You Can be Cured of Hepatitis C

It takes a leap of faith to go through Hepatitis C treatment. With the new fast acting medications, you can be cured of Hepatitis C.  It still takes a lot of courage to start and take the drugs. You can Treat to Cure Hepatitis C with a short treatment that only lasts a few weeks or months.

I was on the first wave of the protease inhibitors and took 2 medications and an injection for almost a year. It is exciting to know that many of you will be undected or  Hep C Free! I was going through some old books and ran across one that I first read years ago. One of the quotes that I had underlined jumped off the page. I thought of those who were talking to their medical provider about starting Hep C treatment.

What would you attempt if you knew you wouldn’t  fail? 

I’m pretty sure I bought that book at a garage sale.  This particular line caused me to stand up and take notice. So much has changed since I first read that question.  It really made me stop and think about everything we are all going through right now.  For starters I was diagnosed with Hepatitis C and end stage cirrhosis almost four years ago.  It was hard for me NOT to look at this question without taking a before and after viewpoint.

Before: I felt like I had reached a really brave time in my life.

The bottom line is that I had begun to look at my life from a new perspective.  It was time to look at what I had dreamed of doing with my life.  With that in mind I began to look at what things I wanted to attempt.  Some of them were small things like seeing Eric Clapton live on stage.  I wanted to run a ½ marathon.  I wanted to teach Tai Chi.  Do you have any dreams?

Got a Dream?

This part is hard:  I knew that I had to stretch myself personally in ways that I had never done it before.  I had some wounds from the past, some habits that had not been confronted, and some anxieties that took up too much of my time.  I wanted to attempt to overcome these things.

I was working hard on getting enough momentum to get started on my bright future.  Yet I also felt too tired to start.  I was also battling fatigue and brain fog and did not know why.  My body was achy and nap time seemed to be a daily event. I even napped in my car and that was from brain fog with Hep C.

After: if you’ve read anywhere on my blog, you know about my story so I will not go into the details.  But, after the Hepatitis C diagnosis and liver failure, all the other dreams did not seem so important.  All of a sudden every breath that went out of me could be the last.  It seemed like every face, every tree, every cloud, everything – might be the last thing I would see.

Talk about a new perspective.  Going from a mostly pain free body compared to a less than two year death sentence was pretty radical.  The goals that I had looked toward now seemed truly impossible.

It was time to shift my goals and look at that question again.  I invite you to look at it

What would you attempt if you knew you wouldn’t fail?

Our lists may look somewhat alike. 

Start treatment for Hepatitis C.

Make changes with my food choices.

Walk and stretch every day.

Confront my anxieties.

Let go of the past.

Attempt to recover my life.

Press toward the future.

Before and After Hepatitis C Treatment

I do not know what your “before” looks like. You may be looking at past decisions. Maybe you have thought about making some big changes in relationships, education, or your job.

You may have been putting those things off. It doesn’t matter if you were sitting still or spinning your wheels. Maybe you were waiting for something big to happen that would jumpstart some changes. Maybe you were waiting for a sign from the universe.

When you get a diagnosis like Hepatitis C, it is devastating

Many of you may have gotten the diagnosis years ago.  The liver is a hard working organ, but it eventually gives out, like mine did.

Getting rid of the hepatitis C virus is no longer just a dream.  It has become a reality for many of us.

You can be cured of Hepatitis C

This is an exciting time for anyone with the virus. The word cure has been used and with it, a whole new perspective can be ours. The after is still being written. Yes, we will start treatment and.  We will make any change necessary to live and move into the future..

You are deeply ingrained in my heart even though we have never met. I wanted to share this with you. I want YOU to think about what you would attempt if you knew you could not fail. Push, I say. And then push harder. We’re in it to win it.

Xoxo Karen