Chemo starting April 2018
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Life thanks for asking. This weekend is the first time I’ve taken it two days in a row so I don’t think I know yet how it’ll go longer term. I take it with lunch and so far no sleep issues (my biggest fear!) and I think I’m a little more stiff when I get up from sitting/lying down but that’s it so far. Also trying not to think about it too much. . . ;-)
On the good (?) news front, my hair still isn’t particularly long but I have some holiday parties coming up so I made my first haircut appt since chemo for this Friday. Not sure what anyone can do with it, plus my regular haircut lady moved away last spring. The poor gal who’s never met me before when I walk in the door!!
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Well, my appointment with integrative physician went the same way the last one did. Maintain the weight, eat healthy, exercise every day. She also suggested mindfulness classes. I am supposed to eat 6-7 fruit and vegetable servings a day. Not sure how I can fit all of it into my day. Restrictive eating is recommended. I find I can easily do it during weekdays, but during the weekend my schedule goes topsy-turvy.
Still mostly bald. Hair is growing, but my scalp is still shining through. Scared to start Anastrozole. Radiation burns are almost gone, fatigue is bearable. Tomorrow is my first day at work! No idea how I’ll handle it.
I’d love to meet all of you guys! Anyone in NY/NJ area
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Ingerp, I wasn’t on Taxol, but Taxatere. I’m in round two of losing lashes and thinning of brows. I had been warned that at about 4 months PFC, lashes start falling out again. That’s exactly when mine started falling out. I don’t think I’ll lose them completely this time and I already have lots of new growth too. I’m taking biotin daily so maybe that’s helping with all hair growth
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Maggie (et al.)--I've heard that there may be several cycles of losing lashes/brows, but I'm wondering if when your lashes grew back, were they as long as they used to be? Mine definitely are not, and they've been back for quite a while now. Again, maybe I'm just being impatient (like I was with head hair!), and I just need to wait longer. I started taking Biotin even before my dx. I gotta say my head hair is plentiful (but not long yet), and my nails are growing quickly (although still not back to normal :-( ).
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Hi all, I hope your weekend was nice. We had rain all day Saturday but yesterday was like Spring (20s-40s last week, yesterday was 73!). DH and I got out and enjoyed the weather while we could.
Lashes - mine are long and more beautiful than they have been for years. I'm going to cry if you're telling me they will fall out.
Brain fog - oh yeah. Words are constantly on the tip of my tongue, but I can't access them. No worries, I've gotten to the point where I don't care (except when I'm standing in the stock room at work, knowing I'm there for a reason, but can't remember what I'm supposed to get, lol).
Nails - doing okay. 2 of the 5 green ones are grown out now, 2 of the remaining three are almost grown out. I still have neuropathy in my feet ("bunched up socks" feeling). A friend got me a spiky mat called a Spoonk that you are supposed to stand on, barefoot, for 15 min/day to help with neuropathy. I did it with socks the other day and literally couldn't walk for awhile afterwards. Gotta work up to the time apparently. It's been awesome for my back, though - takes the pain away after work. I started PT on Friday for my back, hoping it helps since I'm wearing a back support at work now <eye roll>.
TEs - my right side is slowly deflating. My exchange surgery isn't until 1/18 so I'm worried things will shrink and the PS will postpone it. I'm supposed to go in for a fill, but everything I can get to without disturbing my own patient schedule is booked until Christmas. Also, I'm having a basal cell skin cancer removed from my nose with MOHS surgery on Friday. I figure I need to get it done in this insurance year. And, I haven't been through enough this year, so I thought I'd add to it, ha.
Life, what a suit! You totally look like the Michelin man!
Have a great week, everyone!
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GAW--just re: the lashes, I'm pretty sure that if you do lose yours again, they'll grow back just as they have. Sounds like they're doing great!! Please keep us updated on how the Spoonk works for you. I only ever had that bunched-up socks feeling in a few places on the bottom of my feet but that's still there. I'm assuming over the next few months/year it'll slowly get better, but it'd be nice to know there's something out there that might speed up the process.
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Ingerp, I'll let you know how it goes. I started with standing on it for 5 minutes a day on 3 successive days, but got crazy and went to 15 min on day 4, which is why it hurt to walk for a few minutes. Today, I swear my feet were better when I put my shoes on, but that may be wishful thinking. The mat is about $40 on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Spoonk-Magenta-Acupressure-Massage-Carry-Bag-x/dp/B0052YK8RO/). I report again in a couple of weeks.
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Ingerp, Yes, when my lashes and brows grew in PFC, they were thicker than prior to chemo. My lashes were also just as long as they had been, maybe even longer. Now that both are falling out, I suspect that it will be back to how they were prior to chemo. I thought that maybe I had avoided the second round of losing lashes, but no such luck. GAWarrior, maybe you’ll have better luck!
GAWarrior, I’m sorry to hear you’re having Mohs surgery. It’s just one more thing to add stress. I wish you a quick surgery and that the doc only needs to take just one layer
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GaWarrier. What is this surgery I am readi nbn g about? Did I miss something?
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Thanks, Maggie. Good luck with your lashes and brows. I hope they come in thick and beautiful.
Life, the surgery is a minor one to remove a basal cell skin cancer on my nose. It's no biggie, just irritating. They take layers of skin off until they have clear margins. Since it's on the end of my nose, I should be gorgeous for the holidays, lol.
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morning everyone,
Engine, that's tough. I'm sorry but I dont recall Janice's profession but you have said many times you worry about her job stress. If their is any creative way for her to take even something SMALL off her plate? It may make a BIG difference. You cant come home exhausted...physically or mentally..and expect to have reserve left to exercise. Or eat right. All which contribute to chances of recurrence. It all ties together. Decreasing the stress may make a difference in other aspects of her life. Is there anyone at all she can ask? I'm sure she is very valued in her role. I feel for her..and you ..on this. I'm mad at myself for not changing sooner than I did. I'm very fortunate that the nursing profession provides so much opportunity. Not everyone has the flexibility I have but something had to give. Thinking of you both
GAW good luck Friday. I'm sorry you have this thrown in the mix too. Im sure you know but these surgeries are not difficult, just tedious, sometimes lengthy. Not so much lengthy if pathologist is on site. Maybe you want to get your holiday photos first GAW. Either that or find a red nose and antlers for the pic. You are so darn cute anyway it wouldn't matter. Hugs and best wishes.
Inna B. Best wishes at work. Let us know your day goes. Just clarifying..did you mean "fasting" when you mentioned restrictive eating? I'm very interested!. I did a 13 hr fast for around 3 weeks to drop the last few lbs after chemo. I felt better. Forget why I stopped. Like you, the weekends thru me off but 5 days a week was easy. There are studies out there that point to decreased recurrence chances with fasting. When you have time please share!
I hope everyone has a good Tuesday! Deb
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Ugh. I think I reported above (or maybe on another thread) that with holiday parties coming up I decided I'd try to get my hair trimmed up for the first time. It's still not super long but hoping they can do a little shaping or something. I also decided yesterday that I officially have chemo curl. *Not* excited about that. I have this one really tight surf wave right on the top of my head. Not sure what I'm going to do going forward. Keep it short? Let it grow and have silly poodle curls? Try to calm it down with product? Aargh.
I've been meaning to ask y'all about something else. Very minor, but am I the only one whose fingernails seem to be a different shape than they used to be? I swear mine are more rounded. Weird. . .
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hey ingerp, my hair is really thick. Growing fast. I went in for a trim and stylist said leave it and try to work with it. So glad she did. Its unruly but a taffy like product works well. I've had no shaping at all and honestly get compliments daily on my "short cut" lol. We have waited so long for it to grow. I have the surf curl too...I blow dry to get dampness out then taffy on the fingertips to work it through. Also learned to go with the direction and not fight it. Your last picture looked great!!
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Thanks, Deb. I don't expect to walk out of the salon looking very different, but I think just mentally I'll feel a little better going into the holidays if I've been cleaned up a little. I know I have some long hairs that were the ones that never fell out from chemo, and I feel like maybe some trimming around the ears might be warranted. I do have lots of old hair product lying around, including some taffy-like stuff. I'll play with it the next few days, but I'm not sure if I should try to get it straighter or curlier. I'm also thinking longer term--I really might keep it pretty short until the "chemo curl" thing subsides. I've read a lot of women got more like their normal hair back after the curl phase--any idea how long that might take??
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GAwarrior - Mohs is a piece of cake. I had it done right on my hairline years ago. Strangest part is the waiting between layers. I was mesmerized by the fact they'd just put a piece of gauze over a hole in my head a let me wait in waiting room.
Interested to see we must all be going through the same things. When to do something with hairstyle and the disappointment of eye lashes. I'm seriously considering getting some temporary eyelashes done. Mascara does next to nothing for this itty bitty lashes. Hubby's work holiday party was this weekend and I bought false eyelashes but couldn't get them to work. As for my "hair" I've considered cleaning up my sideburns and neckline just because it looks messy.
Ingerp - Last time I know my chemo was different but I had curl/body for at least 3 years following. My son is getting married in August 2020 so I'm thinking I will try and find a cute short style to maintain until then. I looked at pictures 2 years following my last chemo and my hair looked like that in-between growing out style which isn't cute at all.
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Ha duffyzmom! I bought false eyelashes several months ago specifically thinking about hub's holiday party but it was last Friday and he was out of town so I didn't go. :-) I haven't even opened them up. If you figure out temporary lashes let us know how that goes. I know there are whole eyelash studios now but I'm not super familiar with what they offer. And while you're waiting, even while mine were pretty short, with mascara *and eyeliner* it wasn't too bad (plus the fact that people aren't looking at us nearly as much as we think they are--we notice all kinds of stuff nobody else does). Three years?!? Ugh. I used to say I never really liked my hair--not straight, not curly, kind of in-between--but if I ever get anything like that back I'll never complain about it again.
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hi ingerp! Definitely do what makes you feel best! I heard the chemo curl thing peaks at 6-10 months. I'm 6 months PFC today. I'm letting my hair do its thing naturally and using the taffy to tame it down. I went in to salon with the intention of trimming around the ears. Then she showed me how to bring part of the hair forward and tucking the other behind the ear. Then it really started to curl up so it didnt need trimmed afterall. To be honest I have a feeling this may be my easier stage lol. I have a feeling more funkiness to come lol before it settles back to normal. Can't believing I'm saying this..I'm actually find it funny to watch my hair morph into whatever. Knowing its temporary makes it fun. Thankful to have hair and feel good. My friend has her old thin hair back after 13 years. She misses the thick , healthy hair she had after chemo. I will ask how long it took for her. Definitely play with it! Post a pic before your holiday party!!
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All this hair talk makes me so envious! I am 12 weeks Pfc and still mostly bald! Lashes and eyebrows are good and thick, though. I'll cry if I lose them again.
Deb, yes, I meant fasting for 13 hours. Basically finishing eating at 6 or 7 pm and having breakfast around 9 or 10 am. Not difficult for me until weekend approaches 🤣.
GAWarrior, good luck for your surgery on Friday!
My first and second days at work were very underwhelming. My id was locked because I was on disability for 8 months and could not be unlocked until my employment record is updated to active. Although I did call disability company and HR last week telling them that my first day will be Dec. 3, nothing was closed or filed until I called yesterday and confirmed I showed up. Since I work in IT department, I can do nothing without logging into the company network, so I basically spend the whole day on the phone begging people to work faster and make me active. Feel guilty not doing anything. My manager laughs at me and says to enjoy it while Ican.
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Hi DebAL,
Thank you for writing. Janice is a worker's compensation claims examiner for a multi-national insurance company. She has a large and active caseload and employers that are very demanding. They used to have claims assistants who would handle the routine stuff and thereby take some of the pressure off, but they were laid off. The only positive is, she gets to work from home three days a week. In the meantime, we keep buying lottery tickets
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InnaB, lol yes enjoy it while you can! IT people are so darn smart! It really will be good for you to get back to it, as crazy as that sounds. And dont feel guilty lol!
Try to be patient about the hair. Darker hair sure seems to present itself earlier. If I recall your last pic you seemed fine! It's so hard tho. I constantly had my hands rubbing my head. I'm sure you are taking vitamins/biotin. A good clarifying shampoo is important. If you truly are concerned make a quick appt with a dermatologist.
I'm with you 100% . fasting for 13+ hours works 5 days a week but weekends are challenging. It's all about balance.
Engine, wow. How demanding. And I fully understand not everyone can make the changes like I did. I'm fortunate. All I can suggest is take advantage that she can work from home. Maybe she can sneak out for a walk on those days. Not going in probably gives her a few extra zzzzz's since she doesnt go in to work so that's a plus. I've always admired how much concern you have for her. You are awesome.
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Hi DebAL,
Thanks so much..
I just want her to be ok and not be stressed out from work. Recovering from BC, as you all know, is hard enough.
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Gawarrior, u got this and it will be healed in no time .wishing you good luck..
All this hair talk and even trimming the ends or creating a style. Im impressed ! Mine is still filling in on the top and ive got chemo curls. Ppl make the comment they love the curls and want some. Well Im pretty sure they dont, but their comments are meant to be uplifting.
Still going to radiation 13/33 and getting to know another staff of personal. They are all great and time is flying by quickly. But Im ready to meet ppl outside of the hospital now!!lol
I was reminded today that i had vacation I needed to take before the end of year or I lose it. Hmmm, I cant go anywhere bcuz of daily rads..oh well maybe I will try to sleep in a few days..
Wishing everyone a peaceful weekend. Sending good vibes..
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Ingerp and Innab when I first started taking anastrozole the side effects I delt with were joint pain, bad headache, nausea and insomnia. The longer I took the pill the more my body became used to it and things started settling down. The only thing that wasn't lifting up was the pain at night when I was trying to sleep. I've since changed taking the pill at night to taking it at 9:30 in the morning. It seems to have done the trick. I no longer wake up in pain and I can go right back to sleep.
Engine it sounds like Janice does have a very stressful job! I do agree I really think your such a wonderful husband to worry about her and support her the way you do.
Undrago a little over 1/2 to go! What a lucky chick getting to take use or lose and relax!
Gawarrier thank you for filling me in about your surgery I don't know where I miss that at. Wishing you the best on Friday!
Good news for me my liver enzymes are finally back to where they belong! At my Christmas party this weekend I intend to have a big glass of wine or a red beer. (Both sound so good!) I know I know we need to watch our alcohol intake but I could really use a drink. LOL
Also My OC told me that he will be doing blood marker test every 3 months for the next 3 years. If the protein levels register high then he'll do a scan to see what's going on. I got my first marker done and he said it came out clean. Are any of you out there having your markers checked? I also asked him how he was going to know if the anastrozole is its job? He told me because I was post menopausal there was no test out there to make that determination because my estradiol levels are already low. I'm going in for my breast mamo for my other breast that was not affected by cancer tomorrow as well as my first bone scan so that he has a baseline to compare in 2 years. All in all he said I'm doing pretty good and as time goes on I should start feeling better.
Eyebrows are still hanging out, hair is thick and curly and my eyelashes are starting to fall out. Not quite ready to cut my hair into a style yet. Still just getting used to having curly hair. Definitely show your pictures when you go get your new Styles ladies!
I'm going to have to say I admire you ladies for taking on this new way of eating. I can honestly tell you that I am struggling with changing my way of eating. I don't feel that I have a bad way of eating but I definitely don't eat all those fruits and vegetables that were mentioned. And I have every intentions on diving into a huge steak now that I've been approved to eat red meat again!! I also find myself dabbling into the chocolate at work where it is on everyone's desk. I've come to the conclusion that I'm not going to fight this right now because with all the Christmas candy and cookies and everything else it's surfacing around me I'm going to just enjoy it and then I'll look at changing things come January. I know you ladies and gent will be out there to cheer me on come January and give me all sorts of great advice!
Oh and definitely glad to hear that I'm not the only one walking around with a foggy mind!
Thinking of you all even if I didn't mention your names I haven't forgotten you.
Have a wonderful remainder of the week!
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Urdrago--I love use-or-lose! Take those days here and there and treat yourself to doing nothing. I *love* a random weekday off here and there. Hang in there re: the rads. I remember thinking 33 treatments sounded like SO many but it really did go by quickly.
Life congrats on the good news!! FWIW, I try to cut down on alcohol but mostly because of the calories. I still fully enjoy myself when I'm out. And I agree this is not the time of year to be making dietary changes. Personally I'm trying to make 2019 the year of cutting back on sugar--definitely a weakness of mine, but I also think it's important to enjoy yourself through the holidays.
The anastrozole is going okay so far. Definitely feeling a little creakier/stiffer when I stand up but not too bad. I just picked up my first 30-day refill yesterday. If this is as bad as the SEs get, I can't really complain (too much ;-) ).
I watched a couple of youtube videos on what women are doing with their post-chemo hair. I have a feeling I'm going to keep my hair pretty short through the chemo curl phase but I guess we'll see. Just seems like that growing-out period would be challenging--super short curls are cute and longer hair with curls can look great but it's the in-between, poodle-head phase I'm concerned about.
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Okay. First haircut. 18 weeks PFC. Took like 10 minutes but she only charged me half price. :-)
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Looks good Ingerp
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Sexy mama, Ingerp!
Well, i’ve Got bad news yesterday. What I thought was cording turned out to be light lymphedema. Arm is slightly swollen and hurts when touched.Wearing a sleeve now and contemplating a visit to a lymphedema certified pt. Will this ever end?
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Ugh Inna--so sorry. Seems like PT is warranted. Hope it resolves quickly.
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innaB. Im really happy with going to PT found it therapy very helpful. Wishing you a quick healing.
Ingerp, wow ur hair has grown so much already.Looking very beautiful as always..
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Interg Thank You. I was pretty happy about it. Super cute style you are rockin there!
InnaB I went to therapy as well. Helps a lot! They showed me stretches for my sciatic nerve to and that is helped tremendously as well. I do my stretches faithfully every day. I also have the Michelin Man suit if my arm gets too bad which I'm supposed to do every day but I'm hitting it every other day.
Undrago You sound like things are running pretty smooth you for the RADS portion of the treatment. That's awesome!
Gawarrier How are you feeling after surgery?
Went to my company Christmas party last night and had a blast! Danced my socks off! Well I call it dancing anyways) hee hee. Anyways I only had one drink because it really didn't taste all that great to me. LOL. However! Boy did I pork out on the desserts. They were delicious!
Duffy I don't know if I'm just climbing out of chemo fog and can actually stay focused and remember what I read but I had no idea that you have gone through this before until I started reading about your post regarding your hair.
You, Interg, Janice, Hickinglady and anyone else out there that have been through this before are such amazing women! You all seem to have such good attitudes an extremely helpful advice. Thank you!
Can't wait to see everyone's new styles as you post them! I'm doing like Deb and just letting it do its thing. I throw in some moose ounce in a while to control it a little. LOL
Have a wonderful day!
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