Can we have a forum for "older" people with bc?
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Mornin all,
Sandra- I have just discovered adult coloring books. I only have the one my DIL gave me for Christmas but never thought of looking on Amazon for new ones. I find it so relaxing.
Heading over to see my sweet GD, Lucia again tomorrow. Then back to Fl the last week of Jan. With my DD in Fl due at the end of Mar, I doubt I will get to see Lu again before she comes to Fl in June. Going to try to fit in a one week trip up here in late Apr, for my oldest GS's 17 birthday, and a routine visit with BS, but doubt I will be able to fit in a trip to SC. Maybe they will come here for a weekend. My brother is meeting me in SC sometime this weekend so that will be fun.
Keyboard is lagging behind again so I guess that's my cue to wish you all a good Wed.
Ann
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I saw a coloring book here that had a little girl in each of the pictures. Some seemed like dreams, others like street scenes. I liked that each picture was blank on the back, so you wouldn't need to use pencils. The paper seemed heavy enough to use markers or even dry brush watercolor. My sketch book is 90lb paper and it will take watercolor. It buckles with washes, but is fine if you're not covering the entire page.
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Hi Ladies,
Linda, Love your bracelet.
I just finished crocheting a white beanie hat for the 2 year old gd that we are staying with and am working on a skinny scarf for a dil.
I love to do puzzles, word searches and coloring. Michaels Craft stores has regular and adult coloring books and you can usually find a coupon online for 40 or 50% off original price. My dh likes to do the crossword puzzles and the soduku puzzles.
Weather here is very cold and some snow falling. Tomorrow I will sub for the 4 year old class room where I use to work. I do miss all the kids and parents.
Have a great day!
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Linda, that bracelet is beautiful--especially the “Etz Chaim” charm. I recently ditched my Lymphedema Alert twisted-rope-chain ID bracelet with all those big Medic-Alert heart-shaped drug allergy charms hanging off them in favor of a single Pandora-style one with my MedicAlert ID #, “LE R arm no IV BP” (“needle” instead of “IV” would have exceeded the character limit) and “A 2 PCN Cipro Sulfa” engraved in 3 lines on the back of the Medical alert ID plate. That Tree of Life would be a perfect charm.
termite, I have NO mathematical aptitude and so I don’t do sudoku puzzles--I am a “word person” through and through. I had a very late night (thanks to my uh, “excretory adventure”) and so I’m lazing about in my flannel jammies and fleece booties. That ice & snow outside, even at milder lakefront temps, sends me screaming right back to my down pillows & comforter. Gotta do the MLD (too gentle to be “massage”) sometime today--it’s really time-consuming, 15 reps ea. per side of upper, elbow, forearm--both inside & outside surfaces of all, hand, groin, clavicles, top & bottom of breasts, and then abdominal breathing and gentle pressure. About at least an hour. Tomorrow, have another Skype voice lession and PT session (at which the therapist will actually perform the whole shebang). At least it’ll warm up but be a sloppy mess with rain all day. Ick.
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I too really liked your bracelet Linda. I'm not much of a jewelry wearer. I have a wedding band and use to wear a watch and pierced earrings, but quit the earrings long time ago ( BC ) ( before cancer ) and ditched the watch from my left arm as that was my operation side. I just couldn't get used to a watch on the right. So now --- I have to have a cell phone that shows the time, and as well I have a clock in my car -- and pretty much one in at least every room of the house --- including bathrooms.
ChiSandy, your weather sounds pretty un-inviting too. Thank goodness there was some sun today, but a heck of a wind so it made the cold just that much colder. Don't know what the wind chill was, but it was breath-taking with the wind in it. Hoping for a bit of warmth which will come --- but rain will follow shortly so the weather people are indicating. Sounds like an un-inviting week-end is on the way. Well, since we have no snow as yet though we did see some great snowflakes finally, guess we should be happy. I'm just hoping the rain doesn't freeze on the ground.
Jackie
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Oh, boy--just saw a forecast that Sunday will be even colder than last night--we might have a hard time making it above zero (F, not C). Of course, it will be preceded by snow Fri. night into Sat. El Niño, you’re really slacking off on the job!
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We had a pretty day, sunny with high in the 60's. I'm so hoping the weather forecast for tomorrow is wrong and it doesn't rain. I haven't played golf since before Christmas because of the wet conditions. If it should happen NOT to rain, I would play on Friday.
Linda, the bracelet is very nice.
Not much happening around here. I have been doing some house cleaning.
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Pretty bracelet Linda!
Carol, Sign up for Pinterest?
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Love the bracelet. I have enjoyed learning how to make jewelry for the past two months. Today I was looking at a shirt, thinking of what I had to go with it, when it dawned on me I could make earrings with the exact colors! So cool.
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Good morning, IT was actually snowing when I got up! Enough to make the ground a little whiter, maybe we have an inch now! Good we don't still have a plowing business. They re hurting this year.
Got dh to go to the dr yesterday as the cold has hung on for 2 and a half weeks. His lungs are ok, his normally high BP has been low, but the Dr. says it's still ok, He has cut back on some BP meds. We are both SLOWLY getting better, mine is only about a week and a half. Getting to feel house bound though. Need a haircut badly. My lady of 30 years just retired and I need to find someone new.
All the crafty ladies, I tried my hand at a little painting years ago. Have been debating this coloring thing. Dh says he hears people discussing it at seniors. Used to knit never sewed much. When I was a girl did some wood carving, pins. Try things , but never seem to stick with anything. Far as puzzles, do a couple online every morning. Have a good day. Jean
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It can be tempting to blame others for our loss of direction.
We get lots of information about life but little education
in life from parents, teachers, and other authority figures,
who should know better from their experience. Information
is about facts. Education is about wisdom and the knowledge
of how to love and survive. But no matter how much advice
you get, you are the one who chooses which train to board.
As you pass through life, pay attention to the signs and stations;
if you don't like the scenery, pull the emergency cord and
get off the train. There is no other conductor in charge.
There is no one who needs to give you permission to transfer.
This is your life. Your journey. Your trip to conduct.
Bernie Siegel0 -
Aren't you tired of hearing about the latest crises? This time it doesn't concern Mike and doesn't have to do with his health or mine. Ryan, my 31 year old son, was doing so much better. He started on some meds for his chronic suicidal depression, had a good birthday and Christmas, and was back with his girlfriend. What goes up always goes down with him. We're used to it after all these years, but still can't help feeling hopeful during the good times. When they come crashing down, it hurts and we always say we won't get so happy and relieved...but we fall victim to wishful thinking again and again. It's worse for him, of course, and each time things fall apart, it confirms in his mind that he is a failure and has no business living anymore.
He and Sarah started having problems again, he started drinking more to self-medicate and maybe he could have been ok, but the work schedule sabotaged him. He worked extremely long 12-14 hour days for six days in a row and then had a day off...or so he thought. His boss had forgotten about that day off and put him back on the schedule for another six days. Ryan should have checked the schedule but just assumed his boss would handle the paperwork. When he didn't show up, the big boss called and gave Ryan an ear-full. He tried to go into work but was so exhausted and already upset by the fights with his girlfriend that he had a physical meltdown, nausea, sweating, and a panic attack. They gave him a week off. Ryan fell in love with a tiny stray kitten at Sarah's house and decided being responsible for a pet might ground him. Before he even took her home he had named her. Meanwhile things with Sarah deteriorated, she said he couldn't have the kitten, and arguments escalated. Last night he went over there and got the kitten somehow. As he was walking from his car to his apartment, the kitten wiggled out of the box. Ryan did his best to hold her, but she ripped up his hands in panic, jumped down and ran off into the parking lot. Of course, she was nowhere to be found. Mike and I went over with flashlights and we spent hours looking under cars and bushes, to no avail. For my son, this is the end of the world. He says he "failed the little kitten and now she will die" which proves, once again, how useless he is. It was all we could do to get him up after falling on the ground in grief about every ten minutes.
He was up most of the night, drinking, crying, and sitting outside or walking around the large multi-building apartment complex with a flashlight. This morning I took over some flyers for a lost kitten and posted them. We will see what happens. I took him over to a no-kill shelter nearby, hoping he would find a similar kitten, but he didn't and it really was a bad idea anyway. He cried and he was petting the cats. He has told me and his dad that we shouldn't be surprised if he kills himself this time. He knows it will cause us immeasurable grief and says that has kept him from it in the past because in light of Mike's illness, he felt selfish adding to my burden. But now he apologized and said he's sorry, but he just can't go on.
Those of you with a mentally ill child know what it's like. Logic doesn't work. Nothing works when a brain is broken. As of tonight, he is sleeping - I think. We feel like we took a huge deep breath last evening and have yet to exhale. Our chests are burning and we feel desperate, but know there is not much we can do. Daughter Allison has been on the phone with him for hours, trying to convince him to come up to Chicago with her for a little while. Apparently he hasn't ruled it out, so that's a positive sign.
Thanks for letting me get it all down on paper. It helps.
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Sandra, Hugs to you and Mike and Ryan. What a difficult situation. You and Mike know all the right things to do and I'm sure you're praying that it works. It's so hard that ultimately it's Ryan's decision. Prayers coming your way.
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Sandra - holding you close in my thoughts and staying positive. Maybe Chicago will work.
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Sandra, I second Wren's and Minus's posts. Hoping things work out in a positive way.
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Sandra, These things are so difficult for you, as a parent. Praying things go well. Jean
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I have always disliked the idea that we are being "tested" by God when something awful happens to us. Bad things happen, and none of us are exempt from the possibility that they will come to us as well. I have pondered a different possibility inherent in crisis that in no way changes the fact that it is a genuine disaster: perhaps the events that devastate us carry within them seeds of spiritual "initiation" into a level of knowing we would not otherwise achieve. -Sallirae Henderson
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Sandra, I join with all the rest in hoping that you and your whole family will end up with a solution that is satisfactory to all. You have weathered so many, many storms. Prayers and peaceful, hopeful energies to you and yours.
Jackie
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Sandra, I join with all the rest in hoping that everything works out in a positive way. Prayers are being sent your way.
Not much going on here. I worked all day yesterday. Son's girlfriend had dinner ready(Enchilada soup, chips and hard bread) when we got home. It was good. Then I did the clean up and dishes. I crocheted a white beanie hat for her daughter. It turned just right and looks cute on her. She is a 2 year old little blonde that has a great vocabulary and wants to do everything for herself. We call her a little tornado but she is adorable.
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Sandra- I am with everyone else hoping things get better for Ryan. It must be incredibly stressful for everyone. I hope your telling us all helped you a little. I know it doesn't change the situation, but just knowing there are others thinking and praying for you and Mike and Ryan hopefully helps you feel less alone. Sending you cyber {{hugs}}
Anne
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Things are better today. Yesterday was better than the day before. We're going to get through this somehow.
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Sandra, good to hear that today was better. Prayers are going up for you and your son. I have been where you are with my daughter. She is bi-polar. I cannot begin to tell you what I went through with you since she was 18. She is now 41, married with 2 children, but has been in and out of hospitals over the years. Her husband is a saint, but I worry that he will "have enough" one day. She could never take care of herself. Once a parent, always a parent.....
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Hi everyone - I'm new to this forum and love the support and info all over breastcancer.org, but I have a question I haven't seen the answer to elsewhere and hope some folks here might be able to help. I am 59 and stopped arimidex as I felt at least 90 on it physically and got depressed to boot. My MO agreed with stopping, but wants me to either switch AIs or start tamoxifen instead once I've had a break. I'm wondering whether any of you can share how you feel/felt on tamoxifen? Mostly younger women take it and unsurprisingly have a ton of hot flashes etc. Does that happen to older women too? Anyone here give up on the aromitase inhibitors and do well on tamoxifen? The other option if to try Aromasin or Femara, but my MO isn't very confident I'll do any better on those. If anyone switched AIs and did well, I'd love to hear about that too. Thanks so much in advance!
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TTfan, I haven't switched AIs but am doing fine on Aromasin (exemestane). I have heard that different AIs can have different effects so don't give up on them!
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It is in the shelter of each other that the people live.- Irish Proverb -
Seek out that particular attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says " This is the real me ", and when you have found that attitude follow it.
William James
It is two for one day here, enjoy.
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TTfan, welcome. I'm glad to share what little I know, or you might say, don't know, or don't know for sure. ORknitter is really correct. Just like who gets cancer and when and why, the Al's are just that sort of question. As for myself, I did VERY well on Arimidex which I took for 5 yrs. A couple of yrs. after I started Arimidex became a generic and boy, oh boy. That is what Anastrozole is, the generic and for three months I was miserable. I was just about to have a talk with my Oncologist when my body apparently got used to what I was doing. It is the part of the medication used as the 'carrier' rather than the medication itself -- and it seemed like I just wasn't going to be able to handle it, when it magically went into adjustment for me.
I hope you can find something which will work for you. I have heard of a number of different adjustments -- like taking at night ( when you are going to be asleep hopefully for a good spell ) and if you are using the actual generic, you might switch to non-generic to make sure you are not reacting to whatever is used as the carrier portion of the drug.
Hopefully others will get on here who have used any or all of the AL's and will relate their experience.
Here's hoping you can figure out a good answer for you.
Jackie
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TTfan, I would encourage you to try the other AIs before you switch to Tamoxifen. Also some women find the SEs of an AI lessen after they have been on it a while. Like Jackie, I took Arimidex for 5 years and did ok taking it at night along with a benedryl knockoff. I also took 75 mg of Effexor generic which helped with hot flashes and mood swings.
There's a discussion forum for women taking arimidex. You might want to check it out. Two of the women on that forum, Patoo and Ruthbru, are knowledgeable and have some good advice.
Termite, you asked about a crochet hat pattern. I have several pattern books and it would be too involved to share the pattern of the brimmed hat you liked. That pattern is in an expensive book ($25) called Chemo Caps and Wraps. I bought it at either Hobby Lobby or Michael's and it has lots of nice and different hats in it. For adults and children. Part of the price of the book is supposed to be donated to cancer research.
Today I have two jobs to do. Wash my car and catch up on entries in the checkbook. I need to get in motion! Hope everyone has a good Saturday.
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Thanks for the support and comments everyone! I read and posted on the Arimidex thread too at your suggestion. Sounds like it might be worth considering a trial of non generic Anastrazole. Now that I know I feel better within weeks of stopping I am a little more willing to experiment again. But not until I've fully enjoyed this "drug holiday". I'm loving every minute of feeling like my old self again!
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Sandra, I’ve been there. Depression runs in my family for 3 generations (dad was bipolar, I had postpartum and still take Wellbutrin 31 yrs. later, and our son was diagnosed at age 14 and has had the same psychiatrist ever since). Our son lives with us (he commuted to college, and got his BFA in Theater) and is a freelance comedy writer and improv actor/director/producer. He hasn’t had a significant other in over a decade (though his first & only GF has become like a member of the family and his close platonic friend--but she’s not a good romantic match for him). He attempted suicide at 15, and we’ve been walking on eggshells ever since, despite his shrink being delighted with his stability and coping with stresses and losses. He channels all his demons into his work, spectator sports, music and caring for our cats--but has many close platonic friendships, most since childhood. But I hear you--if you have a child with depression, you never feel that either of you is out of the woods.
TTfan, check out the various generic anastrazole mfrs.' websites for lists of inactive ingredients--different ones have different dyes, binders, pigments & fillers to which some people are sensitive and some aren't (glycols, iron-based pigments, food colors, lactose, talc, etc.). Some of these inactive ingredients also affect absorption in different ways for different people. I had heard that generic letrozole caused more side effects than brand-name Femara (which neither my former PPO nor my current Medicare Part D would cover). Many here reported that of the generics, Teva seemed to have the least side effects. I called several pharmacies (including my PPO's mail-order one and Costco) but none of them would order it or could even guarantee they could get it if they tried--they were stuck with whatever their distributor gave them). So I went online to CanadaDrugs.com (my husband says some of his patients use it when they can't get to Canada in person) and found that while still hideously expensive, their price for Femara (from NovartisUK) was 1/4 what all the other pharmacies I consulted quoted me. So I ordered it, and it's supposed to arrive between 1/19-2/2. In the interim, my local indie pharmacy and the outpatient pharmacy at Kellogg Cancer Center told me the letrozole they carry is from Roxane (subsidiary of Boehringer Ingleheim). I looked it up and found it has fewer inactive ingredients than even brand name Femara: no talc, glycols, dyes or pigments. I have had almost no side effects in the >2 wks I've been on it, except for increased appetite and some sweating. (My joint aches were preexisting). Almost dreading switching to Femara when it arrives. If Femara gives me more SEs, I'll just refill the Roxane letrozole scrip and keep the Femara for a rainy day.
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I also take generic anastrozole, made by APOTEX. Their website states, sugar, dye, alcohol, and preservative free. Active ingredient Anastrozole.
I almost went of at first, felt lousey, but I did switch to taking it at night, which helped . It may also have been due to waiting a month or so . I still think my arthritis is worse, not sure if that's why, but only 2 more years to go! Hope you find the answer for you. Jean
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