Iris Dragonfly wrote:

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So how are you feeling? I'm a little out of the loop. You had to quit early because of your eyes but you achieved svr still? And still good !!! Are your eyes ok? I guess I'm wondering if your experiencing any lasting side effects. (For me it's hard to distinguish what is causing brain fog liver crap or old age!) For you who have been on treatment is it from the drugs?

Anyway good to see you ...fire free

Bb, Iris

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 Yes, I did get the SVR despite only doing 16 of the Friday Night darts.    My right eye had the swollen optic nerve from the interferon, it did pretty much return to normal, although to this day still see an occasional wisp of white smoke, in my field of vision, and sometimes a weird shadowy "paisley" pattern, in low light.    

It's hard to sort out the issues of long term HepC, old age and post tx effects, but in my case I have a few lingering issues which I believe are related to treatment:

1. my upper back frequently has a kind of "burny" nerve pain, and also muscle stiffness.  The Neuropathy in my feet came before tx, so who knows why that came about(think idiopathic ).

2. Still, some heightened anxiety, and ill-defined difficulty coping with normal life experiences, feeling not-quite confident in my abilities, as in life pre tx.

In the Plus column, I generally sleep like a baby, unaided by any medications or supplements.  Or course, it seems like I have to keep moving(like a shark as to, to breath) or I have to burny nerve pain, and won't sleep properly at night, if I get too sedentary during the day.

Iris, are you still experiencing a brain fog?  Any current meds, that might be to blame?

Cinnamon Girl wrote:

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Hi again Tim,

How scary that fire must have been and I hate to imagine what those poor people who lost their home are going through.  Thank goodness you and your family are safe, so good to hear that. 

Yes, you`re right about my avatar rose!  I love tending to my garden, it`s a very relaxing and therapeutic way to spend a few hours. 

Do keep in touch with us, wishing you much good health and happiness! 

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 The highway where some of the worst devastation occurred reopened today; it's my normal route to/from work, so I drove through this afternoon.  The area was a beautiful high chaparral valley, with many Koreans living there, growing fruit and nut tress.  I held my breath in anticipation, as I drove through (West Cajon Valley );  not as bad as I feared, but bad enough.   

You know Jill, it's therapeutic just knowing that your beautiful garden is getting the proper attention that it deserves.  

I'm Hoping that you're feeling better & having more energy these days.  

 our Cinnamon girl is lovely as a rose too!

Wow Tim that must really have been frightening. I watched that with horror at the speed it was moving, seasoned firefighters saying they've never seen anything like it, ever. Really glad you guys are ok. You would have had animals to evacuate as well I imagine?

So how are you feeling? I'm a little out of the loop. You had to quit early because of your eyes but you achieved svr still? And still good !!! Are your eyes ok? I guess I'm wondering if your experiencing any lasting side effects. (For me it's hard to distinguish what is causing brain fog liver crap or old age!) For you who have been on treatment is it from the drugs?

Anyway good to see you ...fire free

Bb, Iris

Hi again Tim,

How scary that fire must have been and I hate to imagine what those poor people who lost their home are going through.  Thank goodness you and your family are safe, so good to hear that. 

Yes, you`re right about my avatar rose!  I love tending to my garden, it`s a very relaxing and therapeutic way to spend a few hours. 

Do keep in touch with us, wishing you much good health and happiness! 

Hey everybody, Good to see you all!

Tig,  You really got the beard going good.   I had one for a while but it got itchy and i got w 'wild hair' and shaved it off.

Jill, I'm glad to hear that you're busy doing things that matter.  I'm guessing that the flower in your avatar is one from your garden...?

Iris Dragonfly wrote:

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Hey Tim! I'm still around here and there. Good to see you and Congratulations!!

Worried for you today, Fire rages nearby. Stay safe my friend. Blessings, Iris

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 Thanks Iris, was 'touch n' go' for a bit, but we were fortunate.   Alot of people lost their homes, I feel badly for them. 

Here's a news link for the fire:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Cut_Fire

Tim, congrats for yet another year SVR.  So good of you to share.,.. Keeps us all going and hopeful.   Enjoy.  Chris

Hey Tim! I'm still around here and there. Good to see you and Congratulations!!

Worried for you today, Fire rages nearby. Stay safe my friend. Blessings, Iris

Hi there, Tim!  Good to hear from you, and big congrats on your 4th year SVR anniversary!! 

I`m very pleased you dropped by to share your good news!  I`m not around so much here nowadays, just busy getting on with my life, and I was very pleased to see your post.  You were an inspiration to so many of us here the way you dealt with the problems you encountered along the way while on tx, and I`m very glad you`re back in the workplace and continuing to help others. 

Take care, we`ll look forward to hearing from you again some time!   

Hi Tim,

i really appreciated your recent post - congrats on being #4 - and on going back to work. 

I also really appreciated your succinct way of expressing treatment side effects and your own head space. 

Wishing you many more years to sort all this out.

Syd

Hey Tim,

Yikes! Doesn't seem possible my friend. You struggled through some very tough treatment and came out victorious, in spite of the hurdles you faced. 

Tim was one of our Moderators when I first came to the forum and helped me through some of my own rough patches. He's a person we can all learn something from. Living through some of the worst side effects treatment had to offer, then on to SVR and back into the work force after retirement. Ol Tim doesn't know the word "quit" and we're all better for it my friend!

Wishing you all the best Horsetrader Tim. Congratulations on #4 

Gosh, I don't know what happened to anniversary #2 and 3, but today is my 4th post tx anniversary. It's good to see familiar faces, although I think the majority of folks posting previously in this thread have gone "inactive" on the forum.

Alot of what I posted in the original post still applies, (the good, the not-good). But, I continue to look for solutions for life's challenges and not consider barriers to be insurmountable or permanent.

I don't recall if I mentioned it, but I returned to full time work a year ago, this past April.  Working in a men's prison, yea...another Hep C palace(approx.40%  HCV infected). 

Anyway, I just wanted to say Hi, and hope everyone's doing well.    

Glad to hear it Tim. You have been a big help on this forum and gave people who's TX have been cut short some hope. Very good luck to you.

@Mary J, what can i say, your the bomb. Loved hearing from you this whole year you been on the forum. Keep up the positive attitude and be cool. ~Bob~

Congrats Tim SVR baby it is ... dig it ...another one bites the dust...

I am  right on your heels on my 1  Year Anniversary of the battle with the dragon.. Today !! Celebrating by being able to babysit my 2 1/2 year old granddaughter for a week... amazing what a difference a year makes...It's been a struggle for me as well.. anxiety.. memory bleeps..  good Old IBS .. I've still  procrastinated with the eye doc & other appts.. Mental mind melt to walk in the doctors office ... Still need to regain upper body strength.. and hair is thinner than ever.. but for me my spiritual journey has made me even more mellow...  can't fix stupid and can't change folks so I just chill with my dogs.. They are great company and don't ask to borrow money or drive your car or pay their car insurance..

Thanks to all my friends on this discussion board .. I couldn't have done it w/o your help, encouragement, and advice.. big hug to all.. going for my final 6 mo. PT ck up next Friday 9/20.... hugs to all Peace and love MJ stay strong all my dragon slayer friends may it just be a memory...

What a great way to celebrate your amazing `one year post tx` result, Tim!!!  The last year certainly hasn`t been easy for you and it`s great for us to be able to share your joy...SVR is certainly is!!  How wonderful that your tx has succeeded against all the odds, fantastic!!

Relax and enjoy your boat trip, and we look forward to seeing pics...I want to see a big smile on your face, never mind the fish!! 

Wishing nothing but the best for you and your family as you move forward with your virus-free life.

Thanks you guys!   I  may get "writer's block" from time-to-time, but ya'all know how much everyone here is just the best, in my view.  

mallani wrote:

Hi Tim, What a year you've had. Abbreviated Rx, almost losing your eyesight, the stress of wondering whether you will relapse plus your anxiety and depression issues. Your story is an inspiration and I couldn't be happier for you!  SVR baby it is. What a crazy disease this is. You and Judy S who relapsed after her Rx was abrupted terminated then became Undet. again, show that anything is possible. Cheers mate and thanks!

 I was just thinking of Judy S recently, haven't seen her on the forums, I hope that means that she's doing really great, and living life at full speed.

BTW,   I'll be on a 3 day fishing trip out of Point Loma starting tomorrow.  I'll post up some fishing pictures when I get back.  Hopefully, there will be ALOT of fish pictures, and not just a fancy boat ride. 

Hi Tim, What a year you've had. Abbreviated Rx, almost losing your eyesight, the stress of wondering whether you will relapse plus your anxiety and depression issues. Your story is an inspiration and I couldn't be happier for you!  SVR baby it is. What a crazy disease this is. You and Judy S who relapsed after her Rx was abrupted terminated then became Undet. again, show that anything is possible. Cheers mate and thanks!

Congratulations Tim,

Excellent news mate well done.

Wish you and your family all the very best,

Greg

Update

Yesterday, I met with the NP that managed my tx; she reviewed my last couple set of labs, and (with a little prompting) did actually utter:

As I had been informed a week or so ago of the VL results, her proclamation was a bit anticlimactic and more of a formality but,

It's always good to hear!

Hi Tim,

The Undetected part of your post is fantastic, given your abbreviated Rx. I'm glad the optic nerve damage is not too serious. I'm sorry to hear about the continued anxiety/depression and hope that will pass. I am still not back to preRx 'normal' but feel great. I hope your 'joy' returns, as you do so much to help fellow Forum Members. Cheers, mate.

Hi Tim, I wish you the very best. Take care of your eye.

I value and appreciate everyone's responses on a personal level, it does mean a lot to be surrounded by people who understand and care. Sometimes just being able to talk about a problem with someone is the way to the solution. Of course the saying immortalized by Clint Eastwood as Homicide Inspector Harry Callahan: "A man has got to know his limitations" is way up on top of my all time favorites quotes, right up there with  "do you feel lucky", another Inspector Callahan quote. I feel very lucky in life- blessed would be more accurate.

I will be interested to get the 1 year post TX labs and visit with my NP on the 9^th of September; she's very interested in patient's recovery, more than "just a job". Any comments from patients about treatment/post treatment will be entered into their database, which is no doubt shared by the HCV medical community.

Anyway, thanks to all here for just being here, and for making this community a wonderful experience.

Hey Tim, great to hear you are still clear. Thank God!

I can identify with some of your post tx issues. It definitely has change my body chemistry to some degree. I've found that it's getting better with time for me. I do try to exercise as much as possible and that has helped me, I believe.

Keep moving forward and I think it's also great that you are aware of these things and trying to do something about them.

Take care!

Hi Tim, thanks for your very open and honest update.  Seems like your experience post treatment has been quite mixed so far, and I`m glad to see some very positive points in there too!  Having more energy and getting your fitness back is wonderful of course, as is being virus free after a very difficult time on tx.

I think many people find that going through tx changes them in one way or another, physically or emotionally, and I must say that the some of the `riba rage` symptoms I had on tx have stayed with me to a certain extent.  My tolerance levels are a lot lower nowadays and I`m quicker to snap at people than I used to be, which for me isn`t always a bad thing as I wasn`t always very good at standing up for myself.  I don`t hesitate now if I feel I`m not being treated fairly and know that I`m in the right.

It`s a good idea to get some help with the anxiety and depression, I think, and I quite agree that relying on pills is certainly not an ideal solution, even though they can be helpful in the short-term.

You`re doing great, so keep moving forward, Tim, wishing you all the best. 

Congrats Tim on your one year anniversary

You have slayed / beaten the big dragon but the time a unforeseen occurrences befall us all, and now you might be noticing the lesser issues that come with age and TX. With your great attitude and vision to see a way through a problem / situation you will feel better & better as time passes.

Aging near or past 60 and doing any HCV is a challenge for the most healthiest of people, add in the stress of this current system of things and we all need to move to a laid back Island like Kauai , Hawaii

Sometimes I have to say to myself one of my favorite sayings from a Clint Eastwood movie " A man has got to know his limitations" For me its a mental battle first then a physical, kind of like what happens when we know that we should exercise but can't seem to get started, but once we do get started and move our blood / raise our pulse rate and enjoy the sense of well being that comes,  then we wonder why it was so hard to get started. I guess that why rich people hired a health / workout coach.

The scripture that says "the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak" really captures the point in a nutshell. The problem I find as I age is,  I have less days that I have both the spirit and the energy. Therefore the saying pick your days/ know your limits.

Anyway look at it Tim,  your contribution to the forum and the honesty that you give about life and your story is to be commended and exemplify.

Matt   

Hi Tim...I do remember the eye problem...that was a scary time...you have come a long way.

Sounds like you have a great plan, one that will take you were you need to be.  

All the best..thanks for sharing.

Good Luck Tim, i hope things only get better and better for you. Keep up the good work.

Tim great post and update, I'd grade it as "E" for excellent. Working on physical heath and regaining muscle mass is still something I'm procrastinating on. Kudo's for getting your butt to the gym. Hope the eye thing improves.

I only 9 weeks post treatment, not doing a viral load till November. I glad you brought up having some anxiety, at times I'm not so sure how I'm doing. Seems like I'm more fragile or frail then I ever have been, emotions running hot and cold and water is not running off the backs of my ducks. I'm trying to work it into the 2nd Step of AA, "being returned to sound thinking". I can relate to having a muted sense of creativity.

...was actually yesterday, the 8th of August, but I debated as to whether or not it would be significant to mention, since my "one year" labs won't be done for another 3 weeks or so.   However, I thought I'd post the rest of my one year Report Card:

The good

1. I''ve been virus free, at least as of March 2013 labs.

2. I have more energy than I've had in decades!

3. I've been taking that energy to the gym, to try and regain the muscle mass that I lost during treatment.   I'm also doing cardio training for weight loss, which along with simply reducing the 3 evil substances in my diet(eg:Fat, Suger, Salt) has resulted in a loss of 35 pounds, and lowering my risk for liver cancer by getting my BMI under 30.

The not-good

1. The damage done by the Pegasys to my right optic nerve has healed about as much as it's going to. My right eye is still very light sensitive, and as such I don't venture out in the sunlight without sun glasses.  I still see "artifacts" in my right hand vision, in low lighting situations.      I am very thankful that only one eye was affected, please understand that. 

2. I continue to have more-than-expected muscle aches and joint pains, so I have to be careful with my gym workout.  I think that I may have aggravated an existing hiatal hernia, which previously was non-symptomatic.  I'm hoping that will heal on it's own, I'm taking Prilosec and have made changes to eating habits, to avoid the horrible heartburn effects.

3. Since the [premature] end of my treatment, I've had struggles dealing with anxiety.  I don't know if the drugs damaged my neurons, or if it is a form of "PTSD", as one member suggested in an earlier thread.   I don't think that I have any more stressful events in my life, than I did before treatment, but I do see my body/mind reaction to stressors  is more pronounced since tx.     I'm currently taking Ambien for sleep problems as well.

After I get clear of some already scheduled medical and dental appointments, I'll be contacting Kaiser's Behavioral Health department for help dealing with the anxiety and depression.   I know that there are behavioral therapy approaches to treating A&D; I dearly DO NOT wish to depend on drugs for control of these symptoms for the rest of my life!

I would hesitate to assign a letter grade to this report, as right now my sense of well being is a bit of a mixed bag.     Intellectually, I know that my life / health has drastically improved...for that I am profoundly grateful.   The "feeling" inside me, the feeling of joy(for example) is just muted, like having a dark shadow across that part of my existence.   I would like to get that joy back, someday.