August 2010...anyone starting chemo besides me?!
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Oppps sorry wrong Lisa, ha can I blame that on chemo brain??? No supper freak here, I say little miss sunshine because that is what the residents at the nursing home think of me, they say I always show up with a smile. I blame it all on my dna, because I have surely had my share of crap dealt my way besides loosing both parents to cancer my father was only 39 died when I was 10, and my mom 7 years ago, I have had my share of tragedy but always seam to come out stronger and more ok, I feel like I learned at a very young age that life is to short to let it pass by wasted with unhappiness.Alot of it for me also is when I wake up in the morning I choose to have a happy day why, because I'm alive, yes I just may be a freak lol oh well.
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Hello all. Yesterday was day 3 post chemo, and once again it knocked me on to my knees. I had no energy at all. Does it affect others? It gets better after but Day 3, just forgot about me for those 24 hours......
Something nice happened to me Day 2. After my Neulasta shot my hubby and I ventured to my favorite little Chinese restuarant for lunch, and someone paid our check.....it's a little place and I didn't recognize anyone there. I know my topsy turbin scarf caught people's eyes. But I thought it was so kind....Sometimes it's akward having people "know your business", but in this case it resulted in an act of kindness that both me and hubby were taken back by...
Port pain....I have had that. I was a little distressed because mine is so much higher than I expected, and I can feel it most of the time. Once accessed it is even more prominent. The new girl in Lebanon had to tug on it to get the top off last time and left me bruised. I think she did not place the top properly to begin with and with the skin so thin to begin with, I ended up bruised. Sometimes I can feel pulsations. It really is weird, and I am determined to get this thing out at my first opportunity.....
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Lizzy I also felt like buzzing my hair off was liberating. It is a funny feeling. I took pictures the day after and then I took pictures again yesterday (2 weeks later). I think I want to try to take pictures every couple of weeks so I can see the progression. My hair continued to shed for several days after the initial buzzing so there is noticeably less hair in the pictures from yesterday but I still haven't gotten totally bald.
DebJ I also have loss of energy a few days post chemo but I'm also having a lot of nausea and loss of appetite. So I think my loss of energy is due to just not getting enough food in my body. I have a new medication to try for round #3 so I'm hoping to be able to eat more and hopefully that will help me to feel better. And that is so nice that someone paid for your meal, it makes me happy to hear about those random acts of kindness.
I have been feeling the overall fatigue this week but then last night for some reason I was tossing and turning for a couple of hours trying to get to sleep. Sometimes when I have trouble falling asleep I seem to focus on my heart and I feel like it is not beating properly. I have had a MUGA scan which was fine and my onc listens to my heart every time I go in so I think I am just paranoid about it because I am on Adramycin which is known to have a small risk of heart damage. It is good to be an informed patient and know all of the risks but sometimes I think I would worry less if I didn't know all of the risks!
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Good Day Chemosabes!!!!
Zenith: I did not know the port is to help us avoid lymphedema. I had no idea. I just thought it was to avoid leakage/spillage/overwork the veins in, for most of us, our one good arm. That was interesting. You learn something new everyday!
DebJ: what a nice story! That is so nice that someone paid your check! I do it at Dunkin Donuts. I just randomly pay the bill for the car behind me. I do it once per quarter, or every 3 months. It is just so nice that someone took notice and paid your bill. Such a nice story.I am totally with you on getting the port removed ASAP but I think they want us to keep it for 1 year. I am going to be looking very forward to that 1 year mark. This has already been a bit of a long trip and by the time I get the port out, I will be 1 1/2 years since dx. That is a long time.
JSW: Isn't it oddly satisfying to run your hands over your buzzed hair?! That is my new favorite!!! The nurses told me not to cut it and that a lot of people just thin out but all I could think was I am going to look like Molly Shannon's dog from "Superstar!!!!' Please tell me you have seen "Superstar" and, if not, you must ASAP!!!!! I had one, huge horizontal snarl of hair across the back of my head that was like 6" long and I said that is it and I got the clippers out! Do you know if we can color or highlight our hair ever again? I think someone else speculated we could not. In any case, I wore that WIG out this morning and it was definitely warm (ok with me as I live in CT and then next 6 months are pretty chilly!) but I do not mind it except that I feel like a fraud! I do feel like GI Jane with my new buzz and will work my traps overtime now to look more GI!
Well girls, I hope you are all having a good day. I wonder if I can work this buzz cut into something spooky for Halloween!?! My boyfriend and I planned for me to answer the door and tell them all how scary/cool their costumes are and then he is going to jump out in a scary mask and cape to scare them!!! Should be fun! I am wondering now if I should not do something spooky as well!!!!!
Your FEARLESS Leader!
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Hi Ladies, at least some of us, just kidding. From what I have gathered, Google, the first regrowth we will get is kind of like chemo baby fuzz. My wig lady said you wouldn't want to color that hair like you wouldn't want to color a child's hair, unless of course your kid is a baby beauty contestant, so all rules go out the window. After your real hair comes back in, you can have what ever color you want with no harm. I consider it to be my little contribution to the economy because my stylist will have been unemployed by me for far too long by the time I go back to her some time next year. I know she has other clients but once a month she was my best friend. Having my own hair again seems so far off right now but I know we will all have to make tress decisions at some point. Being bald and cute is very convenient at the moment, my DH cannot believe how fast I can ready to go somewhere, only my brows and lashes take a more time than before chemo.
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Deb J my port doesn't have a top to take off.I just get the needle right through my skin into the top of it.. I have a power port, maybe your is different. I do notice that my port is very noticable now and wasn't so much at first.
Lizzy I can't see why you wouldnt be able to color your hair. If your scalp has no abrasions you should be good to go. Remember to do the allergy test before every color application.I don't know why chemo would have changed our allergic reactions, but just to be safe. Don't over process, use product you are used to already. Perhaps someone knows of a reason why not to color, but I can't think of one. Children in film and TV sometimes have permanent color treated hair so they make a better family unit.The ones I know had no harm from the treatment. You all know your hair is dead, right? Yes, long ago before college I was a hairdresser.
I think I will try to get my straggly wispy bits down closer to my scalp, it looks so awfully bad.
Oh Halloween, we are remote here. What excuse can I use to buy all the candy I love and then need to "not waste it?" Hmmm
Ginger
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Deb; Day 3 after chemo (I get chemo Mondays, so Wednesdays are my bad - I mean REALLY REALLY bad day!) It's horrendous. It's like the world's longest day. Thursday I start to get better but I'm still sleeping a lot and now today I'm okay. I sometimes get hit with nausea on the weekends but it comes and goes and my energy is usually better.
Just thinking about Wednesdays is horrible for me. I'm done with the AC and start taxol next time so we'll see how that goes. But yeah, forget ANYTHING - no decision making, no house cleaning, no nothing on Day 3 after chemo for me!
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Hi all,
I just had my last A/C. Just in time too b/c I'm starting to get nauseous just seeing the signs for the exit on the way there. So two more weeks of nausea and then on to weekly Taxol/Herceptin. I have to do the weekly b/c I've had some back problems and they think the weekly will have less bone/joint pain (I hope!). I also won't have to do the nuelasta. I am taking the claritin with it tomorrow because last time it felt like I'd broken my tailbone the week after. I can't wait to not feel nauseous; it's so hard with the kids. I went to bed early last night and when I came down there were yogurt handprints on the tv in the playroom, yum. (wonder if dh is actually in the house with them while I'm sleeping;-)
Hope everyone has a good weekend. I'm off to take yet more nausea meds, I have aloxi, emmend , decadron and ativan on board but still queasy. Haven't lost weight though b/c I'm on the all carb/ bagel diet and feel like the pillsbury dough boy:-)
Carolyn
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Onemonga: there you go with that sharp sense of humor again!!!!!! Speaking of hairdressers, I was with mine for *14* years and when this happened, she came to visit, told me how she would help and blah blah blah. I gave her my front door key to feed my cat while I had my bmx just in case I was gone longer than anticipated. Now, mind you, it is about $175 every time I go to her add that up over 14 years! In any case, my boyfriend said he would feed the cat but he lives 35 minutes away and what I was doing was breaking up tasks while I was hospitalized meaning I had 1 friend doing this, another doing something else, someone helped with shopping etc.. and I figured b/c she lives close, it would not be a big deal. After she left here that day, I called like 3 weeks later, as I never heard from her again, to confirm she would feed the cat. Her attitude was not so hot so I decided, about a week later, and after I was having nothing but trouble getting a copy of my front door key made at Lowe's, to call her and get the key back because I no longer felt comfortable so I left a message and emailed asking for the key back. Four weeks goes by, I am in and out of the hospital and not only did I not hear from her, she never returned the key. I finally sent her a text telling her to get that key back to me or I was going to the salon to tell her boss and to retrieve that key. I get the key back with some stupid letter stating she felt I was upset with her and like she was not sure if she had done something wrong. People are such gargantuan A-holes, I can't believe it. Not only will I never go to her again, I will not recommend that salon. After 14 years this classless sac did not even send me a get well card!! I am glad it is going to take 2.5-3 years before my hair is long again as I will have ample time to find a new, better hairdresser. Jokers!!!
Ginger: I hope I can color it again. I like highlighting. I look like Uncle Fester after shaving it as I have 2 gray spots right in the Uncle Fester spots!! Of course, I had no idea they were there because I have been highlighting for YEARS! Yeah, on the candy thing, I *almost* went out to buy some and stopped long enough to remind myself that steroid monster is visiting next week and will have it's way with that candy so perhaps it is best to buy it on October 30th!
Calamtykel: it is day 4 for me...in fact, it is more like days 4-8 but I will see what happens next week as tx #2 is Tuesday. Rest, relax, forget about life for a while! Be good to yourself.
Ckptry: funny on the yogurt handprints! I will never forget one night at my sister's house, she has *6* kids(!), and they were having white rice! Well, Aunt Liz sort of incited a little food fight and sure enough, in no time flat, it looked like someone had gotten married in her kitchen!!!! She was not eating with us but was doing laundry and waiting to eat with her husband when he got home so I had some fun with the kids!!!
I am going to pick up my Emend tomorrow. So not looking forward to Tuesday but alas we have NO choice. Bring on the carbs!!! Yummy!Well, girls: I have pretty much decided to go back to school for nursing. It will take a few years but I think it will be very worth it and I can work with people similarly situated. I have been thinking about it for years and now I will just do it.
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Lizzy - Nursing - wonderful, good for you. I work in research with several long-time study nurses and they are the best!0
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I have been basically normal since Wednesday and am enjoying every minute of it! It is so good to know that there are peaks as well as valleys. For me it is days 4-8 as well. The hair is starting to fall just like the leaves. Is it weird that I'm kinda excited? I have no pain with my port but it is somewhat prominent. I must say I can't imagine having to take a top off the port, I am very curious about that. May today bring each of you exactly what you need. Cheers.
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I wanted to post a pic of ME and then a pic of these ridiculous fake, awful flowers I purchased. I was going to dump the ugly flowers and use the vases for something. These were on sale for like $3 each! As it turns out, they are great wig holders! There is the ugly fake plant/flower to the right and there is my wig on the other one to the left! I wanted you all to see me so you can see that wig is just like my hair WAS before I had to buzz it! In any case, I could not download my photo to this site I think b/c it is in bitmap form. In any case, there is my fancy wig!
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Lizzy-
My acne has cleared up for the most part too! I dont think that this round of chemo is gonna trigger a breakout i can just feel it (maybe its diet cuz I've cut meat out again)
Scary school all over again! Good luck! (i also have put some thought into going to school for nursing, that way i can tell all the patients my survivor story)
DebJ-My nurse is named beth too and she is AWESOME! I like the friendly atmosphere of my oncologists office. I actually dont mind the infusion room, we have about 10 or so chairs and I like knowing that i am not the only one in the world with cancer, we smile or talk amongst each other. I am by FAR the youngest person their, then next youngest person i would guess to be in at least their 60s so huge age gap (thats my grandparents age) but they are all nice although they give me that side smile that i take as (oh poor young girl having chemo)
I find when i wear my bandanas ppl will ask me about my situation and offer prayers, it is akward sometimes cuz ppl sorta guess i have cancer and its not private but i love educating ppl (espcially the Younger women who arent even thinking about BC) so awesome someone paid your chekc!
calamity- AWWWW, thank you. I do try to "put on a happy face" It better carry me far LOL i am not putting up with these things to live only a few months or years. I am talking DECADES here! I hope to be the next "medical miracle" women lives to be 102 after being dx with stage 4 lol Sorry to hear you're achy after nuelasta, and love the new pic BTW
KathrineNaomi- congrats on being asked to be the guest speaker! That has to be awesome!
Sptmm62-HILARIOUS!!!! i actually have that prob too! I normally kept my bushes trimmed and the very first time i went bald i learned the hard way that hair does serve a purpose! LOL i do hold it, or if i cant i dont squat and sit all the way down... thats so funny
I have a funny side effect- GAS i have been so gassy i think it might be the compazine cuz its only the first few days after chemo which is when i take them. Um yeah and not the light and airy gas that is hardly noticable either! The "OMG who the hell farted" type of gas that you def dont want to admit it was you.
Make it up to your son by taking him somewhere when y'all get the chance free- like a local skate park or something.... Its hard finacially- my 5 yr old so wanted to do tap lessons we even bought her the shoes, but i was dx in july and the lessons started in Aug so we had to cut that out. There is always next yr....
Sharonkw-i had shortness of breath but it was hardly noticible after this last tx, the first 2 i would get winded walking from the car to front door!
Gingerbrew- Sometimes we joke and make situations a little more lighthearted than they should be, but that is our way of coping. I know depression is VERY real and have 1sthad experince with it. I think cancer is one of those topics that we often joke about to lessen the emotions we have dealing with them. I am glad you wrote what you did to open our eyes and also glad that you accepted her apology. (((HUGS TO ALL)))
Sohard-Whats new that ya? SE minimal i hope!
Haircoloring- Okay i am so silly, i walked down the isle that they keep the hair color and thought- i should dye my hair then i laighed and thought "what hair!" I totally forgot i was bald!
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Has anyone heard about increasing their Omega 3 intake while going through chemo - more directly - going through Taxol/Taxotere? I can't find the amount I should increase it to. I was told by my Onc nurse and a Integrative Dr to increase the Omega 3 during this phase of chemo as it helps the meds work better. Anyone else hear this / doing this? thanks.
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mlv - Oncology nutritionist said 1000mg omega-3 (mixed EPA and DHA) per day.0
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JSW, I found out the hard way I wasn't eating enough either. I made a point to drink, but ate really when it felt just right during my first two Rounds. This time I made a real effort to get something in me every 2-4 hours. And I think I did better. I ate some strange things, but I got something in me. I hope you are feeling better. I would continue to try to eat whenever I could.
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I AM DONE!!!!!!! Finished my last round of chemo today. Just gotta get through the next 7-10 days and I can get back to normal!!!
Also, I met with the radiation oncologist the other day, so for those of you having rads, I will post the info I got tomorrow. Very tired now, going to shower and go to bed.
Texas--yeah, I have that room-clearing gas problem too, but I don't take the compazine, so I don't think that is it. Another really lovely and embarassing side effect!
Have a good night everyone. I will post my rads discussion tommorrow.
Debbi
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mlv -- I haven't heard Omega 3's in particular for Taxol, but they are very important for many other things so it's not surprising and they are easy to add to the diet - I use olive oil almost exclusively as an oil - the other oils - corn, etc., are omega 6 oils and can be toxic when they break down. Since I like olive oil, it's easy to do. I eat it over popcorn, cook my eggs in it, make dressing with it, etc. I even have used it in brownies and such.
What I have heard is that the B's are very important during Taxol as they can help protect against the nerve damage.
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A very good source of omega 3's is Carlson's Fish Oil. It's important when taking any fish supplement to be sure it's tested free of mercury and Carlson's is.
I remember when my dad was shocked that my kids would take their fish oil - because he said fish oil tastes horrible. He said he couldn't even choke down a bottle that he bought. I said "DAD - if fish oil smells and tastes like fish, it's rancid! Throw it away!!" Carlson's has their expiration dates right on the bottle and it's guaranteed fresh.
I think most any healthfood store carries it. Fish oil is the same as cod liver oil but cod liver oil has more vitamin D and A I think.....I'm not sure if I have that right, but I think that is the difference.
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Fish or cod liver oil is also easier to take if you mix it with some lemon juice in about 1/8 cup of water. The lemon juice breaks up the oil and it's easy to get down.
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I order Carlson's fish oil from Amazon.
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i never heard of taking omega 3, hmmm another thing to add to my diet
I love olive oil too- i have tried it in baking but it altered the taste slightly... I may buy the carlson's oil
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It is a soft gel 'pill'. I would suggest checking with your doctor too since there seems to be many different opinions out there.
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Thanks Calamtykel. I especially like the MedOmega Fish Oil 2800. I am currently trying to find out a proper mg amount to take, but I like the increased amount in this one of both the DHA and EPA. Pill form I would need to take 3 mega softgels vs 1 tsp of this liquid. Yeah. I gag on pills. Increasing my D3 to 6+ pills a day is bad enough.
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Good mornin everybody! I am not sure if it is a good thing or a bad thing that my kids are on a schedule LOL had me up by 7:30....
Got a fun filled day plan, taking them outside for some fresh air now that its cool (by cool i mean mid 80's lol) gonna try to teach my daughter how to ride a bike.
But first trying to figure out how to uplaod a new pic! My camera is taking forever to import them onto my computer!
Y'ALL HAVE YOURSELVES A WONDERFUL FALL DAY- PRAYING FOR EVERYONE TO HAVE NO SE!!!!!
GOOD LUCK TO ALL THAT ARE GETTING TREATMEANT THIS UPCOMING WEEK! ENJOY THE WEEKEND A LITTLE MORE THAN USUAL!
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mlv - I hear ya. My nutritionist has me on ridiculous amount of things - being careful to avoid stuff that will counteract the chemo. But it's still a lot. Mushroom extracts and things like thymex supplements for immune support - and a cardio thing - bleh. It takes a lot of water to get them all down.
I think - isn't flaxseed also an omega 3?? He put me on a flax supplement instead of the fish oil for right now.
I think Iherb has Carlson's for a good price. Mercola also has his own brand of fish oil as well - more expensive but guaranteed quality.
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Here's a thing I found on Mercola's site about Krill oil, which is supposed to be better absorbed by the body than fish or cod liver oil for Omega 3's - it has a thing on here too about when fish oil becomes rancid and releases free radicals in the body - don't want any of those!
I have not tried any of his products but it's interesting reading.0 -
GOOD MORNING CHEMOSABES
Mlv: I was not told about Omega 3 or any oils. I asked them repeatedly what supplements I should take and they told me that my blood tells them everything they need to know and that is how they determine what I should take. My blood has been fine so I guess I don't need to take anything else. I do eat a lot of salmon and it is naturally occurring in salmon so perhaps that is why I have not been told to take a supplement. Certainly I don't think it can hurt
JSW and DebJ: appetite is a problem. I had a problem this first one and now for the 2nd I am planning to eat almonds, cottage cheese singles, Boost, egg whites....whatever is not too tasty! Everything tastes so weird. I, however, am not done with this until the end of December so I put together a list of mini-meals I will force myself to have every 2 hours. I am hoping it is going to work!
Sptmm: Congratulations on being DONE!!!!!! You are SOOOO LUCKY!!!!!! You made it! I am very happy for you. Get through the next 10 and you are on your way to healthy freedom.
Texas: I must tell you, your spirit is amazing! Just amazing. I love the fact that you just keep rolling along and enjoying your life. I love it! You are a marvel of sorts. I am not just sewing together vowels and consonants in an attempt to appease myself either! You are a wonderful woman....or WONDER WOMAN!!!!! That is how I conjugate wonderful woman! I think you need to dress up with the kids Halloween! BTW, love the new avatar...very cool pic for WONDER WOMAN!!!
Calamtykel: I would have *never* dreamed fish oil in the capsules would need to be tested for mercury. Thank you so much for posting that. I will not forget the name "Carlson's" now. That was very helpful information. Either I never thought about where the oil in the capsule came from or I just assumed it was NOT a fish!!! Our food sources are questionable enough so I guess I rather hoped the stuff in the capsule was a non-food related miracle!
Headaches: why am I getting these gross headaches a few days before tx #2!?! Ugh...I am sure it is stress. I do, however, have to go back to Yuckville on Tuesday! BTW, I *rarely* got headaches before chemo. Gross!
HGTV: Josh from DIY(I think he is a crossover as he does "House Crashers" on HGTV) just cracked granite and then reapplied it around the fireplaces, putting all the pieces together like a puzzle with ¼ inch between each broken piece then they filled the cracks with some putty colored material for contrast and the black granite against that material...what a beautiful result with awesome contrast! I love this station!
Remember to get out and enjoy this beautiful Fall day and do something good for yourselves....like smile in the mirror at yourself!!! It works!!!!
Good day to all-
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Texasrose361- Omega 3 is a cancer fighter/cancer prevention tool. The question is how to get it. There is Omega 3 in green leafy veggies, fish (salmon is best), ground flaxseed and pill supplements. I read the recommendation is 6-9gms/day. That is a lot of greens/fish so I am trying to figure out how much Omega 3 pills vs flaxseed to take daily. The benefits of flaxseed are outweighing the Omega 3 pills - see http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/benefits-of-flaxseed for more info.... BUT flaxseed has also been controversial with ER+ breast cancers so am at a cross roads of what to do. I think the pluses out weigh the negatives of flax but have been asking the ladies on the Alternative boards their opinions.
Calamtykel - What is your flax supplement? Does the bottle have an EPA/DHA breakdown? Let's add that to the mix of Omega 3 options ; )
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Lizzy - I have headaches too. Didn't much before. They suck.0
