Breaking the Chains of Hep C

I love my freedom. Being told I couldn't break the chains of hep C was like having my hands handcuffed behind my back.

After learning I had hep C, it truly felt like a prison sentence. I wanted to break the chains but was locked in my body.

Feeling chained up is one of the main reasons the hep C diagnosis was so hard on me. I would often wake up in the middle of the night, and my whole body would jerk awake. My heart would be pounding in panic and fear.

Learning that there was a terrible virus in my blood and it was working day and night to kill my liver was paralyzing.

No matter my plans for the future, the virus could stop it. No matter how much I wanted to feel clean again, hep C kept holding me down.

The virus was eating away at my life. I was slowly dying, and there was nothing I could do about it. There was nothing more I wanted in life than to break the chains of hep C.

Being diagnosed

I was diagnosed with hep C in 2010. It’s hard to believe that 12 years ago, there was no good cure.

Once a person like me got the news, the next blow was that I just had to live with it. In my case, I was dying of hep C.

My liver was already shutting down to the point where I had yellow eyes and skin. The swelling in my feet had moved to my belly.

All I wanted was to sleep. What time I was awake was a foggy brain nightmare.

Even with the bad news, I kept reading to learn more. I made friends online and soon felt less alone.

We encouraged each other to try and get better. Some of my internet friends died, and that was always a blow. The rest of us kept trying to eat healthier and also tried to make lifestyle changes.

We heard talk about a new medication that promised a cure, and soon we hoped to take it.

Breaking free of the chains

During treatment, I still didn’t feel clean. For one thing, the old treatment took almost a year.

Back then, they weren’t sure the virus was gone. Now, the pills given today are so much better.

The cure is easy for someone who takes the meds like they are told. It was six months after the treatment was over before it dawned on me that I was free.

After that, I got married and started a new job. It felt like anything was possible again.

The weakest link

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. In our case, the only thing that can break the chains of hep C is treatment.

I finally got to take the new medications and became hep C-free. It was like the first link was broken, and I became free.

I want everyone to know how easy it was to begin life again. With no virus in the bloodstream, everyone can be free and break the chains of hep C.