Thanks Dr James for the tribute to Gaj and your friend Nick. I also think of Gaj when I sign in. I commented when he left us that it is almost hard to explain the impact that he had on this forum and on me personally. He was a calm and compassionate voice throughout my long treatment. Here’s to Gaj.

Hi MAGA,

Congratulation on your end of treatment and those excellent results. Looking forward to hearing about your SVR12.

Hello Life. It’s great to hear from you and to know that Life is good. I think we were all a little manic back then when we took our great leap of faith into FixHepC and haven’t we been rewarded a million times over?

Wishing you the happiest of new years….

Coral

Hi RockHard,

You are right that it can be overwhelming but you are really working through this to get the best option for you.

I took Ribavirin for 24 weeks so I thought I’d share my experience. My G1 Hep C was particularly difficult to treat . Initially I had 12 weeks of Sofosbuvir/Ledipasvir followed by 12 weeks of Sofosbuvir/Daclatasvir. A few weeks after the end of treatment I relapsed. Only a very very small percentage of people relapse and the treatment options have increased over the last few years.

Pretty much straight away I went onto 24 weeks of the Viekira Pak with Ribavirin. Even though I could have probably stopped the Ribavirin earlier I wanted to make sure that I hit the virus with everything. In comparison to the minimal side effects that I experienced with the first treatment I did have a few more with the Ribavirin. More headaches, disrupted sleep, tiredness, dry hair, dry skin and general blah. However the long term effects of having the virus were mixed in there somewhere so it was hard to separate them. I don’t think I had the Riba Rage – no-one has mentioned it anyway.

For me it was unpleasant but manageable and I kept my eye on the end goal. I know that everyone is different and that you have had side effects with the Epclusa however my unscientific advice would be to take the Riba, even halfway through, for the extra SAS troops it puts into the fight and for your own peace of mind.

I am coming up to my two year anniversary of being Hep C free and it is the gift that keeps giving.

I really wish you well. Let us know how you are travelling.

Coral

Hi Kaju,

Please let me add my congratulations.

I know what you mean about it being a bit like magic when you have carried the burden of Hep C for years and then it is gone…..

Spreading the word is a great way for us all to pay our good fortune forward. Best wishes for 2019 and onward.

Coral

Hi Jessica,

Although it’s very worrying when our packages get held up, as Hazel and Mar have said it is usually just the routine processes of importing goods into the country. FixhepC will be able to help you out with this.

Have you been able to contact DHL to find out exactly what they need on behalf of Customs? A photo ID will be sufficient recognising that not everyone has a passport.

Coral

Hi Jessica and welcome,

Congratulations on organising your treatment. For myself and others on this forum it has been life changing .

I can remember being a little anxious (but impatient too) when I started the medication. Everyone seems to react just a little differently with some people experiencing no side effects at all. I had the very common headaches and insomnia (wide awake at 2 a.m.) for quite a few weeks but it does eventually pass. I had to take Ribavirin during another round of treatment and that was less kind but still doable.

I hope you don’t get nausea but it’s great that you are prepared and know what is safe to take as it is really important that all of those little tablets stay inside to do their job.

Good luck – looking forward to hearing how you are going on treatment.

Hi MAGA,

Welcome! Your fighting spirit jumps out of your post. Best of luck. We’re here if you need any info or support.

Coral