Authors Lloyd Wright & Melody Beattie Kick-Off Hepatitis C Awareness Campaign with LA Radio Appearance
Wright (Triumph Over Hepatitis C) & Beattie (Choices and Codependent No More) to be featured Saturday, January 8th on the KRLA radio show (870 AM) “The Bradley Quick Experience” at 11:00 pm in LA (also LIVE and archived on Internet*)
Malibu, CA (PRWEB) January 3, 2005 -- “Hepatitis C Awareness has a long way
to go,” says author Lloyd Wright, who likens the situation to the early days of
AIDS. And he knows how bad it is out there. Practically every day, he talks with
the people with Hep C who call his hotline, and one track of these conversations
is the discrimination faced by “Heppers.” Take Katie, a caller who was fired
from her job as a bartender for a catering company after her Hepatitis C status
became known. Ironically Katie had mentioned it to a fellow worker with AIDS as
a way to show her support for him. When Wright spoke to her employer, the man
said it was the perception of the people who hire his catering firm that got
Katie fired, not his own beliefs. The man said he just wanted to stay in
business.
“There’s a lot of Hepatitis C education that needs to take
place, both about how it’s spread** and patient’s options,” observes
best-selling author Melody Beattie, who discovered her Hep C positive status two
years ago after a routine medical exam. “People with Hep C have been largely on
their own to get information about their rights and choices.”
To make the
spotlight shine brighter on the many facets of Hepatitis C, Lloyd Wright, a
best-selling author himself, decided it was important to bring celebrities like
mega-author Melody Beattie on board. “The reason I asked Melody to come forward
to talk about having Hep C is that people listen to celebrities,” says Wright.
“Celebrities got involved in the AIDS issue, and look at how open the discussion
about it has become. Hepatitis C should be the same way.”
Wright and
Beattie agree that their campaign needs to both educate the general public AND
reach out specifically to those who have Hep C. “People with a Hepatitis C
diagnosis need to understand that they didn’t just receive a death sentence,”
notes Beattie. “They have options, even though the person who gave them their
diagnosis may not be aware of those options.” At present, most Hep C patients
are steered toward Interferon treatment.
A search for alternatives to the
standard medical protocol is what initially brought Beattie into Wright’s world.
His book, Triumph Over Hepatitis C, which has sold over 200,000 copies, outlines
the alternative medical solution he developed. Over the years, it has been used
successfully by patients around the world. Wright himself had Hep C, contracted
from a blood transfusion after a building site accident. Yet he handles an
incredibly demanding schedule. Commenting earlier in an Amazon.com book review,
Melody wrote: “Lloyd’s triumph over Hepatitis C is something that I want to
identify with.”
Many other Heppers agree. Lloyd Wright’s hotline
[877-676-1615] and website [http://www.hepatitiscfree.com] remain active. Over the years,
he has talked to thousands of patients. However since the disease affects 15 to
25 million people in the U.S. alone, he knows there are many others he has yet
to reach.
One angle of the Hep C story that Wright would like to get out
to more people is what Heppers should avoid in order to get better or stay well.
This includes actions that are likely to raise their viral load (a measure of
the quantity of Hep C virus in a patient’s blood). “Many prescription drugs can
raise the viral load, including antibiotics and antidepressants. Another drug
that does is Viagra, but I don’t know anyone else who is talking about
that.”
As part of their campaign, Beattie would like to help others with
Hep C get rid of the “bogeyman” they have in their own heads about having the
disease. “For those of us who contracted Hepatitis C from drug use, it’s easy to
come up from the diagnosis with the feeling of ‘I deserve it.’ It’s really
important to work through your guilt and any beliefs that block you from being
whole. Understanding that we are still lovable, and can give and receive love,
is a huge piece of making peace with having Hepatitis C.”
The teaming of Wright and Beattie offers Hep C patients hope through their
example. Both are vital, active people despite their Hep C diagnosis. “If you
get Hep C, it is possible to make choices and take action so that you eventually
die from something else, rather than from the Hepatitis,” says Beattie. “People
need to be empowered to make the choices that are right for them, and they can’t
do that unless they are aware of all of their options. Information truly is
power.”
* “The Bradley Quick Experience” is a KRLA radio call-in show
[870 AM] in Los Angeles that addresses issues pertinent to people in recovery
from addictions. The show is hosted by Bradley Quick, author of Help Your Self.
On Saturday January 8th, callers can ask Lloyd and Melody questions LIVE by
dialing 1-866-870-5752. At http://www.bradleyquick.com, people anywhere in the country
can listen to the show live or to an archived version. An earlier show with
Lloyd [11/06/04] is also available there.
** The Hepatitis C virus is
spread thru contact with Hepatitis C-infected blood. Common methods of
transmission include injection drug use, blood transfusions, and medical
procedures. The virus is NOT spread merely through casual contact such as
sneezing, coughing, hugging or sharing food, eating utensils or drinking
glasses. People need not be excluded from work or school because of their Hep C
status. Studies have found a lack of evidence for sexual
transmission.
For more information about Hepatitis C, go to the website
http://www.hepatitiscfree.com, and read Wright’s book Triumph
Over Hepatitis C. The book is available at Barnes & Noble, Borders,
Amazon.com and http://www.LloydWright.org
Contact: Felisa Voll; Phone:
(877) 676-1615,
Websites: http://www.hepatitiscfree.com, http://www.bradleyquick.com
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/1/prweb192768.htm