Started Treatment Today

[Reidmusic]

I started treatment today with my first shot of PegIntron. I start taking Incivek and Ribavarin tomorrow. Just thought I'd check in and I'm sure I'll have some questions along the way. Maybe I'll even be able to answer a few.

[LookingForward12]

Welcome to the forum. But most importantly welcome to treatment....

You are in exactly the right place. The collective wisdom and caring you will find in this Forum is incredible. When you have any type of question, do not hesitate to post it. I don't believe there are any taboo subjects here...and male or female doesn't matter.

At the height of my water drinking, which was actually was a little more while on Incivek, I was drinking eight bottles a day. I weigh 132 now....gained to 146 while on Incivek, but am now back down to my ' normal' weight. This was in addition to drinking other things like juice in the morning, whole milk with my meds, etc. Even when I was sleeping on the sofa so as not to disturb my other half, I kept a bottle of water beside me. Whenever I woke up I would take a couple of swallows.

I STAYED in the bathroom it seemed. I am three months post treatment and am just now beginning to have the odd uninterrupted night of sleep without having to get up to use the bathroom.

Good luck with your treatment. It was the most difficult thing I have ever done, but I have been UND since week 4 and moving to SVR!

Oh....and I lived in this forum for six months.

[Reidmusic]

Thanks for the perspective on working.

Grandmajane, how much water is too much? Everyone seems to say to drink a lot and it's now 3:00 p.m. and I'm on my sixth bottle of water (16.9 ounce). I'm sure before the day's over I'll hit ten bottles for a total of approx. 170 ounces. I'm purposely drinking more than I normally do, and it is a hassle running to relieve myself all the time. I know it's different for everyone based on body size and reaction to treatment, but how much water did you find worked for you and how much do you weigh? I know I'm never supposed to ask a woman that so feel free to decline answering.

[working dog]

if working means you have to cut back on the ribas to bring up your hgb then i wouldn't work...try to treat once....i thought i would be working throughout tx but no way...after the first week i was toast...low hgb and in bed most of the time...but lots of folks work right through tx...just do the best you can to stay with the program....symptoms change as tx moves on... incivek can be tough..theres lots of help here...

[Grandmajane420]

I worked thru treatment part time. I was careful never to have anything scheduled the day after my shot as that was the worst day for me. There is a fine line between drinking enough water and too much water. I found if I drank too much it would cause me to have worse trouble with my digestive system, bloating cramping and heartburn. Not enough and you can tell cause you get so dry you can't swallow. Some sx would go away after a few weeks, like the rash and sun sensitivity. Brain fog was a real challenge, sometimes I would forget what my husband was talking about 1/2 way thru the sentence and I couldn't always find the right words to explain things. If you changed subject before I had a chance to calculate I would be totally lost, "What are you talking about Now!!" LOL
I just ended triple tx. So far UND!
Good Luck :)

[pooh55811]

A lot of people continued working during Tx. Some cut back on working, worked part time, used sick days or vacation days, or leaves of absence. Some people could not work during Tx. It just depends on the side effects. If you can keep the side effects under control, and have milder side effects, you may be able to continue working. You will just have to wait and see. It would be advisable to have a Plan A in place (working) and a Plan B in place (what you will do if you cannot work). That way you will have some planned options instead of getting broadsided if you cannot work.

With any luck you will have nild side effects. Keep us posted.

[Reidmusic]

Thank you all for the tips and for your support. I slept okay last night after the first shot. Today I start with the pills (Incivek & Ribavirin). I'm hoping I will not be so sick that I have to put my whole life on hold...but I'm preparing for the worst.

Were most of you able to work or did you have to take time off from the job?