March 2011 chemo-lounge
Comments
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Penny - LOVE your new avatar with the F.C. hat!!
Kay - Can't wait to hear from you after tomorrow's nip recon.
Lily - I will be SO THRILLED for you if you hold onto your hair!!
I realize this is a tangent BUT taking down a very old cabinet hung on the basement wall yesterday, we found a diary from 1961 that was wrapped and taped to the back. It's written by a woman who lived here (house was built in 1921) with her husband and a renter who had the upstairs. Really cool to read about her days and activities and major events happening in the world. She wrote faithfully for 7 months but the day after getting their first TV, she stopped. Hoping it was the TV and nothing bad happened to her. They must be dead by now -- its' been 51 years and he was 70 (she could have been younger but they had their 46th anniversay that year so she couldn't have been that much younger than him... Anyway I'm enthralled and plan to research who's previously lived here. I have to at least find out her name!! Funny, I've always been interested in this so it's a fun prompt.
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Hello ladies I have been away from the boards for a couple of weeks. I hope you all are doing well.
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Penny, I love the hat. Having worked a LOT of swimming Olympic Trials in Insianapolis, doing pr and media relations, I can tell you that male swimmers in general are full of themselves.
Lily...you have been through the wringer. Please don't go trying to shoot yourself up with your new drug. Lol.0 -
Ok-time for another flashback for you guys. Saw my hair blowing by me while I was working in the garden today. Was very surprised as it has not hurt. Remember that ultra-sensitive scalp feel-haven't got that but if I run my fingers thru it I get enough to build a nest for a wren.
So I laid the clippers out but haven't made up my mind to do it yet. I could "pass" for probably another day or 2 so I might run my string out til then. I will have to get it tanned to match my face and neck. Will have to say I do enjoy being tan again. I haven't done that in years but figure I am unlikely to die of melanoma so screw the sunscreen!!
Sad about it but no tears this time around. Lots of bad news over the last 2 weeks on the Stage IV forums. Many brave ladies losing the fight recently-many of whom were very kind to me when I first started over there. So many places this crap can end up getting into that I had no idea about. Seems to be a rash of ones getting it in their spinal fluid-you end up with a port in your spine to treat that.
Not trying to be a debbie-downer because I feel great and have finally found something I can eat that tastes ok.Plain old pasta noodles with fresh grated parmesan on it. Not yum but not bad either-also green jello. Which actually has protein in it-who knew?
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Lily...I never had the sensitive scalp, but I was sure glad I did not rush to shave my hair. It thinned considerably, but I made it almost all the way through chemo before I felt it was too thin in the front. I could wear a baseball cap when I worked out and get by.
However.....three weeks after I was done with chemo, it all fell out along with eyebrows and lashes, which were fortunately coming back in behind them, so it was a short period of time, but sheesh, just when I thought it would start coming back in.....gone.
I always told my husband I would just look like the Beetlejuice guy.0 -
Lily - so sorry you have to keep going through this. I am glad you are pushing through with such a good attitude. If you like the pasta - get orzo or ancini di bepe (small Italian pastas) and then cook them in chicken broth and then add the parmesan. I ate that a lot during chemo and loved it. We lost one of our Illinois gals this week too. It is hard to digest. I hate BC......
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I'm so sorry to hear about these losses - very sad for these women and their loved ones... It's a reminder for all of us to "seize the day". Saw my surgeon today (6 weeks post) and we've scheduled my revision surgery for Oct 4. I'm psyched that it's outpatient!
Lily - glad you're able to eat pasta. I consider that comfort food. hope your hair hangs in there.0 -
Movie review: I went to see "Hope Springs" with Tommy Lee Jones and Meryl Streep and boy did it suck. It looked like a cute romantic comedy on the commercials and instead it was a big depressing awkward uncomfortable mess. It was like watching your parents have sex.
4 of us went and we all hated it. It had a improbable happy ending that did not make any of us feel better. Save your money girls!!
The popcorn was good though
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Thanks for the review. Too bad two great actors end up in a crummy movie. Movie theater popcorn is the best!
Earlier this week I got the movie "The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo" from the library (my husband wanted to see it). Wow, was it ever intense! I had no clue what the movie was about, and I wasn't expecting that! I actually liked it more than I thought I would, except they spoke with British accents, making it very hard to understand half of what they were saying. And the ending was terrible, too.
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Well since we are movie reviewing, we saw The Campaign and laughed ourself silly, especially in one part, but be forwarded. It is pretty raunchy. Then the next night saw Ted. I think I am one of the few people that didn't think it was that funny.
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Fluff-I saw Ted with my 19 and 21 year old nephews. Had no idea it was that raunchy. I hated it but they thought it was hilarious. They told me the guy who wrote it does "Family Guy" so I should have known what to expect. Never saw the show.
I am 0 for 2 for the last 2 times I paid to see a movie. Divine-I trIed to read that book and just couldn;t get thru it. Most people loved it and thought it was a real thriller. My niece just gave me the book "50 shades of Gray"/ Never heard of it til I googled it-big time hit with a lot of peolpe. It just seems like sex acts thrown together and written poorly.
I have all this time on my hands and can;t seem to find a book or movie that catches my attention-now my closests could meirt some big time attention but just can;t get enthused!!
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BTW, this is Kay. I changed my name because I think some one at work was looking me up on here, and I don't want her to be able to do that.
Lily, thanks for the movie review. I was going to suggest seeing that. I thought the commercials looked funny too. I will see something else. Maybe the Campaign. Thanks for the review Fluff. I'll see what I think. I don't always like raunchy, but if you liked it, but not Ted, I think it's worth a try. We saw a movie a few weeks ago that I never even heard of. DH is always reading movie reviews and we see some that aren't out in that many theatres or that widely heard of. We saw a movie called MoonLight Kingdom. I think that was the name. It got great reviews. It had Bruce Willis and Bill Murray in it. I was surprized with those two actors that it didn't get more notoriety. The director apparently always works with Bill Murray. He also did the Royal Tanenbaums, which is the only other movie of his I have seen. My DH loved it. I am really not sure if I liked it or not. It did keep my interest, and I was really involved in it. I guess I would say I enjoyed it. I was just a little taken back by a scene of two young kids (about 12 or 13 I guess) undressing to their underwear and hugging and kissing. It almost seems pornographic to me. Other than that, it was really different and I enjoyed it.
Got my nipple recon last week. I really did not know what to expect, but I am very pleased. I can't believe how normal and natural it looks. And I don't even have the tattoo yet. And no pain either, but I have very little sensation in that breast since the mastectomy last August.
Always thinking of everyone here and sending all good thoughts and wishes out. Especially you Lily. I hope the chemo isn't being too hard on you. Those flashbacks make me cringe.
Take care everyone. Love, Kay
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Appreciate the movie reviews because I hate to waste my time and money! I also am tempted to see The Campaign...
Kay, cannot believe you have to worry about a coworker lurking and reading your posts - yuck!!! Would she know that you're on the March 2011 chemo lounge? If so, could she (or he) still find your posts. People are just ridiculous. SO GLAD you're happy with your nipple recon since I'm going to your surgeon and am a little bit behind you. I'm scheduled for Oct 4 for revision and nipples.
Wishing everyone a good week. Lily, keep us posted.
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Kay - how irritating about the coworker. I used my real name - if anyone wants to look I really don't care - sick puppies. Although it did strike me once that if you google my name you get the technical papers I have presented, if you google PennyCookson and constipation you get some REALLY technical details!
Glad the recon is good. I am getting used to not having any. I wore the falsies on our holiday for the first 10 days because I just wanted the others to know me as Penny, not "the lady with breast cancer". After that I took them off and only 2 people noticed.
Lily - if you feel like a laugh read any of the Ben Elton books. For a good (but sometimes a bit black) read - anything by Sebastian Faulkes. I also love anything by Rohinton Mistry (particularly a Fine Balance).
Bought a Blue Ray player, DH has been watching action movies - I have been watching all the old feelgood ones. I still love Pretty Woman and The American President, and The Boat that Rocked is my favourite ever.
I am so glad that someone else thinks the Shades of Grey thing is badly written - ghastly book, if people want to read erotic literature why not something decent
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I agree on fifty shades, however I had to read all three so I could have resolution. I saw beasts of the southern wild while I was at wake forest for my vaccine trial. It was interesting. I heard moonrise kingdom was good.
Books I have recently read that I liked include
The lace reader
The memory keeper's daughter
Cutting for stone
The twin's daughter
The glassblower's daughter
The forgotten garden
All the hunger games books (but I was tired of them by the middle of the second one)
Cutting for stone is really long, but good.0 -
"The American President" is one of my all time favorite movies. I often get movies from the library rather than go to the theater. "The Help" was a recent favorite book and movie.
A month ago, my DH, son and I watched "The Big Year" with Steve Martin, Owen Wilson and Jack Black. I thought it was going to be a ha, ha, laugh a minute movie. Instead, it turned out to be somewhat comical but more thoughtful. All three guys were trying to sort issues out in their personal lives, as well as being competing bird-watchers. There was just something about it that settled well with the three of us watching.
Oh, favorite recent book: Tina Fey's "BossyPants". One of the best books I ever read.
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Getting ready to read bossy pants!
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Lily- I went through a stage during treatment when I just couldn't get into any books and was constantly tossing them aside as uninteresting and BEGGING for recommendations. There are some great ones here.
I second "Cutting for Stone" It's very long, but beautifully written. Also, "The Forgotten Garden" and Kate Morton's other books, great setting. One of my all-time favorite books is an oldie, but everyone I have recommended it to has loved it "Follow the River" by James Alexander Thom...incredible, based on a true story.
If you want something lighter, I read the Harry Potter series between diagnosis and surgery (had never read them). "Hunger Games" is good, but the first is by far the best.
I can't speak for movies, we NEVER get to the movies, unless it's something like The Lorax or Madagascar. However, I just saw "The Big Year" on DVD, that Divine recommended. I really enjoyed that, as well.
Kay- Unbelievable. What a weird idea to look into someone' private life that way. I am so glad you are pleased with your recon outcome! That is a real spirit booster, I'm sure.
Penny- I am going to look into the books you recommeded. I;m always looking for a laugh. Oh, and my daughter who chose China for the Olympics game our family was playing really cleaned up on the medal count! I was a distant fourth with Australia.
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Thanks so much for the book recomendations. Since I am off work I am reading quite a bit. Made me a list and headed to the library today. Had my second tx yesterday-hoping for way less SEs this time but the onc is not optimistic. My counts are in the toilet so I am on house arrest unless I wear a mask-I will be cautious but not staying home. Too excited about the book thing so I will do my library trip and them be comliant.
I have to do neulasta for the first time and am too lazy to look back into our archives. I remember that you take a Claritan but do you do it the day before or that day or what? Hoping one of you remember.
Kay-so glad you are pleased with your surgery results. Also glad it isn't painful. Too creepy about someone from work following you on here-people are so wierd.
Penny-you know I have to google you now so I can see both your technical papers and your constipation issues-too funny. Thanks for the book choices. About the flat chest thing. I really think people rarely notice and if they do no one has ever commented. I never bought any kind of falsies-in my work and what I do for fun I find not having breasts is very convenient. Did I think I looked better with them -yes-but that wasn't an option. Dress clothes present the biggest obstacle. I have 2 weddings that I am looking for dresses for and haven't hit on the right one yet but I am not a ptient shopper either. I also just bought a blue ray player but haven't bought any blue ray discs yet. Going to borrow from my brother-he buys new ones weekly.
Fluff-I didn;t even realize there were 3 of the gray books til I saw them in Target yesterday. Didn't go for them-1 was enough. Taking your list with me to the library. Did you read Like Water for Elephants? A friend just gave me that-they also made a movie from that with Reese Witherspoon but it didn't stay at the movies very long. One of my friends used to do all the Oprah book club reads but most of them were so depressing. I can do a thoughtful read bt a staedy diet of that kind doesn;t suit me.
I get the Neulasta Fri so if anybody remembers please post. I am going to try to search too.
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Lily...yes I read water for elephants. Really liked it. The movie was pretty good too. I read a couple of the original Oprah books, but like you thought most of them were depressing. I am reading Anti cancer:a new way of life now, and also just started Bossypants. I will download a lot of the cheap books that get decent reviews on amazon also and some of those are pretty good.
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I took the claritin the morning of the neulasta shot and continued taking it for several days. I also took aleve on those days. I hope it works for you. I had horrible bone pain after my first tx and then took claritin and aleve for the others and it was SO much better. Keep us updated. Good luck Lily!!!
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Had the petscan that I fought so hard to get last night and got the results back this afternoon. All clear! I feel some closure at last, although I realize there is really never closure.
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fluffqueen, so glad to hear of your clear results.
lilylady, I had six of those neulasta shots, one after each chemo. They never bothered me. I never took claritin. I'm allergic to Advil, Motrin and Aleve, so all I can take in the way of pain relievers is Tylenol. But I don't recall having to even take it after the neulasta.
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Hi girls, enjoying all the book and movie reviews. When I had surgery I quit reading almost completely, except for online or magazines occasionally. I was an avid reader, reading probably 1-2 books a month. Took me over a year to get back in the groove. I refuse to read 50 Shades. I enjoy mysteries, true crime, lawyer/detective fiction (John Grisham, James Patterson, Harlan Coben, Karin Slaughter, Lisa Jackson, John Sanford, Alex Kava [a Nebraska author!], Michael Connelly, etc. plus I read lots of eclectic stuff. All the Harry Potters, Lord of the Rings, etc. Am contemplating Hunger Games. Two tha I like recently were The Shack and Heaven is for Real (another Nebraska author). Also,if you remember Sybil the URL with multiple personalities, you HAVE to read Sybil Exposed.
We are also big movie fanatics, usually seeing 2-3 movie among in addition to our Netflix subscription! But I will save my movie reviews for another time.
Lily, I had six Neulasta shots but didn't fare as well with the Claritin/Aleve combo. Maria's right, take one each the day before, day of, and a day or two after. My counts were high so I requested half-doses but still had tough bone pain on days 3 and 4. I kept a notebook of symptoms, meds, temp, etc which was helpful at doctors visits. Warm baths and heating pads and trying to walk each day seemed to help. I took hydrocodone for a day or two bu really had to wach fo constipation, so had to weigh pain level against being backed up!
School starts tomorrow (Thu) and I am dreading it. Having difficulty with one principal which is causing me great stress. Tomorrow will be a litmus test for how e rest of the year could go. Fortunately I am only in that building 3 1/2 hrs which is one hour less than last year. Am hoping I don't need to be looking for a new job!0 -
Lily, hope the txs aren't too bad for you. I took a Claritin the day before tx, and then for a whole week. It did seem to make a big difference for me. I had 8 nuelasta shots and after the first and some pretty bad bone pain took the Claritin.
I am loving the book reviews too. I was much more of a reader before chemo and am still tryin to get back into it. Most recent that I read and enjoyed was The Book Thief and The Help. Going back a few years, my absolute favorite book of all was The Kite Runner. If you haven't read it, I really recommend it. I don't know anyone who has read it that didn't thoroughly enjoy it. Also The Joy Luck Club or The Bonesetter's Daughter are really good.
We're getting ready to go on vacation on Saturday morning. I can't wait. I am going to put If You're Going to San Francisco, be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair on the juke box and let you guess where we're going. I don't think I've ever been this excited to go on vacation before. I think it's a combination of wherewe're going and just really getting more joy out if life post BC.
Take care everyone! Good luck back at school Kristy. My DD doesn't start back until after Labor Day. She starts high school this year. Yikes!0 -
fluff - hooray for the clear scans!
LoveToCook - The book thief and Kite Runner are both favourites of mine. Have a wonderful time in SF
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Fluff-so happy about your results. Try to put it behind you as much as you can-worrying never fixes anything.
I went to the library yesterday for the first time in probably 20 years. We are a used book family-haunting sales and trading ect but I took my list and most of the ones I wanted were not available so I got put on a list. Very excited about it. My whole family are readers so anything we buy gets passed around to at least 8 people before it gets donated so we get our moneys worth. I treat myself to a new book on chemo days and I bought a hardback called Unbroken. True story about a guy from WWII who survived 47 days in a life raft after a bomber crash and they finally ended up in the Marshall Islands and got put in a jap POW camp fpr 2 years. he survived and went on to live an amazing life. The lady who wrote Seabiscuit wrote it. Then on Discovery Shark Week this week they did an hour long show about the same guy.
Kristy-so hard to believe it is back to school already-sorry to hear you have a butthead principal. I just heard my boss got moved at work-dreading breaking in someone new.
Kay-so excited for your vac. I loved Frisco but it was so cold and gray when we were there a couple of years ago that we left and went down to Carmel-so hard to believe that something that looks like that is connected to something that looks boring like Ohio.
Thanks so much for all the advice on the Neulasta. I did as advised and started it already. They gave the shot in my stomach and made me do a bag of fluids. going for more tomorrow although i feel fine right now. Since I crashed on the weekend before they want to make sure I am as tuned up as I can be. I am supposed to be driving my truck to move my niece back to college on Sat-it wouldn;t break my heart if I didn;t feel well enough. it is a real drag!!
I am enjoying reading everyones posts-nice to hear what everyone is up to.
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Lily, I'm gonna have to read that book, Broken. I'm big on biography/autobiographies.
My all time favorite autobiography: Miracle in the Andes by Nando Parrado
Nando was one of the survivors of the 1972 plane full of rugby players and family members that crashed in the Andes Mountains. Some of them survived the crash, an avalanche, death of loved ones, and other hardships for 72 days in subzero weather before they were rescued. The survivors still have a reunion every year, and they, too, went on to live full lives, even after they were presumed dead and all search efforts for them were called off.
Another book~ Alone: Orphaned on the Ocean by Tere Duperrault
Tere was 11 years old when her family (parents, brother, sister) were murdered at sea. She jumped overboard to escape and drifted four days in the water before being rescued. She is the reason life preservers are now a bright orange, prior to her rescue, they were white and difficult to see. The photo of her at sea in the white preserver was on the cover of Life Magazine and is the cover of her book.
On the lighter side: Confessions of a Prarie Bitch by Alison Arngrim who played Nellie Olsen on Little House on the Prarie. It's not that I was a big fan of hers, but I had read Melissa Gilbert's. Then I saw everyone on Amazon.com raving about Alison's book. It is far and above more interesting. She's an incest survivor and has an amazing story to tell.
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Ooh, I am going to read some of those.
Lilly....I love holding a book in my hand and didn't think I would be a fan of the electronic stuff. Then, I got one. I read a ton more now because I carry it with me everywhere and will read for ten or fifteen minutes here and there. After I bought my iPad, I gave my kindle to my husband who is also a fan now. If I read something he will like, I put it in his folder. I hope you are feeling ok after your second treatment.
Huske, do you read David baldacci? I met him at a luncheon he spoke at very early in his career. Great guy. We really like his books too and have read most of them.0 -
I too didn't think I would like a Kindle, actually bought one kept it for a few days and took it back. Finally bought a Kindle Fire and I love it!!!! I too take it with me all the time and I read everyday now. I used to never read. The only downside to the Fire is it isn't very good outside in bright light
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