helps.
If you are doing triple tx, I would watch out for infections, and report any ailments to your doctor. I also take more showers, also : )
What I notice is...if my stomach gets empty, I feel weird. If I forget to sip water thru out the day ( about 8 oz's per half hour) I feel weird. Sometimes, out of the blue, I will start to feel strange sx, but they tend to pass, in bout 20 minutes, if I eat, drink, take a walk, and then take a rest. Also being on here, with fellow sufferers helps.
If you are doing triple tx, I would watch out for infections, and report any ailments to your doctor. I also take more showers, also : )
Welcome aboard and congratulations on your first day. Mine was last Thursday night. I WAS TERRIFIED....Took awhile to remember what a flu like symptom was like as it had been over 20 years since I'd had the flu. Not bad at all and I seem to respond to the Tylenol well. Slight nausea a few times that went away if I ate something like a few crackers, a little banana or sliced apple. I'm all about the nutrition. Hope that will make a difference in the long run. Yesterday were my first rashes. Just a few and are not really noticeable today. I wanted to try wheat grass juice on them today but no problem today. I do things for awhile then read or relax. I work from home. So thankful that I only have to go downstairs to work. (Hope I can get back up them) HA....Had acupuncture day after shot. Am relaxing with the process more each day and am extremely grateful to these folks, the internet angels. Best wishes on your choice to heal. We will be here for you.
Side effects are so difficult to predict. I had no immediate reaction from the Inf shot. Then little or nothing for the first 2-3 weeks, followed by some fatigue and flu-like feeling settling in. Then other sides came and went throughout tx, so hard to anticipate and predict. Try to stay on top of things like rashes and low Hgb before they get out of hand. Make sure you have good communications with you doctor and staff.
We were all scared and anxious of the unknown as we jumped into tx. Welcome back to the forum and hope you visit often. So many helpful people here to answer your questions as they pop up. Good luck and hope you have a smooth journey.
We were all scared and anxious of the unknown as we jumped into tx. Welcome back to the forum and hope you visit often. So many helpful people here to answer your questions as they pop up. Good luck and hope you have a smooth journey.
my first shot gave me the most flu like sx. It me like a rock. keep up on your blood counts! anemia was the worst sx for me over all which made me feel bad in all sorts of ways. It gets better after inc is finished. I am on my last 2 weeks of 48. I have been functioning fairly well for the last 1/2 of treatment. Up and down days. The mental sx can be intense because of the interferon and riba. just try to take it one day or week at a time. Before you know it you'll be at the end! Good luck and best wishes sent your way!
You got some good feedback above. My advice to you would be to NOT sit around waiting to feel something. Keep going with your life, and whatever you do, move your body at least 20 min. a day if at all possible. It will make a huge difference in how you feel. You may or may not experience many side effects, but I'm convinced that the longer you can continue to live your life outside of treatment the better you will feel.
Of course, that does not mean that if you need to rest, you don't rest. And it doesn't mean that if you are experiencing side effects that you ignore them. I read a blog last year of a person that had stopped working in preparation and sat around looking for serious side effects with each dosage. She was miserable before the side effects even actually came.
Wishing you the smoothest possible treatment.
Of course, that does not mean that if you need to rest, you don't rest. And it doesn't mean that if you are experiencing side effects that you ignore them. I read a blog last year of a person that had stopped working in preparation and sat around looking for serious side effects with each dosage. She was miserable before the side effects even actually came.
Wishing you the smoothest possible treatment.
I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciated your thoughtful responses to so many posts. You're a wonderful person, Pooh.
Like I said, I hope your treatment goes smoothly.
That said, I don't want to mislead you with my previous post.
I was very scared when I started treatment. I had no idea which side effects I would get. I finally convinced myself that I would not get all of the side effects and the ones I got would not all be serious.
I have to say the pills made me feel out of it when I first took them (Riba and Incivek). I was spaced and I was weak and tired and had to lie down a lot the first couple of days. That spaced feeling gradually disappeared, within a few days. I did not have severe side effects after the injection. I did feel like I had the flu the next 2 days (slight headache, aches, fatigue, malaise, no motivation) but I never had chills or fever or severe pain.
I did get side efects from the meds (besides the flu like symptoms). I got a very slight rash about day 4 and that continued but it was extremely minor, only a few red bumps on my hands. At week 10, I got a much more severe generalized rash (which I still have at week 27) (little bumps, hives, red blotches, all over the place).I also got the severe rectal pain with the Incivek (until I figured out the key to not getting it was to keep the stools firm, quite firm). For a couple of weeks I felt like I was walking through 2 foot deep snow or mud with lead feet. I do have muscle fatigue and generalized fatigue. Also my concentration level is zilch. I cannot even read a book anymore. It takes me an hour or more to watch a 30 min. DVD because I have to keep rewinding it to get the parts I spaced out on. I had nausea too and it got pretty bad (increased gradually over a couple of months). This led to other problems because I was not eating much and I was so nauseated and bloated.
I am telling you all of this so you can be aware of the insidious nature of the drugs and the side effects. I think the main symptoms that a person has to deal with when they arise are these:
If on Incivek.....the anal problems
Any rash that is more than a few minor bumps
Nausea and/or vomiting
Low blood counts
Eye problems (pain, visual changes, flashing lights, blurring)
I may have missed some but those are the ones I can think of that could lead to more serious problems.
The side effects will often snowball so if you get those symptoms, address them sooner rather than later. I did not know I could get something for nausea and the case manager ignored the nausea and mine got so bad it snowballed into other problems (ankle and foot swelling, fast heart rate of 180/minute, extreme fatigue and weakness, etc). I finally got on Zofran and all of those symptoms disappeared. The same thing happened with my rash. The case manager ignored it and it really got bad. Now I am on appropriate treatment for it from a derm doc.
Hopefully you will sail through this easily but it is important to know the more serious side effects and address the side effects that you can.
Good luck!
That said, I don't want to mislead you with my previous post.
I was very scared when I started treatment. I had no idea which side effects I would get. I finally convinced myself that I would not get all of the side effects and the ones I got would not all be serious.
I have to say the pills made me feel out of it when I first took them (Riba and Incivek). I was spaced and I was weak and tired and had to lie down a lot the first couple of days. That spaced feeling gradually disappeared, within a few days. I did not have severe side effects after the injection. I did feel like I had the flu the next 2 days (slight headache, aches, fatigue, malaise, no motivation) but I never had chills or fever or severe pain.
I did get side efects from the meds (besides the flu like symptoms). I got a very slight rash about day 4 and that continued but it was extremely minor, only a few red bumps on my hands. At week 10, I got a much more severe generalized rash (which I still have at week 27) (little bumps, hives, red blotches, all over the place).I also got the severe rectal pain with the Incivek (until I figured out the key to not getting it was to keep the stools firm, quite firm). For a couple of weeks I felt like I was walking through 2 foot deep snow or mud with lead feet. I do have muscle fatigue and generalized fatigue. Also my concentration level is zilch. I cannot even read a book anymore. It takes me an hour or more to watch a 30 min. DVD because I have to keep rewinding it to get the parts I spaced out on. I had nausea too and it got pretty bad (increased gradually over a couple of months). This led to other problems because I was not eating much and I was so nauseated and bloated.
I am telling you all of this so you can be aware of the insidious nature of the drugs and the side effects. I think the main symptoms that a person has to deal with when they arise are these:
If on Incivek.....the anal problems
Any rash that is more than a few minor bumps
Nausea and/or vomiting
Low blood counts
Eye problems (pain, visual changes, flashing lights, blurring)
I may have missed some but those are the ones I can think of that could lead to more serious problems.
The side effects will often snowball so if you get those symptoms, address them sooner rather than later. I did not know I could get something for nausea and the case manager ignored the nausea and mine got so bad it snowballed into other problems (ankle and foot swelling, fast heart rate of 180/minute, extreme fatigue and weakness, etc). I finally got on Zofran and all of those symptoms disappeared. The same thing happened with my rash. The case manager ignored it and it really got bad. Now I am on appropriate treatment for it from a derm doc.
Hopefully you will sail through this easily but it is important to know the more serious side effects and address the side effects that you can.
Good luck!
Hi journey 91,welcome back.You became a member back in Oct.2011,and now decided to do tx.What tx did you or your dr decide on?It is best to get moving around,take walks,keep busy and not think about the sides.Everyone is different on sides if you have been reading the posts.Some were scary.I for one had a hard time.I did my 1st soc tx in fall of 2010 for 11 mos.Relapsed on 1st followup.Did 3 drug tx starting Dec.2011.Got scared on 1st. side.Called dr and he said it will pass.I got on internet and found this forum.Saved me from quitting.I was scared,disappointed,and mad as hell.As time went by I had more confidence in taking tx.My attitude changed and became more positive.I got a lot of side effect help here.Drink a lot of fluids(water,juice ,etc.).If you have any problems you can get help here or with your dr.I wish you well on your tx.I am UND after 11 weeks of Incevek tx.A lot of great UND stories on here.
Pooh, glad to know. Was expecting to feel them right away. I have a rescue box with meds and other remedies for whole lot of side effects. Will do my best to stay on top of them. Thank you! Will def be on asking lots of questons!
Glad you are back and congrats on starting tx. I hope your dessert agrees with you tonight after dinner.
Have a great day!
Jules
Have a great day!
Jules
Welcome to treatment.
I don't know which treatment you are on (SOC or triple med treatment). If you are on triple med treatment there may be more side effects (but there may not).
Everyone is different and everyone responds to treatment differently. I think many of us expected to be a lot sicker a lot sooner than we were.
Some people don't feel any side effects from the pills right away. Some don't feel side effects from the injections. Many people do experience flu like symptoms after the injection (fatigue, chills, aches, etc.). Some people have their symptoms the following day or two and others have their symptoms about days 3 and 4 (after the injection).
I think most people would agree that the symptoms tend to be accumulative and that the further into treatment one gets, the more symptoms a person experiences. Plus the symptoms change from day to day and from week to week.
While many people have few or mild symptoms throughout treatment, many have more severe symptoms. Hopefully yours will be mild.
If you get symptoms, keep on top of them. They can snowball. Post on the forum of you have questions about specific symptoms you are experiencing. People will offer suggestions for relieving them.
Best of wishes for a smooth treatment.
I don't know which treatment you are on (SOC or triple med treatment). If you are on triple med treatment there may be more side effects (but there may not).
Everyone is different and everyone responds to treatment differently. I think many of us expected to be a lot sicker a lot sooner than we were.
Some people don't feel any side effects from the pills right away. Some don't feel side effects from the injections. Many people do experience flu like symptoms after the injection (fatigue, chills, aches, etc.). Some people have their symptoms the following day or two and others have their symptoms about days 3 and 4 (after the injection).
I think most people would agree that the symptoms tend to be accumulative and that the further into treatment one gets, the more symptoms a person experiences. Plus the symptoms change from day to day and from week to week.
While many people have few or mild symptoms throughout treatment, many have more severe symptoms. Hopefully yours will be mild.
If you get symptoms, keep on top of them. They can snowball. Post on the forum of you have questions about specific symptoms you are experiencing. People will offer suggestions for relieving them.
Best of wishes for a smooth treatment.
Hi Journey and welcome!
My first shot gave me some chills but nothing serious, after that I the sides begin about 3 weeks for me. I was lucky and was UND so I only had to do 24 weeks. As time goes by you may get some or all of the sides but you can do it. I am now 15 weeks post tx and next week I will be tested again I will keep you in my prayers...its great to be cleared of this virus...let me know if I can help in any way...Best of luck ...Fred
My first shot gave me some chills but nothing serious, after that I the sides begin about 3 weeks for me. I was lucky and was UND so I only had to do 24 weeks. As time goes by you may get some or all of the sides but you can do it. I am now 15 weeks post tx and next week I will be tested again I will keep you in my prayers...its great to be cleared of this virus...let me know if I can help in any way...Best of luck ...Fred
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