Radiation recovery
Comments
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Hi ladies, I just wanted to join in the winter rads group. I finished my chemo Dec. 18th and will see my Roncologist tomorrow to set up my radiation treatments. I know that I am suppose to get 37 but that is about all I know. The chemo has about killed me so I hope I can get well before they knock me back down again. Im still having bad bone pain, nausea, fatigue, and chemical taste from the chemo. Everybody says radiation will be a piece of cake with just some fatigue. I dont know if I can be more tired than I am now. lol. Hope everyone is doing well. Has everybody on here already finished their treatments?
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Sorry my chemo brain is responsible for me posting on wrong thread. Im an idiot. lol.
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Melmcb, dont worry about the chemo brain, and don't worry about the rads. I finished today and am here to tell the story:). It isnt " nothing" but its way better than chemo. I found the fatigue to be more just sleepiness, not that bone numbing chemo feeling. GOOD LUCK!
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Hi everyone, I am afraid I have some sad news to share with all of you. Janis fell on some ice and broke her arm. The break is near the top of her arm where the humerous bone connects to the shoulder socket. She will see an orthopedic surgeon soon to see if surgery will be necessary to repair the break. To make matters worse, the break was in her right (dominant) arm so she will not be able to post for a while. Still, she will be reading our posts so rest and get well soon, Janis. We are all sending healing thoughts your way.
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Janis, you poor dear. I'm so sorry to hear about the broken arm. What a trial! Get well enough soon to type left handed to let us know how you're doing. My thoughts and well wishes are with you.....
Elizabeth....thanks so much for letting us know. I was worrying about Janis just this morning as we haven't heard from her in awhile. I also hope these snow storms aren't getting you......
Speaking of storms, Sab, are you blocked by the hwy 1 rock slide? And Joan, have you been able to dodge the big snow storms back there? Out here I've had more rain already this year as we usually have in a normal entire season! And my septic leach field is not particularly happy!0 -
Oh, Janis, gentle hugs to you! I hope you heal fast, and send you all my best wishes! Thanks Elizabeth, you knew we would be worried...
The landslides/storms only blocked my ability to go hiking in Big Sur with elder dd. We didn't let the rain stop us here locally, we have hiked nearly 35 miles in the past week!
I want to welcome the new gals. It makes me so happy to see you come out the other side of radiation.
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Janis - get well soon. That is one of my biggest fears with ice and snow. Ugh. Lets hope it is not surgery.
I finally got rid of the cold that almost beat me but now have a Dr apt this morning and am scared to be exposed to more germs. I have been hiding in my house for a month.
My skin is still itchy and peeling after almost 6 weeks. It is my entire breast area. Is that normal....still? Do not see my RO till Feb and still can not wear a bra. I get pain and itchiness.
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Bunkie, unfortunately I think your breast is healing right on schedule.....you ended up with a bad burn and it takes time. Be sure to keep moisturizing daily (Calendual cream was my best thing) and also continue to use the softer bath soap ( out here they told us Dove. I'm still using it). I wasn't able to wear a bra for about a year until they realized I have truncal lymphedema. I got a compression bra and it is the most comfortable thing ever invented. A good sports bra will do the same thing, I'm just so large breasted that sports bras are a joke! Good luck and I'm glad to hear you're over the cold. I doubt you'll catch anything else now as you've had time to recover.
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Geeze, Janis, just what you needed, huh? I hope you mend quickly, hopefully without surgery.
Bunkie, Let's both hope the pace picks up on the healing thing! I finished Wed. and what started out as a small open area under my armpit is now spread almost out to where my nipple was- a 4 inch wide strip. Pain pills are heping, but healing would be better:) I just resorted to a piece of chocolate, and it isnt even 8 am here, lol.
Sab, thanks for the welcome. It still doesnt seem real to me that a whole year has passed since this journey began, and now it is time to figure out what normal is going to be. Its already time for my mammogram in a month....yikes! One day at a time.0 -
Janis....so sorry to hear what happened to you, yeah, mend quickly.
Cow power, I'm in the same boat as you.....getting ready to make that appointment for
my first mammo .....it is exactly a year today when I discovered my lump....can't believe it....one year!!!!!!.....0 -
Janis...hopefully no surgery but speedy healing!
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Sew, you reminded me to mention to the new gals that some insurance companies will cover specialized bras, compression garments, etc. It is worth checking!
Cowpower that does sound awfully painful. I wonder if it part of the after rads changes...I was told to expect some as swelling went down...but it sounds extreme. Hugs and wishes for recovery.
Bunkie, same wishes to you for a quick recovery. "Normal" is just around the corner I hope.
Mammogram time on Monday morning. It's back to annual bilateral screenings, and for some reason instead of being happy I am uncomfortable about it. And of course, as always, a little anxious.
Here's a happy, healthy new year wish for all of you.
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Oh wow Janis, this on top of everything else! Hope you have a quick recovery!
Cowpower, that sounds awfully painful! My skin didn't open up, but felt so raw anything touching it was painful. It took two weeks and one day (but who's counting?) till it started feeling better. The skin is now dry and feels thin and sensitive, but I'll take that over painful! I hope your's starts feeling better and heals soon.
Because I had both breasts taken off, I guess I don't have to worry about a mammogram. At least that's what the MO told me. I see my PS next week, and have an appointment set up for the following week with a different PS to see if I'm a candidate for diep reconstruction later this summer.
I'll sure be glad when I won't have doctor appointments all the time!
Take care and wishing everyone a quick healing!0 -
MostlySew - I too am big busted. That is why I can not wear an athletic bra. Just smashes me tight.
Can anyone tell me how that first mammagram goes? Are you still real sore from surgery? Mine is not till Feb but I am curious.
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My first post surgery mammogram wasn't bad at all (in August after surgery March 1) I would have to say it was actually a little less uncomfortable than some of the presurgery mammograms were. I am have a bit of numbness, and have certainly lost any modesty I once suffered from.
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Cindyl, I agree that the post lumpectomy mammos are easier than before! Go figure, but it's true. Perhaps because they're very gentle with you. Be sure to tell your tech though.
Sab....it definitely is scary to head off to any mammo these days. Just think though.....you can ring in the new year in style knowing you're all clear! What a new year bash you're going to have.....
Janis, hon, thinking of you. Pet those puppies with your left hand for now, ok? We want you healed up soon...0 -
Janis, Thinking of you and sending hugs and healing thoughts your way. We got a couple of inches of snow last night so I was very careful walking outside today.
Happy New Year, everyone! Wishing a year of health and happiness for all of us.0 -
You're all talking about peeling. I've had 11 rad treatments so far and using the medicated cream they gave me and so far so good just a little red. I'm scheduled for 33 days. 28 plus 5on the node site. When does the severe redness and peeling start. Can't say I'm looking forward to that. Just hanging in and looking forward to the end and hair growing back...just fuzzy now.
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knitterkjv, I didn't start peeling till after I was done. The redness started about the fourth week, and the fifth week was getting pretty bad. For me, the worst time was the week after I finished. My skin was very red and painful. At two weeks out, it started feeling better, and I really feel the calendula cream helped more than the Miaderm which was recommended by my center.
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Knitterkjv - My peeling did not start till I was done. Never had it during. My underside was so burnt and I thought it would just be that area.It was also the entire breast. All the skin on my breast and underarm is peeling.
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Knitterkjv....my peeling started one week after I finished.....saline solutions will help should you have any peeling.....unfortunately I also ended up with a fungus under my breast so was put on a cortisone cream as well. Make sure you moisturize like crazy....I didn't and lived to regret it......lol
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I started peeling the day I started boosts, so day 29? By day 35 my skin was pretty much gone. But by 2 weeks out I had a nice pink layer of new skin.
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Knitterkjv, are you really a knitter.? Mostlysew and I were both saying that knitting helped carry us through this year- I made about 15 pairs of socks. I also had very few skin issues right up until the end, so you have some time to work on growing that hair!
Wow Scottie, we discovered our lumps within a day of each other. Glad we both made it past that initial terror. I am a bit the worse for wear right now, but like an old teddy bear, I keep getting patched back together.....unlike the poor little teddy, however, I have pain meds.....0 -
Cowpower.....sorry to hear you are in pain.....it's funny you should mention this because
I think, I hope my Letrozole is finally kicking in after eight months....my muscles and bones are beginning to hurt....what pain meds do you take, if you don't mind me asking?0 -
Hi Scottiee, I have been chasing you from thread to thread, lol. I have only been taking prescription meds since my skin disintegrated at the end of rads. I have been taking lortabs (vicodin and tylenol) at about half the normal dose ( otherwise I just drop off to sleep) and they have helped a lot. I don' t know why the skin pain I have is getting to me more than any of my surgeries, etc, but it just is driving me nuts. I did have leg and foot pain either from the end of taxol/taxotere or the beginning of tamoxifen. My RO said to take 600 mg ibuprofen three times per day. I didnt always need that much, but it worked great. Now I have been on tamoxifen three months and rarely get the pains.
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Cowpower.....don't mind you following me around at all.....have to warn you though that that could be dangerous....lol
I think I might have to get some pain meds for my muscle and bone pain, which I hope is coming from my L0 -
Scottie,
Have you heard about trying Claritin for the bone pain from the AI? Lots of gals feel it helps. Not the Claritin D, just plain Claritin. Also, if I read it right, you felt your lestrozole hadn't been working since you didn't feel pain? I understand that it's still working even if you don't get hot flashes or any side effects. At least I sure hope that's true as while I have SEs from Arimidex, I'm able to ignore them for the most part.0 -
MostlySew...thank you....I will get some tomorrow. I have had some SE with L.....hair loss, emotional issues and weight loss, but now I'm getting muscle and bone pain after 8 months, go figure.
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Scottie, I know what you mean.....every day's a new adventure for sure.....I never know which symptom's going to show up when.......lol. I love the one where you get up in the middle of the night and your body won't straighten up, and when it does, it doesn't want to stay upright.....and your fingers won't work the TP! A challenge for sure. Good luck with the Claritin, I hope it works for you.
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have to keep it short, so hard to type left handed and so painful. Saw ortho doc ER referred me too. he reviewed hospital x rays there are two fractures forming a t shape up near shoulder socket. must be very careful next 6-8 weeks to keep them from spreading. bed rest, sling 24/7 and pain meds. he suggested i sleep in a recliner, but am using several pillows and dorm pillow to prop myself up. must say pain is wicked so upsetting. this whole thing is. i go back in 2 weeks for new x rays. purple toe is likely broken too but will heal fine with all the rest i will get. bruise on my upper arm real creepy lol.
i won't write much just too hard. Elizabeth will be my voice here for awhile.
thanks so much for all the good thoughts. hugs.
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