Welcome to the group, glad you found us. Don't worry about the side effects, chances are you won't experience much of anything. Follow Canucks advice and pour on the water, every single day you take these drugs. It's liquid gold and will keep the headaches and malaise down to a minimum. If you start to feel poorly, the first thing is to consider your water intake. It really does matter.
You may feel a bit out of sorts for a couple weeks. You may notice some differences in how you feel, it's completely normal if you do. Some have stated they thought they were on a placebo because the felt no changes whatsoever. These new treatments are as easy as they get and take half the time, at double the rates of success. That old stuff about wiped me out! I'm glad you don't have to experience that 6-12 months of hell. None of the potential side effects are difficult enough to cause you worry. Brain fog is part of HCV for many people, if you haven't had a problem before, you probably won't as a result of treatment. Just drink the water, eat right and get the rest you should be getting anyway!
I moved this to the General Discussion thread. Once you start, please do as Canuck said and start something new in the On Treatment section or use one of the established Epclusa threads. If you're not sure how to proceed, just ask. Use our Home page and the search function to look around. We've got some good information and even greater people here. Let us know if we can help you with anything. Good luck tonight!
CodeNinja said
May 12, 2017
Thanks for the info. It seems very helpful and makes me feel better about starting today. It's strange how fast this process started moving though. I almost didn't get approved and I actually got a letter stating my insurance declined Epclusa at first. Then about a week or two later, my doctor somehow got them to change their minds.
For the questions you asked, I'm pretty sure I have genotype 2b and last time I got a blood test I was around 5-6 mill viral load. I have had it for 4 years that I know of but it could have been longer. I have had a few ultrasounds and a biopsy and they told me both ultrasounds were within normal ranges. The biopsy was a year or two ago so it may not be as relevant today. I have never had a fibroscan and don't know my ALT/AST/Bilirubin (Not sure what that is but a quick google search says it has to do with liver function right?). I am up to date on my immunizations as well.
I'll be starting later tonight and I'll let you know how it goes. Again, thanks for the info.
Edit:
Forgot to ask. So some of the effects felt by people after treatment stops are probably due to them already having some of the effects before treatment and expecting to feel great afterwards? Or could it be that they felt great on treatment and when they stopped, they started feeling as they were before starting?
-- Edited by CodeNinja on Friday 12th of May 2017 07:17:09 PM
-- Edited by CodeNinja on Friday 12th of May 2017 07:47:43 PM
Canuck said
May 12, 2017
Hi CodeNinja,
Welcome to the forum. We can try to help with questions.
Good you provided a little info about your situ, you could also start a little "introductory thread" over in the "New Members" area to get more exposure and to meet more of the others there, just to start with, but I will try to pick up on your most burning questions here at the moment.
Big congratulations, BTW, that you received epclusa, you are soon to be rid of your HCV! It is a very effective regime with few sides, GT2's generally respond easily to treatment, and I would say, especially very well to epclusa - we are very lucky indeed (nowadays) to be able to receive these new drugs such as epclusa. How exciting (and a bit scary?) to be starting your treatment as soon as tomorrow?? - don't be nervous, you'll soon see, wading into this unfamiliar and "unknown" territory often carries trepidation for us, but it will work and you are going to be OK!
Once you have started treatment you could also start your own thread under "On Treatment", or join one of the other threads where many "epclusians" have been posting about their epclusa journeys, like in "Epcluser's Corner".
Get a water supply ready for your start tomorrow, make sure you douse yourself with lots (and I mean) LOTS of water, EVERY DAY, about a gal. per day, take portable containers of water with you if you are out and about, and make sure you get this gal. per day into you, without fail - VERY IMPORTANT - it helps VERY much to prevent any sides such as headaches, which seems to be the most common.
I was on epclusa, BUT I also had a third drug added to it, "VOX", so how I felt on treatment is not directly comparable to just being on epclusa alone. EVERYONE can have a slightly different experience while on epclusa, for many it has not been too bad at all, mostly I would generalize by saying the majority felt "something" to minor degrees, some felt more, but almost exclusively everyone tolerated whatever they did feel, I have only met one person who thought she was not tolerating epclusa (but I am convinced she had other reasons why she was feeling uncomfortable) - some folks here have felt NOTHING, at all (really!), others noticed minor stomache things for a few days, mostly always just in the beginning, some (if they felt headaches or had any stomache things) it was most often just in the start - AND it IS so easy not to drink enough water, some people (like me and few others) did not always drink enough water, and learned the hard way, why we may have experienced some more headaches than others did. Never were my headaches bad enough to take a headache pill mind you.
Do NOT expect sides, you might just be surprized, when it turns out that none materialize!
Fog, same thing, everyone is different and (I think) it all depends on where you are coming from (I had fog BEFORE treatment, and many other HCV related symptoms too) these things did not stop for me during treatment, and took a while for them to start improving after treatment, but they did and are, as I am regaining my health back and no longer being badly affected by the HCV.
I am cured of my HCV, and thankful EVERY DAY for these drugs I got.
So, you are young and otherwise generally healthy - this then should help make this treatment a breeze for you. Tell us a bit more if you can ... like, about your genotype 2 ... do you happen to know what your "sub-type" is - are you a GT2a or a GT2b?, do you know what your viral load is?, do you know how long you may have had HCV?, did you have an ultrasound?, did you have a fibroscan done to know your "Fscore"?, and do you know what your ALT/AST/bilirubin is? Are you up to date on your immunizations?
Others will be along to say hello and help where we can - but you might meet more of us sooner or more easily over in the intro area under "New Members", perhaps tomorrow you can just start up writing in your very own "On Treatment" thread if you choose. A signature line is a helpful "at a glance" way to share info as well, makes it easier for all to respond better, when your basic info is outined this way.
I am glad you are getting started tomorrow and that you have come here. Don't worry. Start firing away for questions. We'll be glad to help where we can. C.
CodeNinja said
May 11, 2017
I just got approved for treatment last week with Epclusa. I received the first months supply yesterday and I'm planning on taking my first dose tomorrow. I remembered reading some stores about people having some post treatment effects so I started looking into it a bit more and I am seeing quite a few people with brain fog or other issues for months after treatment with the newer medications.
So I have a few questions for people who are a bit more educated with others experiences or their own.
Do people report having post treatment effects (generally feeling worse) more often then not? What are some of the worst effects? Have there been any studies done on post treatment effects?
I just want to know what to be prepared for. I don't have any other medical conditions, 25 years old, genotype 2.
Thanks for any help.
Hi Mike,
Welcome to the group, glad you found us. Don't worry about the side effects, chances are you won't experience much of anything. Follow Canucks advice and pour on the water, every single day you take these drugs. It's liquid gold and will keep the headaches and malaise down to a minimum. If you start to feel poorly, the first thing is to consider your water intake. It really does matter.
You may feel a bit out of sorts for a couple weeks. You may notice some differences in how you feel, it's completely normal if you do. Some have stated they thought they were on a placebo because the felt no changes whatsoever. These new treatments are as easy as they get and take half the time, at double the rates of success. That old stuff about wiped me out! I'm glad you don't have to experience that 6-12 months of hell. None of the potential side effects are difficult enough to cause you worry. Brain fog is part of HCV for many people, if you haven't had a problem before, you probably won't as a result of treatment. Just drink the water, eat right and get the rest you should be getting anyway!
I moved this to the General Discussion thread. Once you start, please do as Canuck said and start something new in the On Treatment section or use one of the established Epclusa threads. If you're not sure how to proceed, just ask. Use our Home page and the search function to look around. We've got some good information and even greater people here. Let us know if we can help you with anything. Good luck tonight!
Thanks for the info. It seems very helpful and makes me feel better about starting today. It's strange how fast this process started moving though. I almost didn't get approved and I actually got a letter stating my insurance declined Epclusa at first. Then about a week or two later, my doctor somehow got them to change their minds.
For the questions you asked, I'm pretty sure I have genotype 2b and last time I got a blood test I was around 5-6 mill viral load. I have had it for 4 years that I know of but it could have been longer. I have had a few ultrasounds and a biopsy and they told me both ultrasounds were within normal ranges. The biopsy was a year or two ago so it may not be as relevant today. I have never had a fibroscan and don't know my ALT/AST/Bilirubin (Not sure what that is but a quick google search says it has to do with liver function right?). I am up to date on my immunizations as well.
I'll be starting later tonight and I'll let you know how it goes. Again, thanks for the info.
Edit:
Forgot to ask. So some of the effects felt by people after treatment stops are probably due to them already having some of the effects before treatment and expecting to feel great afterwards? Or could it be that they felt great on treatment and when they stopped, they started feeling as they were before starting?
-- Edited by CodeNinja on Friday 12th of May 2017 07:17:09 PM
-- Edited by CodeNinja on Friday 12th of May 2017 07:47:43 PM
Hi CodeNinja,
Welcome to the forum. We can try to help with questions.
Good you provided a little info about your situ, you could also start a little "introductory thread" over in the "New Members" area to get more exposure and to meet more of the others there, just to start with, but I will try to pick up on your most burning questions here at the moment.
Big congratulations, BTW, that you received epclusa, you are soon to be rid of your HCV! It is a very effective regime with few sides, GT2's generally respond easily to treatment, and I would say, especially very well to epclusa - we are very lucky indeed (nowadays) to be able to receive these new drugs such as epclusa. How exciting (and a bit scary?) to be starting your treatment as soon as tomorrow?? - don't be nervous, you'll soon see, wading into this unfamiliar and "unknown" territory often carries trepidation for us, but it will work and you are going to be OK!
Once you have started treatment you could also start your own thread under "On Treatment", or join one of the other threads where many "epclusians" have been posting about their epclusa journeys, like in "Epcluser's Corner".
Get a water supply ready for your start tomorrow, make sure you douse yourself with lots (and I mean) LOTS of water, EVERY DAY, about a gal. per day, take portable containers of water with you if you are out and about, and make sure you get this gal. per day into you, without fail - VERY IMPORTANT - it helps VERY much to prevent any sides such as headaches, which seems to be the most common.
I was on epclusa, BUT I also had a third drug added to it, "VOX", so how I felt on treatment is not directly comparable to just being on epclusa alone. EVERYONE can have a slightly different experience while on epclusa, for many it has not been too bad at all, mostly I would generalize by saying the majority felt "something" to minor degrees, some felt more, but almost exclusively everyone tolerated whatever they did feel, I have only met one person who thought she was not tolerating epclusa (but I am convinced she had other reasons why she was feeling uncomfortable) - some folks here have felt NOTHING, at all (really!), others noticed minor stomache things for a few days, mostly always just in the beginning, some (if they felt headaches or had any stomache things) it was most often just in the start - AND it IS so easy not to drink enough water, some people (like me and few others) did not always drink enough water, and learned the hard way, why we may have experienced some more headaches than others did. Never were my headaches bad enough to take a headache pill mind you.
Do NOT expect sides, you might just be surprized, when it turns out that none materialize!
Fog, same thing, everyone is different and (I think) it all depends on where you are coming from (I had fog BEFORE treatment, and many other HCV related symptoms too) these things did not stop for me during treatment, and took a while for them to start improving after treatment, but they did and are, as I am regaining my health back and no longer being badly affected by the HCV.
I am cured of my HCV, and thankful EVERY DAY for these drugs I got.
So, you are young and otherwise generally healthy - this then should help make this treatment a breeze for you. Tell us a bit more if you can ... like, about your genotype 2 ... do you happen to know what your "sub-type" is - are you a GT2a or a GT2b?, do you know what your viral load is?, do you know how long you may have had HCV?, did you have an ultrasound?, did you have a fibroscan done to know your "Fscore"?, and do you know what your ALT/AST/bilirubin is? Are you up to date on your immunizations?
Others will be along to say hello and help where we can - but you might meet more of us sooner or more easily over in the intro area under "New Members", perhaps tomorrow you can just start up writing in your very own "On Treatment" thread if you choose. A signature line is a helpful "at a glance" way to share info as well, makes it easier for all to respond better, when your basic info is outined this way.
I am glad you are getting started tomorrow and that you have come here. Don't worry. Start firing away for questions. We'll be glad to help where we can. C.