Ugh

[JTRiver]

I've been seeing my doctor regularly now for about two months and he finally ordered the medicine to start my six month Tx treatment. I've been trying to stay strong thinking it won't be that bad because I only have six months of it god bless those that have to endure 72 weeks!! I don't know how you guys do it but you're all an inspiration. I decided awhile ago to start getting in shape because I thought it might make the treatment a little easier. I wasn't overweight in the first place but I decided to do a diet and work out. I lost about twenty pounds, put on muscle and everything was great. But then I started to think....I wasn't going to be able to have any fun on treatment.....So why in the hell am I doing this? So then I started calling friends, going out and socially drinking. Then I started back smoking which I haven't done in forever. I eat fast food and whatever else I can get my greedy hands on. I quit doing Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, lifting weights, hiking. I quit doing everything I enjoy to basically make myself feel bad. I know....It doesn't make any sense to me either really. But now I'm about a week away from treatment, I've gained back 18 of the 20 pounds I lost. I'm tired and miserable.

I'm getting married in nine months and in six months of the waiting I will be on TX. Have most of you lost weight on TX? Were any of you still motivated or did you even feel like working out on it? I think I've really screwed myself. I should have just stuck with my original plan but at the time I didn't see the point. Any advice would be appreciated.

[Marc1955]

Boy, if I had HCV, which I do, I wouldn't go out socially drinking with friends. You do realize you could die, don't you?

I understand self-destructive behavior. Many of us do it in one way or another. But socially drinking when you're diagnosed with HCV is more suicidal than the norm. I'm not sure what the solution is. You might want to consider therapy. At least acknowledge to yourself that you've engaged in some fairly extreme self-destructive activity.

Good luck with the treatment.

[FlGuy]

Each time I treated I lost about 15 pounds - and was not overweight at the beginning.  The meds are likely to affect appetite.  Most lose weight, a few gain.  Treatment is likely to slow a person down a bit but there is no reason to recede into a cubby hole. I believe that it's important to maintain as much normalcy (activity, work, social,fun, exercise) as possible.  The battle is not only against hcv, it's also a battle against the treatment.  Treatment is a battle attrition and a person needs to be prepared, aware and ready for a challenge.  By the way, you did say 'any advice'.

[meakea]

I have been on TX for 19 weeks (I will do 48 weeks) and I have not lost a pound and I have not gained a pound.  I have been very vigilant of my weight because I am rather thin to begin with and I did not want to lose any weight.  So I monitored my calories, especially in the beginning when TX made me nauseous, and I forced myself to eat (or at least drink nutritional drinks like Boost or Ensure) to keep enough calories in me.  At one point I noticed that I was eating pretty normally and I started to overeat and I might have gained a pound or two so I went back to my pre-treatment healthy eating habits and everything evened out.

So...if you question is will you gain weight on TX or will you lose weight on TX, it's doesn't necessarily have to be either.  Some people have nausea so bad that they do lose weight and others have no nausea and overeat but I think if you use your willpower you can make it turn out however you want it to.

Now...here's my pep talk for the day...get your butt back out there doing the exercise that YOU LOVE and get back to having a healthy lifestyle that makes you feel good.  Oh, and no you haven't screwed yourself but you did make it a bit harder for yourself going into TX...but you know what to do now...onward and upward!!

Best of luck to you.  And...you will see that 24 weeks of TX will go by pretty fast.  As I said I'm on week 19 and, if I could be done at 24 wks, I'd be dancing a jig right now.  :)

[JTRiver]

I understand that but you missed the point completely post your experience with weight loss or weight gain. I don't think there is anything wrong with missing people and social events that I will be un able to attend due to these treatments. I basically will not be able to go out or see friends for six months.

[FlGuy]

You pretty much need to get your head out of your butt.  You know what you need to do, re-read your post. You have described the recipes for success and disaster.