August 2010...anyone starting chemo besides me?!
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Hi All...
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Hi Sohard! How are you doing these days?0
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Hugs and prayers, Lady!
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Article today in Canada re: breast cancer--thought I would share:
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/With+cancer+size+doesn+tfitall/4493979/story.html
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Lady I am so sorry to hear your news. I was really hoping for no more chemo for you. Big hugs to you and your DH as you cope with this latest news. We are all here for you when you are ready to talk more about it. Until then, take care of yourself and you are in my thoughts.0
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Rachel: thanks for the article. It was interesting as I did not know herceptin was a new, targeted drug and has enjoyed good success. Also, the triple negative and ovarian cancer link thereby potentially being a catalyst for yet another targeted drug is very, very good news. It was also informative...who knew we had 22,000 genes in one body?!?!
Lady: I hope you come back and join us soon. We can all help you get through this.
JSW: how is your hair coming along? Is it not coming back yet because you are on herceptin?
Time for tuna steak!
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Regina I'm so sorry; it's so unfair that you have to go through this. You must be overwhelmed at the thought of more chemo. Please try not to focus on the stage 3; I've seen many women at that stage cured. You are in my prayers.
Debbi Thanks for the kind words about my son and the ST:-)
All, we have a few appts today so I will catch up on posts later.
Carolyn
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Lizzy My hair is coming along pretty well I think. Today I am 7 weeks post-chemo and it is definitely growing. Still not covering my whole head but it is definitely improving. I have heard some women say that herceptin seems to slow the hair re-growth but it is hard to say for sure, who knows how fast my hair would be coming back if I wasn't on herceptin! I'll try to take a picture and post it this weekend.
I hope everyone is doing well today.
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jsw19 - I had heard that too, about Herceptin slowing hair growth, and I will be on Herceptin until August. I'm 4 months pfc (can it really be that long?) and I have a full head of hair, but it is still REALLY short. Normally, I would have needed 2-3 haircuts in that time. It is still less than an inch. So I do think it is growing more slowly than normal. But it IS growing, which is the important thing. :-)
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Hi all,
I've been away from the site for a month. Not intentional, just that life after returning to work is tiring and busy.
Lady- I came back to send you a hug. I'm sorry you have to go through this again. I'm really, really sorry. And thinking of you. Sending a prayer out for you and your DH.
All- work is good but it's hard to adjust balancing it all again. For so long I just paid attention to me and my boob and now I'm pulled in so many different directions. I sometimes feel like I'm trying to block out BC. I hate seeing articles, news stories, tv stuff. Has anyone else had that response?
Hope you're all well. I'm glad to hear so many hair growing stories!
Sweeney/Mara
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Hi Sweeney!!0
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Sweeney: whats up, girl?! BC takes so much away from us for so long that I think it is quite natural to feel a bit repelled by all things bc. I have gone through a brief period like that. I did not even want to see the pink ribbons...it was brief and I don't know what caused it but I went through it. When you need all your energy for work and family the last thing you want to be reminded of is that which took you away from all of that. It is sort of like a break-up with a guy that was oh-so bad for you! The easiest and best way to get over him is to banish all remnants of him from your life...all reminders have to be gone so you can get strong again...and then you can, in a healthy way, revisit the topic/situation etc...
I totally think what you are going through is natural. In any case, good to hear from you again. I wish you well-
Liz
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Sohard! --fabulous hair!
Mara - yes, I needed a break from breast cancer also......I still haven't gone back to the oncologlist, but I will in April.
Meanwhile I'm totally excited - I found an osteopathic doctor who came highly recommended by a friend and I have an app't with him next week. He will be able to do the bloodwork my nutritionst wants (hormone levels, etc.) and I'm hoping he will be able to help me find a more integrative oncologlist - or someone he might recommend who is not like mine, who is basically "my way or the highway". It's a starting point. After I lost my midwives who served as my gyn, because they don't take my insurance, I felt totally lost. Now I feel like I'm going in a "direction" again. Plus he participates in my Aetna plan, since he is an actual "MD" but also an osteopath.It's been a crazy day - hoping everyone has a great weekend. Lady --keep you in my daily prayers!
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Thanks all for the compliments... had a busy hectic week- they moved my rads to a more manageable time starting today... I was at 1:15 before and i live an hour away, and hubby needs to be at work at 3pm... its 30 minutes on the table and so theoretically if i got seen at 1:15 and drove home at 1:45 i would get there just in time for DH to go to work (he watches 3 yr old while i am dong rads) well of course this week they were seeing me LATE which made me late to get back to our house and husband late for work, after the 3rd time i finally said i need an earlier time cuz i dont want DH's job affected by that... SO now its earlier, but not at a consistent time (that had to fit me in lol)
I have been feeling BLAH cuz of the rads being in the MIDDLE of the day- its like i hardly had any time after dropping daughter off at school to accomplish anything, and NO time after rads before needing to pick her up. Errands with 2 kids in tow is hectic!!! LOL
Hopefully things start to work themselves out...
I hate to read that a few of y'all have had tamox problems... but very happy to hear your drs are listening to you guys and taking care of it, because like carolyn (i think) mentioned. Quality of life!!!!
So far i havent had any issues with tamox- i read rachel said it may cause slow weight loss or even gain, its been the opposite for me i lost 5 pounds (but i am exercising as well)
My eyelashes are growing back, but they irritate me like little stubble when i close my eyes.
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Lady-
sending prayers your way 
lizzy- i did the calorie calculator and it said "If you exercise for 30 minutes each day, you may increase your caloric intake to 2043 calories per day and still maintain your current weight.
If you exercise for 60 minutes each day, you may increase your caloric intake to 2295.1 calories per day to maintain your current weight." thats a whole lotta calories LOL
Sptmm- you asked about my college stuff- i still havent met with the person that does the intake- i had to postpone my test to after rads (which is april 15th) cuz the fact that rads is in the middle of the day and they only offer the test once a day in the AM... i am just busy studing everything hoping that it'd help
Ginger- Whoop whoop glad you're done with rads!
Kel- I agree with lizzy when she said that through diet you'll basically do the same thing tamox will do- your a badass when it comes to the natural approach
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Texas: I am glad you agree about that crazy calculator! 2200 calories a day? I guess it adds up but like for dinner I just had ravioli with sauce and a big salad. I used parm on the ravioli and I did have dressing on the salad. The entire meal was about 800 calories and that is over-figuring all calories as I really don't know how many cals are in like a 1/2 cup of my homemade sauce, for instance. In any case, for breakfast I had 3 tobasco covered (!) egg whites in a fajita and a banana. That puts me at a big whopper 1100 for the day and I am pretty much done as I generally eat 2 meals b/c I don't like lunch. I know I should do lunch but I just don't like it...I feel it is too many meals packed together in the day. 2200...you would have to be eating steak or a lot of chicken or something...?!?!?
Adey: are you finished with rads? I think you should be by now or are damn near done and I am happy for you on that note!
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26 of 28 done! A little crispy but okay. (c: Step by step.
Will still try to post a pic of my head pubes hair! I am relatively fuzzy now but still no "real" hair.
Love seeing all the pics.
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Adey - I was really crispy by the end of rads. And when it started to peel, it really looked like charred skin. I didn't have any problems until I started the boosts when I started having some pain. About a week after I was finished, it was just fine. Almost done!
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Ladies: The prayers are working! Long story short, I met with the gyn onc this afternoon for a post-op and he and my med onc had put their heads together. He is going to do more surgery. He's removing my entire omentum (only a portion was removed in last surgery and it was the only thing that had cancer in it). So he says they think we're dealing with "early Stage 3" (an oxymoron, I know), but IF there's not a lot more cancer in the whole omentum after it comes out, they are acutally using the "c" word: Cure! They think it's a possibility with more surgery and another round of chemo. I was flying when I left there! The down side is the new surgery can't be done laproscopically, so I'll have a 4-inch long abdominal incision and a longer recovery (up to 6 weeks, ouch), but I'm ready! Surgery is next Wed. They'll piggy back with my plastic surgeon. I was already on the schedule for my implant exchange, so the PS will do his part and then the gyn onc will do his part, I'll stay in the hospital one, possibly two, nights. I'm so psyched. I can't tell you ladies how much I appreciate your prayers and encouraging words. You rock!
PS I'm being lazy and copying and pasting this same post on a couple more threads, so you may run across this again
Hey Sweeney and SoHard! Where ya'll been?? Sweeney, I know what you mean. When I got my OC diagnosis, I couldn't even research it. I was soooooo tired of dealing with cancer!
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Lady: YOU ROCK! I am so glad to read your good news! That is wonderful. Your ooph was no accident...everything is meant to be and that cancer was meant to be found early and destroyed so you can be here for many more moons
I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I do include you in my prayers every night...I feel weird saying/thinking "Ladyinbama" however!!!!!!!!
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Yay Lady - So glad to hear that news!!!0
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Lady...that good news just brought tears to my eyes. I am so relieved to hear this for you. Congratulations just doesn't seem to cover it, does it? Again another big hug your way!
All- you're awesome. Thanks for welcoming me back after a month.:)
On hair- as some of u might remember my hair was growing back fairly well. So right now I'm kind of at this 8 year old boy haircut. It's awfully unflattering and I've recently run into a couple of people that never even knew I went thru cancer. They're looking at me like, "why on earth did she do that to her hair?" I still find this part hugely challenging!0 -
Lady- SOOOOOOOOOOOO happy to hear that!!!
Sweeny- That just happened to me yesterday- y'all have seen how short my hair is but its too hot for me to wear a hat or anything so i went without yesterday and another parent asked me if i just got a hair cut LOL- i explained no its just growing back- ppl are so used to seeing me with something over my head they mistake it for hair in their memories LOL
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Good vibrations bama. Your doc must have a positive feeling about this or I don't think he would mention it!! Just feel like it was "accidentally" caught early with good reason. e njoy your weekend. Libraylil
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Lady - "Cure" is a beautiful word! So glad you are getting some positive news!
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Lady - I can't tell you how happy I am for you. I know you still have surgery and possibly another round of chemo, but thank God they caught it so early. Cured!!!! That is fabulous. You will continue to be in my prayers for a successful surgery and speedy recovery!
Sweeney - Glad to see you back. Know what you mean about BC break. Also understand how busy life has been getting once you are finished with treatment.
All - About the short hair style. I felt bad the other day kissing my husband, if anyone saw us they would think he was kissing a man! I am trying to figure out a way to feminize it. Thought maybe if I tried a clip, asked my hubby if it looked stupid...his response, "If you have to ask it probably does". Thought maybe a headband, but one of my fashion conscious co-workers slowly shook her head no. Any thoughts from anyone? Maybe one of those head bands that tie and then hang over your shoulder with the hair behind it spiked up? I am so challenged in matters of style...I need help!
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mommichelle I have a very short salt n pepper crew cut right now - no way to make that feminine for me. Dh tells me it looks fine, but love is blind;-) I can see over the summer I'm going to be at the stage where people think I chose this wacky doo. For now I wear earrings that dangle a little and makeup (even just a little color on your lips if you're not into makeup) when I want to feel better. I also think when it gets a little longer we can try headbands out maybe a small sparkly clip. I'm not great with scarves, but I think what your idea of a headband that ties or a scarf worn that way sounds good! It must be hard to be at work with a fashion conscious colleague right now but -I'm lucky that my biggest critics are 3 feet tall:-). And ,most importantly - you don't look like a man! But I really do know how you feel. Hang in there, it'll grow!
Carolyn
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Lizzy - Here is the pool
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Mommichelle: I can't quite figure out what "headband" you are talking about but I would caution you against doing anything right now. Quite frankly, time is perhaps your best bet. Just give it a few more months. I know we all look a bit androgynous (for SNL fans: we are all "Pats!") with these luscious hairdos(!) but time will fix this problem. The only other option is back to wig land for a few months. BTW, your fashion-conscious friend is a good one!
In a related story, my brother is color blind and when I was visiting he was asking me if something went with the other thing and he then explained how his wife has to lay out his clothes! Well, I had some fun with him that morning catching a little rec while telling him what to wear! Of course I did not let him leave the house!!!!!!!!
Why does tamox heat us up overnight?! Why is it from 2-5AM hot flashes ensue? I guess I should be happy it is not happening during the day! It is taking me 12 hours of being in bed just to get 8 hours of sleep b/c I have to allow for my 3-4 hours in the middle of the night when I am up, standing in front of the fan. Last night it was like 12 degrees here and I had my heat on 58 and I closed the heat vents in my bedroom a long time ago as I like it cold when I sleep. In any case, I nearly went outside last night for relief!
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Omaz: your backyard is beautiful and that is some blow-up pool, woman! I like the way you put all those chairs out to make it look like it is a pool at a club or something! Your cleverness is a vehicle in which your modesty travels!
BTW, b/c my undergrad credits are so old, the nursing program won't take my 20 year old bio class ( go figure...he he he!) and now I have to take a placement test. I am cramming this biology into my head but it is also helping me get over chemo brain and fast.
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