Thursday, January 4, 2007

Step back and start again....

For anyone who's actually read this blog, I've decided to go in a different direction. Today is January 4, 2007 and I got a big bolus of bad news today. 2007 was going to be a good year, and it still may be, but as my doctor said, it's going to be "a rough year". The bad news was that I have been diagnosed with Hepatitis C. What I know so far is:

- I have it....
- My liver is slightly enlarged and my liver enzymes are slightly elevated (I keep chuckling at how the word "slightly" still leads to the rough year I'm going to endure)
- Odds are I'll be going on interferon therapy which lasts up to 12 months. This involves a weekly injection (that I give myself... oh yeah, that's fun) and then the possible side effects could hit
* fatigue (like I need any more reason to be tired!)
* Nausea & Vomiting
* Weight Loss (well at least there's SOME kind of silver lining)
* thinning of hair (this will be revenge on me for all my years of talking about how thick my hair is)

Anyway, I hear that keeping a journal is a very therapeutic device. I tend to spend more time online than I would with a pen & paper. Besides, I think once this gets going I can direct friends & family here to see how I'm doing. It may be dark as I talk about my symptoms & fears, but if you know me, I'll be trying to find the humor in it as well.

I've been referred to a Hepatologist (which my good friend has decided to call my Hippopotamus as Hepatologist sounds funny anyway) which I'm meeting with on February 12. I think that's when the "fun" will begin, but I'll be putting my thoughts down on a hopefully regular basis. If you have any questions, let me know. I may not have the answer, but I may not have thought of the question either.

Cross your fingers for me!
Chris

1 comment:

Stephen R. said...

Thanks for starting your blog and know that if there's anything I can do, just give me a call! Much love!