Bottle o Tamoxifen
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Jan absolutley i have fuzzy brain and forgetfullness and sometimes I cant get my thoughts together. I dodnt have Chemo so I know its not from that. I have been on it since Sept. with a week break for surgery. I am taking 1/2 in am and 1/2 in pm... helps a little but still foggy!
Susan I like that thought too!
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Body detox and weight loss at the same time? Where else can you do that?
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I have had constipation and foggy brain BIG TIME.......I have been on Tamox since the end of April and my SE have been minimal. I do not have any hot flashes at all.......1 hot flash with nausea the 3rd week of being on Tamox and other than that, NOTHING except for stupidness or fogginess.....lately it seems like I am having a hard time trying to retrieve what I want to say and actually saying it.......It is like pulling the word from the word bank and it isn't there......that has been completely bothering me......as for the constipation I was on Colace and it helped, but I took myself off as I am just trying to eat food with more fiber as opposed to taking another pill.......so far so good!!! June
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Oh one more thing! I seem to be more COLD than hot. Anyone else out there feel that way? I wonder if that is why I am having no hot flashes but constantly cold......
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June - I am always COLD - sometimes I welcome a hot flash. My DH and I are in a constant battle over the temp in the house. Thank your lucky stars if you are not having hot flashes - they can be very annoying.
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Thanks Jo1955 as I know I am lucky, however I am 45 and pre-menopausal and I am sure those darn hot flashes will be on its way at some point. Is your coldness due to the pill or have you always been that way?
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I'm always cold too and then I get a 'warmth' come over me, than cold....UGH!!!
And with the brain fog....YIKES!!!!
I was post menopausal upon starting Tammy.
I just can't wait to see what the summer months bring!
Jan
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June - Got that way when I went into menopause 3 years ago. I am 55 and have had the darn hot flashes for 11 years.
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Holy cow!!!! Did you just say 11 years.....my goodness, you poor thing!
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June - Yeah, 11 long years and counting. They weren't too bad until I was taken off all estrogen. Have a history of fibroids and was on birth control for a lot of years. Was put on Prempro 3 years ago and taken off in Aug when I was diagnosed. The Prempro was what gave me the BC - UGH! Now the hot flashes are raging and consider them a curse.
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Does anyone know if you take Tam. pre menapausal when you stop it do you automatically go right into menapause?? I am a little confused about that. I am 42 and pre still have 4years 8 months to take it but whose counting?
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I don't think T puts you in menopause. My friend who just finished her 5 years 6months ago said the side effects she was feeling went away almost immediately.
I am premen and when I finished chemo I had missed two periods, then two more then I started T and my warm flushes and my night sweats that were so bad would wake me a couple of times a night started diminishing within 3 weeks on T. By the 4th week (which was also post exchange) I got my period and haven't had a warm flush or night sweat since. Also all the joint pain was gone and I felt better than I have since my mx. I think the T helped bring me out of chemopause if I had known it would do that I would have started it earlier (I waited till 3 months pFC)
Diane
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For all you newbies, I've been on tamoxifen for just over 2 years. I was perimenopausal when I started, had already had periods come too early, followed by periods that skipped for months at a time, night sweats, and hot flashes, vaginal dryness with decrease in sensations down below. Once I started tamoxifen, the early symptoms I had were appetite increase with a slight weight gain, irritated eyes, dry mouth, constipation, joint pains & other mysterious aches that came and went, vaginal discharge, increase in hot flashes, difficulty with word retrieval, and a loss of sexual response. (felt like I was dead down below and no amt. of stimulation brought about a response).
The weight loss I got rid of within weeks once I decided to exercise a little more and I had no further problems with weight after that. It seemed very easy to just maintain my weight. The constipation was only temporary. I just increased fiber and drank lots of water. The vaginal discharge, increased hot flashes, burning eyes, and joint pains are symptoms that sometimes go away for awhile, but then come back for awhile. I still have some problems with word retrieval although it doesn't seem so bad lately, the dry mouth is always there. I drink tons of water.
I actually quit the tamoxifen for a month and a half, after being on it for 7 months because of the whole sexual response/libido problem. Then I started worrying about a recurrence so I started back on it. The week that I started back on it,this problem just resolved itself, things started feeling better down below. However, this problem does crop up every now and then, so I use testosterone gel intermittently to deal with it. My moods have been very stable while on it and I've had great energy levels. Once in a blue moon, I'll get in a low mood for a day or two, but this always happened monthly with PMS, so it's an improvement. Rarely get periods anymore.
My latest problem is insomnia, which I'm not sure if tamoxifen or menopause is to blame. I've now gone 11 months without a period. If it doesn't resolve soon, I may stop the tamox again because lack of sleep is stressing me out bigtime. With a Stage 1 cancer, I feel I do have a choice to play around with it this way. I am not recommending that anyone else do this. I personally feel OK taking chances like this and feel that my healthier, more organic diet, reduction of alcohol, increased exercise, and trying to live in a way where I feel less guilt and do more things that I like and not because they are expected of me, are all things that also help decrease my risk.
As far as menopause goes, premenopausal women shouldn't become menopausal while on it. Usually just causes menopause symptoms, such as hot flashes and brain issues, due to the estrogen being blocked in various sites around the body. However, I've heard it can mess with your cycle, cause irregular periods, sometimes not affect periods at all, and sometimes you just enter menopause while you are on it probably because, like in my case, you were headed there anyway. I have heard of women losing their periods on tamoxifen, only to have them return after they stop taking it, so anything seems possible in that dept.
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After two weeks on Tammy, I find myself extremely tired and with dry, blurry, tired eyes. And moreso in the late afternoon/early evening. I don't think it's a normal tiredness . . . has anyone else felt this way on Tammy? Other than that, still no other noticeable side effects. That's a bonus, I guess, but the tiredness is really something.
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Hope all my Tammy buddies have a great weekend.
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Bought the full ticket starting yesterday - 20 mg and really all is fine. I don't know why I was so worried.
I'm traveleing & will check in when I can. Best wishes to all!!
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Beans - Missed you - have a great weekend and travel safe.0
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Sandee: If someone answered your question about Effexor, I missed it. It is actually an anti-depressent but often used to combat the SE of our lovely daily pill dosage. For me, my onco prescribed it after DH wanted to bring up my anxiety (mostly about traffic and driving and silly things like that). My hot flashses aren't as bad as some women who have to change clothes but it does wake me up in the night several times. I personally didn't like the SE of Effexor and decided not to take it and live with the Tamox effects.
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bcincolorado - I am supposed to start Effexor and would be interested in what SE's you had. My hot flashes are so bad now I have to change clothes. I can't imagine what it is going to be like with the Tamox.
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Thanks for the information/answer..think I too will take a pass on the anti-depressant. I am going to the gym 2x per week with a trainer, go to Afican dance every Friday and am eating well so that will all help. The trainer was my gift to myself when I read all the stats on weight gain and Tamoxifen but my oncologist and radiologist essentially said that folks gain weight on it mostly because they are tired from the chemo and radiation and have not been as active....guess that is the key...move,move, move...and as someone earlier said...do the things that bring us joy...Sooo important!
Snow storm heading this way....which means opening my window for the cool air to counterbalance a potential hotflash and listeing to the wind will help me fall asleep!
ps. The half pill in the am and half in the pm (10 and 10mgs) has made quite a difference with the hot flashes...I have onyl had two in three days!
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sandeeronherown I am doing the split dose as well. Right now I am only doing 10mg at night to see if I can tolerate it. Had so many problems with the AI's. Will go to the full dose next week. The hot flashes are not as bad and I hope they get better once I am on the full dose. I do have a RX for Effexor if I need to go on that but am holding off starting that for now.0
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I think I have written before about my experience with Effexor but I'm not sure it was on this thread.
I started out with 75 mg's of Effexor and have now reduced it to 37.5mg's. I take it at night and have very minor hot flashes - more like warm flashes. I do think it has helped me but I may cut back more in the spring. I don't think you need much to get the benefit of reducing hot flashes. Maybe as little as 12.5 mg's. It's effect on anxiety and general outlook has been good for me too.
Rose thanks for your post. Could relate to a lot of your side effects. Most of mine have subsided for now. Dry mouth still a real problem - I too drink LOTS of water.
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ECT - Thanks for sharing that info on the Effexor. I have not started mine yet but will next week. I can always do what you did and cut the dose in half - will keep that in mind.
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I was told that going through menopause and SEs of Tamoxifen are separate. My onc told me that my body would go through menopause when it's ready and Tamoxifen wouldn't change that. It gets confusing for those of us in our late 40's and early 50's because we have two things going on at once. I couldn't really tell I was starting into menopause and now that I'm taking Tamoxifen, I'm still doing well with minimal SEs. My mouth is dry and my calves ache, but it isn't that bad. I didn't really know what a full blown hot flash was and figured I would find out after taking T, but I still just have those warm flashes where my face and forearms feel weird. Maybe this will change as I get into menopause further. So far, I'm considering myself lucky.
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Lindy137 - You are lucky. I have been through menopause and the hot flashes are horrendous. Now starting Tamox. I also have an RX for Effexor but have not started that yet. I could handle some warm flashes vs what I have now.
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Sorry sisters I just have to whine.
OMG MY HOT FLASHES ARE GOING TO BE THE DEATH OF ME OR SOMEONE ELSE.
Was in the mall yesterday and I kept breaking into hot flashes all the time. The sweat was pouring off of me. The sales asst. was so bloody slow putting the clothes in the bag. I just wanted to scream at her to put them in quicker.
I'm now getting quite anxious about going anywhere.
Thanks for listening. Any advise.
Jules
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Jules
I hope the T will help your hot flashes dissipate. I never reached full force hot flashes from chemo just warm flush. Good luck! Hope you feel better.
Diane
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Jules - Join the club - I hate the bloody things. Can't stand having to change clothes all the time. I am getting ready to start Effexor and I certainly hope it takes care of the problem.
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I know this is going to be unpopular, and believe me, I am a coffee addict. But...there is absolutely a correlation between caffeine and hot flashes. I tried decaf for three days. I had maybe 1 warm moment. Added the caffeine back, and whammo. A few a day, at least. Something to consider before Effexor, just to try--all of us are so different. I am prejudiced, watched my sister in law gain 60 and do very poorly on that drug.
Sometimes, I wonder if I always had hot flashes. When I go inside from outside, I have to rip things off mighty quick, but somehow, I remember that from before....
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