MIDDLE-AGED WOMEN 40-60ish
Comments
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I just joined in last week and haven't kept up too well these last few days. I am severly anemic 2/10 of a point from needing a blood transfusion. I am currently on Gemzar/Carbo, and anemia is normal. So.......I sleep a LOT. Anway I wanted to send some (belated) wishes out there.
Regina - Good luck, we're all here with you.
Barb - Happy (belated) Birthday, since I'm late and just sending you the good wishes, take another day of fun, laughter and good food.
Marabe - I voted a lot for you! Sure wish you would have been number 1, but hey being 16 is awesome considering the numbers you were up against. BCO Sisters are the best!!!
Please forgive me if I've skipped anyone, I'll try to do better.
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Sunangel127, thank you for that. There was never any history of C in my family - now there are three of us.
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Gina, hoping for a speedy recovery for you!
Morning everyone!
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Thanks for the late wishes Jenn, I'll take them! I would have responded sooner, but I was sleeping too!! I find that on my days off (Tue and Fri) I sleep 14-16 hours a day. On my work days I only sleep 10-12. Is that too much??? At what point is it too much sleeping? I know I used to have low red blood cells, but don't know about now....hmm. You made me think!
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Barbe - I would kill for 10 hours of sleep. My normal is 5 - 6, but that is not straight through. I am up every 2 hours for the bathroom.
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I am 69 and was diagnosed on April 29. I will be having a left breast Mastectomy tomorrow May 19. Today I am waiting to find out what time I should report to the Hospital. I have two daughters 49 and 47 and the 49 year old has been on life support for 9 years. I have 3 grandchildren 22, 20, and 17. The 20 yeard old is a special needs child, and the 17 year old is mentally ill. I had to put them in group homes this year as I could no longer take care of them. I raised all 3 grandchildren. I usually visited the two younger grandchildren on weekends but now with BC don't know if I will be up to the long drive to visit them. I don't have a lot of friends my age so this thread is a life saver for me.
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Welcome Naty, you will find that after the mast, if you're not getting reconstruction, you will have a fairly quick and easy (and fairly pain-free!) recovery. Because no organs, bones or muscles are involved there is little pain. Just itches and twinges as the nerves regenerate. You will be back to driving in probably 2-3 weeks. But take time for YOU now. This is ALL about you.
Jo, I do get up and pee 2-3 times a night, but I still consider that a 10 hour sleep! Then on my days off I go back to bed after being up for a bit and have a long 3-4 hour nap. Then back in bed at 8. My FM really needs the sleep so that I can go to work the next day. I can't deal with 2 days off and then a 5 day stretch of work. I need my days off broken up, so my job is perfect.
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Oh.........I feel like all I do is sleep. Thank goodness for a great boss that is understanding and is giving me flexible hours.
Naty - welcome! I am very new to this thread, but have been on the boards for a while, the support here is wonderful!
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barbe and jenn thank you - I have been reading the posts for the last month but haven't posted much as I wanted to to learn more about BC. So I have been reading everything that I can here and other websites. This website is really awesome.
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naty - Welcome to the middies. The gals here are great - so supportive and fun to be around. They have been my inspiration.
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jo1955 Thank you that is what I am seeing after reading the different posts!
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Hi naty welcome. As you have read this its a great bunch of gals to be around. They are a helpful and humerous bunch. Im wouldnt start or end my day now without atleast seeing whats going on here. They make my day.
Barbe I would love that much sleep. Ever since my BMX I get about 5 hrs. sleep. Its about ready to drive me crazy. I know alot of it because of the TE but Im so ready to just sleep. All I do from around 2am until 6am is toss n turn.
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Paula, I have the same sleep problem - only I wake up a couple of times and am up at least 2 hours each time. My NP suggested taking Tylenol PM. I don't sleep through the night with it but instead of being up 2 hours at a time, I am able to get back to sleep rather quickly.
I don't like taking extra meds (I don't know why I'm worried with all the other stuff they're putting in me) so I asked and she said if I have no aches/pains when I go to bed I could just take Benedryl (since the PM part of Tylenol PM is just Benedryl).
She said if that didn't work, then they would talk about a prescription.
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Hi all, haven't been on in a few days.
Happy belated Birthday Barbee.
Good Luck Gina.
Welcome all newbies.
Leaving for the weekend to go to Truman Lake for some golfing & fishing.
In September / October every year we make homemade Apple Butter. Our fishing trip catches the fish for the fish fry for apple butter weekend. We do it outside in a great big old pot. Fun weekend. Will have to post some pics.
Later gals, leaving tomorrow & will be back Sunday night.
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Hey buds. Just a quick note..I don't have computer access this week 'cause of renovations being done at home. No idea when I might get it back, so I just sneak on at work now and then to try and stay somewhat current.
Hope everyone who is recovering this week gets lots of gentle hugs and firm support.
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Lesiaparis. Your weekend plans sound wonderful. Have a great trip
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Hi there. I hope you are all enjoying a good day. Our weather is fabulous and I spent most of this day outdoors, working in my flower garden, wiping things down and sitting in the shade. Awwwhhh, this is the life! Actually, I am glad to be busy (can't think). Tomorrow is my 1st mammogram since my surgery last June. I know by tomorrow I will work myself up into quite a state. I think there is a bit of a wait for results, too, so please bear with me as I will become a basket case until I know more.
take good care and just breathe. . .
Teklya
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reesie, I don't know what you might have tried so far to get better sleep, but before you go to the prescription drugs I wanted to mention 2 things that have helped me:
1) Get some exposure to bright natural light in the morning hours and, in conjunction with that, try using melatonin at bedtime for a week or so. And try sleeping in a pitch dark room if you can. The idea is to reset you biological clock.
2) Ever since I have been faithful with taking a daily supplement of calcium, magnesium and Vit. D, my sleep has improved. By improved, I mean sometimes I can even sleep 6 hours or more and not even wake up. But the times I do come awake (bathroom, whatever) I have much more luck getting back to sleep within 5-10 minutes.
I have read that sleep goes in 90 min. cycles. During the first couple cycles you go way down to your deepest sleep, but come back up to shallow sleep after the 90 min. I am going to guess (and you can check this out on your own) that when you wake at night, it is not from the deep part of your sleep, but maybe after you have slept 1 1/2 hours, 3 hours, or 4 1/2 hours, etc. and are at the shallow part of that cycle. So, coming awake is not really that bad (for all the bathgoom-goers) but not being able to fall back asleep is what is disturbing your rest.
If body discomfort or being in pain is interfereing with sleep, you have to address that. Since we're all middle-aged here, that means a lot of us have ongoing aches and pains. When we can't get good sleep, those aches and pains get worse and welcome to the vicious cycle. I know pharmaceutical sleep aids do help many, but there are other things you could try first. Somewhere on this site was a thread all about sleep if you want to search for it.
Finally, ANYONE ON TAMOXIFEN...Benadryl is a no-no for you. That includes all products containing diphenhydramine.
I know that is not reesie, but it might be some others out there.
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Teklya, Is that how they do in Canada...first mammo a year after surgery? Here, it seems like they call us in for the first post-surgical squishing about six mos. out. Hope you breeze right through your screening tomorrow.
naty41, Hope to hear from you in a few days that your surgery went well. Glad the Middie-gals have given you a nice welcome already.
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From the "love my infomercials" dept. ---
Flip-flopping back to SLEEP topic, do any of you have the "sleep number" mattress or "temperpedic" foam mattress. They are good at marketing, but do they REALLY work better for anyone??????
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Telly. Good luck tomorrow and try not to worry. Sending up prayers for you now
Elimar. I didn't know that the calcium, vit d supplements could help sleep. I just started on them. I asked my primary doc if I needed to take any supplements, (my husband takes a lot and I take nothing so he had been bugging me). My doc told me the only thing I really needed was a calcium and vit d supplement (subsequently she also told me iron after my blood work came back and I am still anemic after surgery). Have to tell you have been taking regularly and I am sleeping much better. I only take one capsule with food (bottle recommends 2) for I do eat a balanced diet and didn't want to get too much. Dr did prescribe ambien but that made me feel too drugged so haven't taken any more.0 -
Faulkh, glad you are experiencing sleep improvement like I did. If your calcium does not have magnesium in the formulation, you probably should add that as well, taken in half the milligram dosage compared to the milligrams you take in the calcium. It all works together. (IF taking the magnesium causes "loose stool" then take a lesser amount.)0
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Elimar - It will be 10 months since surgery before I have my first mammo. My MO told he I would be getting on once a year. He did not see the need for every six months if the mammo was clear.
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I had my 1st bilat mammo after surgery, March 2010 which was my year from the irregular mammo. Since then I've had a 6 month in Sept '10 of bad boob & 1 year bilat in March 2011.
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Nati- welcome- sorry you had to join us but glad you found us...we are a bit whacky but it helps take the stress off...you have had a full plate for a very long time-barbe is right- you must focus on yourself now-it helps the healing. I will be thinking of you tomorrow and looking for an update as soonas you feel up to it..
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Hey Middle Sisters! Thanks for your sweet Post! I did get home this afternoon. I appreciate Your support. I am feeling better then last night @ this time, I was just getting to my room., had to stay in recovery 41/2 hrs, do to Fluid build up in my Lungs ( Pulmonary Edema) was scary, Not being able to Breath, The gave Me IV Lasix & got 2 liters of fluid out of me . The 2 S. Node are clean,sent other to Lab with my Breast tissue. I should have Path report friday afternoon! , doing much better now I am home.Still in pain,, But resting much better today! Thanks for your prayers!{{hugs}} Love
Thinking of all of you! xoxox Gina
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Elimar thanks for the tips. I definitely don't want to go the prescription route. And thanks for remindiing me I should always note that anytbing that works for me might not be right for someone else. I should have noted that anyone should ask the doc first. Definitely something I always do even with natural supplements.
Now time to have a hard night sleeping s lol snce I'm getting my port "revised" tomorrow to clip my wild attacking stitch.0 -
Years ago when having sleep problems related to stress my doctor told me I had to reset my routine and make my bedroom a place of rest. Make sure the bedding and room were comfortable, cool and dark. I was to go to bed at the same time each and every night, after a routine of bath, brush teeth, then get into bed. I could read, but not watch television. It took a little practice and time on my end, but it worked. Two years ago due to an illness my DD was having trouble with sleep and her dr recommended Melatonin, which really helped her tons.
Elimar - my sister has a really good temperpedic matress - one I could never afford, but it's really, really comfortable. As a matter a fact, 3 weeks ago I was feeling really bad and went to her house to sleep in her bed. Not only does it mold your body, she also has the feature that lifts the head and feet and it vibrates. It is comfy, but costs a pretty penny. I'm thinking about getting a mattress top, which we got my DD and she loves it.
Good luck with the sleeping issues.
Leisaparis- your trip sounds wonderful, fish fry and homemade apple butter all done in the outdoors. I'm jealous!! Have a great time.
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Reesie my sleep is so weird since surgery. I do take a sleep aid the Doc gave me. I dont take it like I should because I am so groggy and I think its because of the weird way Im sleeping. It just frustrating when I do finally get back to sleep, its time to get up, grrrr. I hope one day itll get straightned out.
Thanks Elimar for the info on the pill taking. I will have to look into it.
Gina its good to see that your getting along better. Rest up and let others take care of you. Trust me, let this be about you and nothing else. I hope you continue to heal up well.
Take care all and have a good night!
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Welcome Naty.........so sorry you are having to go thru all this, on top of what you already had on your plate. Hopefully you will find the support you need here, and since I have been on here, I can guaranteed you will
Regina!! Great news!!!!!! Rest and get better soon!!!!
Hugs to everyone. Tired tonight...not in bad pain tho, so that is great!!!!! That second nerve block has been great!!!!!
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