Australian Sisters
Comments
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OK, so I thought I was just having a couple of consecutive bad hair days, but No, I am definitely turning into a rooster
. I have a cockscombe standing straight up and running down the middle of my head, neck even my little fringe ends off in a nice point - time for gel, glue or whatever it takes. I look damn rediculous LOL xx 0 -
Great pictorial description Kate! I'm cracking up here...... lol
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lol at Kate. I have a couple of chooks here who have lost their rooster - care to come and help them out?
Trish
xoxo
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And it's just about the right colour too. Nice to see you back Chrissy. I'm sure you've been worn out by your GS's but have had a great time.
Well I've got something exciting to look forward to. I've been asked to go away for a whole week, accommodation and costs covered travelling down around the south of the state in a car convey for the Camp Quality Wescapades road rally. I'd be a helper, helping to set things up in each town and ad hoc tasks associated with organising a managing a large group of people, press and the public. I would love to do it but is dependant on if I can twist Sarah's arm to coming here to stay for the week to look after the dogs. My SIL and I do meals on wheels every other Friday and we call ourselves Thelma and Louise. We always have a hoot doing it so to go away for a week with her would be hilarious fun.
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Wow Kate! That trip sounds amazing! Sure hope Sarah will babysit the dogs for you.
Yup starting to feel the exhaustion but can't give in yet as I have the youngest of my four GS's for this week. All is good though as he is the sort of kid who enjoys just chilling and chatting.........got to love that boy..........lol
Love m hugs. Chrissy0 -
Hi everyone, I am so tired - it was a six hour round trip to rads today. Such a different tiredness from chemo, just like all the energy has sapped from your body. I am a bit red, but my throat feels like it has glass in it, courtesy of the clavical rads. Nearly half way there though.
Jenn - I am so sorry your lungs are troubling you again. You can only make the decision you feel is best for you, I am sure you will take everything in to account, you are great at researching everything. Big hug.
Good luck Trish and Mel with your job interviews.
Chrissy - good to hear you are enjoying your time with your GS.
Kate - the trip sounds fantastic, I hope it comes off for you.
My thoughts are with all of you, Kylie x
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Ahhh Kylie, I think of you everyday with that trip...
So I am done with rads. My CT scan actually did not show pneumonitis today although I have all the symptoms. After my treatment today I saw the lovely rad onc and told her I was done. I felt such peace after telling her. I couldn't stop smiling.
I have felt that it wasn't right for me right from the start and she said she realised that. She agreed that despite the rads, because of my adolescent history of multiple x-rays I am still at a higher risk than others for recurrance or new cancer in my other breast.
So I will be trying to get in to see my med onc in the next week or so to discuss Tamoxifen. I will be still doing the Herceptin every three weeks, and I will be making an appt with my BS to discuss timing of a double mastectomy and whether we can take my ovaries out during the same surgery.
My rad onc said that since I only did 12 sessions my skin should still beok if I want implants :-)
Gotta go. Out for dinner with the family...
Jenn0 -
Fascinating. I got the results back from the Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis that the Naturopath organised for me. Im going to try and show it to my onc and BC when I see them next to see if they have any input and to ensure the recommendations dont impact on the arimidex. Im being longwinded so please skip if your not interested in the results of the test ladies
Before I get into it, something she said at the time of my initial consult and again last thing in our meeting today was that every cancer patient she has consulted with has had some sort of major stress situation happen prior to cancer dx. In my case it was finding out my ex was living a double life and had just had a baby with his (insert bad swear word). A year of horror ensued and I was dx about 4 months after he left for the final time (when i took the keys to the house off him and said NEVER to return lol)
My calcium levels are way off the charts meaning I have heaps of calcium but its in the tissue and not in the bones. They have recommended dietary changes to see if they can get the calcium into the bones instead of the tissue and it will be very interesting to see what the results are if I do another test at some time in the future. Plus I changed from calcium pills to liquid capsules after my first meeting with her so that too could help improve the calcium actually getting into the bones. Apparently the calcium satuating the tissues could even be causing some of the aches and pains, though i guess theres no way to know for sure at the present time.
Really the main change I have to make is just commonsense anyway. I need to eat 3 balanced meals a day and specifically have more protein in my diet (considering I can go weeks without any meat or chicken and have a shocking habit of not cooking at home and therefore not eating vegies unless Im out to dinner) Im frankly not surprised haha. No more chocolate or corn chip dinners for me (doh)
It picked up on hyperglycemia which is why I have the prefainting spells which caused me untold misery during chemo cause the damn onc insisted I not drive as she thought it was epilepsy. Had all the tests under the sun at that time and got the advice that I dont have enough salt in my diet and to drink more water. (BTW adding salt nd drinking water hasnt stopped them one little bit). The report from the hair test has recommendations on food groups and portions to counteract that, so if it works and I dont have any more "spells" I will be a very happy lady.
It was pretty funny actually. The naturopath couldnt believe my results came back as good as they did cause Id told her about my current eating habits and I think she was a bit pissed that I dont have a weight problem and havent been watching what I eat and that the results came back as good as they did. She's not going to get rich of me hahaha
I am going to take some supplements subject to either you guys or the onc or BS telling me that its not a good idea. She wants me to take zinc and pottasium supplements to help balance the minerals in my body And luckily for me, most of the stuff they have said for me not to eat or drink, I cant stand and wouldnt eat at any time anyway. Things like heart, liver, kidneys (ewww). I guess the only things I like that they say I shouldnt have is white bread, margarine (they prefer butter) and broccoli. She went nuts about margarine, said its grey oily sludge they add bleach to or something and said she wouldnt eat it if it was the last thing edible on the face of the earth. (pretty strong feelings about it lol)
Finally i asked her as to whether taking the supplements would affect the viability of my arimidex. She said in her opinion the stress of my ex caused my cancer and the idea is to use dietary changes and supplements to balance the bodies chemisty and to enable my body to cope better with stress and therefore the arimidex MAY NOT be necessary, but then she said I dan't and wouldnt tell you not to continue your medications. So i guess thats about what I would expect from a naturopath in relation to mainstream medication. I must say in her defence I know of a gentlemen that rocked up there who didnt want to go to a dr, she said you have serious heart issues and took him to the dr next door who called an ambulance straight away. She knew she couldnt help that gentleman and that mainstream was needed, so i think she's fairly balanced overall.
Anyway there you go ladies. Im very happy i got that analysis done, I will endeavor to change my eating habits and to take the supplements recommended specifically for my current mineral makeup and see if it improves the s/e's and current qol I am experiencing, which is the whole reason as to why i did the test in the first place.
BTW please correct me if Im wrong, but adrenallin is our enemy hey? Ive been catagorised as Metabolic Type #1 slow with Parasympathetic Dominant (whatever that means) Tendency towards Decreased Thyroid Function (reduced secretion of hormones) and Tendency toward Decreased Adrenal Function (reduced secretion of hormones). #1 being just off centre as having a metabollic rate with the other off centre being Type #1 fast and they range upwards from there. She said no one is zero and that a larger lady might be #4 slow and a skinny lady jumping out of her skin a #4 fast. (hope that makes sense to y'all)
After a prolonged period of time, the symptoms are Fatigue (check), Lethargy (check) Depression (check) Cold feet (literally check haha) Water retention (check), Cold hands (check) Tendency to viral infections (nope, not since chemo anyway) Dry skin (nope) Weight gain in thighs and hips (nope thank god). I thought Id put that in here for the rest of you to compare yourselves to as Im personally intrigued as to whether the chemo and meds changed my metabolism incurring some of the side effects which I have attributed to Arimidex. Guess I will see once Ive improved my eating habits and been on the supps a month or two.
From what I can tell, and this is something I want to check with the onc, the report showing the decreased Thyroid and Adrenal is actually a very good thing because it means Im not secreting much in the way of hormones or adrenallin and seeing as my BC was massively er+ that has to be a very very good thing and shows the arimidex is working.
Anyway I dont know if any of this will help any of you. I just thought Id share what I have found out and to see if any of you have any criticisms for me taking those supplements. While I would love to decrease the s/e's and feel more my age and be healthier overall, i dont want to risk kickstarting my production of hormones.
BTW, I dont think I have to say it, but just in case I will anyway. I have no agenda. Im not into the health industry and in fact own a fast food shop selling all the stuff I shouldnt eat haha. I just thought Id share the results to see if any of you have some feedback for me, or if it helps any of you in any way, its a good thing too. Ive never done anything like seeing a naturopath before and went along because a/ a friend of mine with recurring candida and suspected endometriosis now has no health issues after they detoxified her and b/ cause Ive been reading the occasional alternative thread when they dont deteriorate into rubbish and fights and thought it would be very interesting to see if the health food shop two doors down from my shop could help me increase qol.
If youve read to here, your incredibly patient
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Lyndal, I'm pissed you don't have a weight problem too ;-)
The dietary suggestions sound sensible to me. Just check that you aren't going to "overdose" on the zinc etc. Too much zinc can be bad...
Jenn0 -
I'm the patien kind and read it all Lyndal. That's really interesting. I would really like to know if stress is a precurser to cancer. I have a hunch that it plays a big part. We had major stress 10 months before dx, when we moved over here from Canberra. Hubby got incredibly sick within days of us arriving and I thought he was going to die. He lost 9 kgs in only 7 days so you can imagine how sick he was. I was terrified. We didn't even have our possessions as they were still in transit and our new life got off to a disastrous start. Then he couldn't get an IT job here (his background) and had to go out driving a dodgy brothers truck out the middle of no-where for $20 an hour. We still have a very large mortgage to pay and although by nature I am not an outward worrier, I think internally I was in a constant state of stress. No stress I had ever been through before had lasted as long as all of our uncertainty over our future. Throw in that I'd left all my friends in Canberra and knew no-one here (except) family, I was very lonely and afraid. An voila 10 months later after no health issues in my life, I have BC and it was so little it had only just started. Onc reckons if I'd had a mammo 6 months earlier it wouldn't have been detected. 6 months later it would have been the size of an egg.
I don't take supplements myself, but I believe that there is a good place for support from chinese medicine. I mean it's been around a hell of a lot longer than our modern medicine. There is a place for both. I really think it comes down to nearly everything in life, moderation is the key and a good dose of common sense. It makes me sad when I hear of people who throw away their health by being led up the garden path by people who don't have their best interests at heart (but pretend they do) to make money, but what your Natropath said makes sound sense to me and doesn't sound like airy-fairy B.S. So, what harm can it do? If you want to try it, why not. And if you find you are jumping out of your skin with vigor and energy, I'm heading to my nearest one I can tell you. Love Kate x
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PS. Sarah said YES to house/dog sitting. I'm soooo very excited. 0
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wow, a lot of activity here.
I must say, Chrissy, I am happy about your results though regression would have been even better. You are a marvel and inspiration.
Jenn, you have had such a hard time. I hope things get better for you.
And you too Kylie and Kate.
I feel sad for all of us on BCO and all who have to deal with bc. Everyone is so nice and just doesn't 'deserve' everything that this diagnosis brings.
I hope a cure is found very soon.0 -
LOL, sorry about that Jenn, if it helps make you feel better, Ive been smoking since I was about 12 - Id rather have a weight problem then be addicted to cigarettes
Kate, my mum has always blamed the BC on my ex. She was there to see what he put me through and the huge shock to my system the whole period of time was. No history of anyone in my family having cancer of any kind ( well except dad with a melanoma and he worked outsdoors for 40 years without sunscreen so it was kind of to be expected). I also think thats why i got through the whole dx and treatment fairly well mentally despite all the vomitting and other truly rotten s/e's cause even today I count that year with my ex as being far worse and more soul destroying than anything the BC has put me through to date.
Far as jumping out of my skin, lmao, Id appreciate being able to just work 6 hours and not feel like a cripple by the time I get home. Must say, Ive noticed an improvement since I first saw the naturopath with the first lot of stuff she gave me which was general better health stuff. But if the better diet and the supps can improve me another 20% I will be very very happy. Just wanna be able to say go out for dinner after work and not be struggling to get out of the chair with stiffness (doh)
Kate, the trip sounds fantastic. So glad Sarah said Yes
Jenn, also really really happy youve stopped the rads. In the interest of NOT influencing your decision before you made it, I didnt say anything at the time, but now I can say that if I had been in your shoes I would have declined. The entire thing made you so very unhappy and having that constant worry about the very real threat to your lungs is just more stress you dont need in your life. I wouldnt have suggested the same for Kylie though, it really is each person on the merits of their own dx and health hey. Hopefully the tamox or some other med will do the trick and keep you NED for the next 50 years.
Kylie, i truly cannot wait till the day you pop in here and say youve finished your full rads treatment and dont have to do that long trip anymore. Hope your kindle is keeping you from getting too bored each day. A friend of mine bought something like 500 books on ebay for her kindle for something like $20 or $40 . A cd came out to her and she downloaded all onto her computer and them uploads the ones she wants to read onto her kindle. One of these days Im going to get around to buying a cd too. Aparently they come in many genre's. My friends was romance
. She gave me the names of some of the titles and damned if I hadnt bought those same titles from amazon at full price.
Melb sure hope the interview goes well and that you get this job or something else good soon. Same to you Trish when the time comes. Im glad I had my shop through chemo, though it was very hard work during the bad times, it gave me an interest in life that kept me from just sitting in bed feeling sorry for myself whifch would have been very very easy to do lol.
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Racy, stable is good as it means not moving either way and I can live with that......no problem......lol. If I help others a little along the road of my journey then to me that is a really good thing but truly I am no different than anyone else who walks this road.....you included. We all do our bit to make our lives a little more bearable and by sharing we hopefully help someone elses journey become a little easier.
Lyndal, just after I was originally dx'd I went to a Naturopath after my GP did sent a hair sample away for testing. I couldn't believe the amount of detrimental elements I had in my system. We spent months treating me and eventually I had what they call a well balanced system that should work to the optimal. It did for a while but went down hill again when the cancer returned. I am of the belief that you do what you need to in order to feel as good as you possibly can and if the changes are easy enough to live with and deal with then you go for it! The only word of caution is as Jenn said be careful with your dosage and levels of both zinc and potassium as they can be very dangerous if you overdose on them.
Yay Kate! I'm so happy that your trip seems to be going to happen and Sarah said yes to the doggy sitting...........hope it all goes to plan for you.
Love n hugs. Chrissy
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Oops Lyndal....lol.....didn't mean to bump into you!
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Evening all
Been a busy day. DGD has chicken pox poor honey, spots started yesterday has many today. DD brought children round as she had to get some ointment for DGD. Then this evening DGS fell over in the bath (helped by his sister) and put his teeth through his lip, blood everywhere. DD had enough at that point and Granny was called. By the time I got there all was wellexcept for the lip. This week I have made a skirt for DD1 who is off to Wellington tomorrow as she is singing in Der Valkyrie. It is a concert performance so outfit needed, she purchased a lovely jaket and I made the skirt.
Kate, the only supplement I take is the vitamin D which the doc gives me. One of the oncs during chemo said he would much rather I ate my vitamins rather than took them so have tried to follow this advice.
I am sure that stress plays a huge part in cancer. I had been in a very stressful teaching position where all sorts of terrible things were going on with staff then I moved to a new position with so much responsibility and in the year before I was diagnosed there were six deaths in the family including my mother, and brother in law who died in a dreadful accident. I am positive it all contributed. My BS is sure the reason I have done OK is because I gave up teaching so reducing the stress.
Have been making arrangements to go to a conference next month and talking to a friend at the same time so this has taken nearly two hours to write.
Sleep well everyone
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Lyndal - thanks for the affirmation :-) I have 2 good friends I told yesterday (both nurses) and they both said they felt I was making the right decision. Hubby on the other hand is a "follow the doctors path" type of guy and is struggling (but trying) to understand.
He's a boob man so I think he's going to struggle with them changing... Reconstruction I think will mainly be for him :-)
Jenn0 -
Wow Lyndal, fascinating reading - yes I'm patient too lol. I've often wondered about stress and bc too. I usually handle stress really well, but I had started a new job only 7 months before my bc dx. It turned out to be the job from hell in a lot of ways - major bullying. Having said that, my bs told me that one of my cancers (the ILC) was probably there for around 2 years and the IDC around 12 months or so, so that doesn't really tie in. I still think stress is a major cause of illness for us though. Alyson - you had a horrendous time!
I think that your Natuorpath sounds very sensible in what she's told you. I too would watch the zinc and potassium, but it doesn't sound like you are being led down the garden path. You'll make the right decision for you. Are you thinking of going off the Arimidex completely? I must say I wish I didn't have to take an AI at all, they are the pits. Keep us abreast (so to speak) of how things develop for you - it's all very intersting.
Kylie - still thinking of you sweetie ((((hugs))))
Kate - your trip sounds amazing! Can I come too please? lol
Jenn - great to hear you are finally done with rads, one more hurdle you don't have to jump xox
Have a great day everyone
Trish
xoxo
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Ladies, Chrissy and I take Femara and (if you don't mind me speaking for you Chrissy) I believe we both find it very tolerable.
I realise these drugs can affect different people differently but if you are suffering on another drug it might be worthwhile to ask your onc about Femara.
I take the name brand, not generic, as it seems a lot of ladies have more side effects with the generic version/s.0 -
I got a phone call from Hospital this morning regarding an appointment made about march to with cervical end of things, they found a red patch that bled at a gentle touch, si iwas booked into a gyny to have it checked out, they had a cancellation and i am off there at 3. i really hate these things, i find it undignified and hate having those probes touching me, i am so nervous, but know i have to get it, the smear was ok, so hope evrything else is. i hate smears too, ghastly things. will update you on things, i am going to take my path form and see if he or she can give me an idea what it saying, they probably got it all anyway. going to have a shower, better smell good lol i am wickered, i can go in for the boobs things, but this i am not comfortable with at all.
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Racy no probs on the speaking for me re Femara. I've been on it nearly two years now and any se's I have are really minor or have come and gone fairly quickly. I was originally on Arimadex for 15 months and that was hell on earth. My point being that if one doesn't suit you or gives you too many se's, you have the choice of others that do the same job so don't be afraid to speak up when you see your docs.
Midnight I'm with you on the paps etc in that area. A girls needs something to call her own and that may as well be it.........lol. Good luck though with the investigation and I sure hope that it's either nothing or very minor.
Jenn you have to do what is right for you and dropping the rest of the rads is totally your decision. Considering what you have been through and that you are looking to have a BMX I think you have taken the right path for you.
Kylie hand in there..........I know it feels like hell right now but this too shall pass. ((((hugs))))
Aly that is so worrying to think that you have been so sick. Hope you are mending! Oh your poor liitle GD! Chicken pox are the worst as the itch terribly! Sure hope she is coping with well with them and the baby doesn't get them.........although I'm sure that is on the cards.
Roll on Monday..........that's when I take the GS home......lol......He is such a chatterbox at times that just listening to him wears me out!.......lol......Oh well, it's not like he's here that often so I'd best make the most of it......lol.
Love n hugs all! Chrissy
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Lyndal your report was really interesting. Sounds like she is very thorough. I went to a naturopath once and he didn't even take a proper history and started recommending things, afraid it turned me off. Your naturopath sounds great.
I have found even though I swore I would eat better after BC diagnosis I have just been too tired to bother. I have a list of things to do after rads, I just hope i am up to it. Bit by bit sounds realistic.
I have met some nice people on the bus, it is over a 1 hour drive from end to end so we pick up people from different places, with different cancers, then head into the hospital. We had cake today to celebrate another BCer finishing rads. She and I have had ops, chemo and rads together.
Our cancer centre where I had chemo is doing sessions on Monday nights for BCers finishing their treatment. There will be meditation, nutrition etc. I am looking forward to this.
Kate I am so glad you can go, yay.
Chrissy, hoping you can put your feet up next week and relax. x
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Kylie, yes, take advantage of the complementary therapy sessions. They can't hurt. I do follow the anti cancer diet from the book Foods that Fight Cancer, well most of the time anyway.
I also saw a naturopath who specialises in bc. Just another piece of the arsenel to shield myself against the disease.
Chrissy, take it as a compliment that your grandchildren enjoy spending time with you!
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Wish my centre did complimentary stuff, but it's a "big serious hospital" where I think they still don't believe in "all that stuff". Sort of puts them in the dark ages really...
Sitting here in my three weekly Herceptin session. Feels like I haven't been here in ages and I even had to introduce myself to my new nurse who thought I was a "newbie" ;-)
Got the day off work tomorrow and am meeting a friend and going for "high tea" in the city.
Got an appointment with the breast surgeon in just over a week so the new plan can start.
Jenn0 -
i went and got the cervix checked and the gyny, i was abit peeved, he was talking to the nurse and said, how they managed to get a pap smear of a cervix like that is amazing or astonishing. i felt like asking whats wrong with it, DH felt he could of made his comments out of earshot of me and that he did not think it was very profesional. i mean when i was having BC treatment, they continously made a point of me having big boobs, they are bigish, but not huge. you begin to feel self consious. i felt like a freak today, he probably never ment it to be insulting and i am a liitle tempremental today gets too much at times. but it was clear anyway, so can breath again.
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hi everyone have been home for a little while now. it went pretty good i reckon about 8 out of 10. it would be 3 or 4 days a week but she didnt say which days. she also said there may be some out of hours work when they are really busy but she didnt say how often it could be im a bit not sure about working at night time but yeah. she said i should know tomorow afternoon if i make the next stage.
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Phew Midnight now you can breathe again! So glad it was all clear! I have been known to tell the medicos to either include me in the conversation or have it when either they or I have left the room. How terribly insensitive of him!
Yay Mel! Keeping everything crossed that you make it to the next level!
Wow Jenn not sure how I would have felt being thought of as a newbie. Good luck with your appointment to nut out the next steps for you.
Love n hugs. Chrissy0 -
Jenn, high tea is just the best. It always makes me feel pampered and special. Glad you have got your appt so quickly.
Mel good to hear you got through the interview, well done. All my best.
Racy, I just have to stop the lollies....
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Just taken a chocolate cake out of the oven.......smells soooo good. It's ages since I've made one but it is DH 65th birthday today and our 43rd wedding anniversary. Hang the calories that will be consumed at tea time.........lol. Its a cebration after all!!
Enjoy your evenings girls!
Love n hugs. Chrissy0 -
wow chrissy, sounds yum yum, its is my DH birthday tomorrow, he is FIFTY, big 50. you reckon you could make another one and post it over lol, he loves chocolate cake. i am older than him by 11 months, he calls me an old chook, lol afectionately though. yes i like your aproach with the either include me in the conversation or wait til one of us has gone. i feel better now, but it did sting. last time i had a chinese gyny, as i had another problem there, and he was so sweet and gentle. it is stressful enough having it done with out the comments. Anyway I am good. enjoy yr birthday tea cake. and aniversay. kool
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