For Arimidex (Anastrozole) users, new, past, and ongoing
Comments
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Nancy. the greek yogurt is easy and cheaper to make than buy. I get a quart of plain yogurt, usually I buy the lo fat version and if the store has the probiotic kind, that is my choice. Dump the container into a strainer with a liner of a coffee filter or paper towel. Put a big can (I use a 28 oz tomato can) on top to weight it down. Place strainer over a quart cup and let the whey drain out. Takes a few hours or you can do it in the fridge over night.
Bingo, thick greek yogurt! I end up eating over a quart a week. I like my yogurt plain with no nasty junk added. I add my own fruit or mostly eat it like it was cream cheese in a sandwich or such
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I'm wondering if i'm taking the right amount of calcium and D? Currently I take 2 One A Day Women's VitaCrave gummies (no soy), Calcium and Vitamin D. I take 600mg of Calcium and 1600 IU of Vitamin D.
am I taking enough? too much? i'm so confused with all this stuff.
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sounds right to me but your doc can tell if you are lo by a routine blood test. I have been lo in the past but my recent test was perfect for all but the cholesteral
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me too! My cholesterol went up, I never had that in my life!?
I am now upping my calcium to 1200mg. My D3 is 2000, I hope that's enough!
Love the Greek yogurt receipe!! Thanks for sharing!!
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Hope you like the greek yogurt, I have become an addict to it as I add it to all sorts of crackers or bread or stuff...convinced that it is the reason some of my numbers were good at the docs
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I take 1200 calcium, spilt into 600 x two. 5000 D3 once a day. Be sure it's D3
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I too have gained weight on arimidex :-(
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Me too
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Hi Redheaded - so far the hot flashes have subsided - one very mild one last night but the humidity could have something to do with that one! I have noticed that when I get up in the morning my muscles feel stiff. How are you feeling?
Hi Janet - man......I know, possible thinning hair AND weight gain? I pray that I don't have either one of those SEs.....I need to drop WEIGHT!!!!!
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Dogs,
I had weight gain no lost hair. My weight is stable now but I want to get it off. More exercise I guess also that helps with my joint pain.
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I had thinning hair before my BC diagnosis and have been seeing a dermatologist for it for a little over a year with pretty good results. He says he has treated lots of women on AIs, and he assures me that he will be able to at least keep the thinning hair from getting any worse. (I would definitely settle for that!) I hope he's right.
And yes Dogs, I need to drop weight too. I'm just trying to be vigilant, eat well, and exercise. I guess if I'm doing everything "right" and still gain, that will tell me it's the Arimidex, huh?
So that leftover Easter candy I ate earlier today isn't my fault, right?
I'm going to throw it away right now!0 -
I've been taking it a month officially today. I have started having more joint pain, but it is manageable so far. Hot flashes were terrible for me on tamoxifen and that hasn't changed a lot. I have had some doozies in the last couple weeks, but it seems like there are mor infrequent than one tamoxifen. I seem to be sleeping much better so far with the arimidex,than on tamoxifen, so that is nice for the moment.
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Hi all,
I switched from Tamoxifen to Arimidex one and one-half years ago. I have been lucky in that I have had no significant joint pain and no significant changes in my hot flashes. Recently though I have noticed my mood swings to be worse. I was wondering if this could be from the Arimidex, even this far out. I remember that the NP at the MO office told me when I switched that joint pain may not occur for a long time so I don't know if the mood swings is the same. I have already been using Effexor XR 37.5 mg for a few years before my diagnosis.
Has anyone experienced these side effects so far out? I would be open to suggestions of what helps. Also, I take Arimidex at night and wonder if I would do better taking it in the morning.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
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udpt82 I was on Anastrozole for 3 years. The past year I started to get depressed but it really hit me this past January. I finally took a 5 week break. Within days I felt better. I am now on Exemestane (generic Aromasin). It's been almost 4 weeks on it. So far so good. Also lots of other pains I have are gone or greatly reduced. I do seem to get sweatier. Not more hot flashes but just get more sweaty when doing stuff.
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I was ok for about a year on it. Then, seemed if it Could hurt, it DID hurt. Big time all over. Was off about 6 weeks total, cautiously starting again. We'll see.
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seems like a lot of you ladies have a better effect from going on aromasin? I am thinking to ask about that or Fareston because I can't lose bone anymore and the hot flashes are just taking me down..
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I would like over able to wear a pullover sweater again in the fall, without being stressed that I won't be able to peel it off. Or a shaper tank under a fitted shirt without worrying that the tightness will send me into a hot flash.
I'm going to restart Cymbalta in the next few weeks. Just have to catch up with my onc.
Did anyone notice pain when wAlking? I've noticed when I get up at night or first thing in the morning, it is hard to walk initially. Takes a bit to get going.
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Fluff I lost track. Do you mean Anastrozole/Armidex? Yes, in the morning I was stiff especially in toes, feet fingers but most of it was gone not long after I got up. I assume you're doing the duck walk
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Oh my gosh, Lago The duck walk is exactly what I do when I get out of the car!
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It's been hard for me to tease out whether being on anastrozole/arimidex or aromasin/exemestane is better. Right now I have little to complain about except for what is clearly caused by estrogen depletion, caused equally by both drugs. For me this is dry eye, vaginal area dryness/atrophy, very mild joint and muscle pain. I was on the first for 6 months and now aromasin for over 1.5 years. The joint and muscle pain is now well controlled with Ruthbru's gin and golden raisin home med.
It seems that issues come and go, resolving after 6 months or so. The latest was severe trigger thumb and swollen toe joints. The trigger thumb was treated with a cortisone shot and now it's fully functional and pain free. The trigger thumb may have nothing to do with AIs since those having a taxol chemo are 4 times as likely to have trigger finger/thumb and I had taxotere. Or both ailments may be related to rheumatoid or some other arthritis. I'm waiting for another flare up before I ask for the blood tests. I had X-rays of my feet and it isn't osteoarthritis.
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Lago, you described the walk perfectly! After a two hour drive yesterday, I had to keep a hand on the car as I waddled for the first few steps.
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UDPT82: Hi - I am going on week three now of Arimidex and I have to say.............I am a very even sort of person and I noticed a few times that my patience level was nowhere near where it usually is AND I felt angry, not like me at all..........I am trying to watch that...........not sure if it is the meds or just fallout from surgeries and treatment. I have not had a hot flash in about 7 days I think......
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Fluff - the 'duck walk' is a pretty common SE so you're not alone.
Doxie - I didn't have chemo but did have trigger thumb on both hands after starting Anastrozole. They both resolved on their own after a few months.
Love to all - hang in there!
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Okay, so I cut the grass on Saturday. We don't have a very big lawn and it takes less than 45 minutes to cut with a push mower. By the time I was finished my face was beat red, I was dripping with sweat and panting like a dog! It took me 2 hours to recover! The humidity was high which may have been a factor but the temp was only about 72. Has anyone else experienced this kind of reaction to physical exertion? I'm supposed to do a fun obstacle course this weekend but thinking of opting out.
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Doxie: You have piqued my curiosity! Can you tell me more about your Gin home remedy? Sounds like just what the doctor ordered! I'm a firm believer in Bombay & Tonic but am always open to suggestions!
And as to which combo of meds is "better" I think there is too much difference between each person and each cancer to ever say which is "better!" What works beautifully foe one isn't tolerated by another. It makes black & white answers difficult to find!
Checkers: I have this kind of reaction to physical exertion too! I will say that the humidity in Virginia is making it even worse! I decided to clean out my Junk Closet (the place where everything without a place gets thrown) last week and was in a puddle every hour or so. It was very discouraging. I used to be able to crank out chores till I was done - putting things off till I was good and ready. I think those days are gone. Another feature of live with cancer. 😔
I did have a family reunion in my home this weekend. Twenty something people. It was a really good reminder for me! Lots of little things don't really matter AND, if I'm willing to release control, other people will step in and take care of business! Both very important reminders for me. Being a control freak doesn't work very well when you have cancer! Deeeep breathing.....
Peace, Virginia
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Checkers - I've ALWAYS experienced that kind of reaction to physical activity even before BC - lol! I'm a heavy sweater (as in I sweat heavily, not that I'm a piece of winter clothing
) and a red-faced worker-outer and yes, humidity makes it even worse 
.Ruthbru - the drunken raisin recipe was with vodka not gin, right? I haven't tried it yet, just wanted to confirm. Wouldn't be surprised if I'm wrong the way my brain works lately. Thanks!
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Here is my mom & aunt's (and many other people's) ' White Raisins In Gin Recipe'. They used it many years for arthritis symptoms with great success. Some people have found that it helps with the achiness of Arimidex as well.
*To prepare gin-soaked raisin, first empty one box of dried white raisin in a shallow container. Only white or golden raisin should be used for this recipe. Then pour enough gin into the container to cover the raisin.
*Cover the container and keep it covered for 7 – 10 days to allow the raisin to steep in the gin.
*Allow all the gin to evaporate to leave gin-soaked raisins in the container. These raisins keep well when refrigerated. Take nine of these "drunken raisins" every day. Most users report improvements in arthritis symptoms between 1 – 8 weeks of using this remedy.
Why it works:
1. Golden raisins- the ONLY type of raisins worthy of the recipe- require sulfur or sulfides in their processing to make them golden. Sulfur is an active ingredient in 2 effective natural arthritis supplenents: glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate. Golden raisins come from sultana grapes and are cultivated under the name Thompson seedless grapes in the United States.
2. Sultana grapes contain proanthocyanidins which are thought to help fight infections and reduce inflammation. Grapes also contain resveratrol, a powerful anti-oxidant that is being studied for many of it's disease fighting properties.
3. Gin is flavored with juniper berries and juniper berries contain Terpinen. Terpinen has anti inflammatory properties. The essential oil that is in juniper berries contains more than 100 compounds including myrcene (an anti oxidant), catechins (anti-oxidant), and flavanoids (anti oxidant). Test tube studies have shown that juniper berries can inhibit prostaglandin synthesis. Prostaglandins help mediate an inflammatory response and increase the sensitivity of nerve endings to pain. By inhibiting their production, a reduction in pain can occur.
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Ruth,
Thank you! I've poked around the internet and found some of this information. I'm pasting this into a document to save.
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Dear Holeinone,
I am interested in your continued use of the brand name Arimidex....I love it and have had another body scan and CT of the chest abdomen and pelvis 3 days ago. Fortunately, my cancer is receding with no new activity...I was only dx'd 6 months ago with Stage 4 as an initial diagnosis....So wild horses could not stop me from taking the brand name Arimidex. I feel well and am grateful for this med. Carolyn
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thank you Ruthbru! I copied as well, whatever works, I am open to try! Plus I'm sure it tastes yummy!
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