Sunday, December 13, 2009

1st shot done

Friday at 10:30am PST was my first shot of interferon. I went to work and around 1pm I started to get a slight headache. By 2 I had chills and a slight fever. By 3 I was headed home to bed. It was one of the worst nights of my life.

The shot itself was easier than I anticipated. You swab the area with alcohol, let it dry, clip the needle into the syringe, pinch some fat on your stomach (I admit to having some) and then push the short needle into the gripped fat/skin. It goes in about 1.5" so it's not bad. You pull on the syringe a tiny bit to ensure no blood enters meaning you hit an artery and when all clear, you push the interferon into your body.

If you've ever been so hung over that all you can think of is that you want to die, and really mean it, that's where I was minus the fun alcohol-infused night before. I honestly wanted to die. I started thinking of everyone I'd be leaving behind and for a couple minutes thought I was in fact dying and I was amazingly prepared.

All night I had a fever, body aches, chills, joint pain, nausea, headache. I kept getting up to use the bathroom because I had had so much water throughout the day. It took everything I had to get to the bathroom but I pushed through.

My alarm went off at 7:15am because I need to take my ribas at 7:15am and 7:15pm (give or take a few minutes) and I woke up feeling on top of the world with an extra bounce in my step. By 1pm the headache and fever resurfaced which makes me wonder if it's the ribavirin giving me sides and not the interferon. I was exhausted from shopping for about an hour which is unusual as I'm typically quite active. Having gone to a holiday party tonight, I took my ribas at 7:15pm and by 10pm the headache and joint pain began. I sit at home, some joint pain and a slight headache, but alas, I will go to bed and see what tomorrow brings at 7:15am.

3 comments:

  1. Its good to hear that you got started, but not so good to hear how harsh your side effects were. Best wishes for your next shot. David McHep C

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  2. I hope you find keeping a blog while on Hep C treatment as useful as I did. I had quite a few blogging treatment buddies at the same time I was going through it.
    All the best,
    MYS from Nomads

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  3. Side effects will probably get less harsh. The blog can combat feelings of isolation. When we're told the effects will resemble flu, most of us forget that the flu is a miserable experience.

    I wish the virus would die quietly, but right now your body is a battleground. You can reinforce your troops with extra protein and healthy food. Of course I didn't do that myself, and I'm sure I suffered more than necessary because of it.

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