gojuman wrote:

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Again thanks everyone. Canuck I was so excited I didn't really ask any questions. He said he would see me in 6 months. So I'm guessing more test.

 

Mike

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 Mike that is standard procedure. That is I believe a SVR 52. Data gathering is still important and that is what they are doing for the most part going forward.

Carol is doing an SVR 24 this Friday.

JimmyK

Awesome news. Very happy for you and your family Mike!

Again thanks everyone. Canuck I was so excited I didn't really ask any questions. He said he would see me in 6 months. So I'm guessing more test.

Mike

It feels Great to say...

I told ya so!

Carolyn and I knew it all along brother. It is our time.

JimmyK

WOOHOO!!! Congrats Mike, that's fantastic news. We're all thrilled you shared your SVR12 with us. Now you can relax, reflect and realize that you did it!  

Excellent news

There was never any doubt and we just keep adding to the list of cured people in here. So many since the beginning of 2016.

It's great to see and congrats.

SF

Hey gojuman!

Big CON-GRATS on your EOT+12 weeks SVR!!! UND is a beautiful thing, but you know that, as you have been practicing it so well since week 4!

Just wonderful for you and your gal.

I know how grateful you feel for these new miraculous drugs we have nowadays.

A new lease on life, virus free.

Keep us posted on how everything is and how everything is going for you two.

You will continue to keep feeling real good about your viral load being wiped out and off the face of this earth with your next UND coming up at EOT+24 weeks. Are they going to give you another fibroscan and abd. ultrasound at some point following?, I hope so, ask for those, if they do not offer.

You did it! Good goin' man.  C.

FANTASTIC, Mike.  

What a relief.  You're going to be riding high on this for a while.  Keep drinking water and being good to yourself as the gunk gets flushed from your system.

This is the best news of my day. I need a happy dance.

Cheddy

Doc called today said svr CURED!! Thank you god and Giliad science. And all you wonderfull people  here for your support.

What Jimmy said - autopilot!

Hi Mike,

Yes I kind of added your data to my tracker. Vested interest and all LOL.

Your first pill was May 11th. Add 84 days and EOT is Aug 3rd. Add to that another 84 to arrive at time to test for SVR12 = October 26th.

Your program has gone off without a hitch and you are now on auto pilot to the final destination. Fantastic!

JimmyK

Not sure jimmy.doc said I will see you in 3 months. My last pill was a week ago.

Congratulations, Mike!

These are the posts we want to see.

SF

Good work, Mike.  How nice that you didn't have disturbing sides and are taking such good care of yourself.  I wouldn't be surprised if you feel even better as you continue to clear out the meds.

Congratulations, Mike! 

Congrats never doubted it for a moment in your case.

Can you confirm your next draw is 10/26/16 for SVR 12?

Thanks Brother!

JimmyK

Tears of joy still undetected.

Hi Mike,

You're doing great! It's nice to hear that your Tx is going so well.

I think much of that is your own doing, your training, your drinking this much water, all great stuff!

We all have thoughts of "What If", I do it from time to time, everyone I know does, but those thoughts have nothing to do with reality, it's natural to try to steel ourselves for the worst what if but you've been compliant in taking your meds, doing everything you can to make Tx successful. You will soon see EOT and soon after SVR, I have no doubt you will be cured and rid of the Dragon forever!

Be Well and Godspeed on reaching SVR,

Dave

Banish that thought Mike.  You are nearing the station, feeling good so let's rejoice in that. 

Hi Mike, Can't wait to hear "I took my last pill".  When HCV is gone, it's gone - at least for 96% of us.  The other 4% just have a weird gene and then they have to get on another train and then they're good.  We are so fortunate to be living in these times.  I feel bad for the many in the past who didn't survive because it was before these "miracle" drugs.

Thought  I would drop a few lines and let everyone know I started bottle 3 today. I still don't have any phisical  side affects thank god. The ride is smooth all of you told me that thank you. I'm very active gym ect ect. Drinking h20 over gallon per day. I actually like it now I think I will continue after treatment. Been feeling a little bummed thinking after that last pill the dragon  will show its  face again. I know I'm good as long as I swollow that pill.lol. I hope it never returns. Anyway thanks guys for all your support you have no idea how much you help me. My wife laura  said thanks to all of you.

Mike

gojuman wrote:

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Correction..alt 19 ast 17 chloride was 98. I'm drinking over gallon per day. I will definitely  try some Gatorade.  Thanks guys.

 

Mike

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Your chloride is at the low end of normal. 98 is not concerning. If you get to around 70 you then need to take note. 98 is cool. The scale itself for "Normal Range" is 98-106. That is not a huge swag and as such, no worries.

Coconut Water and Raw Cranberry juice. 2/3 to 1/3. Great break from water and hydrates better while cleansing the liver. Good stuff and tastes pretty good too. 

JimmyK 

I recommend a powder called Ultima to replace all 6 electrolytes plus minerals.  It comes in a variety of flavors and it's all natural and sweetened with stevia.  It's not as high in sodium or calories as Gatorade, and it helps me drink lots more water.  I must say though, I did enjoy getting to eat a bit more salt than I normally would have since I was flushing it out so often.  As with any replacement supplements, don't overdo it and end up with levels that are too high.  I use far less of the powder than recommended.  (No, I am not a product rep.)

Correction..alt 19 ast 17 chloride was 98. I'm drinking over gallon per day. I will definitely  try some Gatorade.  Thanks guys.

Mike

Hi Mike,

Your ALT and AST are excellent, that's a good indication of a happy liver. I agree that your electrolyte levels will fluctuate during treatment and as long as they are close to normal ranges, there isn't anything to worry about. One thing with low chloride, it can be an indication that you're not hydrating enough. Make sure you're taking in enough fluids and if you're continuing to work out a lot, be sure you're adding for the increased fluid and electrolyte losses that perspiration bring on.

Hey Mike,

To be honest it is not possible to properly respond without first defining what "a little low" is. Do you have a number you can toss out there?

Thanks

JimmyK

Gojuman,

Assume you meant your Alt was 19, and your Ast was 17? Or, you've had 2 ALTs in a row that were within lovely normal range! Either way, what a great 4 week result:  und, everything crashing the way they should be crashing. Life is good!

Dr. Canuck and Dr. Linux concur, in our tentative preliminary diagnosis - that a lower chloride result may just be a blip of being well hydrated. If you feel good, all is good. And you should be feeling real stellar right now with wonderful 4 week results like that!

I (generally) maintained quite a low salt diet throughout my treatment (not that I consumed a very high salt diet for decades now) but I doubly ensured I was well water-logged (especially the night before and the morning of my blood draws) to assist the phlebotomist to get blood out of me. Blood draws are harder for me, and do not always go well, unless I am WELL hydrated. Perhaps your lower chloride is just simply that, you are dilute, shows you are cooperating in the water drinking dept. Not a bad idea gatorade or the like. No symptoms, then no problem. If it was a problem, then they would have brought it to your attnetion.

Water is good, the occasional gatorade is good, life is good! Happy for you. C.

Yeah, I wouldn't worry about a low chloride.  Most tests fluctuate a bit and a little bit above or below the reference range is essentially the same as normal.

I'm no doctor either but I've never come across chloride issues before.  Low sodium can be associated with drinking more water like Linuxter says and from my chemistry at school days chloride binds to sodium, and low sodium is usually from drinking lots of water so, ergot, low chloride could be too.

P

I'm no doctor and if you are concerned you should talk to one but the chloride being low could just be from drinking more water, (low is a relative term, if it's within range you are golden ... if not, perhaps a. gatorade would bump it to within range). Don't back off on the water ... it's essential.

Dave

Thanks guys. I  guess I could put little more info but I was so excited.

Alt 19 Alt 17 everything else was in the normal range. Accept my chloride was little llow.Not sure why. Should I be concerned? 

Mike

Hey Mike, I told you so! Congratulations.

Way to go Mike! That dragon is down for the count. Keep up the good work!

wow, speedy results Gojuman. 

Congrats!!!

Syd

Hey gojuman,

Man of few words!! But what more important could be said.

Hey, hey! Good going! Really nice!

8 more weeks and you'll be a brand new man, with a whole new kind of life, without C. Actually ... you were a brand new man at 4 weeks! Come to think of it ... really, you were a brand new man the days just before you took that very first pill!!

Good on you. Congrats.  C.

YIPPPEEEE Gonna go lift now and dedicate it to you!

gojuman wrote:

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UNDETECTED!!

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 I do believe I just DETECTED a huge GRIN! 

Keep up the great work brother! You got this!

JimmyK

Wooohoo, great news, how about that for kicking dragon ass. Congratulations, especially as it was a shaky beginning. :D

Hi Mike---- That was fast!!!!!    Your UND really early, you got this!  RC

LOL, "UNDETECTED" pretty much says it all, congrats on that!

Dave

UNDETECTED!!

Just to add a final thought.

If you are having no side affects, you are doing fine the way you are doing things. As far as if it is working, they will pull your blood tomorrow and a bout 3 days or so later, they will tell you you are UND.

 ;)

JimmyK

Hi Mike,

Sorry you were unsure of my meaning. The others have explained it very well. You simply need to slow down a gear and concentrate less on running your life like a sprint and more like a jog. Plenty of rest, proper hydration, eat properly and let the treatment do it's magic. Stay active, but no need to run marathons right now, (figure of speech). There will be plenty of days ahead to resume that demanding workout routine.  Good luck!

If I may.

I believe the key here is the fact that proper exercise tends to consume fluid.

Harvoni also consumes fluid.

Each have their own draw from and require more hydration.

Proper exercise can be actually gauged on an accurate scale.  One can weigh in before a routine and come in at X. After the routine you are x-?.

For every 1 pound lost during exercise, you should then be taking in an additional 16oz of water. 

Joe works out for an hour during which time he loses 1 lb. Joe drank 8 oz of water while doing the one hour workout. Next time around therefore Joe should drink 24 oz of water while doing a like one hour routine. Joe should, given the results, drink 6 oz every 15 minutes while performing a like routine.

That is how to properly hydrate DURING exercise and a simple formula to follow. That does not include pre and post workout.

Now when you add Harvoni to the routine you have a competing factor for hydration. To be honest this is something more to be aware of than afraid of. You can do both but what you are used to doing in terms of hydration has taken on a new factor to consider.

You can over exert yourself without Harvoni as most folks realize. That results in dehydration which is no fun. Forget the pulled muscles and stuff that is a simple matter of form and can happen regardless of hydration.

If you are used to working out and properly hydrating just understand the rules have changed a bit. Routines can over time become mechanical. Be aware that the rules have changed a bit is all.

JimmyK

Hey Mike,

Tig did say don't overdue it. You may want to take an extra day off or go down from a couple hours a day in the gym to an hour. 

I work out 4-5 times a week and during treatment just knocked it down to 4 and they were one hour each. With lots of water

wendy

Hi Mike, Harvoni attacks the virus at two different sites on the virus itself.With these two sites under attack from the Harvoni, the virus is unable to reproduce itself, thus shutting down the hcv factory. With the factory shut down, your immune system is able to kill the virus in your system. The factory produces more virus than your immune system can kill, so if you shut down the factory with Harvoni - Wola- you can keep up and kill all the virus on your own. What I think Tig is saying is that you need to be well rested, and use your body energy to kill the virus.   Hope this helps.   RC

Tig I'm not sure I understand what your telling me. If your saying by working out to much will cause my body to not heal from hep c or cause harvoni not to respond killing the virus. I'm a little concerned. If I understood more on how harvoni worked would help. I don't think I'm over doing it. I took a leave of absence for 90 days on treatment. I don't really do alot during  the day. About 3 pm I hit the gym couple  hrs or jog. Weekend's baseball. I do play pete rose style full blast. Anyway I hope I'm not over working. I'm just doing what everyone  said live like you did before meds. 

Mike

Good to hear from you Mike with the good news. I 2nd what Tig said, don't overwork your body and give it the rest it needs too. I had the same feeling that the Harvoni wasn't working because I had experienced lots of side effects on my previous treatment with ribavirin, but it was indeed working as my SVR proved. Stay compliant with your medicine schedule and you will see SVR too, and be back to Red Bulls and protein powder soon enough. Post your lab results here when you get them so we can congratulate you on your progress that those will show.

Sounds like everything is going very well, Mike! Your physical routine is commendable, just don't overdue it. You're in the middle of a battle, take time to rest and let your body and those medications fight the virus. If you tire yourself out, you're expending energy that your metabolism uses to fight that battle. Double headers and full gym workouts, while you're taking these meds is asking a lot. If you're doing a lot of sweating, you're going to need additional fluids and electrolytes, on top of the required 3-4 liters. 

Looking forward to your upcoming test results, good luck!

Dude your blood work Wed is for your 4 week Viral Load. I will be interested to see your post when it comes back UND.

This is good stuff! Thanks for the post! I will tell Carolyn.

JimmyK

Sorry about not posting. I been chugging along. Tomorrow is my last pill of the first bottle. No side affects. Makes me wonder if its working or not. I got tired yesterday after double header baseball game all day in the sun and headache so I took a Tylenol first time in 30 yrs and all was good. Been drinking over gallon water per day that not so bad after you get use to it. Doctor needs to see me Wednesday for blood work. Also had problems couple weeks ago receiving bottle #2. being I waited 30 days before I started insurance company thought I was flimflamming them. So my doc got it strait thank the lord. Other than that still hitting gym wish I could drink my red bulls and protein powder. Im happy for your wife jimmy tell her congratulations. Thank you all for your support.

mike