MIDDLE-AGED WOMEN 40-60ish
Comments
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Jo, see if Cymbalta is an option.....
Adjusted meds at the doc yesterday, got another ECG (centre didn't tell me the result and wouldn't give me a copy)...sigh.... I HATE that! I have copies of all the ones I had done in the ER as the doc said to carry them with me to prove to another hospital what I have in case another ECG doesn't pick it up and I'm in crisis. I hate old women in white jackets that get pleasure denying me what I asked for.....a copy. As friggin' simple as that. Nope.
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3jaysmom - Right now I am on 50mg of amitriptyline. May just have to increase the dose. I was on Lyrica before that and all it did was make my feet and ankles swell so bad I could not get shoes on or walk for that matter.
barbe - Cymbalta is not option for me since I am on Tamoxifen - my MO says definitely no way.so we will see.
Will keep everyone updated.
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3jays I am also on amitriptyline for nerve damage from rads and it works pretty well for me. I know of people who have neuropathy in the feet and hands and take nortriptyline and that works well also.
Had my MRI yesterday was an hour long because they did both my cervical and thoracic spine. I am hoping to get the results today. Will keep you all posted.
Jo hope your Dr. appt goes well today.
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Hello elimar - thanks for the invite. I will read through recent posts and chime-in now and then
Sher
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Hello barbe - as always, lots of hugs from me.
Sher
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I am staying tuned for, at least SOME good news to come in from all the people waiting for scan results. The worst is when they have you go through the diagnostic test and still end up stumped, so I'll hope that 1) B/C is not involved in anyway, and 2) That something does get determined and they can start easing the pain. Back pain is awful.
jo, I think you have tried Effexor, haven't you, but you didn't like it? Neurontin is another for neuropathy BUT chemically it is in the class of Lyrica-typedrugs.
Effexor works for my neuropathy as well as the Cymbalta did. Effexor o.k. with Tamoxifen. Worst side effect is dry mouth. I could buy Biotene mouthwash by the gallon. Effexor is going to be hard to do the withdrawl, I can tell already--but since I still get tingles of my neuropathy now and then, I know that is still there so I will just be addicted to Effexor for life.
All the drug treatments are nasty, some barely better than the conditions they treat. Medicine has a LOT to learn about neuropathy and chronic pain. How long until there are pharmaceuticals WITHOUT side effects? Anybody holding their breath?
Barbe, You really must expand your base of loathing, my dear, to include younger women and men of all ages (like I do) when it comes to denying you your healthcare information. Rules, rules, and more dumb rules.
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Hiya, Anandagram! I think you will find a supportive bunch here. Not to say we are all alike (except age group) so you find a little bit of ALL the Dx's and treatments. Same for opinions, but we try to get along peacefully while we sort all this B/C stuff out.
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eli _ I did try Effexor and did not like it at all. Bad SEs from it. I know Effexor is okay with Tamoxifen but not sure about Cymbalta. If it is a Lyrica type drug, it probably won't work for me since Lyrica did not. Will just wait and see what he says.
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Hi all...everyone's been so busy.
Barbe: I hope you gave that lady an earful. That's rediculous that she wouldn't give you a copy.
Jo: I used Cymbalta for awhile and it did help a lot, but it gave me insomnia and I finally just decided that taking heavy pain meds that knocked me out was more preferable. Good luck at our appointment and I hope they can help.
Sher: This is a fun group with lots of very knowledgable ladies to offer help and support. Glad to see you here.
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jo, It is Neurontin (gabapentin) that has similarities to Lyrica. Cymbalta did get approval to be used for fybromyalgia (and a different one salled Savella did also.) Cymbalta, I thought, worked o.k. with tolerable SE's, but if you go on Drugs.com, it warns away from taking it with Tamox, because they use the same liver enzyme, CYP2D6. Strangely, Effexor uses that enzyme, but does not get the same warning for interaction with Tamox. If you ever hear why that is, let me know.
[p.s. Cymbalta made me sleepy, nappy; therefore I gained some lethargy weight.]
I might be wrong in my thinking, but it seems to be not so much WHAT caused the neuropathy (chemo, fibro, diabetes, etc.) but just that they have to monkey around and find out what works with YOUR brain chemistry. If only I had the right balance of serotonin and norepinephrine and dopamine in my bad brain, I could live pain-free in happy, rainbow world. I just know it!
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Speaking of brains (and going back a few pages about "sensitivities" rather than "allergies" because this bears repeating)... I found out the hard way how some people have a sensitivity to aspartame (Equal, Nutrasweet) which, like MSG, crosses the blood-brain barrier.) Not just producing headaches. Aspartame made me feel like crap and has given me "restless leg syndrome" before. To find out if you have a sensitivity, just watch your diet like a hawk and eliminate it for two weeks. If you feel good, add it back in and see if you feel bad again. You'll know.
I had my first Cheetos (Spicy Jalepeno) of 2012 while typing this. Apparently I can tolerate small amounts of MSG on a good day, but when they say "Dangerously Cheesy" they do mean it, if you have a sensitivity, that is. (I'll probably never get my complimentary case of Cheetos NOW!)
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Well, I am back and thanks for the pocket party. He has changed my medication to nortriptyline 75mg. This is a step up from the amitriptyline and have a follow up in 2 weeks. Next appt is with the BS next Tues and possible breast MRI. Go figure - just when I thought the never ending appts were done - now this. I don't think I am asking too much - I just want to be pain free.
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I'm hoping and praying that it works for you, Jo...
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Barba58 - Thanks so much - I am too. I hate being in pain all the time.
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I hope it works for you as well Jo. I know very little about pain meds so this discussion is giving me an education.
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Jo- I believe that pain free isn't too much to ask. Good luck with the new meds!
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One thought that just came to me from Jo talking about an MRI ... I personally would rather have more children by natural childbirth (which I did, twice) than have a breast MRI. The last time my surgeon suggested one, I cringed, and she said to check and see if my insurance covered a BSGI (breast specific gamma imaging). Mine did, and a center near me had the equipment. You sit up and the machine comes to you, kind of like a mammo but not as painful. You get a dye injection beforehand and the special camera follows the dye around, similar to an MRI. I get these yearly now instead of MRI's because I had bad experiences with them (one example: tech inserted needle wrong and dye was going all over my face and arm while inside but they didn't believe me and kept me in the machine ... yeah, not kidding!!) Anyway, just wanted to throw that out there in case others have an aversion to breast MRI's with dye contrast as I did. My public service announcement for the day!0
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marlegal, THANK YOU! i've been noticing how so many women here talk about breast MRI's like it's no big deal, but, like you, i absolutely hate them. i know i'll have one once a year and i'm already dreading it! i'm going to ask at my clinic tomorrow about the breast specific gamma imaging. i think i would have crawled out of that machine if the dye were going all over my face and i would be screaming at the same time. that's ridiculous.0
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Jo - I hope the medication change helps get you pain free. lt's not too much to ask for and I am hoping the pain doc gets you there.
Barbe - Not sharing the results? SO not nice!! I am betting you could've taken her....ha ha
Welcome to the new and hugs to all.....
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My MRI was awful. All I wanted to do was scream, "Get me out of here!" I try not to think too much about the next one....
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I am going to see my BS next week and I think he is going to order a breast MRI. From what I am reading, I am not sure I want to do this. I have never had any kind of an MRI. Now I want to know what happens with these. Are they painful? That is not something I need right now. Anyone who has had one, would you please explain the procedure to me in detail. If you don't want to go into it here - please feel free to PM me. Thanks.
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HI ANANDAGRAM!!! Welcome to my other world!!!
Jo, I've never had a problem with an MRI, but I get lots of tests and am pretty used to being injected, poked, prodded and other wise totally being abused....
I NEEDED to know if I was still having the Long QT events in my heart as I had been adjusting meds for 4 days. The bitch said the doc would tell me. That'll be days from now!! I needed to know now. I gave up too easy, but I've run out of a lot of the fight I used to have. I am SO sick of worrying about my health!!!
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Didn't mean to scare you Jo! I just hated mine because I have claustrophobia a bit. I had to lay face down and your breasts hang down through two openings. They put an IV in my arm so they could add the contrast dye. They rolled me into the machine, a round tube. There is air blowing so the temperature is comfortable. They gave me the choice of earphones to listen to music or earplugs because the machine is very loud. They talk to you occasionally to tell you what they're doing and you have to lay perfectly still....that was the difficult part for me because I'm always antsy. It took about an hour for mine. It's not painful except that there's pressure on your breast bone and that does get uncomfortable because you can't lift yourself up to relieve the pressure. They roll you back out when you're finished and remove the IV. I must admit I was very happy when it was over!
Maybe other people have had different experiences...
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Oh, Barbe she was a b#}%^h! Hang in there, you'll get your results soon.
Jo, my experience was just like Barb58 wrote. I was really anxious when they told me I had to lay on my stomach and stay in the machine and it would take half an hour. But when I actually did it, I had no problem at all and despite all the noise almost fell asleep in there. I had a second one just before surgery, and since I'd done it before it was a piece of cake. I guess I have no claustrophobia.0 -
For people with claustrophobia, they keep the tunnel well lit, with air blowing and mirrors so you can see out. I tempt myself by opening my eyes when I know the machine is almost touching my nose....I like to stretch my comfort zone....hehehehehe
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Jo-I had a sedative before my MRI and don't even remember it!
Barbe-I would start calling the Dr. and leaving messages.
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My experience with the breast MRI was just as Barbe explained except I was not offerred headphones. Probably a good thing as I likely would have taken a nap had it not been so dang noisy!!
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I've had a couple MRI's (back and breast) and I never had a problem. I don't have needle fear, or any reaction to the contrast material, not claustrophobic, can willingly lie in one position for an hour, and I kind of get into the machine noises like it is house/trance music. Really did not mind them at all.
Never minded mammos either...before I had my rads. Now, I only mind them because my treatment side cannot take the compression without the capillaries busting. I never understood why some women hated them so. I guess it comes to individual comfort level with all those machine diagnostics.
Try not to fear what you have not yet experienced. It may not be too gruelling. I did fear rads before I had them. I still think they are harsh, but they turned out a lot less scary than my imagination made them and I even found them boring after the first few times. MRI's aren't too exciting either.
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jo, just be prepared for loud noises. i have no idea why the MRI machine is so noisy, but it clanks and thumps and it was such a big surprise to me. for my last one i agreed to take 20 mg of valium right before and i think it helped a little. i do NOT like having to stay still for any length of time. just being told i have to be still makes my nose itch and my heart beat too fast. i've always been like that. i think if i'd been warned about how noisy it was, i'd probably have been fine. you'll do great, i'm sure. there is absolutely no pain whatsoever.0
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Jo: I hope the medication change will help the pain.
Finished chemo today! Yay, I hate the MRI machine too, so I get a valium from the doctor and take it 30 minutes before the scan and they I don't care anymore
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Jo, the MRI can be a bit of a challenge, but it is not painful at least. You lie face down, with the boobs plopping into special cups. The tube is not big, and you are in there for what seems an eternity (for me it was about 40 minutes). You have an IV port in your arm, and halfway through, they inject some dye in there. The machine is NOISY like all get out. They give you ear phones to protect against the noise.
My mother gets claustrophobic, so they gave her a xanax before the MRI and she just kind of dozed off. WIth all the testing and other stuff I have been through, I have gotten used to asking ahead exactly what a test or procedure will be like, so I can get used to the idea, and I also warn the docs when something is likely to freak me, however silly it may seem. If I can't deal, I take half a xanax before (although that has only happened 2-3 times).
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