Chemo in Sept 08
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Hey girlies,
I'm gonna grumble today. Hubby forced me to call the answering service last night and have a doc paged. All because I happened to mention *ahem* (sorry for the TMI here) bloody stool. I really didn't feel like anything had reached call the doctor stage. I mean it was only one time fer mercy's sake! I could see if I'd been out of control or something.... Still, he whipped out the page of 'call the doctor' SE's and there it was. And so I called (under much protest). Because hey, who wants to talk about poo?
How *embarrassing*
!! To have to answer questions like... 'So... is it in the stool? Or in the water?" How the heck would I know.... I didn't watch the process. I just saw the end result! And then to be told it was probably just 'hemorrhoidal tissue', ect. He was very nice, and basically patted me on the head via phone-line and said it'll be fine. I felt so retarded. *sigh* Of course, Hubby thought it was sooo funny after it was all over. Grrr....
Oh dignity, where art thou???!!
Much love,
Tanz
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i'm sorry for your embarrasing moment but this too shall pass.
We all have those moments. I'm glad you are doing okay.
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Well, the shedding has started. It is Day 13 and I had more hair on my comb this am plus when i run my hand through my hair, I have abt 10 strands each time. The moment I was waiting for!!!
Went to my PS today and do not go back for 9 months. Everything has to 'settle'. Need to see how much my muscle thins (from the TRAM), how much any fat necrosis is reabsorbed, etc. I wasn't ready to talk abt nipples yet Figure can't do anything while in chemo, might a well wait. Did get the OK to return to work, so need to go talkwith boss tomorrow.
I did get a physical therapy consult to start working on my left arm and abdominals. Hopefully it will take aay some stress and let me sleep better.
Diarrhea continued and was bad yesterday so I did take n Immodium. Butt was getting raw so bought Tucks to keep in my chemo bag.
How is everyone feeling? Hope SE are not too bad. Keep the spirits up!
D
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Tanzie
Yikes! Well, hubbie loves ya! I have constipation b/c of chemo and (ahem, as you say) hemorrhoids and a fissure! ahhhck! So I see some blood if the constipation is bad! (how indelicate! I was hoping for the diarrhea side effect PRIZ47 has, but no luck! always constipation! :O
General report on Taxol #1, Day #2....
I feel some body aches, but not so bad, one in arm (odd?) one in back. Took ibuprofin, and it's okay. SO MUCH BETTER THAN AC!! No nausea! No fatigue yet, it may be to early....
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Hi, everyone. I had my second chemo on Friday, and boy, I am having a hard time. Nausea, diahrea, bone pain, fatigue.... Worse than the 1 st one... I am also having hot flashes that interfere with my sleep, and I am only 34! Doctor told me that estrogen has stopped producing so I am having manapousal symptoms. Great! I am bald, sick, and menapausal!
Juli, I am from San Fernando Valley. We are neighbors!
Yuyu
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Funny how we wish for certain side effects and not others....
D
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hopefulLady (Chris)
I am getting treated by Amy Krie at Avera McKennan. Looks like we are on the same regimen, I'm just going for 6 cycles instead of 4. Where are you getting treated? I tried to private message you, but I am apparently computer impaired, so if you figure it out, let me know!!
Kelly
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Hey Priz and Tanzie,
I can relate! I feel like my diarrhea is made of battery acid! I think I need diaper rash ointment...
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i don't know what they told you guys but my nurse told me to take an immodium EVERY time i go and that it will curtail the diarreah but that if it ever gets ahead of you it's hard to stop. I followed her advice and i haven't stopped up and it saved me from a lot of misery. Sorry you guys are suffering.
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yuyu iam sorry you are feeling so rough. That's what makes this stuff so unfair as if the BC wasn't enough to be hot flashing too is just too much.
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Kelly, I sent you a private message. Click on it on the top of the page.
Let me know if you can't open it.
Chris
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I have to giggle at some of you and how you "say" certain things..........like the diarrhea made of battery acid. I can SOOOO relate to that one g/f!!
I had to go to the Dr. today for an IV drip because my battery acid diarrhea had dehydrated me........and it seems it is c-diff..........which explains why it burned so badly!!!
So I'm on ANOTHER RX for that...........yippie!!!!! Cancer is so much fun...............NOTTTTTT!!!!!!!!
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Hello, I just wanted to say a prayer for everyone that either is, has been, or may in the future be affected with breast cancer. My mom has had a number of times where it has come in small areas, but thanks to the regular mammograms, every time it is spotted, it can be removed. Again, my prayers are out for all of you!!
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Tanzie - I can't believe what an awesome job you are doing keeping up with us all. I hope the upcoming October girls are so lucky. Aren't hubbies wonderful? Mine has told me I can't keep my wig in the bathroom because it freaks him out. She looks at him while he's sitting on the pot.I am still not supposed to be using my left arm (even though I am back to work) because I my BS had to drain 86 ccs of fluid out on Friday, so he has been helping me shower. I told him that this brings showering together to a new level.
I feel bad for all of you who have had significant SEs from the AC. Last night and today I have been extremely gassy (both ends), but no nausea. I have the headache that starts at the top of my nose between my eyes and heads up my forward and top of my head. I have also been very foggy and started to get pretty tired by this afternoon. I also have an SE here that I haven't seen anyone post about. Has anybody else here noticed involuntary jerking movements of their limbs (tics?) I go back to the onc tomorrow for IV fluids (but I haven't lost any yet) and a Neulasta shot (yippie). I bought the Claritin. Should I take it before, during, after or all 3?
I am hoping that the SEs don't kick in when the Dexamethazone wears off. We shall see.
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Hello
How is everyone? Your hubby loves you Tanzie - better embarrassed than wrong!
Yuyu - i will be praying for you.
Second chemo last thursday and this time round the side effects were less. Do not know if it helped, but i skipped the ondansetron (aka zofran) given to me for nausea for day 4 onwards as the nurse said to take only if necessary. So, this time, instead of constipation I had manageable diarrhea (went twice) and none of the fatigue and giddiness of the first round when i did take ondansetron. will ask my doctor if the non-taking of the med was the cause of less SE. And the nausea was not bad either. I was on Emend for days 1 to 3. May just be a quirk of chemo and how my body reacts differently to it each particular time, but thankful for little blessings.
The hair is gone. wisps left which i will shave off once WBC is up (nurse warned me not to cut myself when WBC is low as I may get an infection). So now I look like Gollum!!!
My kids are having their year-end examinations so lots of school work in my home now.
There may be an easier way to receive private messages - just go my My Preferences at the top of the page and under email, tick the box which says "Send me an email when I receive a private message".
Take care!
Sam
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The Ellen Show is kicking off Breast Cancer Awareness Month on Wednesday, Oct. 1st. I was in the audience when it was taped today. (I'm wearing a green shirt, Ellen dances right by me going up the 1st aisle). Suzanne Somers talks about her new book "Breakthrough - Eight Steps to Wellness". We all got a free round trip ticket to anywhere in the continental US from American Airlines!!!
Wow, Yuyu... we are so close, we will have to meet when we feel better!
Juli
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Hi, I am having my 2nd round of AC tomorrow and I am really nervous about the SE's. Can anyone tell me if they had the same SE's as the first treatment or if the conitually get worse with each treatment?
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Still no real tummy troubles, but I couldn't sleep last night and I didn't have the heart to wake dh up to get me an ativan. I don't want to take it unless I absolutely have to. I have to go in a little less than an hour for my Neulasta so I'm going to take the Claritin before I leave.
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Tamm36, My first and second AC were fine. It was third one when I felt a little slammed. Don't worry. I hope you do well! I have heard from others too that cycle 3 is when things started to have a cummulative impact. (White counts take a hit, etc, may feel more fatigued, etc)
Report on day 3 of my first Taxol: Still nothing like AC. Have a few body aches, took motrin. Very managable. Sore throat -- not sure if related to treatment, I would get sore throat on on Day #3 with AC as well.
Springtime
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Thanks Springtime it's all I can think about & the anticipation is getting to me 0
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Tamm36,
The anticipation of #1 was the harderst for me! akkkch! I thought they would put the stuff in me and I would EXPLODE or something! I have no idea why. Just nutted out! #2 should be easier. After this will you be half done with the AC? See? Think of it in milestones. That's what I did. You want this BEHIND you. Look ahead!
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Jane,
I can relate to your husbands dilemma. I put my wig in the kitchen (seems an odd location, but close to when I get home and close to the water for styling. Everytime I go into the kitchen, I'm sure it is one of my cats on the counter!
Tammi, I felt worse after the second round of AC, but I think it was my own fault. I sailed through the first round, and decided I didn't need to eat mild foods. I had chili the night before, and then a hot dog the day of my AC treatment. For the next couple days, I felt one shade away from throwing up. This time, I'm definitely going to have milder food going into the treatment, and I have a stock of soups to eat in the following days.
Getting ready for AC #3 on Friday. After that, only one more to go!
Colleen
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Neulasta pain - ugh. Well, it's day 7 and I called in this morning to see if they had any bright ideas for pain mgmt. Sometime yesterday my lower spine just started hurting and the night was spent realizing no position was comfortable. Two tylenol weren't cutting it at all. They think it is caused by the Neulasta and today should be the last of it. It's pain on my spine below my lower back but higher than just my tailbone. They suggested I switch to 800mg of Ibuprofen every 12 hours - it seems a little better, although now my surgery recovery area is tingling and feels heavy again. I'm hoping for a nap and then things might be a little better. On the positive side, I have moments when my tongue doesn't taste like crap....I ate a big plate of roasted veggies last night, but couldn't deal with the chicken - maybe today. I drank about 5 sips of coffee today - come to find out I shouldn't have, but it was nice at the time.
I'm going to try to do some work this afternoon. I got my schedule for the rest of my treatments - the last one is scheduled for the Wednesday before Thanksgiving - the scheduler said I would need to work with the doc to move it...am going to try to put it off til the Monday after. My daughter will be home from college that weekend, and I really don't want to have 2 bad days right there...we'll see. Have a better day all.
Ruth
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Ruth,
I had a friend who could not tollerate the Neulasta pain, and somehow she got smaller "daily" shots that she administered at home (she had a neighbor who was a nurse). This helped her a lot. Just something to ask about it is not bearable for you.
Springtime
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Juli, I've got my DVR set to record - I'll be looking for ya! How cool - round trip tickets!
Tamm36, I'm scheduled for my 2nd tx tomorrow too; I'll be thinking about you. Hope we both have a gentle go of it. I have my Emend ready and I'm going to take lots of snacks because I know that I will not feel like eating anything the next 3-5 days.
Ruth, my onc does not routinely give neulasta. I rebounded from a low WBC count to 6.0 today without the neulasta. I wonder why the protocols are so different. My last TX is the second Thurs in Nov - so hopefully I'll be feeling good by Turkey Day. I don't blame you for wanting to reschedule your last tx - I'd be doing the same thing.
Springtime, I know what you mean about the 1st TX; you really don't know what to expect. I was afraid that my poor liver & kidneys were going to burn out trying to remove all of the toxins from the Chemo. It's scary when you've been eating green & clean and all of a sudden you get a nice chemical cocktail mainlined into your system
. I had my pre-chemo labs drawn today and they had some problems accessing my port. After poking and repositioning, we finally got some blood, but now my port area is very sore; it hurts to use my right arm. I'm working an evening shift (the regular eveining shift tech is vacationing in Banff National Park in Canada - I'm soooo envious!) so I probably won't get much sleep tonight. Maybe I can sleep through the tx tomorrow - that would be nice!
Love & hugs to all,
Donna
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Donna,
OH NO about the port!
That sounds horrible! Good luck with the treatment tomorrow! (I hope accessing the port is a no brainer!)Springtime
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Bless your heart Donna.......sorry they had such a hard time with your port!!! Same thing happened my first tx......they ended up deciding they had to use a longer needle on mine for some strange reason. I guess they charted it and now that's what they use from the get go......for blood draws and yesterday when I had to have some fluids.........but I know all to well about the poking and prodding to find it!!! It left me sore last time too.......
Juli I watched today.....but didn't see you......I was looking for green shirts......with no luck!!!
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Juli,
I see you!!!! I am watching right now! Let me know if Suzanne Sommers book is any good.
BrandonMom-chili and hot dogs!! I cannot believe you would want those!
Well, onc crushed my bubble today. I cannot go back to work till after my chemo is totally over (since I work in the hospital). So I will be using my short-term disability. I guess I wil find something to do, like work on scrapbooking and cards. My WBC was down to 1.4 and my ANC 0.4. So I am bummed. I will have to get a Neulesta shot automatically next week. And she did not say I could go see my mom (but I am!)
D
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Went for my "fluids" today. I didn't lose any, so I don't know why I needed any, but they also gave me my neupogen shot (I'm not sure if it's neupogen or neulasta; it';s one of those). I took my Claritin first, so I'm hoping to be able to manage the pain. I've been VERY fortunate to not have had any unmanageable SEs. I am EXHAUSTED today. I only slept about 2 hours last night. I slept ok Monday night so I didn't think I'd need the ativan last night. By the time 2 AM rolled around, it was too late to take it. So tonight I'm going to try to go to bed around 9 and if I don't fall asleep by 11, I'll take the ativan.
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If you had asked 2 days ago, I thought I was having no problems from Neulasta - but when I explained the spine pain, that's what they thought. My doc wants to avoid any prob by starting everyone on Neulasta even if it isn't needed...seemed like a good preventative idea at the time. The ibuprofen have helped a lot - I still can't sit in a hard chair, but managed a short car ride to the grocery store. I'm definitely feeling better overall than the last couple of days - amazing how nice it is to have the energy to at least tease my husband a little. (My opinion, not his)
I definitely know what you mean on the chemical cocktail - it's frustrating because the people at the health food store all have this "I would never choose chemo" attitude and would go the natural way....sigh, it's sad when hippies judge you. I just quietly pick up my beets and move on....
time for my nap and then to watch Ellen. I watched Oprah yesterday - couldn't stop staring at the girl who was on years ago during chemo and now has amazing hair...felt like a creepo that just wanted to touch it...
best to all -
Ruth
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