TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP
Comments
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Lago, I am totally sympathetic about Midwestern cold and the resulting stiffness. I got up to pee last night and my butt froze to the toilet seat.
I am now being shunned by my coworkers.
This cancer stuff and how awful certain people become will never cease to amaze me. I asked one if she wanted to wander down and grab some water and she said "no." Oh well, their loss. I wouldn't shun me!0 -
My mo just called and said it was fine. He did ask if I'd had one before . Didn't sound like he actually recommends them as a matter of course.
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Cami, you hang in there and feel better. Many of us can relate to what you went through.
Oh, and if it fits, it ships. You can decorate my work cube!0 -
Pbrain...
Remember when you first told us about all the offers of help. I bet most of us...at least many of us....were thinking how very fortunate she is. For me at least , real disappointment and stunned disbelief are probably a better description of how I view the reactions of many so called friends and even family.
What I have discovered , however, is that people who you never would have imagined will step up to plate and help in so many unexpected wonderful ways. I liken it to the way I feel about holidays and birthdays. Most often you have certain expectaions of these days and most often they fall short. Instead of making us happy..they make us sad. My best days are those regular days when you expect NOTHING and everything goes well.
This miserable process is such an awakening in so many ways. You can use it all to live the rest of your life in a much more fulfilling way.
Things will shake out at work. Just go about your business as well as possible and most important concentrate on eating, resting , hydrating and managing your SE's.
In the meantime..you have all of us.
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Lago and all the others who have been there - we are so glad that you are still here to give encouragement and help to those of us who are just starting this journey. I for one needed that encouragement this morning. I have to start taking the steroids tomorrow for chemo on Thursday. It helps to remember that many have done this before and are there to help us through.
I am feeling a little anxious today not knowing how chemo will go, but I know God is in control and I need to rest in Him.
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Ashla, My oncologist gave me my flu shot so I guess it was ok lol
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I got my first flu shot at my 2nd chemo. I got one last year because I knew my resistance was down due to Herceptin. Got it again this year. I thought adults & children who are at least 6 months old should get one according to the CDC unless your allergic.
Bren you'll get through this. The unknown is the worst part.
Pbrain they are staying away from you because cancer is contagious. Cancer will allow you to really know who the good people are and those you should stay away from. I only lost one person (granted I was already unemployed when diagnosed). Too bad it was my sister but now I really know what she's truly all about. I don't have to tolerate her BS anymore because she is out of my life. From what I'm seeing my friend go through it appears divorce does the same thing.
BTW I am now officially certified as a reach to recovery volunteer for the ACS as of yesterday. The gal who "trained me" had to skip over a lot of stuff because I had already talked about it and know what to do and say. Tomorrow is imerman's angels.
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Bren58,
Each of us reacts differently to these treatments but I got through chemo much better than I would have expected. You have had lots of time to research and anticipate because you had surgery first and the anticipation can often be worse than the treatment.
I had neo adjuvant chemo and started chemo less than a month post DX. I didn't have a clue to all that might have occurred. In my case that was good. Ignorance was bliss..or at least helpful or me.
We're all here telling you all our side effects and it seems like we all get all of them but we don't . And for those we do....they aren't always awful.
Some wise person in thos forum I think advised us to think of chemo as a friend. I repeated that to myself at every infusion. Chemo is my friend. teoids are my friends. Herceptin is my friend.0 -
Well said,ashla, about the "awakening process."
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Bren I should add that I expected to be puking my guts out on chemo. I get so nauseous from anesthesia… but I never used any of the nausea drugs. I had very little taste changes as well. I ate everything except for a few days out of every cycle pepper and nuts tasted a bit bitter but not totally inedible. I'm not saying I didn't get side effects but most of them were managed or not painful. Some where just annoying like the eyes that kept tearing near the end of treatment. I remember telling my onc that for me the flu was much much worse than SE from chemo. Flu wipes me out and I can't do a thing. Chemo I was working out, going out with friends even cleaning house and cooking.
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Congrats Lago on becoming a certified Reach to Recovery Volunteer! That is so awesome! I also get very nauseous with anesthesia so am very concerned about that possiblity with chemo. It is good to know that it doesn't always mean that anesthesia nausea = chemo nausea.
Ashla, Thank you for the encouragement. I know the unknown is the scariest part and I am not expecting to have all the possible side effects. My chemo will also be neo adjuvant because they are thinking I will need ALND after. The surgery in September was only to remove a lump that they though was either scar tissue or a cyst. It turned out to be a cancerous lymph node.
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Bren 58...
Ooh..I see. Now I remember!
For me at least chemo was not that bad. Chemo day and the next two days I was on the steroid high which I had no idea was a steroid high until months later from this forum. the third and fourth day I had the constipation problem until I learned to take stool softeners on the day after chemo. The next 4 days I was tired yet sleepless , achy and just generally blah but able to do anything I really wanted to do.
That was the cy cle throughout. Never had neulasta although I had low blood counts and I never even caught a cold.
It was, however, very, very boring and hard to just sit there like that. And you have to pee alot after awhile!
Do not expect the worst.0 -
My MO does not recommend flu shots, but the group that manages the volunteers at the chemo center won't let you volunteer unless you get a flu shot, or wear a mask during the whole of flu season, so I got my first flu shot last year so that I could volunteer (eye roll)
Congrats on being a Reach volunteer Lago, I love it, the only thing is in our area, I'm one of the few that's had chemo, targeted, mx & rads, so they can basically refer anyone to me, except stage IV & reconstruction, so they seem to give me all the hard cases
, the ones that the old timers really don't want to deal with. I love it though, I usually get along just fine with them, so no problem. We're pretty rural here so almost all of our consults are on the phone. So I just looked up Imerman Angels, I'd never heard of them before, do you need to live in the Chicago are to volunteer? I absolutely love volunteering, it's so fulfulling and makes me feel like I'm giving back. The people that I went through treatment with were such an inspiration and really helped me keep my balance, it's great to be able to help others going through this a little. I haven't been able to go back to work because of SE's, the volunteering helps me as much or more than the patients, especially in helping still feel that I have something to give, even if I can't work. The disability process is quite depressing & humiliating (maybe humbling would be a more positive word to use) so the few hours a month that I volunteer really helps me out mentally.
Pbrain (do you have another name?) - maybe your co-workers are embarrassed because they got caught up in the "cleaning drama" and they don't quite know what to day to you.
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lindaK Reach to recovery is now only phone unless you choose to do otherwise. I was told people like us are the ones that get the most calls because they meet so few HEr2+, triple negatives, younger etc. The hormone positives are more common so many meet others like them at their treatment center. The gal I met at chemo was 10 years younger and HER2+ only. We did have similar treatments although she had rads. Our tumors were the same size but she had node invasion.
Imerman's Angels is now national because they too do it on the phone. I haven't officially been trained yet. The holiday messed up stuff. Yes I live in the city (Chicago) but that's only their headquarters.
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Solt - I have the same pain too. Comes and goes. Feels like a fullness under the ribcage. MO can't feel my liver. Blood work is all good. They haven't been too concerned because it comes and goes and isn't getting worse. I wonder if it's truncal lymphedema. I have some swelling at my bra line every night, so I decided last week to stop wearing my bra and just wear a compression-type cami and guess what, the pain/discomfort is almost completely gone.... I am finally getting a CAT scan of my abdomen/pelvis today as a precaution since it has been going on for several months....
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Congrats Lago!
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Sol---I have the same freaking pain. I had an u/s midway through chemo back in January and nothing showed up. It flared up here in the last week or so and I was at the MO this morning and she felt again and feels nothing. I'm honestly glad to hear others have it. Mine is right side in the same area as everyone else. WEIRD/
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hmmm seems a lot of us have had the same pains
cami omg what an experience, its awful to feel like that but it sounds like you got through it with humor as you always do - glad everything looks good
bren i echo what the other ladies said...the anticipation is worst part. You will learn how your body reacts after the first dose and then at least you know what to expect.
just got back from my MO, she was not there so i got the fellow - USELESS , seriously i would love to put her on this thread and you guys can fire off your knowledge/questions to her. Honestly i knew more thanks she did. She asked how it was going on tamox and i told her i have a lot of joint pain/stiffness to which she replys "well thats not really a SE of tamox". Really? i would love her to take a poll on that one. Asked her about the ooph aswell and she replys "well there are studies that show a benefit but there are studies that show no benefit" so what are you telling me???? clear as mud as they say
i was just wondering...maybe we have talked about this before. Why does BC risk (hormone positive) increase with age and after menopause if we are producing less estrogen ? sorry may be a stupid question
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Hi rozem. Have been following your diificult recovery from BMX! So so sorry.
I think it is the same as the risk for many cancers increases with age. More time for abnormal cells changes.0 -
I have that right side rib/liver area pain as well! Yes, It came on at some point during chemo and was so persistent at one point that my MO sent me for a scan - that showed nothing. I still get the pain off and on but not as much anymore so am thinking it was a result of surgery for me...
Have now been on Tamox for nearly two months. Am aching and stiff all over but particularly my legs, and am getting all sensitive and crying at the drop of a hat. I seem to be either crying or p'd off at the world and everyone in it - there doesn't seem to be a middle road mood for me right now.
Jenn0 -
rozem - below is a linked study that adresses part of your question about age and BC risk. I think much has to do with exposure to food additives, environmental toxins, medical radiation, etc. - the older we are the more exposure we have had.
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rozem I'm sure it has to do with the body aging and not being able to repair itself as well or weakened immune system as well as a bunch of other stuff.
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HOw weird is it that so many of us are getting that right-sided pain, but somehow comforting that it's not just me!
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Oh shit I just lost my whole post
Congrats Lago u r so knowin and caringn u'll be great.
Linda how wonderful for u to do that.
Bren as Asla said we both went in blindly and I never gave it a thought, they were all so nice and I was in a group so we talked and laughed and I worked too before surgery. Some bad times but not always.
Jenn don't be so hard on u'rself, (my theory only) it;s all hormonal whether u have to much or not enough our body doesn't have balance anymore b/c of this stupid cancer. And if it keeps up talk to u'r onc.
And rozem no idea why.
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Bren, the steroids aren't fun, but they have an upside. You'll have tons of energy. You might want to ask for a sleep aid..I took Ambien the steroid nights or I didn't sleep a wink.
Lago,
Congrats! I'm proud of you. I think you've done really well with the ACS (the speech and news) and I wish you more success in the future!
I don't know if I was stressed before dx, but I was in a very competitive Master's program, so probably was pretty stressed and just didn't recognize it....was so busy with Thesis. I can't stand any kind of smoke...cigs, pipes, tail pipes, too smokey a fire even...just sets off my lungs. But I wouldn't be adverse to some baked in goodness....
Speaking of which. You remember when alcohol was banned? (The Volstead Act?) Well the reason the feds reversed it is because several state govs made it legal again. There were too many states that made it legal for the feds to go after. So prohibition was reversed.
Two states have now legalized recreational use of pot. I wonder if this will go the way of the Volstead Act?
Hmmmmmmmm. (Might be less cancer if stress is truly contributing! lol)
Cami, I laughed out loud at your incident with crapping your pants....lol. You are hysterical woman! But I love that you told the tech that....buwhahahahaha.
Pbrain, you are in Indy...I'm just an hour, maybe two, away. You want I should come over there and talk to the women you work with?!? (Said with a NY accent!
What inconsiderate bitches.
Really.
My advice? I know you didn't ask. lol Get the one who started it all ALONE. Tell her you didn't appreciate what she said about your place, that she doesn't have to bother denying it...and that you have a big enough battle for your life going on right here, right now. But she'll get your full attention when tx is done.
Until then, she should make it her business to clear up any misconceptions and lies she's spread. Because when you are back in fighting form, you plan on doing exactly that. And how bad is it gonna look on her when people know she was not only lying about a cancer patient, but actually made recovery HARDER?!?
In my life, direct (and public if the situation calls for it) confrontation is the only way to kill this kind of crap. Most women hate it (for good reason! It is uncomfortable..) but once you confront the liar (because it is work, doing it alone is probably wisest) and see the results, it's a handy tool for future similar situations.
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Hi Tonlee,
I finally figured out who reminds me of you....I hope you take it as a compliment....PINK!
Anyone else say so?0 -
lago - congrats on the volunteer certs - you have been a great rep for ACS, I know you will continue to do good things.
camillegal - you crack me up - I am not sure I would handle that situation with as much of a sense of humor, then again, it is a laugh or cry deal! I have been a passenger on the D train, and it is no fun.
pbrain - I think you need a posse of fired-up BCO gals to go to work with you and open up a can of whoop-ass on your misguided, misanthropic co-worker.
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Ashla,
hahahaha
I get that a lot in real life...especially since sporting the short hair....but alas, I have no tats, no real singing talent, and NO MILLIONS!
Dang the bad luck!
(Oh, and I like just about all genres of music, but have a special affinity for bluegrass. lol)
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Ton Lee, you want to head out here and rough her up? She's from Hammon Indiana and thinks she is all that, but she's just a doughy white girl who always seems to be kind of out of place and out of step.
I'm done with them. I'll say hi, but no more friendship. The other lady actually sent me a apology last night but now I realize it was not sincere, but more like I'll never bother you again, because I'm having nothing to do with you. Some friendships those were. I explain that my feelings are hurt by their behavoir and they act like I did something wrong.
Ok, I'm done whining about it. Sorry for taking up so much airtime on pinheads. I'm ready for chemo this Friday! I'm scared, but ready. And all you guys keep me going!!! :-)
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Pbrain,
I could make her feel like she'd been dragged through razor blades and run down a salt water slide, all without touching her
It's a gift.
buwhahahahaha.
You deserve better than this. I am sorry they hurt you.
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