Starting Chemo in Nov. 2011...anyone else?
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bsjs,s,s,p, LOL - just looked at the screen (home keys!)
bahamamama, Very sorry that your daughters are being such pills instead of understanding that they have wonderful, supportive parents that will back them up to the point of providing shelter for them if needed. I hope you and your husband get to enjoy having your space to yourselves!
grandmaV, Very sad about your sisters. I'm so glad your tinnitis is getting better and you are feeling better!
I'm trying not to be scared about rads and am learning meditation to help control some of the stress that I'm feeling about treatment. I'm hoping to get into a clinical trial at MDA for rads that will take 4 weeks instead of 6. At least, I think I'm hoping that!
Phyllis
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Phyllis, for me rads was a lot easier than any other part of this. It just got very monotonous going every day for a 5 minute treatment. So 4 weeks sounds so much better than 6. Are they going to increase the dosage, or do you have to go twice a day for part of it? I didn't experience the fatigue until the last week and it lasted about 4 weeks after rads was over. Hoping it proves to be easy for you too.
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Phyllis-Like Grandma said, the rads was much easier than anything else. My only problems were some redness, swelling of the breast and lymph area, and the skin broke in a few places and peeled off. Compared to the soreness of the surgery and the side effects of the chemo, rads was much less bothersome. Good luck with it.
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GrandmaV, the trial is an increased dose once daily. They are studying the cosmetic effects of that. They are taking early stage, node negative patients.
Bahamamom, thank you and grandmaV for your perspectives on rads. Since I will be away from home for treatment I won't be working through it. I had such fatigue with chemo! I worked 20-24 hours a week during that and it was challenging. Hopefully, not working during rads will help with that.
Phyllis0 -
Phyllis, it has been a while since I have chimed in here, but I agree with GrandmaV and bahamamom3. I just finished rads YESTERDAY! Overall, it was so much easier than chemo. More emotional I think than anything. I am very fatigued. Red, itchy, swollen and sore, but it was gradual. It may get worse for the next week or 2, but I will be okay. I used Calendula lotion...my RO told me it was the only thing that has been proven to help heal and protect during radiation. I know others have had great success with emu oil. I have LOVED the calendula (by a company called Boiron - a homeopathic medical supple company - impressed that my pretty conservative doc is using it! It's their first line of defense.).
SO glad you can rest more during rads. That has been important for me. I am continually trying to respect what my body has been through and know that I am not all done yet!
Hope everyone else here is doing well. I have been so tired, I haven't been keeping up. Phyllis, I will be thinking of you. It goes fast, even though it doesn't feel like it in the middle of it. I had a 40 minute drive each way every day. But the roads I took were beautiful! My last day, I took pictures of some of my favorite sites along the way to journal my trip. And I listened to uplifting music on the way in so I would have a positive song stuck in my head to mull over while lying there. It helped alot.
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Phyllis-I will bet that not working will help some for you, especially with the fatigue. I always forget about the people who have to travel great distances or even live someplace else temporarily during the treatments. For me, I live about 4 miles from the hospital where I went for chemo, surgeon visits, etc., and the radiation place (part of the same hospital) is right across the street from that. It is also right on my way home from work, so that on the days I had to go for radiation or blood tests, etc., most all appointments except for the chemo, were just stops on my way home each day. All in all, I was pretty lucky and my inconveniences were very few. Good luck to you as you travel, and I hope the temporary living arrangement is not too hard for you.
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Hi All,
Just a quick update. Began rads this week. 4 down and 26 to go. as others have said this appears to be the easiest piece of this raod so far. On Friday I began what will be 13 more triple doses of herceptin. The herceptin will be every 3 weeks, so will take me into January/February some time.
Andimoms, I am trying to respect my body as well, but not sure how to stop life going on around me as well. Last weekend I did almost nothing, knowing Iwas going into a week that was vey busy. Today exhausted but after I get my daughter to her dress rehersal for dance, I am on the couch for the day. The hell with the house.
Hope all have a gentle weekend. It is so good to see all of us moving forward.
Nel
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It's good to hear about everyone again. Congrats to those finishing treatment. I retired from my job beginning June 1 and I am so glad I did. I had my exchange surgery on 5/17 and didn't dread going back to work. Our youngest daughter got married on 5/26 our son got married on 6/9. We are packing for the move to North Carolina. We will be going down to look for a place to live the first week of July. My husband begins work on 7/16.
Today was the first time in a long time that I have felt well. When I think back on the long, cold winter we went through, I feel so happy. I am also afraid of the cancer coming back. I try not to dwell on this but sometimes, it is very hard to do. Robin Roberts has me thinking about recurrence. I have gone through this twice. I hope for no more. I am so happy to enjoy my good days.
We will get better and better. I am so happy to not have to do any treatments for a while. Each of you will make it too!
Beth
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Beth-I am glad you followed through with your decision to retire from a job you didn't like and that you are celebrating some family milestones. I know what you mean about being so happy to be finished with the hard part but afraid of the future also. You are wise not to dwell on it. I feel the same way. I think we are forever changed. I know it is as a result of my BC and all that went with it, but I am just not going to dwell on unhappy things. My oldest daughter has stirred up a real bee's nest within our family and isolated herself (again) from all the rest of us. She keeps calling and sending me emails trying to stress me out, but I am just not having it. I do love her, but I now feel that life is just too darn precious to spend it being angry and vengeful. I am sure she doesn't understand that, and I doubt most other people not affected by cancer would, but that is just how I feel. I am doing everything I can to focus on enjoying the rest of my life. I called yesterday to register for a Look Good, Feel Better session, and I also registered for 3 free massages for me and my caregiver (my husband). I know that I will be a nervous wreck in September when it is time for my mammogram, but I won't think about that until then. And I am sure that all the fear I feel is magnified 10x for you since you have already had another cancer before. Please try not to think too much about it and just know that you have done all you can to prevent the disease from recurring. And since most of us were diagnosed around the same time (since our post was starting chemo in Nov), I imagine that will be a big topic of discussion in a a couple more months. Hopefully, we will all be cancer free year after year now.
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Haven't been on for a while, have a funny story to share. Had my lumpectomy on 6/8, Fri, after which the nurse once I woke up encouraged me to go use the bathroom. To my amazement the hospital installed blue toilet water, I was like wow hospitals use that blue stuff too, still kind of out of it, I got discharged and went home. Once I got home I was once again amazed that our toilets too had the blue water, I told my husband all excited, I think my mom found some of those toilet cleaning blue stuff for the water, and he too was excited that anyone other than himself had cleaned the toilet for once. Then I used another bathroom that evening, which confirmed that my mom had cleaned both bathrooms. Then the next morning to my disappointment the toilet water had gone back to normal and only turned blue after I used it. I told my husband who finally told me what the nurse had warned him the first time I went pee, to not get shocked if I pee blue, it was from the dye they injected during surgery. I guess my hubby better clean the toilets after all and we really need to buy some of that blue stuff!
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Julie - that's funny. Thanks for that.
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Beth, I agree, it seemed like a long cold winter. I'm glad you're feeling better.
I hope we all have better summers!0 -
Morning all,
Julie - Love the story. Like A/C treatment and red toilet bowl. Wow how did that happen , oh yes I forgot!
Just had # 9 of rads of 30 so moving forward. Continue in a funk, a number of reasons I am aware of. Some is this cancer road and some jsut life and trying to figure how to get on with life.
Hope all have a great weekend and glad we all seem to be getting better even if it is bit by bit
Gentle day
Nel
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I'm officially CANCER FREE!!! Surgeon and onc both agree no need for radiation, my nodes and margins all clear, am stage IIA. Doing the happy shuffle!!!
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Naan 1004:
Congratulations!!! Great News!
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Sueshane, thanks, best news I've heard since this all started last year Oct!
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Julie, I'm so happy for you. Congratulations!0
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Julie, wonderful news! Congratulations!!
Phyllis0 -
Thank u all for your support through this hell that we went through, only good times to come from now on for all of us!!
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Naan,
Way to go! Such great news!
Gentle weekend
Nel
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Happy Dance for you Julie!!!
Does anyone else have numb fingertips? I was taking gabapentin for neuropathy and it got better but now the numbness has returned. My massage therapist told me to massage the fingertips to get the blood flow going again. I am going to have to program myself to do this a couple of times a day. I just wanted to know if anyone else is experiencing this.
It's going to be very hot today in Indiana...94! I was reading some posts about losing eyebrows and eyelashes. I took a look good feel better class for makeup and I think the one good thing about chemo in the winter is wearing the makeup. I cannot imagine wearing it during these hot days.
Take care of yourselves My Friends!
Beth
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Hi beth - It's good to hear how you're doing. I didn't get neuropathy as bad as you did. I only had it in my feet. At first the bottom of my feet were numb. Now I have some feeling in them, but it sort of feels like when you walk barefoot on a hot street and it starting to heal. As I remember your finger tips really felt burned and even turned red, so it may take longer for them to recover.
It's supposed to be hot in Kansas today, too. They're talking 100's by Thursday. I've been trying to get up early to get my walk in before it gets hot, so I'll have to get up even earlier to beat the heat. I'm thankful to have hair and don't have to wear anything on my head during the heat. I love my chemo curls. I hope they are permanent.
You take care of yourself, too.
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Beth, I still have numbness in my fingertips too still.
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Morning All,
It is so very hot here in Mass, invited to a couple of pools. I'll have to see. I am in the middle of radiation, so supposed to limit sun exposure and pools or ocean on rads site. Shade and waist deep if I go.
I am 6 weeks out from last chemo and so VERY excited, I have hair coming back. Enough so others can see it as well, so I am hoping it will loook like a real head of hair in the next few weeks. I have to laugh at the fact that I have to shave my legs already a few times and the hair on my head is just begining to fillin. Somehow this just does not seem fair! Another of the "jokes" of treatment. Gotta love it.
Wishing everyone a gentle weekend
Nel
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Have a happy 4th everyone!
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Sorry for the delay in joining the Happy Dance-- Congrats Julie!
Q
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Beth- I have had numbness and tingling off and on. I go back to using L-glut. and it disappears. That said, however, the last phalange of my fingers feel--tight and full all the time-- less sensitivity in them. sometimes hard to text and it affects my ability to feel needle qi. Not much to complain about really. Eventually, I think my fingers, my nails etc will come back like my now curly hair has.....
my best, q
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I wish my hair would come back in curly. I think it may not because I have worn scarves and hats for the longest time when it was growing back. Or it may not because my hair is straight and fine and I want curly so much! I can't use the L-glut because it messed with my thyroid. When I tried to take it, i could hardly move for days after. I looked up the side effects and one has something to do with thyroid. I had a massage at the cancer center and the therapist told me to massage each finger by pressing toward the arm. To massage down each finger by holding my hand up. I try to do this while I am watching TV or riding in the car. I am hoping I get the feeling back also. When I swim and my fingers shrivel, I get the feeling back. It's so weird.
I think back to all we have been through as a group and I am amazed. I know some of you are still going through chemo and/or rads. I pray for peace to you on this journey. I have seen some women with the "chemo" look and I have to speak to them. People encouraged me all the time when I looked this way (scarves, LGFB, etc.) I cannot imagine trying to put on my eyebrows during this weather!
On the best note, I felt my twin grandbabies move last night. Emily and Josh came over and she asked if I wanted to feel them move. I had to use my left hand since the right hand is the neuropathy one! Oh, I can't wait to see them in person. The ultrasounds are a great beginning!
Blessings and keep cool my friends!
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Q, no biggie
I might have to do chemo again, since I'm TN, so devastated right now!0 -
naan 1004:
Hang in there. So sorry for your news.
Susan
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