Robin Roth

Robin Roth is a hepatitis advocate, member of the San Francisco Hepatitis C Task Force, health educator at City College of San Francisco, and coauthor of hepCmeditations.org.  Ms. Roth was diagnosed with Hepatitis C in the late 1990s following her request for a hepatitis screening during a routine medical exam. She is coauthor of the CD and booklet "Self-Care for Hepatitis C — Applied Meditation for a Healthy Liver."

Hepatitis C affected my life even before I knew I had it, and continues to affect me, even though I no longer show any signs of the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) after successful interferon/ribavirin treatment.  According to a liver biopsy two years post-treatment, my liver has “improved markedly.”  I feel better than ever and have a healthier lifestyle from dealing with this health issue.

When I finally got my 1st liver biopsy, after unknowingly having Hepatitis C for at least 25 years, I was shocked to hear Stage 4, beginning cirrhosis.  I needed treatment but I had a low chance of success because of my extremely high viral load, genotype 1a, a lot of fibrosis and even cirrhosis, as well as my age and the length of infection. It was depressing.  Being female was my only “good responder” factor and at 54 I was running low on those helpful female hormones.  Since I was otherwise healthy and had few symptoms, it was hard to choose a treatment with a reputation for bad side effects, and an estimated 12% chance of success in my particular situation.

But if someone was going to be in that 12%, why not me?  I resolved I would “make healing my priority.”  With that affirmation and goal, I did a variety of healing practices along with the pegylated interferon and ribavirin to increase my chances of becoming a sustained responder.  I’m a health educator and was already using holistic health methods, so I did research, joined a Hep C support group, got acupuncture, took a ton of herbs, practiced qigong & tai chi, improved my health habits, and listened to the Applied Meditation tape that Margo made for me.  As one of the techniques I used for healing, Applied Meditation helped me enormously in many different ways.  When I got my energy back, I felt so grateful to feel “cured.”  I wanted to share this easy yet powerful meditation technique with all of my old friends with Hepatitis C, with my new support group buddies, and with all fellow Hep C folks who were interested. For more information go to www.hepCmeditations.org.