this ones personal

[skyler411]

hi , there first i'd like to say  how much this foreum has already helped me ,just reading all of your experiences,,i've been waiting on my next round of blood work to come back will let u all know ..whats realy bothering me is that my husband doesn't seem to want to talk about this at all let alone go to the doctor for himself ,,if it were they other way around i'd bee running to the doctor to find out if i were ok or not...we've been married for 13yrs and i'm very concerned ,,i have to watch him drink just about every day and knowing what i've already read about drinking and hepc it's not good mix it's only been about a month that i got my diagnoses so i hope he'll come around !!in the mean time any sugestions on how to just get him to see the doc would be helpful to me ty .

[skyler411]

Bill thanks for that...seven kids godbless you!

[IMstacie]

me too.  My brother was diagnosed and brought me those kits and I ignored it, knowing I probably had it - guess I just didn't want to know.  Luckily I had a comprehensive blood test annually.  When the alt/ast levels started to elevate the doctor suggested I test.  You know the rest.

[portann]

Thanks for sharing that.

I guess I'm one of those people, too. Presumably had it for over forty years, rarely went to the doctor (just like my husband), was diagnosed by accident in 1995 and pretended I hadn't heard it. It took until 2008 for me to tackle it.

So it was way, way, way in the back of my mind but i think I was also afraid or unwilling to change my lifestyle.

Susan

[working dog]

my x had hep in 72....then it seemed to go away for almost 30 years...we had 7 kids..were together 24 years..about 12 years ago she said it came back...she was having some symptoms and went to the doctor ...found out she had geno 1a....back then i was also having symptoms but didn't even think of anything like hep...there was some diabeties in my familly so i kept on getting my blood sugar checked out..i had asked her if it was possible for me to have it and she said no way..anyway...she went through treatments and got rid of the virus..shes fine now...meanwhile my symptoms slowly got worse...years went by..i was having a couple drinks almost every night...sometimes 3 stiff ones...otherwise i was staying pretty healthy..running..all that...i was covinced that i in no way had hep...i wish i had gotten tested...then i stopped drinking one day..just had enough...two days later i thought i was going to die...went to a doctor..they finally took blood tests..that was about 5 years ago...the tests came back positive for hep...geno 1a....i had awfull withdrawals from the alcohol...and had a low grade fever for about 18 months...it was bad...my symptoms from the hep have gotten better over the years ..i really take care of my health...watch my  weight ,diet, and exercise...i've been holding off for the better treatments...i just got my second biopsy on friday so we'll see whats up with that next week..was stage 1 to 2 and grade 2 a few years ago.....i do believe i got the hep from my x...there was always blood around and i work construction and had open cuts all the time..i see a lot of folks think of sex when you mention getting hep from your partner...there are lots of other ways...how about when your dog takes bloody rags out of the garbage and leaves them through out the house..i can't tell you how many of them i picked up....we also went to the dentist together at times...but wo knows and who cares..i get along fine with her..in fact she kept a phone by her on friday night in case anything went worng with the biopsy(bleeding)... .i remember getting tested was always in the back of my mind but just didn't...i think i was afraid to change my lifestyle...i wish i had just gotten tested...for sure don't drink at all with hep..not even a little bit...btw...none of our kids have hep....good luck....billy

[Trish77]

Maybe he just needs time to get ready to make whatever change is required if he gets a positive outcome.   I've read of a number of people who ended up here only after years of avoiding dealing with their Hep C at all simply because they were not ready to face it.   It's not and wouldn't be my way but it has and does happen with some people.   The only thing with your husband is that, unless he has some kind of risk factor of his own where he might have contracted it, the chances of his having gotten it from you are very small so he might be missing out on having complete peace of mind about it.  Still, he has to be ready to handle the outcome if he actually gets tested and you going through it may provide a breakthrough moment for him at some point.  I hope so.

Trish

[IMstacie]

It just an antibody test.  I don't know where you get them.  My brother is an alcohol & drug couselor and brought me a couple kits.  They use them in the treatment center. I actually didn't use it because I was tested at the doctor's office.

[spectda]

A lot of people just believe that if they feel good then it's not a problem. Unfortunately they don't realize that they have to sustain a lot of damage before they get to the point of having hcv effect their daily lives. Unfortunately if they get to the point of having advanced liver disease and feeling very sick it may be too late, and I have a feeling they won't like how life continues from there. Dying from liver failure doesn't sound very pleasant to me!

My friend got tested after he heard about my HCV and found out he was late stage 3. He never felt sick and had lots of energy and was enjoying life. I helped him get into a study when riba first came out through my doc and he was cured and very thankful. He was lucky that he had genotype 2b though.

[skyler411]

yuk- i never even thought about a home test kit ,thats a great idea ...ty
  diane128-i could try a scare tactic but u think me haveing it would have scared him enough already??
portann- i thought about just makeing him that opp ,but it would be a waste unless
   he wants to go !
     ty all again ! and men are deff from mars ...

[Diane12855]

I guess I'm one of the luckiest ladies on here because if I want my hubby to go to the doctor, I make him an appointment and he goes. I do a little psychological preparation first though. I Google whatever it is that he needs to deal with, and I read to him what I find... all the gory details. This is BEFORE I ever mention going to the doctor about it, then the next day or so I'll talk about it again and gradually lead the conversation to his condition. If I can get him to say,"I should go to the doctor about that sometime." I drop it there, and make the appointment later when I'm alone. It sounds horrible here, now that it is put down in words... kind of like manipulation... but it is good for him and it keeps the peace at the same time.

What can I say?

[portann]

And YuK's suggestion was great about the home test kit.

Yuk, is that for antibodies or the whole magilla?

[portann]

Gosh, after thirteen years, you've probably got a hint that they're impossible to change, as much as we try.... :)

So this is not very helpful to you but it has to come from him....darn.

One thing you could try if you want to risk a quarrel is to first book him an appointment for a physical and then tell him.

I know the guys will have my head for suggesting this but I get so desperate with my own hubby's refusal to go to the doc. Even when he ruptured his achilles tendon, he bellyached all the way to the hospital that it wasn't necessary to go. Some of them have such a thing about docs, it's funny if it weren't funny.

Good luck with your own HCV. You can take care of it pretty well with treatment and maybe when he sees you get started, he'll come around to being supportive. Mine was great for the everyday heavy lifting, even though he didn't talk about it much the way I do.

Best to you and be patient with the old boy,

Susan

[newleaf09]

Mine was very supportive and quit drinking with me but he would never go to the doctor to be checked out, either.  He had hepatitis of some sort before we met but prefers not to know.  I've brought it up enough times that I now know not to bother any more.  Men are from Mars......

[carol411]

Julie, hep C is very, very rarely passed through sexual contact.  So it is unlikely that you shared this with him.  I have been married 23 years and have had this disease for a lot longer than that, my husband does not have Hep C.  But he did ask his doctor to check.  I don't know of any way to make someone do something he does not want to.  Most of us find out when something else happens to us and the doctor notices the high enzymes and does further testing.  In the years we didn't know about it we carried on partying and having fun.  Paying the piper came many years after the fun for me.  I hope he will listen to your concern, but he won't until he's ready to.  I'm sorry.  I know you are worried for him.