Aa
just starting to worry
Hello all, I am 23, was diagnosed with HCV about 4 years ago in jail, i believe either from IV or tattoo equip. :( Im just recently beginning to accept that i cant live the way i used to, and stay healthy, so im basically wondering what the hell to do. I have no insurance, dont drink that much (a few beers a day) and am currently within the last few days experiencing HORRIBLE kidney pains. Can anyone offer me some advice as to what this could be? Because i am not on any medication as of yet, so im not sure what could be causing this. ..Back to Forum
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Back in the days when I drank beer, if that was my main liquid for the past few days I'd get pains in my back... right where the ribs stop at the bottom. I discovered that drinking a glass of cranberry juice and then a few glasses of water would make it go away. It seemed to me that too much beer without something else to dilute it kind of clogged up the filter in the kidneys. Don't know it that is so, but it worked for me.
Diane
Diane
So is there actually NO safe amount? I know this sounds absolutely ridiculous, but i just cant imagine completely parting with it for the rest of my life. Its not like i'm getting tanked on high life every night, just a few pints of choice, craft beer. But i completely agree that i should definitely at the very least take a long, long break.
"the only things I do are pot and beer,and yes, I do drink too much beer. But I love it so much. and "I took acetaminophen by mistake" And in your first post "I have HCV"
I saw by your profile you are young and probably so far the HCV has doon very little damage because of that fact . However with how you are treating your liver right now the future could look bleak. My suggestion is to give yourself a shot at a better life and think more about the behaviour. Most of the folks here including me wish we could turn back the clock somewhat. Best of luck!
I saw by your profile you are young and probably so far the HCV has doon very little damage because of that fact . However with how you are treating your liver right now the future could look bleak. My suggestion is to give yourself a shot at a better life and think more about the behaviour. Most of the folks here including me wish we could turn back the clock somewhat. Best of luck!
Yes, but i mean upper flank, which is the meaty part near your sides, but lower. Not like actually my upper back.
"The upper flank area of my back". Kidneys are in the waist area. You don't need to eliminate acetaminophen alltogether if it works for you. Just don't eat them like Good N' Plenty.
So, from what ive been reading, im pretty sure its a stone. It comes in waves, and is gone just as fast as it comes. I took acetaminophen earlier by mistake, and it seemed to subside for awhile, but its back with a vengeance now. The upper flank area of my back.....
I havent used hard drugs of any sort in 2 years, and the people i was referring to are back in Detroit. The only things i do are pot and the beer, and yes, i do drink too much beer. But i love it so much. Oh and the "hxc" is short for hardcore, as in the music genre.
I disagree with what one of the other posters said about you have time to wait. Typically a slow moving disease is for people that are taking care of themselves. Using dope and " a few beers a day" puts you in a category that will most likely accelerate the disease much faster.
You are kind of stuck between a rock & a hard place. You need to be clean for 6 months to enter a trial or to treat with a doctor.
You might as well start sobering up so you can treat. It would really suck if you progressed fast and was denied treatment because of still using. HCV is very sneaky disease and has a way of creeping up on you and biting you in the ***!
Trust me that you don't want to die from liver disease. It is perhaps the worst way to go.
best of luck
You are kind of stuck between a rock & a hard place. You need to be clean for 6 months to enter a trial or to treat with a doctor.
You might as well start sobering up so you can treat. It would really suck if you progressed fast and was denied treatment because of still using. HCV is very sneaky disease and has a way of creeping up on you and biting you in the ***!
Trust me that you don't want to die from liver disease. It is perhaps the worst way to go.
best of luck
A "few beers a day" is a lot so don't fool yourself. If a 'few' is 3 then it's almost a case a week. If it's 4, then it is a case per 6 days. Up to 52 cases a year.
What type of Hep C do you have?
You found the best people to ask here. Hate to be so black and white on this but drop your acquaintances. Removing yourself from the environment that helped support your drug habit goes a long ways to your stopping.
All the Best.
What type of Hep C do you have?
You found the best people to ask here. Hate to be so black and white on this but drop your acquaintances. Removing yourself from the environment that helped support your drug habit goes a long ways to your stopping.
All the Best.
You guys are all so great. the thought of turning to a forum had never even dawned on me until today. And i only have 3 friends (acquaintances) that have it and theyre all still using, so i figure theyre not the best people to ask.
Luckily, due to the nature of HCV, you have time to wait. The disease usually progresses over years and decades, not weeks and months. Even if you had good insurance, plenty of money for copays, etc it still might take five or six months to begin therapy.
And, it might not even be in your best interest to treat now. There are plenty of other meds in trial right now that promise to be more efficacious than the current interferon/ribavirin. If you have little to no damage (per liver biopsy) it might be good to delay/postpone for better therapies on the horizon.
Keep away from the dope, stop or drastically reduce alcohol, and try to get insurance coverage somehow so you can properly monitor the disease.
Be cool—
--Bill
And, it might not even be in your best interest to treat now. There are plenty of other meds in trial right now that promise to be more efficacious than the current interferon/ribavirin. If you have little to no damage (per liver biopsy) it might be good to delay/postpone for better therapies on the horizon.
Keep away from the dope, stop or drastically reduce alcohol, and try to get insurance coverage somehow so you can properly monitor the disease.
Be cool—
--Bill
I got kidney stones from cocaine......or the cut in it which I imagine is probably the same.
If you decide to do the trial you are going to have to be sober so it's a good thing you said 'had' been using :)
Just start the process and take it one step at a time. I guarantee you with this disease you will learn patience.......we are always waiting for something (test results, doc appts, biopsy date on and on and on but mostly test results).
You'll get good at it in no time at all. Well at least you will get sort of used to it ;)
If you decide to do the trial you are going to have to be sober so it's a good thing you said 'had' been using :)
Just start the process and take it one step at a time. I guarantee you with this disease you will learn patience.......we are always waiting for something (test results, doc appts, biopsy date on and on and on but mostly test results).
You'll get good at it in no time at all. Well at least you will get sort of used to it ;)
Thank you so much! I had been using ****** heroin in Detroit for the past few years, possibly kidney stones? And yes ive thought about getting involved with clinical trials, but they all seem to have wierd waiting periods and elimination processes. Maybe im too impatient :/
Sorry to hear of your problems, and welcome to the discussion group. Hep C (HCV) is often asymptomatic, especially in the first decade or two of infection. I’m unaware of kidney pain involvement; that doesn’t mean it can’t happen, but it’s an uncommon occurrence.
Treatment can be expensive, but thankfully, HCV generally progresses slowly. Cash costs for treatment can easily exceed $USD 40,000/year, and only a percentage of patients respond favorably to it.
Have you considered participation in a clinical trial? They offer free treatment, cutting-edge meds, but do have some drawbacks that need to be considered as well.
Good luck,
Bill
Treatment can be expensive, but thankfully, HCV generally progresses slowly. Cash costs for treatment can easily exceed $USD 40,000/year, and only a percentage of patients respond favorably to it.
Have you considered participation in a clinical trial? They offer free treatment, cutting-edge meds, but do have some drawbacks that need to be considered as well.
Good luck,
Bill
Sounds like kidney stones.. I got alot of them from the cut in the Heroin over the years.. Start researching studies on Hep C, with all the latest advances, they are actively seeking out "lab-rats" in almost every place in the world. Also, depending on your income, the major pharm companies are providing the meds at no cost... And the bar isnt as low as you may think!
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Just don't make the mistake of looking back twenty years from now and be wishing things were different - you know, if your liver is sofakingdamaged. Time will pass. No one escapes it. Trust us on this one. Like Pink Floyd once sang:
"And then one day you find, ten years has got behind you, no one told you when to run; you missed the starting gun."
Good luck my man.
Robert