First Shot

I finally did the first shot about 3 hours ago. So far just a mild headache and filling a little light headed. I will let ya’ll know how the weekend goes Sunday. Thanks for everyone’s support.

[wyntre9]

First shot wasn't bad for me.  Best part was when it was over.  :)

You may be one of the lucky ones who has few SX.

wyntre

[jmjm530]

"Buckle your seatbelt", as one doc told me, as I chuckled but not for long :)

All the best with treatment. You seem like a real strong guy so I'm sure you'll make the 24 weeks. Just make sure you get weekly (or at least every other) blood counts at this point and a very sensitive viral load test (Like Heptimax) on week 4, and even earlier if your docs will comply Blood should be drawn the day before your fifth injection for your week 4 test. Lots of fluids, a moderate amount of fat with your riba (preferably a meal) and preferably no antacids or fiber supplement within a couple of hours of the ribavirin.

-- Jim

[charm27]

Good luck. Its a ride! Wishing you a good ride!
Here's to few sx. Drink ALOT of fluids it really makes a big difference.
Again, the best to you.

Charm27

[Trish77]

I have no doubt you'll ride this out regardless of whether your sides are good, bad or indifferent.  I'm thinking your mental attitude will make the difference.  Might as well take 'er through the winter and come out again into the summer, eh?  All the best...and the support is ongoing.  

Trish

[katerika]

Go for it!  Its an adventure, many of us have had different beginnings, miidles and ends.
The fluids make a huge difference. If i remember correctly if you weigh 200 # then you need 100 ounces a day.
Ter

[callmedorothy]

Good luch to you! My first one was a doozy. but since then it has been a smooth ride.

[Lady Lauri]

  Thought you started sooner? Must have missed any post you changed start time. Agree with Wyntre, it was so great to have that 1st one done and started. Good luck ahead. we're 'lucky' in only 24 weeks, tho it can feel awfully long while doing it. IF you encounter 'really bad' days, just go with it, give in to the rest and you'll do better. Wishing you few sides and SVR.

jmjm.............okay, I'm confused. Heptimax test is out? Thought merrybe's post was about it's in the 'works' and so on. I have to go re-read some post here!

                                                              LL

[R Glass]

Buckle your seatbelt", as one doc told me, as I chuckled but not for long :)

He hit the nail on the head with that one.

I won’t bore you guys every time I do a shot but I will tell you about the first one. I was on my way home from my Gastro’s office and got stuck in Friday rush hour traffic. I was about 2 hours into it and had a mild headache and light headed. I also felt myself getting a little confused in traffic. With the idiots we have on the roads in Baton Rouge you don’t want to be confused in traffic. After about four hours into it I thought, so this is what all the fuss is about, I don’t feel good but no big deal. Not too much later, The Gates of Hell Opened. It was one of the most miserable nights that I can remember. I was freezing to death for a while then I would soak the bed with sweat for a while. At one point I had to go to the restroom but just laid in bed for what seemed like an hour until I forced myself to get up. Saturday, I felt like I had been run over by a truck and pretty much laid in bed all day. Today (Sunday) other than my body still aching a little and still a little tired, I don’t feel that bad. I think I will be all right for work tomorrow. I can afford to sacrifice my weekends but I have to work. I really don’t think the next one’s will be as bad.
Thanks again for everyone’s support, R. Glass

[charm27]

Glad you made it thru your first shot. Sorry to hear it was a bummer. I didnt get sick from my 1st ..I got sick 2 days later from my 2nd shot. We are all so different its amazing. Well at least the first is done with. Onward!

Good luck, drink lots of fluid.
Charm27

[charm27]

These meds make my brain like pea soup. Yes I did get sick from 1st shot...but not until a few hours of waking up.. lol
Im in a complete stupor! lol

[Lady Lauri]

---------These meds make my brain like pea soup. Yes I did get sick from 1st shot...but not until a few hours of waking up.. lol
Im in a complete stupor! lol --------------
LOL. Oh, how I relate to that!

R glass....sorry 1st one sucked! Been lucky in that, no bad ones, just feel like cr*p (more than normal!) 24-48 hours later. Like Charm said.....all so different. Good luck on the next.

                                                                             LL

[honey11]

Hey RGlass,,,Glad to see you started your tx!  This weekend should be the worse of what you will see.  My first shot,,,knocked me for a loop lol and I didn't know how I was going to get through a year of it but I never had a weekend like that again.  Guess,,its getting you ready for the time of your life lol    Hope you are feeling better!

[jmjm530]

A lot of us take our shot around an hour before bedtime. Hopefully it means you can sleep through a lot of the symptons, but at least it means you won't have to run into a situation like you had (having to drive in traffic) right after the shot.

Hope your sides become better but at least you know the Peg is getting into your system :)

-- Jim

[ladybug52]

Hey I feel for you! I started my tx a year ago yesterday....and I'm so thankful it's over! You are very knowledgeable and have been preparing for this for a long time, I'm sure you're going to do fine...it's just the day to day grind of getting through it that gets old so quickly.
Your first shot sounds pretty much like my first, and I never had that bad of a night after the 1st one.
Work pretty much sucks while treating, but I liked to play a little game with myself, thinking how no one knew how I felt, and I wouldn't let anyone know....it helped me to think of how brave and strong I was:) I'm such a drama queen!
Good luck, and lots of hugs,
Bug

[gazebo1]

Good luck kiddo!  Just keep your mind on getting better and it can be tough for many. My hep doc (who is a hep researcher, associate prof. at Northwestern and heads trials in Chicago) told me over and over that if you have really bad SX from the beginning, it suggests your immune system is reacting strongly to the boost and that is a good sign of it's effectiveness.   (I had a load of 1.8 million and was UND at week 2 and suffered terrible SX) So hang in there and keep us posted.    Regards, Judy

[geterdone]

Good Luck with TX.

jasper

[Proactive]

I don't believe there is much of a blanket relationship between tx side effects and ultimate svr...Now if one considered side effects to solely be based on blood counts, that's a different story. I do believe that persistantly higher hgb counts are certainly indicative of low riba serum levels and riba could/should be increased due to how each individual metabolizes the drug(based on hgb)..In my case, I only dropped 4 pts of hgb through 8 weeks of tx (starting hgb was high at 18), riba dose was increased at week 8 and again at week 13. Now hgb has dropped a total of 6.8pts and counts are between 11-12..
unfortunately we don't have much to go on as far as monitoring peg serum levels.
I my opinion, what you think you've learned from the first month or 2 of tx can be tossed out the window as treatment progresses...Sides will change throughout tx,in my case becoming less acute, but accumulative...
R Glass, think of it in terms of rpm's, shifting gears, and engine wear. Once your up to speed there is less strain on the motor, but there is still constant wear, and over time compression will drop (g).
After 59 weeks, I think I am ready for a top end overhaul!!!!.............;^)

[gazebo1]

Proactive, you put it well - and my doc only was "suggesting"  that initial full blown SX after first injection of INF had many times indicated a "good" reaction, and that many of his patients that had successful TX had  "gates of hell open" as R Glass describes it.  My hubby woke up to Linda Blair in bed with him - and will never forget that first night either!  G