Aa
Looking for advise..
In 1995 I found my ex-wife had been cheating on me with several men, unprotected sex. We divorced and I went to have my blood tested and found out I had Hep C. I have had my blood drawn every six months since then and I was going to the KCVA Hospital for this. Until a year ago they 1st offered me a treatment but said if I waited until later this spring/early summer they would have a mix of three types of drugs to take and the success rate was good. Reading this made me wonder how important it is to have treatment done? Should I have it done even if my Hep C is dormant and my enzyme levels have always been constantly low or level? Three months ago I meet someone I really like and now I wanted to see what the risk they might have from being with me. So far I have not had sex with them. I have not told them of my Hep C either, I will tell them soon, but wanted to know what to say, how to say it, and hope she will stay after I tell her. I plan to see her in three weeks. Long distance relationship so far. I have been single since my divorce and this is the first woman I have wanted to be with really since then. Any advice, suggestions? Just wondering now why I have not been pushed into a treatment program sooner? Does the treatment need to be done? Should I do it? Just don`t know what to do. So, I am asking you...Thanks for being here. 55 and healthy.
time for you to see a hepatologist and get a plan in place moving forward. If you treat when healthly the treatment could be easier on you and also may only have to treat 24 weeks instead of 48.
Good luck
Good luck
As others have pointed out above, hcv is NOT considered an STD. Tracing the origin of any one person's infection is usually conjecture and futile in the end... few people know for sure how they got it or from whom, and in the end it doesn't really matter anyway. Suffice to say intimate sexual contact is a highly unlikely source of transmission.
Science bears that out, as well as my own personal experience. My husband (USMC 68-70) most likely got infected during his service years, we have not practiced "safe sex" in over 25 years, and I am hcv negative, as is our son. Risk of infection, even in close intimate relationships, is very, very small. As long as sex isn't a bloodsport for the two of you, risk is nil to none. And though I know it's hard to look at it this way, if she balks and runs when you tell her, you SHOULD let her get away from you as far and as fast as possible. NO one needs fair weather friends, much less fair weather wives. Your moniker sort of says it all: move ahead with no bull and no fear. Good luck. ~eureka
Science bears that out, as well as my own personal experience. My husband (USMC 68-70) most likely got infected during his service years, we have not practiced "safe sex" in over 25 years, and I am hcv negative, as is our son. Risk of infection, even in close intimate relationships, is very, very small. As long as sex isn't a bloodsport for the two of you, risk is nil to none. And though I know it's hard to look at it this way, if she balks and runs when you tell her, you SHOULD let her get away from you as far and as fast as possible. NO one needs fair weather friends, much less fair weather wives. Your moniker sort of says it all: move ahead with no bull and no fear. Good luck. ~eureka
Does you X have HCV ? Do you know how HVC is transmitted ? It's never dormant. Please educate yourself so you don't come to this baseless conclusions.
Dear NofearNoBull,
Tell her when you are with her. Tell her when you can see her reaction and understand what she needs from you.. In my opinion, It is always better to just face the music. You are already very vulnerable with her anyway because your heart is in the relationship you have with her. I think it will mean more and go better if you are very direct and informed and caring and have the conversation in person.
I'm hoping for the best possible outcome for you.
Tell her when you are with her. Tell her when you can see her reaction and understand what she needs from you.. In my opinion, It is always better to just face the music. You are already very vulnerable with her anyway because your heart is in the relationship you have with her. I think it will mean more and go better if you are very direct and informed and caring and have the conversation in person.
I'm hoping for the best possible outcome for you.
Thanks Hector, Thanks for you advice. I have had a biopsy done about 6 months ago and they told me my liver looked good and was healthy. No sign of cirrhosis and they said not much more. They suggested I go through the injections and said they would start them when the 3 drug was approved by the FDA. I have not heard back from them on this yet. I will contact them ASAP to get them started, if you think it is a good idea. I have not have sex in years and when I did I used condoms. The issue I am having is falling in love with someone after 16 years being alone, and I wanted to start to work on this issue to protect them more. I am worried and afraid they might freak out and not wish to do anything with me due to this, but the info I have been getting from you and others on this site is helping me put together a document for them to read, so they will have a good understanding of my issue. So much Bad information is still out there on this subject, so I do not wish for them to Google it as much as provide them with links to good material and up to date info. Any links to this type of info would be greatly appreciated. I am in a long distance relationship with this person and they will be coming to see me in 3 weeks. I am wanting to marry this woman who is also 55. Do I tell them through e-mail, by phone or in person? Any suggestions? I hope to hear from you again as well as any others who would like to help me figure this out. Thanks for being there for me. NoFearNoBull..USMC 1975..
Hepatitis C is very rarely transmitted though sexual relations. It is a blood to blood disease. It is more likely you were infected some time in the military either though vaccinations and especially if you were involved in combat where bleeding and blood to blood contact is common. The true nature of hepatitis C and its affects on human health has only been understood in the last 20 years or so.
"Reading this made me wonder how important it is to have treatment done? Should I have it done even if my Hep C is dormant and my enzyme levels have always been constantly low or level?"
First, your Hep C is NOT dormant. If you have a viral load you are infected. You have had the hepatitis C RNA test correct? There is no such thing as "dormant Hep C". Either you are infected or you are not. If you are infected with Hep C, you are carrying the virus and can infect others if there were to share your blood with them. If you tried to donate blood you would be notified that you are infected with hepatitis C and can not donate blood to others.
"1995...I have had my blood drawn every six months since then"
"my enzyme levels have always been constantly low"
- Enzymes levels tell nothing about how damaged your liver has become. You should have a biopsy to see how advanced your liver disease is.
You need to see a doctor that is knowledgeable about hepatitis C and its treatment. Either a gastroenterologist of hepatologist. Whoever you are seeing now obviously is not. You are over 50. Liver disease progresses more quickly after age 50. You should find out your true medical condition and then you will be able to choose the risk vs. benefit of treatment.
If you learn the true nature of hepatitis C you can assure the women there is little chance of transmission of the virus. How she takes it? You can't control that because there are so many false assumptions about this disease and she may believe some of the myths that the general public believes. Educate yourself about hepatitis C. There is a lot of good info on this forum with references to articles and studies on the Internet about hepatitis C that you will find helpful.
As a mature adult you should be practicing safe(r) sex. If you do, it is very, very unlikely that you could ever infect another person with your hepatitis C virus.
Good luck.
Hector
"Reading this made me wonder how important it is to have treatment done? Should I have it done even if my Hep C is dormant and my enzyme levels have always been constantly low or level?"
First, your Hep C is NOT dormant. If you have a viral load you are infected. You have had the hepatitis C RNA test correct? There is no such thing as "dormant Hep C". Either you are infected or you are not. If you are infected with Hep C, you are carrying the virus and can infect others if there were to share your blood with them. If you tried to donate blood you would be notified that you are infected with hepatitis C and can not donate blood to others.
"1995...I have had my blood drawn every six months since then"
"my enzyme levels have always been constantly low"
- Enzymes levels tell nothing about how damaged your liver has become. You should have a biopsy to see how advanced your liver disease is.
You need to see a doctor that is knowledgeable about hepatitis C and its treatment. Either a gastroenterologist of hepatologist. Whoever you are seeing now obviously is not. You are over 50. Liver disease progresses more quickly after age 50. You should find out your true medical condition and then you will be able to choose the risk vs. benefit of treatment.
If you learn the true nature of hepatitis C you can assure the women there is little chance of transmission of the virus. How she takes it? You can't control that because there are so many false assumptions about this disease and she may believe some of the myths that the general public believes. Educate yourself about hepatitis C. There is a lot of good info on this forum with references to articles and studies on the Internet about hepatitis C that you will find helpful.
As a mature adult you should be practicing safe(r) sex. If you do, it is very, very unlikely that you could ever infect another person with your hepatitis C virus.
Good luck.
Hector
I have been hep-c posative since the 80's. I have been married twice since and am still with my second wife of 5 yrs. Other marriage lasted 15 yrs, neither of them have hep and I had lots of unprotected sex. Its rare that a person with a single sex partner will infect their partner. I understand your nervous about telling somebody you care about you have hep. Arm yourself with info, you have made a very good choice posting here. Lots of people that want to help, and I am confident you will find answers here. Congradulations on the new relationship!! Hope it works the way thats best for you both. God Bless.
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Hepatitis C Community
Learn about this treatable virus.
Getting tested for this viral infection.
3 key steps to getting on treatment.
4 steps to getting on therapy.
What you need to know about Hep C drugs.
How the drugs might affect you.
These tips may up your chances of a cure.
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Condoms are the most effective way to prevent HIV and STDs.
PrEP is used by people with high risk to prevent HIV infection.
