MD -

Sounds like you/your doctor have a good plan and you're well-armed.  
From what I've read most type 2/3s have a strong early response and
there's not enough evidence to know how that relates to SVR, but based
on treating type 1 a stronger earlier response definitely is a stronger
indicator of an eventual SVR.

One bit of experience from me and I've seen it from other people here:
for some of use, nightly Ambien use over a couple of days resulted in
major forgetfulness/memory problems.  Off tx if I take it more than 3 or
4 days I start to notice a slight memory effect, like words and names
that I should know don't come to mind as easily.  On tx, at times I felt
like all I could do was point and grunt.  So if you start to notice that
symptom it might be related to the ambien.

You learned the lesson of trying to "tough it out" on tx....  "ride it
out" is more useful, with whatever assistance you can get.  You can go
back to being tough in 20 weeks.

Take care and keep us updated.  I haven't heard of using Ritalin before
but it makes a lot of sense.

Gordo

Medications that help me  

Group: alt.support.hepatitis-c Date: Fri, Dec 16, 2005, 10:12pm (CST+1)
From: maxace@bellsouth.net (MaxDad)
I have HVC genotype 2b. I'm in my second week of TX; 22 weeks to go. My
GI doctor wants to do as much 'damage' to the virus as possible in the
early part of TX, so I'm on 180 mcg of Pegasys and 1200 mg of Riba. I
was having lots of nasty muscle pain, even worse pain when I lay down in
bed. My GP doctor wants to help me get through this without quitting the
TX, something that he sees far too often. The GP gave me scripts for
Duragesic patches (an opiate), Ritalin LA, Zoloft, and Ambien.
I tried to tough it out and did not use the Duragesic patches when I
took my first injection. The pain over the next few days was
unbelievable, but I figured I would be 'manly' and swallow the pain. I
eventually wimped out and put on a patch. Five hours later, the pain in
my head and muscles started to taper off- the pain is not totally gone,
but it is now bearable. I will stop wearing the Duragesic patch next
weekend and see if the side effects have lessened. The Duragesic patches
are great for killing pain, but they do have a bothersome side effect of
their own- like all narcotics, they cause EXTREME constipation. A
tablespoon of Metamucil at every meal helps. I suppose that I can
recommend Duragesic for some people fighting TX side effects, at least
during the first two weeks when the side effects tend to be nastiest.
The Ritalin is helping me handle the fatigue I am already seeing. I need
to keep thinking at work. I don't know if I am experiencing the
so-called brain-fog, but the ongoing pain can be very distracting.
Ritalin helps keep me focused.
The Ambien forces me to sleep seven hours. Once TX began, the most I
could sleep at one time was under an hour. Even with the Duragesic
patch, lying down in bed was painful. Ambien removed any obstacle
preventing a good nights sleep. Triple doses of Melatonin did nothing
for me, but Ambien worked in less than 30 minutes.
I found that simple ginger root from a vitamin store works great to
relieve nausea. My GI recommended it. I get nauseous in the afternoon.
As soon as I feel queasy, I pop a ginger capsule.
The Zoloft is basically a preventative AD drug.
Thanks elmo: I am eating fatty food- pasta, pop-tarts, milkshakes, ice
cream, etc,. around the time I take my TX drugs.
//////////////
Good show, Max!  I really enjoyed peanut butter on hot toast in the
morning.  Enjoy!!
elmo

http://community.webtv.net/elmoemerson/DocElmosHepFile

http://community.webtv.net/elmoemerson/TheFamilyAlbum

Yes, it took me a similar combination to get through the 48 weeks of TX
also.
Had to add two weekly shots of a drug to boost my red blood cells also.
Kill the dragon,
Julie
Virus free for 10 months now.