Riba/INF Treatment - Week 7

[HCVinPDX]

I will be taking my eighth shot tomorrow night and have had a terrible week.  It seems like the weekend symptoms never went away and only got worse.  My biggest complaint is total lack of energy and feeling weak.  I haven't been able to even think about going to work.  I pray that this is temporary!

[pooh55811]

Your symptoms may be temporary or they may stick around. Or they may fluctuate, and you may feel good some weeks and not so good other weeks. While several people did work while on treatment, many of us could not.

I agree with the others to have your blood counts checked frequently (mine were every week while on Incivek). That way if you are getting too anemic it will be caught and Procrit or other intervention can be instituted. I found that the body does adjust some to anemia and I felt better after being anemic for awhile than I did when the hemoglobin first dropped. However, the medications themselves have side effects of fatigue, malaise, no motivation, no energy, etc. irrespective of anemia, so you may be feeling some of those side effects. Weakness can be another side effect. My suggestion would be to slow down, take it easy, take it slow, rest as needed, get up slowly from sitting, do not over do, cancel all except necessary appointments, do not fill up your calendar, avoid evening engagements, etc. I finally resigned myself to having a "lost year." At the beginning of treatment I felt so frustrated that I felt too sick/ill/weak/tired to do anything. I was getting nothing done and it bothered me. I finally lowered my expectations and resigned myself to the fact that I was doing treatment, treatment was the most important thing, and that I was not going to get anything done while on treatment. Life became much easier and simpler after than and I no longer got frustrated at getting nothing done.

Now, I did call it my lost year, but actually it was not. Yes, life was on hold during treatment, but I finished 48 weeks of treatment and I attained SVR. So that year definitely was not lost. In fact, it was one of the best years of my life in terms of what I accomplished. I attained SVR, freedom from a devastating disease which was slowly killing me and which was causing me symptoms/problems long before I treated. So that year was anything but a lost year. It was, in fact, a very productive year. I could not have spent it in a better way than on treatment. I am free of Hep C. Now I can forge ahead with more energy, and pep, and motivation, than I have had in 20 years.

So hang in there. Adjust your activities and work schedule as necessary. Treatment is not pleasant and it is not a picnic, but it is worth it. You will have your whole life ahead of you after treatment.

[chiefdag]

keep an eye on your thyroid because that is one of the main symtoms on top of being anemic

[Advocate1955]

Sometimes, even when the test results only show "slight anemia", a person can feel the symptoms as if they were more anemic.  Much seems to depend on how rapidly your hgb goes down and also how high it was at the start of treatment.  My advice would be to rest frequently, walk carefully or have someone walk with you, and sit down when you feel weak or lightheaded.  If you are still anemic on Monday, you might ask your doctor to consider doing weekly labs just to make sure your hgb doesn't crash in between lab tests.  Listen to your body and rest, although getting a short walk outside (with someone on your arm if possible) is good.  Do not exert yourself.
Advocate1955

[cheflady]

hi agree you sound anemic my hubby wk 20 on tuesday and he still gets fatigued but it improved alot when he finished the teleprevir hang in there you are doing well best of luck with rest of tx

[Dannyboi7]

  Hang in there for most treatment is a roller coaster ride emotionally,mentally and physically.you'll have better days,one thing for sure you never know what's next.  

[HCVinPDX]

Thanks for the responses.  Last Labs showed I'm slightly anemic and I will have them done again on Monday.  I will also have the IL28B and testing done at that time.  I'm feeling somewhat better today but I too find it hard to work from home.  Emails are overwhelming!  

[nzkiwilife]

Hey HCVinPDX,
I did my 8th shot last night also. I am on Triple tx with incivek.
It seems that everyone experiences their sx differently.
You may be getting anaemic so it may take time to get your blood levels back up and feeling good again. Have you had bloods taken recently?
Some people can work while others cannot. For me, since becoming anaemic at about week 3 I have absolutely no energy. If I am up to it, I can work from home so at the moment I am working 1 or 2 days a week from home but my output is not 100%. It takes a long time to work things out and my memory is not the best and I feel foggy sometimes.  I cannot drive due to feeling so weak and most of my days are spent on the bed or in it.
I am ok with this as (touch wood) this is the only major sx. All the other 20+ sx are minimal.
Good luck with your journey and I hope you start feeling better soon!

[desrt]

What is your latest Hgb and how often is your Dr. doing CBC/CMP/TSH?
Also, did you ever get the IL28B and did you have an 8 week PCR taken?