Side effects & life.........
Hey! All my best intentions of posting more regularly on my blog have come to nothing, but never mind, I’m here now!
Last week was an exceptionally busy & very tiring week. I worked over 50 hours & half of that was quite physical stuff (setting up meeting rooms, greeting visitors etc). for the first time in years, I went to bed at 8.30pm last Wednesday ‘coz I was totally blown out & again at 9.30pm last Thursday. I never made it to the gym at all last week ‘coz of the long hours I had to work & that didn’t help the way I felt generally ‘coz a good session at the gym makes me feel so much better, both physically & mentally. I am finding the workouts much harder now & am starting to pace things slower, but am still managing to get through the majority of my routine each time. I think I find the workout harder ‘coz I’ve generally got less energy & ‘coz I find myself getting short of breath very easily, both of which are treatment side effects which I’m just going to have to learn to live with until they decide to go away.
For all the healthy eating & exercise I’m doing, I’ve still not lost any weight, despite the treatment. My chocolate teapot reckons I will lose some weight before the treatment’s through, but I’m not banking on it, although losing a few kilos wouldn’t upset me in the slightest. I’m weighing in at 59kg at the moment, which is about 9 ¼ stone (3/4 stone heavier than I’d like to be, not that I go by weight as such, but more by how my clothes fit!!)
This week however, is turning out to be a lot better than last & I’m nowhere near as tired.
Did I mention the rash on my arms already? I think I did. It’s been 5 weeks since it first appeared & hasn’t eased off at all. Over the past week or so, it’s spread to my thighs & looks really quite angry & is very itchy. I went to Boots last Sunday & bought some Eurax lotion which is helping the itchiness a bit but not taking it away completely. I find it more itchy at night for some reason. I rang to get an appointment with my GP to try & get something for it but she can’t see me until 11th July – that’s another week away yet! I’ll try to get hold of a camera & post a picture of my rash on my blog for the record.
I’ve also developed a very dry mouth that feels like sandpaper. Seems I can’t produce much saliva at all & so I’m constantly drinking (& subsequently, continually peeing!!) to ease it a bit. I did also have a couple of weeks where my nose was either continually running or blocked, but that seems to be easing off now, so I’ll not dwell on that.
A few strands of my hair have fallen out, but so far, it is only a few strands & has only happened over a weekend, after the Interferon injection. I’ve heard a couple of people say the same about their hair loss too, so I’m assuming that’s nothing to be overly worried about. I haven’t cut my hair in about 8 weeks & it’s growing quite wild but I want to persevere with it in preparation for my head shave. I tried styling it in a Mohican last Sunday & thought it didn’t look all that bad. There’s another photo for me to post, eh??
The other thing I haven’t mentioned yet, are the red blotches which I’m getting at my injection sites. They’re just red blotches, about the size of a 10p piece, not itchy or inflamed at all, just look ugly. They don’t really bother me at all; in fact, they remind me of where not to inject, so they have quite a positive role really! They tend to last a good month before they really fade, but fade they do & I just ignore them. However, I certainly won’t be wearing any belly-revealing outfits at the moment – LOL!
The arthritis is holding up quite well, which I’m so grateful for. I’m now down to 8mg Prednisolone per day which is very positive. My worst fear is that my arthritis will relapse during treatment. At my worst, I’ve been bed-bound, unable to even turn myself over, let alone feed myself or go to the toilet. My current treatment & side effects are so miniscule in comparison to being totally dependent & physically incapable.
I met a fellow Hep C sufferer last Wednesday. He came over to Shrewsbury for a works meeting & as I work in Shrewsbury, we found time to have lunch together. For me, those couple of hours were a complete tonic during a very long & hard week. If he reads this, he’ll know who he is, so I just want to say a big thank you for that lunch & that I really look forward to doing it again whenever the opportunity arises.
I’m off to Essex this Friday to meet up with a couple of ladies whom I know through the Hep C Forum. I’m so looking forward to seeing the both. We’ve become quite firm friends over the past couple of months & I know that’s the way it’ll stay. I’m sure we’ll spend most of our time laughing & that’s such good medicine! I’ll definitely have to get a camera organised to take down with me, won’t I? Unfortunately, I can only stay down in Essex for one night ‘coz I’ve got a friends 40th birthday bash to go to Saturday evening which I can’t miss. (it may well be that I end up having to kick off the karaoke entertainment as the regular guy said he might not make it in time ‘coz he’s best man at a wedding that day! He asked me would I kick off for him if he doesn’t make it in time ‘coz I worked karaokes for quite a few years before I went abroad & whilst I was in Tenerife.
Talking of Tenerife, I went out for lunch with a friend last Saturday & left my mobile at home by mistake. Whilst I was out, my long lost husband phoned & my dad answered the call. Dad refused to speak to him when he realised who it was, so Paul (estranged husband) sent me a text message. He apparently needs some details from me so that he can apply for a divorce. I’ve been asking him for over 2 years to get a divorce sorted & now think that if he can make me wait 2 years to get this far, I can make him wait for the details he needs. I’m not in any hurry to get divorced, so he can just wait, & wait, & wait………. He may well figure out that he can apply for a divorce in my absence & if he does, then I’ll not contest it, but I’ve certainly no intentions of helping him get what he wants!!
Anyhow, I’ll try to post more next week, but mum has found her digital camera & the pc lead, so I’m going to have a play. Back soon (hopefully)…………..xx
Last week was an exceptionally busy & very tiring week. I worked over 50 hours & half of that was quite physical stuff (setting up meeting rooms, greeting visitors etc). for the first time in years, I went to bed at 8.30pm last Wednesday ‘coz I was totally blown out & again at 9.30pm last Thursday. I never made it to the gym at all last week ‘coz of the long hours I had to work & that didn’t help the way I felt generally ‘coz a good session at the gym makes me feel so much better, both physically & mentally. I am finding the workouts much harder now & am starting to pace things slower, but am still managing to get through the majority of my routine each time. I think I find the workout harder ‘coz I’ve generally got less energy & ‘coz I find myself getting short of breath very easily, both of which are treatment side effects which I’m just going to have to learn to live with until they decide to go away.
For all the healthy eating & exercise I’m doing, I’ve still not lost any weight, despite the treatment. My chocolate teapot reckons I will lose some weight before the treatment’s through, but I’m not banking on it, although losing a few kilos wouldn’t upset me in the slightest. I’m weighing in at 59kg at the moment, which is about 9 ¼ stone (3/4 stone heavier than I’d like to be, not that I go by weight as such, but more by how my clothes fit!!)
This week however, is turning out to be a lot better than last & I’m nowhere near as tired.
Did I mention the rash on my arms already? I think I did. It’s been 5 weeks since it first appeared & hasn’t eased off at all. Over the past week or so, it’s spread to my thighs & looks really quite angry & is very itchy. I went to Boots last Sunday & bought some Eurax lotion which is helping the itchiness a bit but not taking it away completely. I find it more itchy at night for some reason. I rang to get an appointment with my GP to try & get something for it but she can’t see me until 11th July – that’s another week away yet! I’ll try to get hold of a camera & post a picture of my rash on my blog for the record.
I’ve also developed a very dry mouth that feels like sandpaper. Seems I can’t produce much saliva at all & so I’m constantly drinking (& subsequently, continually peeing!!) to ease it a bit. I did also have a couple of weeks where my nose was either continually running or blocked, but that seems to be easing off now, so I’ll not dwell on that.
A few strands of my hair have fallen out, but so far, it is only a few strands & has only happened over a weekend, after the Interferon injection. I’ve heard a couple of people say the same about their hair loss too, so I’m assuming that’s nothing to be overly worried about. I haven’t cut my hair in about 8 weeks & it’s growing quite wild but I want to persevere with it in preparation for my head shave. I tried styling it in a Mohican last Sunday & thought it didn’t look all that bad. There’s another photo for me to post, eh??
The other thing I haven’t mentioned yet, are the red blotches which I’m getting at my injection sites. They’re just red blotches, about the size of a 10p piece, not itchy or inflamed at all, just look ugly. They don’t really bother me at all; in fact, they remind me of where not to inject, so they have quite a positive role really! They tend to last a good month before they really fade, but fade they do & I just ignore them. However, I certainly won’t be wearing any belly-revealing outfits at the moment – LOL!
The arthritis is holding up quite well, which I’m so grateful for. I’m now down to 8mg Prednisolone per day which is very positive. My worst fear is that my arthritis will relapse during treatment. At my worst, I’ve been bed-bound, unable to even turn myself over, let alone feed myself or go to the toilet. My current treatment & side effects are so miniscule in comparison to being totally dependent & physically incapable.
I met a fellow Hep C sufferer last Wednesday. He came over to Shrewsbury for a works meeting & as I work in Shrewsbury, we found time to have lunch together. For me, those couple of hours were a complete tonic during a very long & hard week. If he reads this, he’ll know who he is, so I just want to say a big thank you for that lunch & that I really look forward to doing it again whenever the opportunity arises.
I’m off to Essex this Friday to meet up with a couple of ladies whom I know through the Hep C Forum. I’m so looking forward to seeing the both. We’ve become quite firm friends over the past couple of months & I know that’s the way it’ll stay. I’m sure we’ll spend most of our time laughing & that’s such good medicine! I’ll definitely have to get a camera organised to take down with me, won’t I? Unfortunately, I can only stay down in Essex for one night ‘coz I’ve got a friends 40th birthday bash to go to Saturday evening which I can’t miss. (it may well be that I end up having to kick off the karaoke entertainment as the regular guy said he might not make it in time ‘coz he’s best man at a wedding that day! He asked me would I kick off for him if he doesn’t make it in time ‘coz I worked karaokes for quite a few years before I went abroad & whilst I was in Tenerife.
Talking of Tenerife, I went out for lunch with a friend last Saturday & left my mobile at home by mistake. Whilst I was out, my long lost husband phoned & my dad answered the call. Dad refused to speak to him when he realised who it was, so Paul (estranged husband) sent me a text message. He apparently needs some details from me so that he can apply for a divorce. I’ve been asking him for over 2 years to get a divorce sorted & now think that if he can make me wait 2 years to get this far, I can make him wait for the details he needs. I’m not in any hurry to get divorced, so he can just wait, & wait, & wait………. He may well figure out that he can apply for a divorce in my absence & if he does, then I’ll not contest it, but I’ve certainly no intentions of helping him get what he wants!!
Anyhow, I’ll try to post more next week, but mum has found her digital camera & the pc lead, so I’m going to have a play. Back soon (hopefully)…………..xx
posted by Maria | 1:41 PM
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