Where It All Began

I met my partner (let's call him Mr C) back in 2010. I'd recently ended my 10 year marriage and was looking o get my life back on track and gain some stability for my kids. Mr C was a breath of fresh air; quick witted, brutally honest, very caring and generally amazing to be around. Maybe a bit cliched but we just seemed to click. I made it clear from the start that I wasn't looking for a relationship and he said he was happy to take the friendship I was offering but live in hope of a little more. Luckily for both of us, he grew on me and after a few weeks of spending almost every day together, I finally conceded and we tentatively began a relationship.

It was during these first few months that I started to notice his moods. He would be happy one minute and in the darkest mood the next. He explained that he suffered with depression, I've battled with it since the 90's so could understand where he was coming from. I didn't think much more about it to be honest. Then he would get ill, sometimes after drinking, sometimes from eating certain foods. Stomach problems flared up and I noticed dark, yellowish shadows around his eyes. Then one day he explained that he had some liver damage, that due to his past his liver was very scared and affected his health in various ways. I already knew that he had previously been an I.V drug user for almost 20 years, so with his various health issues I thought it wise to ask if he had Hep C. His answer was immediate ''No, of course I don't. I've never had Hep in my life''.

A few months after we had that conversation, it came out that he did have Hep C. He had gone through a year of gruelling treatment which had been unsuccessful. Mr C has Genotype 1 HCV (Hep C) which is often hard to treat.

Every day is a new experience living with someone with Hep C. I never know what to expect - what kind of a mood he'll be in, how his health will be. Each day is just a case of suck it n see. Sometimes Mr C is exausted just getting out of bed and dressed in the morning. He suffers from terrible nightmares and night time can get a little rough - I've been punched and kicked on occasion and all whilst he is fast asleep.

So this is where my blog comes in. I'm going to start giving a day by day account of the trials and tribulations of living with Hep C.....