Week 14 - Sunday
It feels like the past few days have been “life as usual”. Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays are my usual (part-time) work hours - unusually I am also working today. As it is a quiet time during my lunch break I thought I would update the blog!
I felt very tired by the time I got home on Friday evening - and very “hyper”. I have recently started drinking coffee at work - which I haven’t done for several years now, and I wonder if that had affected me. AND the chocolate. I have never worked in an office where there is such a continuous availability of chocolate!! Staff coming back from holidays, special events, etc. all mean there is a regular supply of goodies ‘in the usual place’ in our office.
Two of the women in the team, Kam and Debs, last week brought in small individualised boxes of chocolates for everyone in the office on Valentine’s day - and decorated with balloons, little hearts, confetti and a red rose, etc. All sent from the Mystery Valentine! (There - I have now revealed the secret of who the Mystery Valentine is!!)
As I was saying, I wonder if the combination of the chocolate I had on Friday and the coffee contributed to the ‘hyper’ feelings I came home with. I stopped both coffee and chocolate several years ago as I thought they aren’t liver-friendly foods. More recently, I have heard that coffee is not bad for the liver after all (good news as I enjoy fresh espresso, albeit with soya milk). And one cannot live life without eating the occasional choccy!! The ‘hyper’ feelings are no big problem, but I think that all these details of life become the stuff that people on treatment begin to be aware of, sometimes worry about, and work with!! (Is it a side-effect, will it undermine my treatment, should I change it to improve my treatment chances, etc)
I had a much-needed aromatherapy massage yesterday afternoon. Carol pointed out it was time to clear the toxins through massage and stimulate the lymphatic system to drain them. Jonathan Colam mentions toxins being cleared through massage - and he is right. The massage also helped with the pain in my right shoulder - which I know can be connected with the liver as there is a nerve running between them. I am now wondering, however, if there might be a more superficial reason I am experiencing this - such as strain from using a computer mouse. Either way, the attention focused on it yesterday will help!! And afterwards I felt both energised but tired mid-way through the evening so I went to bed at a respectfully early time (to be ready to come to work at 9 am today!)
February 20th, 2005 at 5:20 pm
Ron,
Hate to sound like your Granny, but I have read on a number of sites (well, yes, they were American) to strictly avoid caffeine as it puts a strain on the liver.
Also it could increase any irritating effects the Ribavirin may have.
I have cut out coffee but have a cup of green tea in the morning - instead of the antidepressants I was routinely prescribed.
I haven`t given up chocolate because to me chocolate is as necassary as sex.
Glad to hear you are doing good.
Paul.
February 20th, 2005 at 6:51 pm
Hi Ron,
Just picking up on Paul’s comment, I too have not touched coffee since startnig treatment, though buggered if I can remember why - I think it was something to do with the potential for disturbed sleep. Anyway there has been at least one study that found that coffee potentially helped lower ALT levels. http://www.hivandhepatitis.com/hep_c/news/2005/012105_a.html
Cheers
Jonathan
February 21st, 2005 at 1:20 pm
Me again, picking up on the toxins thing - have you tried body brushing. I think that the elimination of toxins rapidly while on treatment is really useful to combat side effects. Body brushing is supposed to stimulate the flow of lymph, does it work - who knows but it does leave me with a tingling feeling which is quite nice and only take 5 minutes.
Jonathan
P.S. - love what you have done with the place.
February 21st, 2005 at 1:41 pm
Hi Ron,
I read that chocolate, as long as it contains 70% or more of coco solids is poitively good for your liver. (Obviously too much of anything is bad).
Wendy