Such is my life

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I already posted about this on Opals forums, but I wanted to add it here too. So just ignore this if you have already seen it there.

As some of you know, and some don’t . I have Hepatitis C, I found out about 2 1/2 years ago.

I had interferon treatments for 2 years, I was in remission from the time I had been on the treatment for 6 to 9 months.

I found out Friday morning that I am no longer in remission, the virus is back and active.

After spending several hours Friday morning/afternoon crying and feeling sorry for myself, I made several decissions.

  1. I will go ahead and allow my doctor to do a liver biopsy. I really don’t want to do this, I am afraid of it. I don’t want a needle put into my liver, you have to be awake when they do this, and pain has never been one of my favorite things !

  2. I will undergo the combo therapy , which is interferon and an anti-viral drug. This does not please me because interferon alone made me sicker than a dog, and because poking a needle in my stomache 3 x’s a week does not thrill me !

Now on to my reason for posting this on both boards, there are several.

Once treatment starts again I may not be around either board much. So I want to say this now.

This disease is spreading fast. A lot of people have it and don’t know it. I was infected with it anywhere from 15 to 20 years ago, we just don’t know. The only reason it was found was because some blood work that was run because of another health problem showed abnormal liver values. So the doctor I was seeing then went ahead and had me tested for Hep. C.

Please if you have ever had a blood transfusion , especially before 1990-92, used IV drugs, even had a tattoo done, ask your doctor to check for this thing.

It can be fatal, there is no cure right now.

** It is not spread by casual contact, hugs, kisses, and even sex are not considered high risk behaviours. **

I found a great site with lots of information on hepatitis, and a support board.
http://hepatitis-central.com/hcv/maintoc.html

“Ayesha, Who can bend minds with her spoon” WallyM7

Voted SDMB Biggest Flirt (Female) and Least Shy (No Mom, I have no idea why they think that)

2

Godspeed to you, Ayesha. I’ll be hoping for a full recovery for you.

“Shayna… [one of] the most despised posters on this board.” As declared by WallyM7. (And if you want to know who the others are, click here. I’m in very good company!)

“Mom, he’s a neo Nazi! He’s a doctor also? Well…” - an original WallyM7 sig.

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” - Anne Frank

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Ayesha,

That’s a damn shame, but if anyone can overcome this shit, you can.

A friend of mine has Hep C, and he’s been through the interferon and the ribo-whatever, and he’s doing well. To look at him, you’d think “bodybuilder.”

I’m sending you an extra helping of good wishes and positive vibes.

Kick its fucking viral ass!

This is getting hard. Somebody relieve me. (A Wallian exclamation)

4

Ayesha -

My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Along with everyone else here, I celebrated your announcement that you were in remission and I am now pained to hear that you’re back in hell. You’re obviously a strong lady with great heart and stamina. Take care of yourself and keep us informed of your progress when you can.

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{{{{{{Ayesha}}}}}}

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Wally beat me to a hug…but nobody can have too many.
{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{Aye}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

Be well soon, opk? ( for the unknowing that is not a typo…it’s a goddess joke ;))

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Ayesha, you’re in my thoughts.

Cristi, Slayer of Peeps

I made my husband join a bridge club. He jumps next Tuesday.

(title & sig courtesy of UncleBeer and WallyM7!)

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Shayna, thank you.

Oh great, now Rysdad wants me to get Hep. C foot too ! :wink: Heh, don’t worry I have no choice but to fight ! My mom and Lion won’t allow me not to.

OldBroad, Thank you,I’m not sure about the great heart and stamina thing, I just hate to lose ! :stuck_out_tongue:

{{{{{{{{{{Wally}}}}}}}} , what not feel better flirt ? Oh well, at least he spoke to me. sigh :stuck_out_tongue:

LOL, opk, I will. And stop telling the secret goddess code will ya ? Sheesh. :eek:

Thank you Cristi.

I hope you will all share my advice with loved one you have who may have been exposed.

“Ayesha, Who can bend minds with her spoon” WallyM7

Voted SDMB Biggest Flirt (Female) and Least Shy (No Mom, I have no idea why they think that)

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You’re a fighter, gal. You’ve weathered some mighty seas so far, and I feel like you’ve got the requisite spirit. You know my thoughts are with you.

We are slowly assembling a Houston confab for early May and I’d love to see y’all again. If you can’t make it, that’s OK.

I don’t keep my e-mail available in my profile and I think you already have it, but just in case you don’t, I’m at seistrac@firstnethou.com. Keep me posted.

Take care, dear. Well, really, both of you take care.

Regards,

beatle

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Ayesha such a brave soul…sounds like you have the strength of ten of us normal posters.

You will be in my prayers.

One of the few to be personally welcomed to this board by Ed Zotti.

Yours truly,
aha

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Sorry to hear the news - best wishes Ayesha - we know you’ll be back once you whip it.

12

Testing for Hep C should be part of an annual physical, but I don’t think it’s regularly done, even now. I have Hep C too, diagnosed and confirmed after a blood donation in 1991.

My only “high risk” behavior up to that point was having my ears pierced.

Thanks for bringing this up. As Dear Abby always says, you never know how many people you might be helping.

13

Ayesha: a{{{{hug}}}} to keep you your strong self.

I’ve known many folks with Hep C; it’s become widespread in the music community. In your neck of the woods, Austin has had a lot of awareness of the disease. I’d expect that there would be a support network there. I’ll check with friends, and forward the information to you.

Keep on keeping on!

14

I’ve seen a fair bit about both at the hospital I used to work at and at the jail I now work in.

Despite all that I’m fairly ignorant but I had the jabs.

Sometimes we just carry on pretending things are nothing to do with us and then reality chimes in.

Wish you all the best ,hope you’ll do lots more posting on the boards.
Most of all tell it like it is ,maybe you will help someone else.

15

That’s terrible news for you, but somehow, I don’t see a mere virus taking the mighty Ayesha down. Good luck with the treatments, and be sure to come back and smack the trolls upside the head as soon as possible!

Heck is where you go when you don’t believe in Gosh.

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Best wishes. Hope to see you at the next HouDope round.

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I’m so sorry to hear of this, Ayesha. You beat it back before and you can do it again. I’m just so sorry you have to wade through this again.

BTW, thanks for the tip. Yeah, I had a blood transfusion in the time frame you said, and never thought to have this screened. Blessings, gal. I’ll talk to my doc.

If strong, good wishes count, you got 'em. (If you want to bitch and vent a lot, please email or IM. I can cuss to peel paint off of walls and fully embrace applied, ugly whining, bitching and pissant grouching.)

Be well, and all good wishes. If concentrated positive thoughts can help, you got 'em.

Veb

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  • Bless your sweet heart, Ayesha!! *

There are always other remissions, and with a heart as gigantic as yours, I know there is one right around the corner!

You’ll be in our prayers, sweetie,

Judy

19

Sorry it has taken this long for me to get back to all of you who have been so kind. I have spent most of this weekend learning more about this nasty stuff.

beatle, heh, don’t write me off yet ! I don’t go to the doctor to ask questions (what genotype of this do I have ? What is my viral load? ect…) and schedule the biopsy (which my Mom may be coming down for, hmmmm)untill May 16th so if we possibly can we will be there.

aha, Brave ? Uh, me ? You didn’t see me trying to escape when they told me I had to get a flu shot ! Prayers are always welcome.

jti, I’m not leaving just yet, but I do get really tired lately. I will be around to flirt , fight, an sometimes whine.

AuntiePam, I am so sorry you are facing this too, you might want to check out the link I put in the op. Hmmmm, maybe we can start our own hep (or maybe hip) dopers support group.
My email is listed, drop me a line or two somethimes. I am hear if you want/need to talk. Ear piercing is something I should have mentioned but just didn’t think of. I’m glad you mentioned it.

elelle, Thanks, I’m not sure of the support groups in Houston I’ll have to check it out.
I never really bothered to lear too much about this at first, because I thought I was going to be different. Hah, well if nothing else I am learning a lot now.

casdave, See another thing I should have thought of ! Health care workers jabbing themselves with needles, it does happen. I know what you mean about the pretending.

neuro-trash grrrl, Thanks ! Hmmmm, “The Mighty Ayesha” I like the sound of that.
Trolls ? there are trolls to be smacked ? Where, just point me in thier direction.

Irishman, Thanks, I’m going to try to show up.

Veb, Thank you. I don’t think they a had a good test for HCV going in the blood supply system till like 1992, I could be wrong (what ?! Did I say that ?!), but better safe than sorry. ANd of course good wishes count ! And so do positive thoughts.

Anti Pro, Thank you so much.

Oh and if you check this again Wally, The people on the Hep.C Board really like your/my sig. I use it there too.

“Ayesha, Who can bend minds with her spoon” WallyM7

Voted SDMB Biggest Flirt (Female) and Least Shy (No Mom, I have no idea why they think that)

20

Hep C & HPV #16/#18 are the newish diseases Im reading about. They aren’t new, as like NEW, but they are ones that new testings seem to detect.

However, this got my thinking,
“After spending several hours Friday morning/afternoon crying and feeling sorry for
myself …”

What can a guy to do to assist a woman through this? I see this sometimes in women & it seems so lame to only hug them.