Arimidex - Coping with the SE's
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It also calculates the date you 'should' reach your goal and recalculates, and recalculates, and recalculates (because I keep going over my daily calorie allowance!). But I know I would be lots heavier without it because it does make me stop and think before I put something into my mouth at the end of the day.
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Claire, you are absolutely correct and I applaud you. I do mostly water aerobics and walking but know I need to do more weight training. I will use you as an inflence for that! Actually adding more and/or extra exercise or just changing up also is good as it keeps you motivated and your body from staying on the plateau. Thanks.
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Claire, Are you on the exercise thread? I know there are a couple of them around if I remember.
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She is an exercise thread all by herself!
Don't invite her over - she'll put us all to shame! 0 -
Claire_in_Seattle: Good for you - keep after us!!!0
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kira1234: I hear you - I was on strict restrictions for almost 4 months due to wound healing - no lifting, stretching, sweating, exercising, etc. Walking was about it and I got behind track during our many months of extended rainy weather. Nearest mall is 20 miles away. We have stairs in our house so every time I had to use them I did them five times (up-down-up-down-up). 0
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Well Claire you've got me off the couch or should i say chair. I'm going out for a swim. 0
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Tina......no excuses with wet weather unless dangerous out there. I cycled in the rain during chemo. I will never forget the day when my cycling buddy Jim said: "I thought we were going for coffee."
This was at the end of AC.
I got soaked to the skin doing the 45 mile course of LIVESTRONG last year. At least, I didn't need the space blankets. One of the most miserable rides I have ever done and this was 12 days past radiation.
I am looking forward to doing the Seattle-to-Portland in three weeks. 202 miles over two days. My friend Amanda and I are doing indoor camping just after the half way point. One of the highlights of this event is the problem of making sure you eat ENOUGH. Woo-hoo.
I can't wait to do it this year as have more energy now than anytime during my whole adult life. I can tell from a training ride I did recently.
I am also able to do more reps of lifting 10lb weights over my head at this point than ever.
I have whipped my abs into submission. They have given up complaining. But have to stay on top of them as they are sneaky.
I hear you on upper body toning. I had the JP drain what seemed forever. Once out, I asked my surgeon if I could lift again and went out and lift again. She said "yes" so I went out and bought 5 lb weights. Three weeks later, they felt like feathers. This was at the start of chemo, and I got more buff.
So it can be done. Good luck everyone.
One final benefit................never lost my "mojo" either. That one is right up there with eating
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Patoo....LOL
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Well Claire you are an inspiration. There are so many benefits of exercising. Having gone into early menopause, now I have bone loss and higher cholesterol so all the more reason to get off my ass and weight lift again. I am not a big cardio fan. I am going on a couple of vacations in Agust and my goal is to feel better by then by exercising regularly
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One of the great benifits is it helps to reduce the join pain from the AL's. I'm on Femara, but from what I can understand they all seem to have similar SE's. I just got done swimming and exercising in the pool which my BS has okayed for me at this time, and must say I am happily pain free. 0
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Blurry vision was gone when i got up this AM but i'm going to check with my Onc and pain management Dr. I won't stop arimidex because THE CURE FOR SE'S IS EASIER THAN THE CURE FOR CANCER. I may stop the gabapetin because I don't notice any relief from joint pain, scar pain, or neuropathy pain but have only been taking it a week. Constant pain is such a downer!
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Please speak to me of muscle spasms in my back! Arimidex???
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You might try taking gluten out of your diet. I'm not as good as I should be, but I do see a difference when I am careful.
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Hi All,
I am jumping in late here with the dry eye/blurry eye discussion but I have had dry eyes for a few years (pre - breast cancer) In addition to eye drops, my doctor reccommended wet hot compresses for my eyes every night. He even said small potatoes warmed up in the microwave and wrapped in wet paper towels worked wonders because they retain the heat for so long. Recently, At CVS pharmacy, I found the best plastic eye mask filled with gel. I just warm it up under hot water and pop it on my eyes when I go to bed. I also put some vaseline on my skin around my eyes to keep add to the moisture. All together, it works wonders.
Basically, the problems occur because our tear ducts produce less tears and can even get completely clogged so hot moisture opens up the ducts and stimulates tear production. I definitely reccommend looking into it. If you add some relaxing ipod music to the mix, it is the perfect pre-sleep ritual as well.
Best, Beau
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Kira is right about gluten. I find that as long as I keep my gluten consumption to a minimum ( an occassional piece of toast is ok), my joints are so much better. Keep moving and keep stretching. What my 60 year old Arimidex ridden body needs: yoga, an hour of brisk walking and acupuncture!
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Wish I had heard about Losit.com before I spent $57 for WW online. But I'll stick to it and hope for the best. Seems doctors only treat their speciality. When I've complained about the neuropgy(spelling???) in my feet, it's just shrugged off. Thanks for all the encouragement.
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I have to thank Lowrider for the gluten tip. A few months back I was in pain,and about ready to stop Femara, she suggested the gluten which I will be forever grateful. I will agree the Dr.'s just shrug it off, or say try another AL because they are about the same in reducing estrogen.
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Well after getting motivated by your posts. I got up at 730 this morning (after going to bed at 3am from my 2nd job) with the intent of working out even if its only for 5 minutes. I have no excuses,. I have always worked out from home so I have DVD's weights, medicine ball, exercise bands. I did 30. Wooohooo. Lets hope I can keep it up. I must say I feel pretty good so far.
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I try to remain compassionate with doctors who shrug off information that doesn't fit their experience and training. I know most have our best interests at heart, but I do weigh the overall picture. Do I benefit from the treatment they do recommend, do they treat me with respect and believe I'm having the symptoms and not making them up? If yes, then I find someone to add to my treatment team who takes the symptoms seriously. If no, I find somebody else, period. It's ironic that my preventive medicine doc's treatment are mostly not covered by insurance. Hello Medicare and Blue Cross-Blue Shield! Can you say PREVENTIVE?
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marybast, I so agree. I really wish I could get my insurance to pay for preventative medicine Dr's. Unfortunately I can't afford them, so just have to plod along on my own, and hope I make the right decisions.
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Lakewoman,
me too on the NO WHEAT GLUTEN! It was a friend with celiac disease who spoke to me about 2 years ago ( YIKES, can it have been that long?) an her doc told her several of his patients with osteoarthritis were feeling MUCH LESS JOIINT PAIN stopping all wheat gluten. That was all I needed to hear. Cleared out my freezer of about 6 of my Trader Joes Three Seed & Honey lloaves of bread ( I live about 25 miles from stores, in very rural area) The birds were thrilled, I was bereft.
UNTIL - within 3 weeks, I lost about 10 pounds, and went from taking 10 Ibeprofen a day to none! I still have creaks, when I'm sitting too long, or not walking enough. BUT, I wish I could help every woman with joint pain, muscles spasms ( woke me up at least 3 times a night!) - back, legs, to at least TRY going gluten free. I wasn't too strict in beginning. Now I won't have ANY thiing with wheat gluten.
Lots of food where you'd least expect it have wheat, or ADDED gluten in it. Soy sauce? Who knew? I sometimes bake with a NON GLUTEN flour from my local Food Co-op. I buy in bulk, so it's true it could have a "contaminent" from other flours - but I'm too cheap to buy the prepackaged gluten free breads. But there are lots of different flours - and WONDERFUL gluten free cookbooks.
Ok, I'll get off my sopabox before I get splinters in my toes. But please try gluten free
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I will throw in my 2 cents on Gluten free as well...I have been on Arimidex since January, 2010...I went to the onc 6 months after being on this and complained that I was having serious joint pain & weight gain...she told me to take glucosomine and try to eat one less piece of bread a day (I thought - really? that's all your advise?) I then read this posting by Lowrider54...I thought it was worth a try - and it does work...it will take a bit of time thou, not an overnight fix. It took the knee pain about 3 weeks, the hip pain about 6 weeks and the hands about 3 months to stop hurting...Is being wheat gluten free a pia? Yes, absolutely! Would I rather not be in pain all the time? A double YES to that! I didn't lose weight like C-S, but at least I've stopped gaining...So, that's a plus too...
I went to the the onc in January and told her about my gluten free journey and she was amazed. Had never heard of it! I was told by a nurse that gluten is an inflamatory and that's why she thinks this works for me...Whatever...All I know is that I have Lowrider54 to thank for my pain free life...
Good luck on the Gluten Free diet - it's tricky, but at least there are so many more options these days from grocery store to restaurants!
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ritaz
Your nurse is correct - in many people guten IS an inflammatory - and if you think about it, wheat is used mostly in the Western world - except, of course, where it is exported - for maximum profit for the agribusiness growing it. I am very happy with rice, msotly brown, but like "sticky rice" too, and Quinoa.
I used to miss pasta, so tried the brown rice pasta, decided I didn't miss it that much!!! Being pain free is so much more iimportant to me. Also generally FEEEEEEELING better, lighter, less weighed down ( pardon the pun) - so much more weight to get rid of.
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Hello ladies - I've been following this thread since I started Anastrozole about a month and a half ago, but this is my first post. Overall, I haven't had great issues yet. I get this odd soreness around my left hip and down to my left knee that sort of comes and goes. It is usually worst in the evening and at night. Is that what the joint pain feels like?
That's not fun, but I can deal with it. This week I started to lose my train of thought mid-sentence. This started happening a lot and came out of the clear blue. (Not like it would happen from time to time and build up. Went from never to several times over the course of a couple hours.) Friends are looking at me with pity in their eyes. I can see them thinking, "poor Gabby, first the BC, now she's losing her memory fast."
Do any of you think this mind-loss is connected to the Anastrozole?
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I agree with forgetting if we have taken it or not. One night a month or so ago my husband was convinced I had forgotten my pill because I had taken his instead of mine. Talk about chemo brain, well anyway I knew there had been a pill in his meds the same color. Well long story short he convinced me to take another. Boy was that a mistake, I had the worst hot flashes I have ever had that night. When I set the pills out that morning I must have put one of those lovely pills in both containers.
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GabbyCal - did you have chemo? I have memory loss and difficulty multitasking since chemo so I definately have the chemo brain. I turn my pill bottle upside down when I take the pill so I know i've taken it. I turn it right side up at night.
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Thanks Jo-5, Kira and Zenith - I'm committed to making this work through the 5 years (or longer if the standard of care changes). I'm fine with remembering to take my pills, my problem is I start talking and in mid-sentence can't remember "the point" I was trying to make. No chemo. Just finished radiation.
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TY all for your advice and comments Right now I am not sure I can get out of my chair had back spasm when I sneezed so bad I could not move... I would be open to this gluten free diet but also would like to check with PCP and BC doc first..If it gets worse tonite I think I will head to ER,,I would so love to just have it go away,,,why does shit like this always flair up on a weekend BUT I AM lucky as I told some of you my PCP is my cousin..I could cal lher tomorrow...Just called my guy to help me out of my chair!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I use big daily pill containers. The kind you have to push one end to get the individual compartments to open. I try to do four weeks at a time. I wou ld like to thimk I will remember but I don't remember.
Is there gluten in ice cream?
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