Any 40-ish survivors?
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I'm seeing my onc next month and am going to ask him.
Ralston are you taking anything for the hot flashes/night sweats? I've read on here that ladies take Effexor - which is an anti depressant. Is that to stop us getting depressed about the SE's (lol) or does it help?
My friend who is a naturopath also wants me to start taking Black Cohosh to see if that works. Any experience / tips anyone?
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Kiwimum. I know many women do take effexor. I did try it. It just did not make me feel right. So I only took it a couple of times. I have heard of the natural supplements. Does the black cohosh have an impact regarding estrogen?
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Apparently Black Cohosh can help reduce the hot flashes associated with Tamox. There have been a few studies done which show statistically significant improvement. I also understand that it doesn't interfere with Tamox's estrogen blocking.
I need to do some more research and talk to my onc to make sure he is happy with me taking it. Lucky me has my next onc appointment on my birthday next month!
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I can't remember the thread, but this was a discussion on another thread... as I remember it, the general concensus was not favorable... so do some homework.
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KiwiMum - I was on a different medication for anxiety/little bit of obsessive compulsive for one year before BC. Since my previous medication was not compatible with Tamoxifen, I was switched to Effexor. Well, in my case Effexor has not helped. I get depressed from time to time and definitely I have got hot flashes and night sweats. I probably will stop taking Effexor, because what's the point?
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Will do Betsy, thanks.
Good to know Ralston. I'm not actually keen to add medication onto medication so was looking to try some natural remedies first.
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Yes, I agree - don't take effexor if you can help it! I still get hot flashes on effexor.
Yes, Kim, we do have some nice days where I live, between the showers! It's generally warm from May to September and we have the best beaches in Britain here IMO. I always feel better and calmer by the sea, maybe because I'm an Aquarius person! (I don't really believe in all that mumbo-jumbo, though!) Hopefully the British economy will get a much needed boost this year as we are hosting the Olympics, which will be exciting. We entered the ballot for tickets last year, but were unlucky. I'm not a sports fan, but enjoy the big events like Wimbledon and the World Cup. We've also all got more days off for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. I'm no Royalist either, but it's nice to have extra holidays. I'm hoping to enter the Olympics representing Britain or Wales in the Freestyle Rambling- On event. Got a good chance of winning, I think!
Love to all, Sarah x
PS - re Betsy's comment - my Mother takes 75mg of asprin daily as she had a mini-stroke a few years ago. It is fairly common to take it and safe in lower doses. But ,of course, check with your Dr.
Diagnosis: 12/10/2007, IDC, 6cm+, Stage IV, Grade 3, 4/14 nodes, ER+/PR-, HER2-0 -
Sarah. Your area just sounds so pretty. I would be walking the beach daly looking for treasures on the beach! Lol.
Kiwimum. I would agree with the other girls. I know you will research. I did try melitonin (sp). Just to try to sleep. That is something you could try. It is in the vitamin area. Effexor left me feeling blue and it did not help me sleep in fact I had insomnia It did lessen the hot flashes but in my case. I think I traded one SE for another so....everyone is different though.
Sarah you don't ramble, I do think I could win that medal though. Lol0 -
I take melatonin for sleep. I have ever since I was in law school. It shuts down my brain racing - I have a horrible problem with that when under stress. Melatonin was not strong enough for my cancer brain racing, so I took ambien (until it started causing SEs) and ativan for the few months after diagnosis. But not long after chemo ended I was back to melatonin. I don't know if it helps hot flashes, but it definitely helps me sleep soundly.
The only SE I get from it is very vivid dreams on occasion. It does not leave me tired the next morning like some sleeping pills do.
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Lisa, would you mind sharing which melatonin you use (meaning dose)? I tried the stronger one and it may have been too strong. My brain also will not stop working. I will think about all kinds of things at night. I will think about even meaningless stuff like recipes or flowers I want to plant. I then ask. Why are you thinking this ? It drives me crazy. I will say and my doctor has said exercise will help you sleep I did think. Sure it will. Now that I am it really has helped. I don't know how?
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I prefer the sublingual tablets - 1 mg, cherry flavored - I buy them at GNC. I think they are a GNC brand. I usually take 2 or 3 of them depending on how restless I am.
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Hi ladies, Looks like I have missed alot of posting in the last few days.
Kiwi, the birthday parties sound so fun. Glad you and the girls are enjoying the pool.
Irr4993, how soon before bed do you take the melatonin? I have been taking the ambien for along time, it works well, but I am dependent on it and it is pricey.
I have been taking a very low dose on effexor for my hot flashes (37.5mg), seems to work, without any side effects, my mood is good, I know everyone is different, just my 2 cents.
It has been really cold here, my DH decieded we would have a fire in the fire place, and now our house is full of smoke (he forgot to open the flue), now I have the windows open and the heat running. I kind of snapped at him and now he is pouting too, might be along night.
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I take it right when I get in bed. It take about 5-10 minutes for the pills to melt under my tongue. Usually within a half-hour of getting into bed I am asleep. It works pretty fast for me.
I should add that I am super-sensitive to anything that causes drowsiness. I am out cold and quickly. Most people who I have recommended melatonin to do not seem to have the same reaction that I do. But for me, it works great.
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Good luck Christine. Hope the smoke is gone now and your smoke detectors are not singing!!!
Thanks for the information about melatonin. I will look for that. I am the opposite Lisa. If it says it will cause drowsiness,I am wide awake. Wish that was not the case. I have tried all kinds of things.0 -
I have cooked all day. We had a diner guest and I can not seem to cook just a couple of things. I even made a blackberry pie. Good thing that Brazilian but lift workout is on it's way!!!! Lol
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Yum - blackberry pie. I'm trying to diet so dessert is out for me.
It's my first day back at work after a 3 week holiday. It's is dragging painfully slowly!!
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Me too kiwi mum. Only a taste for me. Ii have been trying to be good. Hope work will speed up for you. Have a good day. It is 10 pm Sunday for me
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Go Giants!!!! We are so excited that they beat the Packers and are still in the (NFL) playoffs!!! My dh is soooo not happy that my neices baptism is next week and he will miss the first football game and probably make it home 1/2hr to 1hr after Giants game starts, but we always tape it and start late to skip commercials anyway.
Sarah - I am a Jan. birthday also and I remember at least 1 party being called off due to feet of snow! Here in NJ, we are have our longest snowless streak over. Big snow on Halloween and nothing since. Unfortunately I will be spending my b-day this year at my college roomates fathers funeral. He died from panceratic cancer, it was very fast, they only found out around T-day (end of Nov.).
Yes, I am only 6 1/2 weeks out from DIEP so maybe I am doing to much too soon. I did not walk Thurs or Fri, but did Sat and no again today as it is sooo cold. But I will go back to Y program on Mon and Wed. and hopefully do some walking on the other days.
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Hi Burley,
I am I guess in that "40ish" bracket, I'll be 39 in March. I found my "lump" in March of 2010, just days from my Birthday. I was seen right away, had bx that showed a primary tumor of 2.5 cm and 2 other smaller tumors in the left side. I opted for BMX in June 2010 with nodes removed from the left side and port placement, I was given 6 doses of AC & Taxol, then 7 weeks Rad. I am now on Temoxifen. At the time of surgery my tumor was found to be 6.5 cm and I had both DCIS and IM cancers. The simple truth is I would have died had I NOT found my lump. Stage IIB Grade 3;
At any rate, we were planning our wedding when I found my cancer. I gave him a pass to walk and he never waivered, he never left my side and we are really in-love.
We have blended our families as well so we 4 kids at home (19,13,11,11) and 3 outside the home primarily with their mom's...15,10,9...so yes we have 7 together, no children of our own together but we are very blessed. We are really active; I swim, dance, zumba, hike and bike. My hubby (Deon) bikes, plays basketball, coaches bball, works out at the gym, and we both love to play in the snow.
We have been through a great deal in our life together and we look forward to many years together. Im a proud cancer warrior, I have recently lost the last of that darn chemo weight, and I haven't yet had reconstruction.
Look forward to hearing from you, and any other gals here on the forum.
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Welcome NicinLG.... Short for Nicole in La Grande??
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HI everyone. I've been a busy beaver this last month or so, trying to wrap up the year end, the quarter end, DD home from college till tomorrow, DH busiest time at work - and I'm volunteering again....Will be back on regularly this coming week. Miss you all, and I missed lots of pages - will give me some reading material for my late nights!
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Hi Ladies,
I'm new....but not new to Breast Cancer....just finished my last treatment in Dec/2011..I'm going to fill in the info for my profile...but for now I have a question...I have aprox. 70 LBS to lose...crazy I know..I want to know if anyone has or is doing The17 Day Diet??? going to put my laundry in the dryer..then I will be back to fill in my Profile of my Breast Cancer info...chat soon Ladies xo
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Hi everyone and new gals too,
meegan...you just seem to be doing great..sorry to hear about your friends father..not a great way to spend your birthday,but I bet your friend sure appreciates your support. I will start the Y program tomorrow!! I'm really looking forward to it.
Gina...you are funny.."busy as a beaver" my mom used to say that...among other sayings which would be impolite to share!! LOL i hope you have enjoyed every moment with your daughter.
Christine...did you all get rid of that smoke ? We had a fire last night too....aside from the flue issues..isn't it nice to have a real fire?? We used to have a gas fireplace and never used it ...just could not bring myself to burn up our propane!!
strongsoul..I had not heard of that diet,looked it up on google and noticed it was on the Doctors..I will have to read about it.
I'm hoping with exercise, I will get my rear in gear...and speed up the old matobolism.
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Hi girls!
Welcome to our newest ladies, please stop by often and we will get to know you. You will find lots of love and support on this thread. Anything and everything is up for discussion.
Well the house seems less smoky now, I just came in from work and really did not notice the smell. I do enjoy a real fire in the evenings (would be even better with blackberry pie).
strongsoul, I have not heard about the diet, tell us more. I have been on and off a diet for ever, now even harder with tamoxifen and early menopause. I have found just sensible eating and exercise do work, as much as I hate to admit it. I love good food, not junk, but good cooking, home baked stuff, etc. Lots of foodies in this group.
I have a meeting this evening, after I WILL go to the gym, now I said it, I will do it.
readingmom, most impressed with you doing so much after your surgery!
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Yes, so original I know..lol
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Hi girls...
I googled the diet... It is very similar to the Dukan Diet. I have his book. A girl I know from swimming did this diet and had really great results. If you google the diet it will tell you exactly how many days you need to do each phase. It is also a lean protein diet no fruit/veggies until the middle/last stage . I have not followed this diet,but do think about it sometimes to do just the first few days to lose a few pounds0 -
NicinLG... That is awesome. You are so very active. Equally great you have such wonderful support from home
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Hi strongsoul and NicinLG. Welcome to the group!
I did more exercise! My legs were aching from my walk/jog on Saturday and I intended to go out again yesterday ... but failed! So this morning I set the alarm clock for 6am, got out of bed and did it. I did another walk/jog and then a quick 10 mins of laps in the pool when I got home. My main motivation was that my eating has been really good BUT I am going out for lunch and dinner today! Aargh, hidden calories in restaurant food.
I am also flying to Melbourne, Australia on Friday for the Australian Open Tennis. I have 14 clients coming with me for 3 days of tennis, food and shopping. It will be fab! DH is flying in to join me on Sunday when the clients leave and we are spending another 3 days. Look out credit card!
Nice to hear from you Gina. Life does get busy - which is good.
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Hi 40ish Ladies! Can I join? I was diagnosed in August 2011 on my 42nd birthday. Normal mamm in March 2011, felt a "thickening" the beginning of July, mamm/ultrasound end of July showed approximately 1 cm mass, MRI two days before lumpectomy showed it was maybe 2 cm, lumpectomy showed 3.2 cm IDC (grade 3) and 5 cm DCIS, so went for BMX on 8/31/11 during which they found another but very small area of IDC. 0/4 nodes were thankfully negative. The final staging was IIa, ER-/PR-, Her2+ (3+). I started AC x four in October and finished the beginning of December and started Taxol/Herceptin on 12/12/11. The Taxol will complete 2/27/12 and then the Herceptin will continue until next December. I'm hoping to get the final reconsruction done in April - Can't wait to get rid of these stupid TEs!!!! I was not prepared for these at all!
My kid are not as young as most of yours - I have two boys, who just turned 20 and 24, and both have moved out of the house. The youngest may return next summer when his lease is up on his apartment from school but as of right now, he is planning on staying close to where he's at now for school. He is only about 30 miles away and the oldest is about 20 miles away. I am thankful that I don't have to try to juggle all their school events and sporting events while dealing with treatment and am in complete awe of you that continue to juggle it all while fighting BC!! I work at home so I have a somewhat flexible schedule so that has been a blessing during the last several months and when I haven't been able to work, I have a couple of standbys that have jumped in whenever I needed help.
I had a couple of questions I'm hoping someone can help with:
My biggest issue, besides the fatigue and slight nausea (thank goodness the TH isn't as bad as the AC!), is the chemopause symptoms. Has anyone been on the same regimen as me that had full return of normalcy after completion of treatment? I had a hysterectomy when I was 30 but they left my ovaries so I was not starting menopause yet. They doctors are going to review taking my ovaries out after treatment is completed but since I was ER/PR-, I'm hoping to skip that surgery. Sex was never an issue and now it's painful which makes everything that more depressing. And, I'm sorry if that is way TMI!! Please feel free to yell at me if it is! I've read the lack of sex doesn't seem to bother a lot of people but it does me. I did read about a cream on BCO that I'm hoping will work. I'm waiting for the prescription to be filled and keeping my fingers crossed!
What about nails on the Taxol? I have always had great, very strong nails. They are just starting to turning slightly yellow, I have some white marks on them, and the skin is starting to get irritated at the base of the nails. I'm putting cream on them like crazy. I also have peeling of the heels - not irritating, just annoying.
I'm so glad to read about some of you exercising. I'm trying to get back to riding a bike...starting out very slow since I've lost so much endurance. I was up about 20-25 lbs to start with after we lost my dad, a 19 year old neice, a cousin, two aunts, an uncle, and a dear friend in 2010 ) - I was definitely stress eating. Luckily I was on the smaller side when that started but I definitely don't want to get any better. I had lost some weight with the AC treatment but now I've gained that back plus with the steroids - I think the Taxol and Herceptin may also be to blame. Any suggestions on that? I read somewhere on here that someone's belly had ballooned on the herceptin and would like to now if others did. I think for those of us in our 40s, we have a different reaction than somebody who may be in their 60s or older.
Burley - Thank you for starting this thread!!
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Welcome to all the new folks. Still trying to catch up on all the posts.
JulieLynn - I found that the medication(s) did impact my sex drive a bit. Once I was off of the anit-nausea meds and especially after I stopped taking Ativan my sex drive returned to normal.
christine47 - I could not stop laughing at your post because on Thursday night, around 11:30pm, I woke up to the smell of smoke. Woke up DH and he went down to check on the fire. We heat our house with a woodstove. Smoke was coming out at the joint where the chimney meets the ceiling. So DH goes up on the roof and discovers the screen is clogged and unclogs it. And yes it was all clean at the beginning of the season, don't know why it clogged. So I open up all the windows, turn on fans, threw extra blankets on the beds, my son and dog (yes didn't want her to freeze either). The next day had to keep the windows open most of the day to get rid of the smell of smoke. All if fine now and chimney is repaired. Just wanted to let you know I can sooooo relate. Oh yeah, ended up having to do a ton of laundry because clothes smelled like smoke and used a bunch of febreeze on the carpet and furniture.
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