genotype 3a hepc question of lifestyle and behaviour

[willy71]

my 38 year old wife has had Hep C for 16 or so years, she does not talk about it much she refuses treatment (of any kind) and she drinks1/2 a bottle or more of wine per night.
she had a liver biobsy about 10 years ago, and several blood tests during that time, she was refered to a Liver/Hep C specialist in Australia last November, she had an initial blood test, the specialist stated that she no longer had Hep C???, Our family Dr went over the tests again and found the result of false negative. She recently had another test and came back positive (apparently the first test was not 'sensative' enough). She has to go for another couple of tests and then eventually a liver test. She does not talk much about it as I mentioned, please assist me in finding out what stage she is at, and what symptoms to look for, can it affect your mental state of mind also as her behaviour has been extreemly irratic, (she is having an affair and bears not a great deal of responsibility or remorse towards myself or the children) how sudden can effects come on.

[FlGuy]

I apologize if connecting those two posts was disconcerting to you,  I did notice that the geno types referenced were different.  I am likely to get a lot of disagreement here but I think that a Hepatitis C infection gets blamed for a lot more of life's ills then it deserves.  Sure maybe in late stages but sometimes I think think that symptons of a largely asymtomatic infection point to other aspects of life and health. Lifestyle choices and other physical and emotional problems, I believe, are the building block of most of our problems.  If true, less of an answer might be in Hepatitis and more of the solution could be found in a wider holistic view of life.  

[willy71]

thanks Bill, I will email her the link......

I will also have a look.

It it like she has emotionally curled up and does not want to accept reality, my question is, that she has had it for some time, so why only NOW is she like this?

[Bill1954]

It would be nice if your wife could spend some time in here, to better understand how this disease works. Can I ask what her reluctance is in undergoing treatment?

If she likes, she can read through Janis and Friends:

http://janis7hepc.com/have_you_been_just_diagnosed.htm

This site is very informative; it should answer many, if not most questions regarding this disease. Be sure to read through the section ‘other HCV information’, in the right-hand column as well.

Ultimately, she’s going to have to make these decisions herself; but together we can help her understand.

All the best to you both,

Bill

[willy71]

while I do agree that the other post is remarkably similar and coincidental, my wife's name is Lisa. I have asked my wife and she has never heard of this site, I told her she should take a look. I an not involved with the other post whatsoever...

[FlGuy]

Outside of having the children as the primary focus, sometimes all a person can do stand back and watch.  To require a person to accept help when help is rejected is often a futile effort.
What is not clear is if all postings (Willy and Jill) come from the same person. Or, if your wife is looking for help and advice as well. Essentailly, there is no problem in a person asking the same question twice over the course of time.

[willy71]

I did post this question before, as I am desperate for advice, (I was unaware that you could not post something more that one time) as I mentioned my wife does not talk to me about anything in her life at the moment and it has been exceptionally frustrating and a most difficult time for my family. I am after opinions and advice form others who might have experienced something similar. I have spent the last 3 years looking after my children as she is being erratic.

I understand that she is throwing fuel onto a fire but if she is unwilling to listen, then what can we do, stand back and watch her ???

[nygirl7]

Yeah I heard about that this morning...........jez go outta your way to be nice to people - when you could be watching youtube or reading about flags and they do this stuff.  Lovely but at least it's only two posts right?  ;)

[Bill1954]

Good catch, FlGuy. There is another post in here that is almost a carbon copy of this one from March 4 of this year:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Hepatitis-C/Need-support-and-advice-please/show/777821

Hmm…

[FlGuy]

This could be the intersection of wife and husband seeking help for the same thing in the same place.  I wonder.  If so, I hope they each get the help they need.


http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Hepatitis-C/I-have-had-HCV-for-about-16-or-so-years-and-enjoy-drinking/show/1082408

[nygirl7]

I agree with everything said above.  Treatment of the disease certainly isn't fun but it is much more doable than end stage liver disease.  Drinking nightly with hep is apt to advance the fibrosis quickly and she needs to take care of the problem(s) in order to live.

Try to line up the biopsy and take it from there. Hopefully she will find a doctor who is kind and compassionate and can explain just how much she needs to follow up. Heck - she could have just a small amount of fibrosis and time to wait if she choses...but she needs to find out before it is too late.

[willy71]

thankyou for your thoughts and comments

[epiphiny]

Btw, I also wonder if some one has told her the treatment is worse than the illness?  I was also told that and I believed it.  It sounds like you really need to find out exactly what she thinks about the disease.  There is a lot of mis-information out there and for a long time people would say you would die with it, not of it.  Ideas are really changing out there as more and more is discovered about the virus and it's long terms effects. For a start it is the greatest cause of liver transplants in the States.

If she was told she had cancer would she just live with it or would she undergo treatment for it, despite it being difficult?  The treatment is challenging but doable and as G3a she would usually only have to treat for 6 months depending on how she responds to the meds.

Also, the only way you will find out how much damage her liver has sustained is by a biopsy, which could be the liver test you mention.

[epiphiny]

Did someone tell her once that she could not be cured?  That happened to me 20 years ago, and I believed them for a long time. It really affected the way I viewed my life.  I became depressed and I had "who gives a ****" attitude towards my life.  I drank and took drugs, all the while knowing it was bad for me, but deep down felt it didn't matter as I had an incurable disease, and what's more, I had a huge amount of self loathing and no self esteem. As someone mentioned above, I didn't actually deal with my feelings rather I ignored them, didn't talk about how I was feeling instead trying to escape the pain in denial and drink etc.

It took quite some soul searching for me to realize that I needed to confront this illness and my attitude toward it as these things were standing in the way of me having a happy and fulfilling life.  It took me about 6 years to beat it but I did, and I feel so proud of myself.  

It must be hard for you to see your wife self destructing like this but I sense from your post that you love her deeply, otherwise you probably would have left a long time ago. I don't know how you can convince your wife that she needs to deal with her situation but perhaps you could begin by telling her that there are successful treatments out there and she can overcome the illness.  She needs to hope and encouragement. Someone needs to dispel the myth that she cannot be cured.  There are plenty of success stories here on this board, perhaps you could print some out for her.  For a start, she has Geno 3a which has a 70% to 80% cure rate if she gets the correct dosages of the current standard treatment.  

There are also very promising new drugs in development which are showing huge success rates, and I take it that you live in Australia where they have great study centers and a real commitment to curing this disease.  Perhaps you could do some research for her and find some trials that she could enter.  

She also needs someone to speak the plain truth to her.  Maybe that person isn't you as you are so emotionally involved.  It took an old friend to confront me with my own behavior and what I was doing before I had the courage to face it.  Is there a good friend that you can confide in that would be prepared to confront her?

She will definitely have to be prepared to stop drinking prior to any treatment or study but the first step is getting her to acknowledge she has a problem and needs to deal with it.

In regards to 'symptoms" the main thing for me prior to treatment was sporadic energy levels.  Up and down all day long, with an overwhelming sense of fatigue.  The worst was the depression and low self esteem that I mentioned above which I didn't really know that I had because it had become so ingrained into my identity. And yes, my behaviour was erratic and incomrehensible to those around me.

Courage and patience are required here but there is definately GREAT hope as well.  First you must overcome her mindset toward this.

I wish you and your family all the best,

Epi :)

[willy71]

she has had it for over 16 years, so it is chronic HCV and can not be cleared...
she chooses NOT to have any medication for it at all.

[rockin516]

i do agree eith bill, she doesnt probley want to deal and she is dealing with it from a bottle. i do beleive alot of the actions is due to her drinking it still doesnt make it right she really needs to start with help with that get sober and then the next step is trying to do the tx. for the hep c. good luck to you and your family !!!!! rockin516

[Bill1954]

Hi Willy,

If your wife has genotype 3 hepatitis C, she has either resolved the disease via her own immune response within the first six months of infection, treated with interferon and resolved it that way, or she still has it. It doesn’t resolve spontaneously after she has been infected for any period of time.

The stage of disease is determined by liver biopsy; if her last biopsy was 10 years ago, she’ll probably need another one to determine advancement of fibrosis.

She shouldn’t drink alcohol with an active infection; it sounds like you’re aware of this already, however.

Later stages of cirrhosis can cause issues similar to Alzheimer’s; forgetfulness, agitation, etc. People with this often forget where they are, get lost…. I’m not sure it can be blamed for infidelity though.

She should seriously consider seeking help for her drinking; AA, or anything to keep her sober; form there, she might be more open to managing her disease. If she’s interested, there are many people in here that have been in her position, and can give her a hand through all this.

Best to you both—

Bill