There is hope

5 years ago I went for a regular check up.  A few days later I got a call from the doctor's office.  He told me that my ALT levels were high and that he needed to do more test.  A few weeks after I had the other tests done he called again to tell me that I had Hep C.  At first I thought it wasn't a big deal until I began to read more about the disease.  I was devastated, I was only 29 years old, going to college, just married and planning to have a family.  I was asked if I did drugs, if I had a transfussion, if I had multiple partners, and so on.  My answer to all those questions was no but the way the doctor kept insisting made me feel embarrased and ashamed of myself.  A liver biopsy was done and there was some mild damage.  I felt like the whole world was turning back on me.  I got pregnat, thinking back, I think that I got pregnant because I was desperateley needing to feel that everything was going to be okay, it might not made sense now but it did at the time.  I had a beautiful girl by c-section because the doctors felt that it was safer that way.  When she was about 2 I decided to start my treatment.  I was very scared and I cried all the way to the doctor's office.  It was a very hot day and I remember that theh first shot made me feel cold, very cold.  I went home and got in bed because I felt vey very cold even thought it was  about 90 degrees.  After that incident I was fine for the next two months, no side effects.  But during my third month of treatmnet I got very depress, Thanks God it was only for a week or so.. All of the sudden I felt fine again.  I was scheduled to do 48 weeks because of my genotype 1b.  I was negative by my three months check up and then negative again by the sixth and last check ups.  I lost a lot of hair AFTER treatment but it's growing back again.  I am feeling very good.  I just got the results of my six months post treatment test and they came back NEGATIVE! I been throught a lot and I still need to have my daughter tested.  I know I made  a lot of mistakes but I wouldn't do it any other way.  The doctor said that there is still a chance of getting the virus back so I will be tested again in a year. Please if you are going through difficult times just remember that you are not alone.  All of you are in my prayers, keep fighting.                 Gabbe

[GreatBird]

That is such great news!! Thanks for sharing. :)

I had two children by c-section and they don't have the virus.

[DRAGON SLAYER]

CONGRATS to you for beating this dragon. GREAT NEWS for you & your family...

Good luck to all,
Ben

[snook_man]

Excellent testimony, and I congratulate you on your success.

I'm 27 yrs old, geno 1a, stage 3 fibrosis.. Right now, on week 16 of 48. Crusin along.. I took some advice Indy stated one time, "buy some dark shades, and ride it out"..
Well I went through the same things, end of my world, and all. I too was just married, getting ready to start my family etc.
But I just wanted to thank you for sharing your encouraging thread. Sometimes alot of us need reminder that this TX is worth it. So many times we hear the negative, and we really need to hear the success. Good luck to you and your family!!

[carolhab]

I also, was extremely inspired by your story, thanks.  We all need to keep hearing positive stories of success, it makes our journey through tx more hopeful, and a bit less scary, I think. best of luck to you and your family....   another HCV virus bites the dust!!! yeah...
sammy

[dutch_boy]

Thank you so much for sharing your story with us all.  I too shared the feeling of my world come crashing down on me with the news...and I also was asked over and over about the HOW I got the virus....I will never know either...just have to forget that issue I guess.  Your words and testimony to the success of your journey gives me hope and encouragement....thank you.  I take my 2nd shot tonight...2/48 so I need all the positive energy I can get. It means alot to us ALL to hear these stories of hope.
Scott

[new-sojourn]

Did your mother have hep c?  I got my hep c thru a transfusion i received in 1967. Did you ever ask her?

I, too, hap 2 c-sections afterwards w/neither kid infected.

[cao]

Thanks for posting your story.  While I hate for anyone to go through what I've gone through, I do feel less alone when I read stories posted by people in similar circumstances (I have a 2 year old now & learned of the virus in my 20s).  Thanks for sharing:)

[Dirac]

I am so happy for you. Congratulations. I also do not know how I got the virus. Many of us here do not. The best thing is that you did something about it like I did. I also got my one year post treatment "undetectable" viral load last september. I wish you the best of luck with your daughter test.

[Gabbe]

It makes me feel very good to know that I was able to make some of you feel a little better.  When I was feeling down I used to get on line and read all the comments and questions from this forum and that made me feel better.  I wrote once before and I got wonderful comments and encouragement from other people.  The least I can do now is do the same things for others that might need it now.  As to the questions about if I got this disease from my mom, a few months after I was diagnosed with Hep C the doctor recommended that my mother and my husband  be tested and so they did and their test came back negative, thank God.  This was another nightmare, waiting for their results.