MIDDLE-AGED WOMEN 40-60ish
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barbe1958 - What good sleep drugs are you taking? I sure could use some.
Meece - At least someone is getting sleep. I think I get up at least 3 times each night to visit the bathroom.
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I never sleep more than a few hours at a time, and that started before chemo. Chemo hasn't really made it worse. I would think I would be tired all the time given the lack of sleep but I don't really feel it during the day. I do so love Tivo, mostly watch shows till I go back to sleep (or not)...
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maybe I am the only one here that sleeps. If I could sleep and not have to get up for work I would sleep 8-9 hours easily. As long as I don't drink much in the evening I can manage to not get up and pee. I am usually asleep by 10 and when my alarm goes off at 5:15 I am in a dead sleep. By saturday I have to sleep extra because I don't get enough during the week. With that being said when I worry alot I don't sleep well. So with all the waiting stuff that goes along with BC I have had my share of not sleeping well, but Ambien CR works great with that. Thank goodness I don't have any of the weird side effects. But if I did would I really know, haha. A friend of my took it and her DH and DS kept finding empty chip bags and candy wrappers all over the house in the morning and she could not figure out why she was gaining weight.
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Ambien is a great sleep aid, but it does have that one pesky side effect for some people! Some people have gotten up, gone out and driven their cars around, and done things they wouldn't normally do after taking Ambien. Eating without waking up (or without remembering it, is how the drug literature puts it) is one of the most common. Must be a pretty frustrating one, too, I imagine!
Claire, have you tried melatonin? I've taken care of a lot of patients whose sleep got messed up by hospitalizations, medication effects, stress, etc, who have been helped by melatonin. There's even some early research indicating that melatonin may prevent recurrence of bc. Start with 3 mg, taken about half an hour before bedtime. After a few nights, if you aren't sleeping better, go up to 5 mg for a few nights. The cancer preventing dose seems to be around 20 mg, but not everyone can take that much without feeling a bit fuzzy in the mornings. I can take 15 mg and get up fine, but 20 mg makes it too hard for me to get up and moving in the morning. Everybody has a different level that works best for them.
barbe--I have the same problem! I always wondered why I would fall asleep at the beach and now I know--I always take a book or magazine to read while basking in the sun. Sometimes it's a pain to roll over and take off the glasses and put down the book, and it wakes me up again. I'll have to teach Sadie how to put my glasses and Kindle away after I fall asleep!
Gotta love the danged if you do, danged if you don't aspect of drinking enough water. Drink enough, got to get up and pee 2 or 3 times a night. Don't drink enough, get aches, pains, fell yucky. Blah.
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I sleep with a clip-on light. If I can, I turn it off, if not I just lay my book on my chest and fall asleep. DH sleeps with a sleep mask.
Immovane (the other little blue pill) will put you to sleep for exactly 8 hours. You will wake up with a clear head. Non-addictive. No sleep-eating/walking/sex games etc. Give it a go. It does have a bit of "back taste" that some people can't tolerate, but it's a wonder drug in my opinion!\
If I wake up to pee, I go back to sleep because I just can't read. My body is programmed to sleep with the Immovane. Good luck all!
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barbe1958 - Where do you get this "other little blue pill"?
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Hi All,
I am new to this group. I live in PA. I am 57, lumpectomy Nov 12 and I start RADS tomorrow. I went for a few opinions(two were completely opposite) and then went for a third opinion about chemo. I decided not to do it based on all of the info I was given. On to RADS tomorrow!
Colleen
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Welcome Colleen. Rads are doable but tiring. The effect is cumulative. Near the end, I was doing 2 10 minute naps/day. Worked fine.
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Welcome, cmf! If you have any questions on rads, about half of us here have had them. There is also a thread for December Rads under the Radiation forum (you can find it in the pull-down menu at the top of this page.) Good Luck with rads tomorrow.0
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what is the pill for sex games my DH would probably like for me to take that one! haha
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Welcome cmf - Elimar is right. We have all been through rads and will answer all your questions. Elimar is right - join us on the December rads.
I finished rads Dec 3rd but stay on that thread. I want to share my experiences with the newbies and help in any way I can to help you get through as easy as possible. Lots of support on all the threads. Ask questions, cry, whine, vent,m do whatever you need to do at the time. We are all here for you
Good Luck with Rads Tomorrow - You will do well
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Welcome colleen. No chemo or rads for me so can't help but you have my best wishes for a smooth ride through rads.
jo - even after nearly 2 years my sleep pattern is exactly like yours! 8 hours in bed but only 5-6 broken hours of sleep. So annoying when I slept very well before dx. I manage to sleep 4-5 hours in a stretch sometimes but only when I am really trashed and need a big catch up. Read a time management article recently that said adults only need 7 hours sleep a day and that any more is a waste of productive time - I should be so lucky to get seven hours
and as for feeling productive anytime - forget it!0 -
raeinnz - I would kill for a decent night of sleep. I am really active and have a very busy job during the winter months. Summer is busy too, but can take the afternoon naps if I have to. I have to force myself to be productive these days. That just adds to the being tired.
I know I still have the rad fatigue and was getting better. Now I think I have some of the tired from the Femara which I stopped taking - took the last pill today - nausea and dizzyness.
Two week before I see my onc again. Gonna try and catch up on sleep and take the time to heal some more. The past 4 months has been a living h----. Then, I will make the decision if I will give Tamoxifen a try.
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Barbe1958, I know you mentioned IMOVANE to me a while back,so I looked it up. We can't get it in the U.S. What we have, instead, that uses the same active ingredient, is the drug LUNESTA. I'd be interested to hear from someone who has used Lunesta, on how effective that is, whether it is pretty much the same result as Barbe described the Imovane?
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I wanted to use this cute graphic, with this cute old saying, but after the OUTBREAK that was in the news this past summer, maybe it is not as funny anymore. Here was one list from this past Aug. -- top 10 cities for bedbug infestation (as reported by Terminex):
1. New York
2. Philadelphia
3. Detroit
4. Cincinnati
5. Chicago
6. Denver
7. Columbus, Ohio
8. Dayton, Ohio
9. Washington, D.C.
10. Los AngelesThey seem to like Ohio a lot???? BTW, Canada does not get off the hook...Toronto named bedbugs as one of its "Villians of the Year" for the second year in a row. I'm getting itchy just typing about them.
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Lunesta - sounds restful and reminiscent of the moon and siesta so hopefully it does a good job
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I've tried Sonata, which was supposed to do the same sort of thing but for shorter periods of time. Or so I was told. Then I was notified my insurance wouldn't cover it anymore.
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I tried Lunesta during chemo and it didn't do much for me...I think I tried all 3 doses....I haven't tried it since....been using Ambien 10mg or Ambien 12.5mg CR and they are only okay....My sleep has gotten better since stopping the AI's...but its still not the best...
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Ambien is the only thing I tried, and as you mentioned, it was only o.k. I would still wake up even with the CR (controlled release.) Plus, when I quit taking it after a few days it gave me backlash insomnia, so I probably wound up with a net LOSS of total sleep over that little experiment. (I don't want a drug I have to stay on all the time either.)
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I agree with that. Supposedly Sonata is good for like avoiding jet lag. It would let you sleep during a flight then wake up not groggy.
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I'm tired right now...but should I hit the hay or stay up and check out the LUNAR ECLIPSE after midnight? Hmmm. Pardon me, is my lunacy showing?
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Hi! Good morning to you all!
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This is for you all ladies.
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eli - we have clear skies here so we should see the eclipse - starting at 8.40pm and finishing at 11pm. It is7.05pm now so not long to wait... Hope you manage to stay up.0
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Hi Raj - beautiful flowers - very different from any we have here.0
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Raj, beautiful flowers. Do you know their name?
I appreciate all the flowers you post, you take lovely photos.
Ginger
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Raj--the flower is so pretty! It reminds me of morning glories, but it's also different, especially in the color pattern.
Sleep seems to be quite the issue for most, if not all, of us. Hopefully everyone can find something that helps with sleep. When I am good about taking Skullcap, Valarian and melatonin I will wake up feeling like I've had decent rest, even if I've gotten up to pee or woken up because of hot flashes. I still take xanax at times when I'm really having trouble sleeping. Maybe someday I'll be able to sleep without chemical assistance again.
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Well, for once my lousy sleep pattern worked out for me. I woke at 2:15 and the eclipse had started. Back to bed then I woke again @4 and it was ending (still about 1/4 covered.) I couldn't take a pic because my phone decided to die after I dropped it last night. Me with no phone is like me with one arm. On my way to the AT&T store.
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Melatonin from Walmart is little teeny tiny pills. I've used 5 at a time about 1/2 hour before bed and that's helped. Apparently, they're not made to make you sleepy. It's melatonin that we get from sleeping. Go figure. They work though.
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barbe1958 - I take enough pills as it is right now but will add more if the melatonin does work. I would love to get more sleep. Thanks for the tip.
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This is for you all ladies.