hep. c

[Paregoric Kid]

is there anyway to get checked for this free? any obvious symptoms to look for besides turning yellow?

[blahblahblah]

Hep B will jaundice your eyes and skin overnight, which is fully treatable. Have you checked at any free clinics, needle x-changes as they are always offering free testing around me.

Have you ait any shitty fast-food lately or been in conctact with feces? A friend caught Hep B from Wendy's [fast food rest.] most likely contaminated by feces the doc said his eye whites went from White to and evil yellow overnight. eck.

[Paregoric Kid]

I'm vaccinated for hep a and b too bad there isn't a c vaccine available yet. got ahold of a friend the other day and she told me I should get checked because she wasn't sure if she used a needle that she gave me and told me was clean. but she got checked in late february which was 2 months after that and was hep c negative, she took the test again this month and she is now hep c positive, so I guess I don't have to get checked. wouldn't matter if I was positive anyways I don't have insurance for treatments. the only time I used a needle not in plastic packaging this happens lol. always use clean NEW needles kids

[candy]

Hep A is generally transmitted by feces and is curable. Hep B is transmitted by contact with blood and symtoms don't always show up right away. Sounds like your friend either got the wrong info or is confused.
There are free clinics that offer the Hep C test for free. Check with your county agencies. Needle Exchange is a good place and most are testing for Hep C now along with HIV, which I would test for as well along with Hep C.

Hep C can lie dormant for many years and there are generally symptoms of fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, loose stools, before jaundice. Jaundice is seen in later stages of Hep C when there is more liver damage.

If you do test neg., I would recheck in 6 months to be sure. If you are positive, then it is a good time to start decreasing your risks. You can re-infect yourself and you put yourself at risk for other diseases as well, not to mention passing it to others.

Hep C can live outside the body for up to 45 days. So, only use your own equipment. It can be passed through anything that comes in contact with blood. Water you rinse with, the filter you use, and it has been passed through straws used for snorting.

Treatment is available and although there is no cure, you can get to undetectable levels. It was once thought that treatment was a cure when someone tested neg. for the virus after treatment. What research and the CDC found was that the level of the virus was at an undetectable level and although not a cure, the desired effect.

Hep C treatment is not fun by any means. Went through it myself not long ago and depending on the type of Hep C you have, there is a 24 and 48 week treatment of Interferon and Ribaviron. I was on the Ribaviron/Pegasys treatment. The side effects are hell, but I did it and am at undetectable levels for the virus.

There is a ton of info on the internet about Hep C and it may be a good place to look for sites where they test in your area.
I would advise anyone who has shared equipment and needles or has had unprotected sex to get tested. Bleaching needles does not kill off the Hep C virus as it does with HIV.
Some clinics will offer Hep A/B vaccinations, given in a series for those who test positive for Hep C or for those at risk. Good thing to get. Just remember to go back for the series.

[THEPAINTER1960]

is there anyway to get checked for this free? any obvious symptoms to look for besides turning yellow? actually most people who have hep. c . Genarally have a swollen liver not everyone but most. Your liver is on your right side you can have someone actually feel the enlargement. And then naturelly feeling tired all the time.

[THEPAINTER1960]

actually most people who have hep. c . Genarally have a swollen liver not everyone but most. Your liver is on your right side you can have someone actually feel the enlargement. And then naturelly feeling tired all the time. i meant to say enlarged . sorrey

[blahblahblah]

Hep A is generally transmitted by feces and is curable. Hep B is transmitted by contact with blood and symtoms don't always show up right away. Sounds like your friend either got the wrong info or is confused

It was probably me that got confused as it was many years ago, and I dont have great memory recall these days. For all I know he was lying to me, as we were rabid IV using scum back than. Its possible he did have Hep B and just skirted around the issue to not get me alarmed [as he he looked sickly as a motherfucker] so I would still serve him his dope that day, not like I wouldnt have regardless but he just downplayed the situation like it was no big deal. Many cases of Hep B occur sporadically with no known source and studies have shown that prior unrecognized infection is common. Who dont know whats laying dorminat in your buddies body as you too share the smae cooker or water, stay safe.

I made sure to keep my water and cookers to myself that day I remember that for a fact. Just the look of him scared me as it was just obvious he was down with some form of the Hep. Thinking back I would bet money it was Hep B. Thinking back again he was one of those people that I could see purposely trying to fuck me over by using my cooker, rinsing his wash out into my water, or even rinsing his rig out with my water. Some individuals are sick, just plain and simple sick. They carry the mentality well I have it mine as well try to give it to him. Sad to say I wouldn't have held it passed him.

Sorry for making a lapse of correct info, that night I typed that I was KO'd [warble. warble, sideways]. 'Knock on wood', I haven't caught anything serious. As fucked up as I was back in the day I probably would have used his water if I didnt have my own, or tell you the truth his rig for that matter as I was a completely out-there didnt care one bit what happened to me as long as I got my nessicary hits in my arms of feet that day.

I have done some stupid shit, and escaped relatively harm free except for a few major abscesses and bacterial infections that called for daily IV anti-biotics. I still have one abscess they drained and packed with gauze that is so noticable, that one I caught quick enough. Another one I was at a point of not-giving-a-shit about anything and the only vein I could hit was a open wound discolored abscess [other than my feet but I didnt like waiting the extra 1-2 minutes for the rush to hit]. That one I lost some tissue from the actual injection site they had to cut away. To this day that one is a dark 'quarter-sized' what I tell people is a burn. In the summer time I hate it because when I get tan my skin tone makes it pop out very noticably. Who knows what would have happened if I didnt get arrested on that run, as the nurses took one look at my arm and gasped. Ssshhh I dread even thinging about that procedure as they had to cut the rotten flesh away [the smell, ugh] and IMMEDIATE IV anit-b's. I kept on asking how bad was it, how bad was it. I knew just from the way they treated me it was bad [shit I knew it was bad when I was doing it I didnt care]. I remember them putting on masks and rubber glovesand not really telling me how bad it was. Of course it was the same spot my original abscess was which went from pain to the size of a golfball overnight, I shudder thinking about the pain getting that one drained and packed. I have NEVER felt a pain like that in my life.

OF course the doctor that time was a dick, and ordered no narcotics or painkillers during or after the proceedure which is usually common-place. I remeber they did give me a local with needles the gauge size of some of the vetrinarian syringes I have used in dire cicumstances. I am thinking 23 gauge. That fucking hurt so bad, 3 injections of a local, DID NOTHING to kill the pain, nor did the half gram of dope I shot before going into the hospital. Than she broke out that scaple, fuck. If you touched my finger tips I reeled back in extreme pain. When she sliced that golfball open I was crying it hurt so fucking bad [took 3 times]. I think they wanted to teach me a lesson as I was probably but 19'ish yrs. old. That one I caught early enough but still have discoloration and a nice chunck scar. I was luckly I didnt get a serious bacertial infection ever. I definitly have awfully suspicious looking scarring [10 yrs later]. Stupid me continued to use that vein up untill recently and its so scarred I dont know why I punish my body the way I do sometimes.

I remenber using spit, or raindrops on my windshield [I would suck them up individually with the needle untill I has enough units to liquify my heroin], Garorade, Ice-T, Snow, clean looking rain puddles [yeah, smart], I never stooped to toliet water. All because I couldnt wait those 2 minutes to drive to the store. Thinking back it makes my stomach turn thinking about all the sick things I did to get that needle in me. Sharpening my burred-the-fuck-up blunt tip needle with a matchbook striker. Its been over 5 yrs in some places I havent shot up in and its still damn noticable. Yuck. Be safe, I know when your in that I dont care zone you do things you would never dream you would do. I remember making homemade needles with holow copper tubbing and filing so it was bi-leveled on a sharpening rock than melting it into place onto a busted rig. Idiotic. When you wanna hit, your going to hit nothing is going to stop you or at least me in my insane days.

Thank the lord for needle x-chages in Chicago, I remeber bringing in super glued plunger stickes made out of a coat hander needle sawed in half only being able to dump like 3 bags into a 1cc rig sawed down to 30-40 untis so I could salvage the plunger, thick sludge solution. Thank the lord, Illinois/Chicago wised-up shit 3-4 yrs. ago and now allows OTC needle sales. If that would have been like that back when I used heavy, I would have saved my veins ALOT of scarring and visible damage. Sometimes I remember it was like trying to poke and pop a balloon using a butter knife.

I cant stress be sterile, be safe, dont share, if you do at least minimum bleach the fuck outta it. Dont buy outfits sold on streetcorners, some are legit but I have bought some that have obviously been reheat sealed where the cap melt into the body of the barrel in that little sealed dot. If your buying individuals try to have them sealed. Its not worth the risk, I know when your out there some of us could careless but sometimes try to look outside your self and think straight. You got your dope at least get a fresh, clean, unused rig but I know who it goes. Sorry for the slip-up/confusion and sorry for the ramble.

Legalize OTC syringes nationwide YOU WILL SAVE LIFES...!!!

http://www.anypositivechange.org/

[candy]

Hey don't even sweat it about the mix-up regarding the Hep. I hope I don't make anyone feel bad about any corrections I post, just want to get the right info out there. It's not a jab at anyone and I hope no one has been offended.

I got Hep C from a boyfriend who swore he was clean. Thankfully, Hep C was all he had! He knew he was infected and kept it a secret and let me use his rig after he went first. I, of all people should of known better, but as you said, when your sick, your not thinking clearly and do things you would'nt do under normal circumstances. Needless to say, that relationship ended after he took all my shit one day while I was at work.

Using a clean rig is the best way to go. Bleaching does not kill Hep C and sharing should be out of the question. If need be and you know your status as clean, go first and trash that rig. I don't necessarily even advocate the use of sharing, but if one knows his/her status as non-infected, than that person should go first.

Crazy, how we have all been there....Sharpening needles on a a matchbook, gluing plungers, etc. The things we do!!!!

When I was started working in Harm Reduction it was on a research project in L.A./Hollywood with the CDC testing 15-35 year olds for HIV/Hep C. My first positive result I had to give was with a 15 year old kid who was using IV drugs and prostituting for money. It was that day that I decided that I would always work in Harm Reduction. You just don't forget something like that and I have not looked back. I guess it what drives me and keeps me coming back.