Arimidex - Coping with the SE's
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Thanks for information. Here is what I got off Arimidex website about SE's:
In the early breast cancer clinical trial, the most common side effects seen with ARIMIDEX include hot flashes, joint symptoms (including arthritis and arthralgia), weakness, mood changes, pain, back pain, sore throat, nausea and vomiting, rash, depression, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, fractures, swelling of arms/legs, insomnia, and headache
I had asked if anyone had mood changes and I am definitely having those. I do have a lot of stress in my life but I have had so much for years. If I started telling you about problems in my family you would probably think I was making it up.
My autoimmune condition (dermatomyositis) has some of the same issues and this makes it hard for me to tell what is going on. My sleeping is getting worse and I took a sleeping pill last night and woke up 4 hours later and could have gotten up. I stayed in bed but kept waking up every hour. I do bookkeeping so sleep is important to me. I hate to take more and more medicine.
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Yeah I hear ya. There is a complete list of SEs in the package when you receive your meds...from 1% to 10% of chances of SEs. It seems most of us experience at least a few of them to start. For me it was bone and joint pain...that has subsided but the hair loss continues. Not really pleased about that! I have been on Arimidex for a year now.
Did you say you have already had a baseline bone density test? If not, be sure you check the bone loss because Al's are known for that..you know the old saying "a ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"...in this case...good idea.
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Yes due to the fact I am very small boned and was borderline to begin with I have had tests. It will be up to my doctor when I have another one.
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I've been on Arimidex for almost a year now and am experiencing severe joint pain. Are you saying that Claritin may help?
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Two, there are a lot of posts about ways to help with the joint pain. Claritin (antihistamine form only), tumeric (the yellow herb used in Indian and other cooking), exercise as possible, prunes....there are a lot of tips if you go through the different threads, including this one. Also, some women say they have pain that eventually lessens.
Good luck finding something that can work for you...don't give up!
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two..Claritin worked for me but I used it at the beginning. After 3 months, I had no more pain (other than the lower back and hip pain that I have had for years sporadically).
I must tell you that my MO did NOT recommend Claritin but by the time he told me that, the pain was basically over. Your pain may be related to something other than Arimidex.
He also didn't clue me in about Claritin when I was taking the Neulasta shots... I found out about it by googling Claritin and it mentioned Neulasta. My MO now tells his patients about it.
I just googled Arimidex/Claritin and there is plenty about it
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I've only been on Arimidex maybe two weeks now. I haven't had joint pain, thank goodness cuz I have enough of that without the drug. But I'm struggling so hard with depression, it's ridiculous. I just don't want to do anything, can't seem to get off the couch. Just don't want to do anything. And crippling fatigue. I'm hoping this will get better as my body adjusts. If not, I'm going to need to find something different because I can't live like this. I battle depression as it is, I don't need something to jack it up like this.
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life...there are some on here that are suffering with depression as well...tell your MO and for goodness sakes don't suffer in silence. There are many meds you can safely take. I know you don't want more meds but it beats being depressed and totally fatigued. Depression will do that to you. Please take care of yourself!
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Life, From your stats, you began radiation in Dec. The fatigue could be partially caused by that. Also, depression is pretty common at the end of active treatment. If you have that battle already, I highly recommend telling your doc and trying antidepressants. They can give you a boost out of the hole. When you're feeling better, you can taper off. Please ask for help now. Asking gets harder and harder the more you feel depressed. (((((HUGS)))))
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Life, I finished chemo in Aug. Of 2012. The heavy fatigue didn't lift until November, AND I DIDN'T HAVE RADS! Cut yourself some slack, allow yourself to be sad and heal at your own speed. Get help if you need it, its not a competition! You don't lose.if you need more help than someone else. Much love.
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Life-sorry you're suffering. Make sure you tell your doc. I take an anti-depressant to combat hot flashes, but it helps with those bouts of depression too.
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Finally got my Vit D and magnesium levels tested. Vit D, 25 OH came back as 34 ng/mL with the normal range being 30 - 100. At first my PCP said it was okay. But, after discussing some more, she agreed to see if my insurance company would pay for 50,000 iu a week for a while. The magnesium level was 2.0 mg/dL with normal range being 1.5-2.5.
My biggest SE is the joint pain. Being stiff after being still for longer than like 20 minutes or so. I know that exercising would help alleviate some of this, but it's so dang hard to get exercising when just getting started I feel like an 85 year old.
I did buy a book called The Melt Method that works on loosening up the connective tissues in the body. Am still reading it, but might just skip to the exercises to get started and see if it helps any. It says it takes a few weeks to start showing signs of helping anything.
Not totally sure what the total results of Vit D mean. It says
Vit D, 25 OH, D3 Total - 34 ng/mL
Vit D, 25 OH, D3 - 34 ng/mL
Vit D, 25 OH, D2 - <4 ng/mL
It says - 25-OHD3 indicates both endogenous production and supplementation. 25-OHD2 is an indicator of exogenous sources such as diet or supplementation. Thereapy is based on measurement of Total 25-OHD, with levels <20 ng/mL indicative of Vitamin D deficiency, while levels between 20 ng/mL and 30 ng/mL suggest insufficiency. Optimal levels are > or = 30 ng/mL.
So, does my <4 ng/mL mean something or not?
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Life, I totally agree with others who suggest you talk with your MO about the depression, I've been on a mild antidepressant since DX and it helps eve out my moods.
I have severe joint stiffness from the Arimidex and will try Claritin, which worked when taking Neulasta shots. I asked my MO about it then. She said she knew of no scientific reasonit should work but that so many of her patients had used it successfully that she had proposed doing a clinical trial with it. She saw no reason for me NOT to try it.
Does anyone else have fingers that lock up???0 -
Wave, my fingers lock up after they fall asleep. they are stiff a lot, and sometimes the go to sleep. Are we having fun yet? Take care, much love
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Mine locked up in the shower one morning. It was the weirdest feeling. Fortunately it only lasted a few minutes. I have a strange thing happen when I reach to pick things up. Sometimes the base of my thumb hurts so bad I can't grasp. Then I change position and it works again, but is a bit unreliable. I spoke to my PCP and she said it's the most common place for arthritis to start.
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Wren - both of my thumb joints have disentegrated since starting AI's
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Linda, what do they do for you when your thumb joints disintegrate??? That's really scary. My fingers are like claws, bent and hard to straighten, especially in the AM. Every few days a finger will lock up. I feel like I'm 80!
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I was told they can do reconstruction, but I don't think that would be a good option on my LE hand. Right now I just put up with it, learn to compensate, and I've had one steroid injection, helped with the pain for a year, it's wearing off now, so am considering another. Sometimes it's really painful to wear my compression sleeve/glove as it pushing in on the joint and causes more pain and swelling. My hands are really stiff too - as are my knees, ankles, wrists, shoulders...... some days are better than others - I know how you feel - I'm 57 now, and am more stoved up than my 80+ year old parents!
Edited to add - the ortho that I saw for my thumb said that eventually they will fuse, then the pain will stop, but they won't be real functional - not really looking forward to that.
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I have been having acupunture for the side effects of "A" and have had great results. The numbness on the tops of my feet from chemo is gone. Check it out ~ you will love it!
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All of a sudden, after a year on Arimidex where I was freezing all the time, I'm hot all the time. Not flashes, but just too warm. Has this happened to anyone else?
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not yet...I am starting my second year and still freezing...wonder what summer will be like?
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No, it was hot flashes for me (but that may have been from the oopherectomy, as well).
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I was only on Arimidex a few months before my MO switched me to a different AI, I was freezing the whole time I was on it - had hot flashes on the other.
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Wave, like Moonflwr mine lock up at night...Only in my right hand, which is the side I had my surgery
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Hi ladies. Just stopping by to read up on Arimidex and introduce myself. I am suppose to start taking this in a month. I had bad bone pain from my chemo that lasted after chemo was over. I am just now getting over that so I am dreading having that side effect again. Maybe I will be lucky and not get that. I also have had hot flashes basically since my mastectomy and chemo. I am now in menopause from the chemo. Im 43. I appreciate the tips here. Healing hugs to all.
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melmcbee - I've met lots of women who have no side effects from the AI's, many others have gotten rid of them just by switching to a different on. And being 43, they may start you on Tamoxifen anyway. Chemo can put you in to menopause, or chemopause, but many women your age come out of it after they've been out of treatment for a few months. Did you have a oopherectomy?
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Hi, has anyone else's hair stopped growing since being on Arimidex? Mine seems to have come to a complete halt and I hate it. Grrrr.
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kyliet...it's growing in length but thinning a lot on the crown. Needless to say, I am not too pleased. I am into my second year. That is one SE of Arimidex!
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Melmcbee--the joint pain with the Ais is not a given for everyone, the stats say about one third of women taking it get serious bone and joint pain. Many of us discovered that taking claritin (non-drowsy version) blocks the bone pain. It did for me when I started using it in the last couple years I was on arimidex. (I finished last Oct). As someone else said too, many women who cannot tolerate arimidex do much better on one of the others. Hang in there and give the arimidex a chance, you will probably be happily surprised!
Kyliet--my hair didn't stop growing while I was taking arimidex, but I did "shed" heavily when I first started it and about once a year after that. Apparently my hair grew back in between 'cause it's still just as thick as it was before. I'm betting it will start up again after a bit.
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Someone on this thread (probably a year ago) suggested Biotene to help with thinning hair-I started taking it at the same time I started on arim and I haven't noticed my hair thinning.
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