Hepatitis Forums
Hepatitis C Main Forums => On Hepatitis C Treatment => Topic started by: Redbird29 on June 24, 2015, 06:18:28 pm
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I am going to be starting Harvoni tomorrow morning and am wondering what steps I need to take to make sure I don't reinfect. I don't mean the obvious like no tattoos or IV drug use - more like tooth brushes, razors, tweezers etc. How often should I change them during treatment - Monthly, Weekly, Daily...? I just want to make sure that I get this right!!!
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Hi Redbird. There is quite a bit of debate and difference of opinion on the question of whether you can reinfect yourself from your toothbrush, and whether you should change toothbrushes regularly during and post-treatment until SVR12. Here is one thread on these forums on the topic: http://forums.hepmag.com/index.php?topic=2725.0
I changed my toothbrush at end of Week 2, and I seem to be changing it at 2-week intervals now, which I may continue up through SVR12. I suspect it is a symbolic act rather than a medically meaningful one. However, as Lucinda pointed out on the other thread in the link above, symbols are important. In fact, our toothbrush changing during treatment could be viewed as a ritual symbolizing our healing and our active participation in our healing.
Others will no doubt have more to say.
Best,
kim
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Thank you Kim for the information. After posting my questions I did find the other thread and read through it. I do agree that the symbolism will be meaningful for the process of healing and am grateful to be starting this journey.
Peace and blessings,
Robin
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I would add this. I was treated by the VA at a clinic with cure rates in the top 5 of the country and nothing was said about changing out personal items. Veterans have a higher percentage of HepC than the general population, so they have experience with this.
At request of a member I asked my team pharmacist about this and he reiterated our instructions not to share personal items and said chances of reinfection this way were infinitely small.
I chose to follow guidance from my treatment team and have my SVR12 in a few weeks without changing personal items. I'll post results.
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I would add this. I was treated by the VA at a clinic with cure rates in the top 5 of the country and nothing was said about changing out personal items. Veterans have a higher percentage of HepC than the general population, so they have experience with this.
At request of a member I asked my team pharmacist about this and he reiterated our instructions not to share personal items and said chances of reinfection this way were infinitely small.
I chose to follow guidance from my treatment team and have my SVR12 in a few weeks without changing personal items. I'll post results.
Thank you Motor for this information. I am so glad that you were able to receive treatment through the VA. My husband too was a Vietnam Vet likely infected in the 70's however by the time they realized he had Hep C he already had cancer also and passed away almost 6 yrs ago.
I look forward to getting an update from you on your SVR12 as I do agree that the VA is has a lot of experience with this.
Peace and blessings to you and thank you for your service!
Robin
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Hello Redbird, happy to report to you my successful SVR12 results finally posted on eVet. Even though success expected, a 12day wait further heightened by a 6month checkup moved up to next week produced some angst.
I assume from your signature that you're on the 8wk plan, too. Hope your treatment is going smooth.
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Oh Motor you just made my day!!! CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU ON YOUR SVR 12!!!! This is just wonderful to hear....
And yes, I too am on 8 wk tx and am about 5 1/2 weeks into it. I feel absolutely fantastic so far - not only no sides but physically I am better than ok I am really good. I am still waiting on the results from my 4 wk tx labs but feel pretty darn confident about them. I will let you know next week on them ok!
Again here's to you - WHOO-HOOOO!!! YIIPPPEEEE!!!! YAHOOEEYY!!! ;D
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I went on Amazon and bought a bunch of them. I got 30 disposable razors, 30 toothbrushes, smallest toothpaste I could find (also 30 of them), 10 new nail clippers, 5 tweezers, new bedsheets (the whole deal), new mattress, a pack of 100 medical grade disinfectant wipes (make sure they are medical grade, must contain at least 2% CHC to be able to kill the HCV virus), 1 litre of industrial strength chlorine (14% free chlorine) to soak for 6+ hours things that I cannot replace - like my eCigs which I put in my mouth all the time and they are expensive.
I'm on the 12 week regimen so I plan to use everything for two-three days, then replace.
Nail clippers are an exception. I will only use one once, then throw it. Same with tweezers.
I know, I went full retard, but I'm not taking any chances. I'm also disinfecting all of my cooking utensils, forks, knives, dishes, etc. (with the 14% free chlorine).
Oh yeah, underwear and socks. I torched those and bought a whole set of new ones.
In other words: I prepared for a pandemic, and went full ebola-proof. I will continue to do so until such time I (hopefully) am declared SVR12 or SVR24, and then I'm moving to another house. New beginnings.
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@ Redbird, you remind me of how I felt during treatment. Not only no ill sides, but occasional euphoria breaking out in song and dance! Oddly, for the year I was tagged with HepC, I felt the best I've felt in years.
But, 4wks into treatment, ironically about when I was declared clear of HepC, I started getting sore from my beloved exercise plan that had served me so well in the past year. I had been concerned that listed fatigue side might knock me off my regimen, but that wasn't the cause. It's like my body lost its lubricant. Exercise started making me feel worse instead of better.
Anyway, don't want to plant bad thoughts, everybody's different, look forward to the post treatment phase and a healthy liver.
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I changes my electric tooth brush and razer foil + cutters at 5wk when I recieved my 4 wk results (undetected) and at 12 wk end of treatment. Did this for my own mental well being.
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What is CHC. I flunked chemistry !
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But, 4wks into treatment, ironically about when I was declared clear of HepC, I started getting sore from my beloved exercise plan that had served me so well in the past year. I had been concerned that listed fatigue side might knock me off my regimen, but that wasn't the cause. It's like my body lost its lubricant. Exercise started making me feel worse instead of better.
Anyway, don't want to plant bad thoughts, everybody's different, look forward to the post treatment phase and a healthy liver.
That more or less matches my experience, except that I started losing my endurance (not my strength though) almost right away. But then that's a relative thing because I came from running 50 miles per week to barely managing 20 and then gave up altogether during the last week of 8 weeks of treatment.
I did feel like I was missing lubricant, good analogy!
And I want to add that even the shortest runs, no matter how much they sucked still made me feel better for a few hours. (not that it was so horrible to begin with...)
Now, 2 weeks post treatment I seem to be on a 48h circadian rhythm - alternating days of feeling very energetic and deep in the dumps. The amplitude of that seems to be leveling though.
As for reinfection: Just keep in mind that while you're on the treatment and the drugs are pushing your VL from millions of IU per ml to undetected it would hardly matter even if you were unlucky enough to reintroduce a few of your own virions into the system again.
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@SBelle, curious about CHC, couldn't find where/how it was posted.
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@motor, an earlier post in this thread by sickpuppy
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@SBelle, asked my buddy who majored in chemistry! He didn't have an answer for it either ha!
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have taken a lot of chemistry best guess CHC Calcium Hypochlorite Bleach Powder from a Google search
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You go Lynn! gleaned more from google search than I got from it. Not important, but curious
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sometimes i have ninja google skills
:)