You have found a great forum. Honestly, I have not yet seen any jokes about HCV yet but of course, shows of course will use whatever is the hot topic at the moment as fodder for their skits.
Unlike you, I knew when I was exposed (although back then they did not know about HCV) so it was only HBV. I did get very ill and was bed ridden for 7 weeks. It was no fun. My thoughts now is that it was actually the B that took me out but that's another story for another day. Something we are watching very closely right now.
I would try to take the ridicule with a grain of salt. Jokes will never stop about inappropriate things so we might as well just let them go.
In the words of Steve Carell "Of course it's inappropriate, That's why its a joke" Having said that, there are subjects that I just don't think should be touched, but that's me.
Once again, welcome and enjoy your stay!
Tig said
Feb 20, 2016
There are a lot of articles and impressions out here on dealing with the stigma. For those that have known for decades that they were infected, found out, often the hard way, by similar attacks on those affected with HBV and HIV. Disease frightens people and educating the masses needs to hold a higher level of importance. It has improved and I know from experience that while it's better, it still exists. The media needs to cease the jokes and satire, because it often leads to negative inferences. Just my two cents....
Sorry to hear of the losses you have experienced within your family.
I think what you're most likely seeing on SNL is satire (which is, in fact making fun of people who are so ignorant about HCV)
I didn't see that show but they like to make a statement just as you are making a statement how many tend to stereotype people with HCV.
So perhaps you misread their intent, I think they are in fact with you and making the point to educate people how ridiculous their stereotyping is.
Just a thought.
Dave
Tig said
Feb 20, 2016
Hi Joey,
Welcome to the forum. I understand your frustration with the jokes and snide comments. It's not as bad as it was, but I think now that the cure for it is becoming more mainstream, it's garnered the attention of everyone, including the dense, uncaring and unenlightened. The stigma of HCV is a difficult thing to live with, wherever and whenever it rears it's ugly head. We here on the forum feel your pain and disgust for it. I have learned to turn it off the best I can and try to educate the uneducated about our disease. It's all we can do, chip away at it until we can hopefully change some minds.
It really doesn't matter how you got it. You mention that many in your family have tested positive and some even passed from it. I'm sorry for your pain and loss. What matters is finding out where you stand medically, get some current testing done and find out if you have cleared the virus yourself or need to consider treatment. Regardless of how you're feeling, the virus is wreaking hell on your liver and any number of other extra hepatic manifestations can occur. I hope you consider that sometime soon.
If you have any additional information you would like to share, please do. If you know your genotype, liver function tests, etc., will tell us a lot. Of course you're free to review the forum, it offers a ton of good information. There are many friendly and knowledgeable people here and I know they'll be along to welcome you and offer their own feelings and advice.
joey25 said
Feb 20, 2016
I'm not sure when I was exposed to HCV. Probably as a teenager (I'm 52 now). I've never shared needles, and as I understand it's quite hard to get from unprotected sex, I don't think I got it from that either (question mark though). I probably got it from surgery/contaminated needles in hospital during the late 70's. My guess anyway. My liver function has been normal all my life and I just found out I tested positive five years ago during a check up for work in China. As I am not sick, they apparently don't consider me a risk to anyone.
It seems I'm hearing a lot of jokes on SNL and other shows that having HCV is a sign of a sleazy person, which I do not consider myself to be. By the way, my mother-in-law died of it, but lived for decades and died in her late 70's. I have an aunt who died from it quite quickly, and another aunt who is now 85 and still tests normal in liver function. How did they get it? They sure won't 'sleazy' people. I wonder if these shows are using HCV to joke about as HIV would be too politically incorrect? The people the show tend to have punkish hair dos (hey I did too!), tattoos, and body piercing. But don't over half of young Americans have that already?
Just exactly who are they roasting on? Since when did HCV become an STD? I've read in a number of sources that it is only 'rarely' transmitted through sex and that doctors do not advise married couples in which one is a carrier to use protection (for HCV prevention anyway). I was married 18 years and my wife never got it (again, I was no aware I had been exposed), and she was born to a mother who had it (they didn't know about it then) and neither she, her siblings, or her father got it. So who are poking? Drug addicts? Wow, I think it's pretty ignorant.
I would guess that after these decades I am not contagious (well, I can't give blood of course) and that probably my immune system beat it, just as it does in most Hep B patients (who also become non-infectious). Now, HBV IS sexually transmitted easily along with the other routes. Yet HCV gets all the stigma. Reminds of herpes in the 80's, a virus that a whopping 16% of the population has.
I think it's pretty darn mean to make fun of any disease. We all get diseases. And my heart goes out to anyone suffering from liver damage because of HCV. I guess it could hit me too in the future, but I'm not too worried. There's nothing wrong with having a disease- it does not make you yucky. We just have to know how to handle it. Thanks for reading.
Welcome Joey,
You have found a great forum. Honestly, I have not yet seen any jokes about HCV yet but of course, shows of course will use whatever is the hot topic at the moment as fodder for their skits.
Unlike you, I knew when I was exposed (although back then they did not know about HCV) so it was only HBV. I did get very ill and was bed ridden for 7 weeks. It was no fun. My thoughts now is that it was actually the B that took me out but that's another story for another day. Something we are watching very closely right now.
I would try to take the ridicule with a grain of salt. Jokes will never stop about inappropriate things so we might as well just let them go.
In the words of Steve Carell "Of course it's inappropriate, That's why its a joke" Having said that, there are subjects that I just don't think should be touched, but that's me.
Once again, welcome and enjoy your stay!
There are a lot of articles and impressions out here on dealing with the stigma. For those that have known for decades that they were infected, found out, often the hard way, by similar attacks on those affected with HBV and HIV. Disease frightens people and educating the masses needs to hold a higher level of importance. It has improved and I know from experience that while it's better, it still exists. The media needs to cease the jokes and satire, because it often leads to negative inferences. Just my two cents....
Here's some information on the subject:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3812468/
Hi Joey,
Welcome to the forum!
Sorry to hear of the losses you have experienced within your family.
I think what you're most likely seeing on SNL is satire (which is, in fact making fun of people who are so ignorant about HCV)
I didn't see that show but they like to make a statement just as you are making a statement how many tend to stereotype people with HCV.
So perhaps you misread their intent, I think they are in fact with you and making the point to educate people how ridiculous their stereotyping is.
Just a thought.
Dave
Hi Joey,
Welcome to the forum. I understand your frustration with the jokes and snide comments. It's not as bad as it was, but I think now that the cure for it is becoming more mainstream, it's garnered the attention of everyone, including the dense, uncaring and unenlightened. The stigma of HCV is a difficult thing to live with, wherever and whenever it rears it's ugly head. We here on the forum feel your pain and disgust for it. I have learned to turn it off the best I can and try to educate the uneducated about our disease. It's all we can do, chip away at it until we can hopefully change some minds.
It really doesn't matter how you got it. You mention that many in your family have tested positive and some even passed from it. I'm sorry for your pain and loss. What matters is finding out where you stand medically, get some current testing done and find out if you have cleared the virus yourself or need to consider treatment. Regardless of how you're feeling, the virus is wreaking hell on your liver and any number of other extra hepatic manifestations can occur. I hope you consider that sometime soon.
If you have any additional information you would like to share, please do. If you know your genotype, liver function tests, etc., will tell us a lot. Of course you're free to review the forum, it offers a ton of good information. There are many friendly and knowledgeable people here and I know they'll be along to welcome you and offer their own feelings and advice.
I'm not sure when I was exposed to HCV. Probably as a teenager (I'm 52 now). I've never shared needles, and as I understand it's quite hard to get from unprotected sex, I don't think I got it from that either (question mark though). I probably got it from surgery/contaminated needles in hospital during the late 70's. My guess anyway. My liver function has been normal all my life and I just found out I tested positive five years ago during a check up for work in China. As I am not sick, they apparently don't consider me a risk to anyone.
It seems I'm hearing a lot of jokes on SNL and other shows that having HCV is a sign of a sleazy person, which I do not consider myself to be. By the way, my mother-in-law died of it, but lived for decades and died in her late 70's. I have an aunt who died from it quite quickly, and another aunt who is now 85 and still tests normal in liver function. How did they get it? They sure won't 'sleazy' people. I wonder if these shows are using HCV to joke about as HIV would be too politically incorrect? The people the show tend to have punkish hair dos (hey I did too!), tattoos, and body piercing. But don't over half of young Americans have that already?
Just exactly who are they roasting on? Since when did HCV become an STD? I've read in a number of sources that it is only 'rarely' transmitted through sex and that doctors do not advise married couples in which one is a carrier to use protection (for HCV prevention anyway). I was married 18 years and my wife never got it (again, I was no aware I had been exposed), and she was born to a mother who had it (they didn't know about it then) and neither she, her siblings, or her father got it. So who are poking? Drug addicts? Wow, I think it's pretty ignorant.
I would guess that after these decades I am not contagious (well, I can't give blood of course) and that probably my immune system beat it, just as it does in most Hep B patients (who also become non-infectious). Now, HBV IS sexually transmitted easily along with the other routes. Yet HCV gets all the stigma. Reminds of herpes in the 80's, a virus that a whopping 16% of the population has.
I think it's pretty darn mean to make fun of any disease. We all get diseases. And my heart goes out to anyone suffering from liver damage because of HCV. I guess it could hit me too in the future, but I'm not too worried. There's nothing wrong with having a disease- it does not make you yucky. We just have to know how to handle it. Thanks for reading.