Starting chemo July 2014
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Lots going on amongst us. Speaking of hair and head issues... my hair is growing! I'm really surprised. Last time, it fell out to total 100% baldness and didn't grow back at all until a month after final chemo. This time, it hasn't done the 100% everywhere fall out and now it is stubbly all over my head. I think I'm going to let it grow out and see what happens.
About scalp rash: I use a product called Miracle Oil Healing Formula. It was recommended by the owner of the wig store where I bought my wig because I had a rash last time. It went away fairly quickly, so it seems to be effective. I automatically went to it after I buzzed by hair this time. No problems so far.
Tired Maiden...I've been gone a lot because my computer has been down. Apparently it had some serious issues. It took 4 trips to the online shop to get it resolved. The guys at the remote repair company didn't give up until they had it working. I had it rebuilt after a power surge issue a couple of years ago, and the online company even resolved the issues that were created at that time that I have just been living with. It is better than new now. They finished about 30 minutes ago. I'm really happy.
I didn't get the bracelets mailed because I couldn't open my programs to print my addresses. I'll be getting those out tomorrow now.
We are actually going to go to La Vegas tonight. Hubby promised me that we would go out for my favorite fish dinner during my good week if I felt like eating. Tonight is the night.
All in all - it's great day.
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I had my head shaved yesterday, Aug. 16th. It had been coming out for a couple of days and I was sick of it everywhere. Plus looked bad. I have to say I'm glad that's done. I didn't realize how much my hair kept my head and neck warm. My nose has been running a lot too!
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Hello Ladies...
So it turns out that I was completely dehydrated that is what caused my eyelids to droop down toward my eyelashes
I went for #3 and they could not get a blood return from my port. After flushing, hydrating and waiting...still nothing.. I asked if she could take out the old and re-enter the port just incase there was something wrong with the first one. Once she put the new one in and allowed me to sit a while just hydrating we finally got a blood return.. I am embarrassed to admitt that I HATE water... I have been drinking lemonade mostly ..I can get water down if my stomache feels ok and its ice cold but otherwise I just cant do it... Mags... I totally understand #3 hitting hard
I am now on day 5 and have been exhausted .. the bloating gas and diarrhea is tiring... going from being a woman who does twenty things at once to getting exhausted just from walking into a store is overwhelming. I also read above about some of us pre menopausal women having their period. I got hit with mine on day 3 and actually called the nurse to make sure it was normal because I thought the chemo would stop it. Nurse said this could be the last one I will ever have... But to get slammed with that and the side effects together is tough. Thank God my two best friends spent the weekend here cooking and helping with my boy... Hoping the diarrhea and bloating stops soon.. My heart goes out to all of you... This is a tough road but we have to travel it... hugs and prayers always ♥0 -
pinkninija - I also have a rash/breakout on my face. It was mostly on my forehead but is also on my cheeks now. I had this after tx1, but this round seems worse.
We are on o the same chemo...so wonder if it's Carboplatin since other do Taxotere and haven't complained of it. I out so much makeup on my face to cover it and it's still visible
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I had a horrible rash from taxotere...apparently it's not super uncommon. But uncomfortable and not very pretty. My MO prescribed more steroids last time.
Noticed today it's started coming back after tx 2...
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I'm trying a CVS brand of Vitamin E moisturizing cream that has no scent added on my scalp red spots. Did a trial run overnight on just a small area to make sure I didn't have a bad reaction to it. Did OK overnight so this morning I dabbed it on a few more areas. Will keep you updated on how it works.
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My hot date in Vegas didn't happen because I got held up in front of Hubby's computer - it too has issues. I haven't resolved his problems yet. We are going to try again on Tuesday.Water: Someone suggested Sparkling water with lemon as a good beverage for us non-water drinkers. It really is tasty.
Skin moisturizer: I've used Jason's moisturizers with Ester C for years. I really do get some nice comments on my skin looking better than it should at my age. I am very lax with my skin care regime, living in a dry desert environment, it is really important to keep moisturizer on your face, so I definitely do that. With the Miracle Oil that I mentioned previously and the Jason's, my beginning skin irritations have disappeared quickly. I get Jason's at Nature's Grocery. I think I have gotten it at Whole Foods in the past.
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Puffin - I am taking the Claritin. I have some bone pain but nothing awful. It comes and goes all over my body. Ibuprofen, too.
Mumford - I don't think i'm having those tests. I do have a CBC every week so I'll ask my doc. I like to know what all my TN women are doing!
PinkNinja - The only thing that helped me immediately was Mylanta. Then I started the Prilosec, but that takes 24 hours to work. I had to run to the store at midnight for heartburn relief and the pharmacist recommended the Mylanta. It's a liquid - and I HATE liquids - but I was in so much pain I took it quickly. Relief was nearly immediate!
Coyote - I'll holler when I have the bracelet. Can't wait! I bet my 10-year old daughter tries to wear it!
Jen Kay - I'm where you are in hair. Too icky patch to go out. Love the blonde wig! It really goes well with your skin tone.
I get an ovarian ultrasound on Wednesday, so please wish me good luck. I don't think I could face anything happening in another part of my body right now. I'm BRCA positive, so right after chemo they're coming out!
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JoeysMommy, I am another water hater, I've just been rotating between apple, pear, grape juice and raspberry lemonade, but the sparkling water sounds good right now, as long as there's no artificial sweetener in it. DH installed a water cooler so it's always handy but he's the water drinker for both of us.
Big D hit last night after dinner, but lomotil took it down fast. Another night lying in bed sleepless, don't know how many I can handle. That was three.
Who's up to what today?
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School starts Wednesdays for my sons; we went to visit their regular classroom teacher today. She seemed very nice.
I start teaching my classes tomorrow. I should be fine, but I am seriously worried about Thursday. Wednesday, I will be getting AC #3, and I fear chemo brain big-time. I've been busy, writing detailed notes in case I have a brain fart and completely lose my train of thought.
My thoughts are with all of you who are experiencing SEs! Mine should hit Friday-Saturday-Sunday, if the first two cycles are any indication.
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Raindew - I get a red rash under the skin that does not itch during the second week after chemo. Most of it fades away after two days, except on my lower shins and that hangs around for about 3 more days.
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My stabbing pains are back, I never know where it will hit next but it hits my head more often than other areas. Just like clockwork, I'm starting to be able to predict what my next s/e will be. I have to say, it's not as bad as my first infusion so I guess I should just shut up.
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WalleGator- sending you luckluckluckluckluck!!!!
Heading in for AC#4 tomorrow....just focusing on the fact that it will be the halfway point for my chemo...yay!
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Hi ladies! Had AC#2 this morning, everything went pretty good. The actual treatment didn't last terribly long, but the office is merging with the local medical center and today was the first day of merging. Had to do some paper work over again stuff like that. Just confusion at every step it seemed. I hope they get it figured out by the time I go for my next round. But I did get good report on my blood work, everything looked good I was told by the Dr., same or better than when I had my first treatment. I really couldn't believe it, I knew I felt okay, but wasn't sure what the numbers would say. the only thing I can figure out is diet, I haven't changed anything else. All those veggies I been eating and lean protein are the only thing I can think of. I've been eating lots of zucchini noodles pretending its pasta! Halfway done for this portion of treatments at least!
Hope everyone's SE get better and ya'll get some relief soon and start feeling better soon!
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ElaineTherese I can't imagine teaching after a treatment! God bless you and I hope that all goes well. My kids are school aged and I can't imagine trying to control a classroom full. Best of wishes.
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WalleGator,
I teach college students, two classes that meet twice-a-week. They're generally well-behaved
. It's the grading that's going to stink. Fortunately, my department assigned me two advanced Ph.D. students to serve as my teaching assistants. So, if the work becomes too much, I've got back-up.0 -
I'm not a big water drinker, either. I typically have sparkling water (I have a Soda Stream, so make my own). Try about 7 ozs. of this with about 1.5 ozs. of pure blueberry juice (or cranberry, or cran/rasp....you get the picture). It's not sweet, low calorie, very refreshing, and I seem to be able to get the liquid in me at a pretty good rate. In the morning, I mix the fizzy water with oj.
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Mumford, I think I'm going to invest in a soda stream. Plain water is so gross. I keep buying lemon seltzer water but I think it would be cheaper to make my own. I did eat watermelon this morning and it went down well. That's about all I want right now. Hope everyone is hanging in there. Mags, I didn't sleep last night either. Now I feel like I have a hangover.
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A Soda Stream sounds like a great idea! I usually don't have much trouble drinking water, but it's getting really old and un-fun lately. I have a lemon tree and a spearmint plant and use both in my water to liven it up, but... bleh. Enough is enough already.
I am going through dill pickles at an alarming rate lately. I get this awful taste in my mouth and sucking on a pickle is the only thing that makes any difference. At least it is something that helps though.
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so my folliculitis on my scalp was seriously infected, it was so gross. It's getting a little better and the pus is almost gone. I think it hurts so much because I have the stubble on my head and it's like little needles digging into my sore spots on my head. The other day, I actually tried to use duct tape to get the rest of the fuzz off and it looked like I killed a small furry animal! The problem is my scalp is still very tender and red.
If that wasn't bad enough, about a week and half ago, I fell down several steps and landed right on my tailbone so that hurts like heck. I googled it and there's not much to do about it but let it heal. If I sneeze or cough, it's like yikes!
Anyways, grateful to be alive and kicking cancers butt. I'm praying for you all
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also, I love drinking water with cucumbers and lemon in it but since starting chemo, I hate it too!! I went to the store and bought those little flavor enhancers in the little bottle, you just use a couple of squirts in it. They are tons of brands with so many flavors. I've been using the crystal light raspberry and lemonade and normally I wouldn't like it. I'm also drinking lots of Gatorade since I was dehydrated last time
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Wow! Great minds think alike! I said to DH last night, let's get a sodastream! He's all for anything that will increase my water intake, not to mention it's a gadget, so it'll magically appear soon. He's like that. We have so many gadgets our gadgets have gadgets. When my cousin moved in she used to laugh at our kitchen gadgets because she's an old fashioned do it yourself kind of person. Now she's so busy she uses them all the time. I'm really sensitive to aspartame and hate the taste of Splenda, so need to find flavors with real sugar.
Another night without sleep. That's four in a row. Don't know how much more I can take. Don't want any more drugs. Don't know what to do. Gotta break the cycle. Wish I knew how.
So, just resting today. Hope you are all surviving. Chemo sucks, don't it?
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Pink: You have certainly gone through enough! It's your turn to get a reprieve. One thing that will help your tailbone situation is to get an inexpensive (Dollar Store) child's blow up pool ring to sit on. You can blow it up to what ever works for comfort. It really works well.0 -
ElaineTherese - phew! I feel better about the college kids for you! My mind automatically went to younger kids since mine are still sort of young. They should be much more manageable!
Love the soda stream idea. I just told DH that if I drink one more green tea i'm going to scream! Supposed to be good for you, not much flavor, pretty harmless, really, but I'm ready to ditch it. Love the other ideas you guys have, too. Thanks!
Eye twitch has started!!!
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Ideas to mix with your sparkling water:
Pom pomegranate juice and a little lime.
Homemade ginger syrup, yummy and good for your tummy!: 8 oz ginger, 4 cups water, 2 cups sugar (I actually use less because I like it more spicy than sweet). Chop the ginger up medium-fine, dump it all in a pot, bring to a boil, turn down and simmer for like an hour. Mix with fizzy water and a squeeze of lime for nummy ginger ale.
*brown sugar is an excellent substitution for white sugar
*throw in some whole peppercorns/cloves/star anise for extra zing.
*you can use fresh lemon juice as well as the fizzy water for a fizzy ginger-lemonade
Hibiscus tea brewed strong with a cinnamon stick or two.
You can make mint, ginger, basil, or lavendar syrups by heating 1cup water and 1 cup sugar to a boil, adding a handful (1/4 cup) of whatever herbs you like, and then letting steep for an hour, then straining. These are nice on their own or with lemon juice for fancy lemonade, or with other juices.
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JenKay, I love the ginger syrup idea! (I buy ginger syrup and add it to herbal tea) Thank you for the other ideas, too...I'm heading out for some fresh mint...
I can't tell you how much dough I've saved on Perrier, Pellegrino, etc with my soda stream...I can see there's going to be a run on them in the next few days...
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Wow! You ladies have lots of ideas for making hydration more appealing.
WalleGator: I know that eyetwitching is a pretty minor SE as things go, but my eyelids twitch like crazy most days. Maybe we should try eyedrops? Is it related to eye dryness?
I just weighed myself; somehow I lost 5 pounds. It's odd because I think I've been eating about the same, and I've definitely not been exercising as vigorously. I hope it's not a problem. I guess I'll find out when I go for AC#3 tomorrow and see MO.
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Seriously, if you can find the Pom on sale (they had it recently at Costco) I think it's almost my favorite of all the the juice-sodas. If you have a middle Eastern market near you they sell all sorts of juices that you won't find at the big stores and those are super-fun to experiment with. I love, love love tamarind juice but I don't always have the energy it takes to make it from scratch (It's kind of a pain) and you can always find that at the Middle Eastern markets as well as the Mexican grocerias.
Also, protip: when pomegranates are in season you can juice them pretty easily just cutting them in half and using an electric citrus juicer- the key is to not press down into the white pulp inside the skin, because that's where the bitterness lives. More work but much cheaper than the bottled stuff. Makes wonderful jelly as well!
(I really like to cook, if you can't tell)
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I love my sodastream. My DH bought mine about 2 years ago because I spent so much on San Pellegrino and it has saved us a ton. It has put the fun back in water for me during this spell and have tried to flavor it with my usual go to pomegranate, lemon, blueberry and raspberry. For some reason my taste buds rejected lime which I usually love but my tummy says not so this time around. I will to try ginger syrup and mint.
Also with my SEs with nausea, tummy, tastebuds and big "D" this time around I lost a total of 15 lbs. My doc was not happy. Yesterday was my first decent meal and hopefully I can put most of it back on (if it was water weight) before next Wednesday which is #2 tx for me. I have also learned I must eat whatever settles.
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I've been blessed that I do have an appetite but of course since I'm not as active I'm gaining weight. Trying to put that out of my mind and just focus on healing. Just today things are starting to taste funny and the last time that happened my WBC had plummeted. I'm hoping it's just a mouth issue and not the signs of something worse.
Elaine Therese - I see the dr tomorrow and will ask him about the eye twitch. Any other questions you guys have?? ( :
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