Starting Chemo October 2021
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Sorry gamzu710 about the blown vein. I hope it heals well. And that your infusion today goes well today!
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Infusion today went OK. Has anyone had an instant rash with Taxol that wasn't an allergic reaction? Within a couple minutes of starting it (it was last on the menu), I started feeling some mild intermittent burning and cramping in my IV arm and then a few minutes later observed red spots and blotches spreading "upstream" from the IV site in my forearm, vaguely along the vein path. It spread to my upper arm and then the nurse came to check on me and saw it and immediately stopped the infusion. She put the IV in the other arm and then within 3-4 minutes the same thing happened on that side. It did fade pretty quickly, did not itch, and I had no other symptoms of allergy or distress so we completed the infusion, but the nurses didn't like it and put in an order for a port. They said it was hypersensitivity and my little arm veins were not going to tolerate 12 weeks of this.
I'm fine with a port. But I know most Taxol reactions happen in the first two sessions so now I'm concerned that this may get worse next week and be a harbinger of a real reaction. Though in fairness, with the way my brain works, I'd probably be worried about that anyway without any rash.
Has anyone experienced this and what happened the next time?
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gamzu710 I had a rash problem with my chemo, but not right during the infusion, in the days afterwards. Bright red spots spreading in a line on my right foot by the 4th day after infusion, and then a few days later on my left foot. I have a port because my veins are "little" and I am a "hard stick" meaning that it's hard to get a good flowing vein. That is why I got a port for just 4 infusions of CT. My rash was super itchy, and is calmed down now with benedryl, but not gone.
In general, I am losing my hair now in handfuls of 10 or 20 hairs when I run my fingers or a brush through. Going to cut it shorter today, in preps to buzz it soon. I want to save the hair to use in a ceramics project just because I am a little weird with my art. I need to cut it off in little "pony tails" to keep it in some type of order for later use. We have a surrealist project assignment this semester, so will add the hair to something I make.
Getting new labs today, 2nd infusion is next Friday.
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gamzu,
I had small rash reaction and once said to put hydrocortisone on it. Seems a little better. Ports I think are a little easier on the body to receive these chemicals.
Oldladyblue, my hair started falling out like crazy yesterday and today. My husband and I cut short today. Same plan as you, I will probably buzz soon. Very strange feeling when it starts. Labs this week showed my glucose elevated alot. Onc not concerned, but reading up on it, seems it's common and can cause "chemically induced diabetes. Another goody to watch for:) 2nd infusion day before you. We will be halfway done!
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Any one experiencing insomnia? Any suggestiins - onc recommended melatonin and that is not touching it.
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Hiya all, Hope everyone is doing well. Thread is getting less active, I hope that falls under the "no news is good news" category.
My rash is almost gone finally. I hope it doesn't come back next infusion. Insomnia is back with a vengeance. I woke up after only 5 hours sleep 2 days in a row.
Faithoverfear I was told my my cancer team nutritionist to try OMG (magnesium) for insomnia. I have another brand, but find that a hot glass of magnesium water helps me go back to sleep. My Onc made me stop using all other insomnia supplements as she "didn't know about their effects with chemo and nothing should be taken that might interfere with the chemo's effectiveness, so no supplements". I did find that the benedryl for my rash seems to make me sleepy, so if I take it at night I fall asleep faster. Nothing seems to keep me asleep all night though. Regarding my hair, just went ahead an buzzed it. Even after it was cut shorter, it was falling out so fast and getting in my food and mouth and clothing. After picking hairs out of my mouth 3 times in 3 hours, I couldn't take it anymore. It is now 3/8 inch long where I still have hair. Glad I already stocked up on beanies, turbans, scarves etc. My husband and daughter hate my wig, so I won't be wearing it. Good thing I got that secondhand.
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Hi everyone.
Just want to introduce myself. I am falling into your October's category, since my chemo will start on Thursday, October 28th.
Brand new thing for me. Little bit overwhelmed with appointments and things need to be done prior the treatment .
Later will read all of your comments and update my recent status.
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Side effects from #1 are mostly fine so far (some fatigue and mild aches) but I'm having a nuclear level freakout because I just saw my updated lab work from Thursday and my ALT and AST are high. ALT was 229 and AST was 160, both of which are like 4x the highest end of the normal range. This was before chemo even started. On the bloodwork from my PCP in May the same numbers were 10 and 15, respectively. I just had an egg retrieval last week with all the associated meds (including azithromycin and letrozole) and had had a Covid booster on Monday and had been taking a bunch of Advil, so I am hoping mightily that this is my liver getting mildly angry in reaction to those and it's transient. But obviously my mind is going to the darkest place.
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Aleksasha Welcome to our thread, sorry you are in our "club" but we all wish you well. My 2nd chemo is the 29th, the day after your first. I had a pretty easy time overall with the first infusion's side effects, so I hope you have light side effects too. You will be able to sort through all of the overwhelm, just take things one step at a time. You can do this!
Well Gamzu710 I can understand your concern over your blood test scores, I would be concerned too. Hopefully they are a side effect of some of the medication you took recently. Hugs.
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Hello ladies,
Sorry, I haven't been feeling well the last few days. I got my second infusion on Wednesday and have been pretty wiped out. gamzu710 try to wait until you talk to your doctor before worrying about labs. My lab results looked horrible to me because basically nothing was within normal limits, but when I mentioned my concerns to my oncologist, her reaction was "What? There's nothing at all wrong with your labs. Everything is exactly where I'd expect you to be." So, lots of wasted worry on my part. Apparently, being chronically anemic is par for the course with the AC treatment. She didn't think adding extra iron to my diet would do a darn thing about it, either, since the anemia is caused by the chemo drugs interfering with my bone marrow's ability to produce red blood cells, which won't change one iota by having more iron to make blood cells with. So apparently, feeling light headed and dizzy every time I stand up is just something to put up with until this is over.
For those who are having trouble with nausea, ask about Fosaprepitant. They infused it for about 20 minutes before they infused the chemo drugs, and it made a world of difference. The nausea didn't really kick in until day 4 this time thanks to that drug. I still had no appetite and was sleeping all the time, but I was far more comfortable this time around. I stopped the meds again today and the nausea is present, but not intolerable.
My hair started falling out the day after the second treatment, so my husband gave me a buzz cut. However, the short little hairs are still shedding like crazy and then they were sticking to my scalp and itching. So today he shaved it with a razor, which is more comfortable. I now officially look like a cancer patient. My mom and I went to Walgreens to get some lotion and the beauty consultant there was over the top kind. She explained a bunch of stuff about different brands and which ones would help with chemo-induced dryness and then pulled out a kazillion coupons so that the lotions cost me next to nothing. I never said a word about being a cancer patient, though, so I guess my cute new head coverings are telling the story for me now.
The oddest symptom this time is taste changes. My mouth has been dry, but not nearly as bad as it was the first time. However, food just tastes off, like I'm missing the taste buds needed to make certain distinctions. Everything tastes very bland, even things I know should have more flavor. It doesn't really help with the whole desire to eat thing. Trying hard to keep eating and avoid losing weight, though.
I don't have anything helpful for insomnia. My mother suffers from chronic insomnia, but her treatment plan is pretty brutal and took many weeks to work, so I wouldn't recommend it for something as temporary as this is. Probably some type of drug would be better. Personally, I have the opposite problem. I can't seem to stay awake for all that long.
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Discussed labs with my oncologist's NP and the hypothesis is that all the medication I was on for egg freezing just prior to starting chemo has mildly inflamed my liver and that we will watch and wait but that it should normalize. They don't want me to get concerned yet. I've stopped all OTC meds and supplements, though, because I don't know what might be contributing and clearly my liver is not happy about something. Port placement Wednesday, definitely not taking any painkillers with acetaminophen in them!
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Hi ladies,
Hope all of you are doing well. I had infusion #4 yesterday (1/3 of the way done w. Taxol -woots), had quite a bit of sensitivity and reaction, so they had to stop and load me up on steroids. Was a long day! Today I clearly seem to be on the steroid high, so was able to go out for quite a bit of exercise this morning. I'm sure the slump will come imminently.
GRZ7279 - I also had my head shaved, done last week, it was just falling out loads - all over the house, my shirt urgh. So like you, I officially look like a cancer patient. My stylist very kindly came over to my place to do it, and didn't charge me anything either. She said best for her to come over, so I can avoid covid, but I know she wanted me to have privacy. She involved my little one (he thought it was a hoot), and it made it much less traumatic for me. Random acts of kindness like this make my heart smile!! It's interesting seeing people's reactions - some stares, some avoid eye contact. It's making me feel a bit self conscious, but I know I'll get over it.
Faith-over-fear - My doctor prescribed Zolpidem (Stilnox) for insomnia, but I've only used it once. I'm not a fan of taking extra meds, but I was wide awake at 4am one night, so I took it, and haven't taken any since. Are you getting any steroids after chemo? I get 2 days of dexamethasone after infusions, and the nurse told me to always take it before 9am, otherwise I'll have problems sleeping. If you're given steroids, maybe take it earlier in the day, if you're not doing that already?
gamzu710 - Hope your labwork will be okay soon
Good luck with the port placement, mine was pretty uneventful. It's sore a couple days after, but it's very manageable. Infusion with the port is definitely a lot more pleasant thanthrough IV.oldladyblue _ Glad your rash is almost gone. I hope everything goes well with you on the 29th. We're all rooting for you.
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Just checking in to say I had infusion 4 yesterday. All in all, I'm feeling pretty good with just some mild symptoms. I still am not ready to do anything with my hair yet so I just keep it covered with a beanie for now. I was wondering if any pre-menopausal women have had any sort of pelvic pain and/or back pain while undergoing chemo? I'm not on any hormone therapies with being only her2 positive but suspect that “chemopause" is fast approaching and maybe that is the culprit. I’ve bought it up to my oncologist but he didn’t seem concerned
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Hi, everybody, I hope you all are doing well. I started chemo Sept 30 and just finished my second infusion. I thought I would share how chemo has affected me so far in case it might help others. I'm on TC with 4 infusions every 3 weeks.
"Tiffany's Twenty Terrific Tips for TC" was really helpful in letting me know what to expect and what to do for it. For me, Rule #1 is Zofran if you want to avoid nausea. Nothing would sap my energy more so treating it is at the top of my list. I have been fine so far starting it the night of chemo then religiously every 8 hours for five days. Appetite has been normal. Set an alarm and don't wait to feel queasy. The regular eight hour hit really has worked for me. The only negative I've had with Zofran is constipation - working with psyllium, Mira lax and fruit for that now.
The first two days after chemo were surprisingly good then the Zarxio shots really brought me down with a low fever and aches. Claritin didn't seem to work for me but Tylenol has. By day 4 after chemo I have felt pretty well.
I started losing my hair on day 14, ordered a wig and shaved my head two days later. I'm not sure how much I will wear the wig but it's nice to have on hand. Most of the time I'm bareheaded or in a knit cap.
As everyone has said - water, water, water. I'm doing a minimum of 64 oz. a day and usually shoot for 120 oz. It makes for a lot of getting up and down at night but I think it helps a lot.
No mouth sores so far. I'm using a Biotene twice a day. Will try the baking soda, salt and water mix if there are problems there.
Of, course everyone is different but maybe this will help people know what might be coming. Before all this, I rarely took medication so this is very new for me. I'm 71 and this is my second battle with BC - first was 19 years ago, I had DCIS treated with lumpectomy, radiation and hormones therapy. This time around it is in the other breast and a little more advanced. Oncotype Score was 32 so chemo was advised.
Hope this helps.
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Hi Buttercup71 welcome to the site and our thread. Thanks for chiming in. I am about to get my 2nd TC on Friday. Sounds like we are sort of similar in this battle. It makes me nervous to know #2 is coming. And I appreciate your reminder to drink more water. I haven't been doing that as much as I did before #1. LizzyLizzy I am glad your side effects are mild so far. And when you need to do something with your hair, it will become obvious at that time. I am struggling with mad itching on my scalp all over, and the top of my head is almost bald now: beanies and turbans are my friends. The wig makes me itch even more. Friday will be a week since the fall out and itching started. Noodlesg Thanks for rooting for me for my next infusion. How kind of your stylist to come over to shave you. That makes me smile. Are you venturing out with nothing on your head? I am too chicken to do that yet, I am feeling odd and bad enough wearing knit beanies in Florida when it's 90 degrees outside. Gamzu710 I was told to stop ALL supplements and OTC stuff unless cleared by my Onc staff due to possible unknown reactions between substances. It was hard for me to wean off all of the stuff I used to take. GRZ7279 I hope you are feeling a bit better now after your #2. I had the mouth stuff after #1 and rinsing with baking soda water every few hours helped get the weird tastes out of my mouth, and the mouth to be less dry and the sore to go away. I've been using the Biotene rinse the last week, it helps a lot with dryness.
I hope everyone is making it through their chemo OK.
I do wonder how many of you are still going out on a regular basis? If so, are you still masking and sanitizing for Covid? I went to a restaurant last night for the first time in weeks to eat a "good" meal since my stomach is better (and knowing it will get worse again after #2) and was shocked that no one at all had masks on and how crowded the place was. I wanted to leave since there was no outdoor seating but the people I was with looked at me like I was worried about nothing and wanted to stay. So I did stay. The waitress moved us to a sort of private area small room at my request to not be around a lot of people, but the kitchen was nearby and the staff were going in and out and past our table all during the meal, none with masks on. Last time I went out to eat, all the staff had to wear masks and the place was moderately empty.
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Had the port put in this morning, just woke up from a nap and ouch! But bearable. I have a vague memory of watching the imaging while they started the procedure and demanding in a slurry voice what the "dark spots" on the screen were because I imagined them to be lung mets, and being calmly told that they were my blood vessels. But I'm not sure if it really happened; I know I was "awake" for a good bit of it but definitely not compos mentis. No, I'm not anxious or difficult, why do you ask??
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Hi, oldladyblue We really do seem to be on the same path! I hope your second infusion is as uneventful as mine was. Knowing the process and surroundings helped. I was less anxious and it was much shorter than the first treatment.
Sleep has been tough for me too. I take melatonin at bedtime (cleared by the dr.) which gets me to sleep pretty quickly but I'm awake again in a few hours, up for three then fall back to sleep for a couple. Now that I'm out of the hard days (hopefully) between chemos, I will be walking and bike riding to set myself up for sounder sleep - if that makes any sense. 😊
To answer your question about going out, that's a no. I have my 3rd COVID shot coming a few days before my 3rd chemo so I feel especially vulnerable now. Not going anywhere inside and only a few places outside until that shot is effective.
Will keep a good thought for you on Friday.
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Hi to everyone, my second infusion is in the morning. A little anxiety mixed with a little gratitude to be have 2 out of 4 done.
Oldladyblue, I got castor oil serum for my brows and lashes and I put a couple squirtfuls on head to stop itching - works well. Scalp cooler and not as dry. I don't go out anywhere except walking or wait in car if shopping. Where are you in Florida? I'm here wearing the hot hats too!!! I live in the Villages in Central Florida.
Buttercup, i have the same reaction with sleeping. Tried something different last night that worked a little better. Was able to fall asleep at 11 and when I woke at 1, took melatonin...slept another 4 hours. It's been a battle.,
gazmu710 - I was surprised about port, expected no pain, but I've had mild discomfort sleeping with it for a couple weeks. Tylenol does help though.
Lizzylizzy, I agree with what oldladyblue said- you will know when it's time. It becomes unmanageable and uncomfortable. Feels much better once shaved really.
Griz7279, sure hope you're feeling better after 2nd infusion. Be so very kind to yourself:)
Prayers and good wishes to all❤
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Hello ladies! Hope all is as well as it can be.
Virtual hugs. I am up with insomnia after 4 hours sleep. (again)Gamzu710 yeah the port things is weird being semi awake semi asleep. I was sooooo paranoid and talkative, but the staff were really kind. One kept asking me "Are you OK?" so I know I was awake sometimes. Afterwards, my port area hurt for weeks when bumped. Fine now, but it is almost a month. buttercup71 if I could sleep all night it would be such a blessing, 4 hours is about what I get, then awake for 2 or 3, then I usually I can get another 2 hours. I was told Melatonin was OK to take but I fall asleep OK, just can't stay asleep or return to sleep. And I don't want to take it at 1 or 2 a.m. Maybe I do need more exercise during the day to wear me out. Thanks for good wishes for my 2nd infusion. Labs are today. Faithoverfear thanks for the castor oil tip. I never thought of putting anything like oil or creme on my scalp. Since I read it just now and I can't go out at 2 a.m. I put some Shea body butter on my head, boy does that feel good!
I've had my 3rd covid shot for about 2 months now, so I got less fearful then, and started going out to outside seating restaurants and going food shopping indoors again. But I probably ought to start being overly cautious now that I'm a chemo patient.
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Thanks for the well wishes ladies. I'm a week out from the second treatment now, so mostly recovered and, like oldlayblue, trying to do fun things and eat a lot before the next one!
Welcome Buttercup. I am so sorry you are going through this again! What rotten luck. I'll keep you in my prayers along with everyone else in this group.
Faithoverfear, do let us know how you're doing tomorrow if you're feeling up for it. My second was easier than the first. I hope the same is true for you. Kaiser is a little slow with managing symptoms since their policy is to first see how bad things really are and then bring out the big guns, but the fosaprepitant really helped and they finally got me an acupuncture appointment on Friday, which I'm really hoping will help with #3 next week. I was pretty annoyed, though, when the nurse told me that everyone should really get the fosaprepitant with AC treatment from the beginning because we all get really nauseous with it, but Kaiser won't pay for it until after the cheaper drugs don't work (which apparently they never do.)
I do go out most days. Trying to live my life as normally as possible. I'm only 42, so still working. I manage my husband's optometry practice, so I have made some modifications. I'm not doing direct patient care because I don't want to get close to so many people. I'm doing more work from home, but I do try to go in for a couple of hours a day to check on my staff and make sure they have an opportunity to check in with me and feel supported. I'll go to restaurants, but only if they have outdoor dining (which most do since our weather is pretty mild here.) All restaurant employees are still masked here. I feel okay with grocery stores, but that's also because everyone is still masked. Other than that, I do try to avoid indoor settings. I said no to haunted houses for Halloween because that sounds like a crowded indoor activity, which I wouldn't want my kids to do either since they would then expose me. We'll do a family party instead with just their grandparents, aunt, uncle, and two cousins. I know all of those people are vaccinated (except my 9 year old nephew) and they are all really careful. I do let my kids have one or two friends over, but only if they are vaccinated and all masked (same rule for them going to other people's houses), which is not a big deal because they all have to be masked in school anyhow and over 80% of the kids in their schools are vaccinated.
The SF Bay Area is still really strict about Covid rules. I feel really lucky because, as a cancer patient, the fact that everyone is still masked in indoor settings protects us from all kinds of other infections as well. In some ways, it may be the best time ever to be immunocompromised in my community. I know it's very different in other areas of the country, and I really feel for those of you who have to take more extreme measures to protect yourself. My sisters both work in health care in central Oregon and they are beyond frustrated because so many people refuse to wear masks or get vaccinated and their ICUs are getting overwhelmed. I'm definitely not traveling anywhere anytime soon.
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Hi, everyone, Thanks so much for your welcomes and such great advice. One week out from the second infusion, I'm feeling more like myself again.
Faith-over-fear I hope your infusion went well and you are comfortable at home. Thanks so much for the idea of delaying the melatonin until I wake up after a few hours. It makes a lot of sense. Will let you know how it goes.
GRZ7279 Thanks for the kind words. It sounds like you are doing a great job of walking the tightrope that we need to in order to keep ourselves safe and unexposed while living a normal life. I thought I would be going out more on my off-infusion weeks but our COVID hospitalizations in Colorado are staying elevated for some reason in spite of having good vaccination numbers. Hoping things will settle down for the holidays.
oldladyblue Sending healing thoughts to you for your infusion tomorrow.
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Hi ladies, Thanks for your posts and helpful information and good wishes. It means a lot to me, as I've said before. I'm nervous about my next infusion, guess that worry woke me up tonight after only 2 hours of sleep.
GRZ7279 It sounds to me like you have your environment controlled pretty well. I think it is good that your area is still following Covid masking rules in general. I would say that my city mostly is not anymore, and maybe that's what led me to being more lax than I should be. I am lucky that I have been working at home since the beginning of Covid. I was one of the first to start working from home, and I am the last to still be working from home. You've motivated me to go back to avoiding being indoors where possible whenever I go out. Especially since only about 20% of shoppers are wearing masks now. It's still easy to get groceries delivered.
Buttercup71 I am glad you are feeling more yourself. I'm glad you mentioned the middle of the night melatonin as somehow I missed it when Faith-over-fear mentioned it. Turns out I am out of melatonin and benedryl, so will have to buy some tomorrow on my way home from the VA hospital.
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Hi everyone! Boo! Hope everyone is doing well, and looking forward to this Halloween weekend.
LizzyLizzy - I am premenopausal and have not had any pelvic or back pains. Chemo made my time of month come early by a week. Sometimes I feel some sort of sharp pain on what I guess is my ovary, but it lasts only a few seconds and happens maybe once a week.
oldladyblue - I haven't gone bald outside the house yet. I'm so self conscious about it, so I endured a wig for the first few days. That got really uncomfortable really quickly, so I now use it about 1-2 hrs maximum, and have been wearing mostly scarves and beanies (I am in 90 deg weather as well). I'm getting over being self conscious about being bald really quickly! For now, I've decided to just wear the wig when I am out with my son and his friends, I don't want his friends/classmates making fun of his 'bald mom.' Kids can be so mean these days. When you do decide to go out without head gear, remember to wear sunscreen
Good luck on yr infusion, let us know how it goes!Buttercup71 - Hi! Please share how you feel after your covid booster please? I've had 2 doses, and have asked multiple doctors about getting my third before commencing chemo. I thought I was going insane, they all told me not to until December. I had an antibody test done weeks ago, and it shows I am still protected, but I'm still quite nervous.
I go out some days, but I'm sensible about it as well. I figure we all have to live and get on with it. I'm always masked up, and try to go to the store when it's not so busy. My husband and I dine out but that is rare, and we only go to restaurants that are not crowded. For exercise, I'll walk at the park, but I won't do it at peak hours. I also get groceries delivered.
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Hi all, Second infusion done, blood test showed all was "perfect" per my chemo nurse. She asked the Onc if something should change because of my rash (still there somewhat), but the doctor changed nothing: 125 and 1000mg of tc (I think). She said the C probably causes the rash and that others have had it. Still feels funny to not get to see my oncologist, just the nurse. I forgot again to get a printout of all the medicines and their doses. They only took a little cup of pills before infusions, and I took home only Zofran for nausea if it happens. No shots, no additional meds. I am feeling quite well, as I have for the past 2 weeks in general. I have been having tingling in my hands and forearms off an on all day. Steroids from this morning are keeping me up tonight, but I bought some melatonin tonight (in a mostly empty CVS with my mask on) and am yawning now.
The cashier got within my 6 feet limit though when we were trying to find batteries for my thermometer, a young handsome kid, but too close for comfort. Masked, but letting his nose hang out. I tried to stay backed away. I realize now that I HAVE let my guard down since getting my 3rd shot. So I need to be more careful. A visiting nurse that I am friends with said most vaccinated people who get Covid just get sick, get better, rarely get hospitalized these days. She is a palliative visiting nurse. Personally, I had no effects from any of the Pfizer shots or my flu shot. I got a skull cap to go under my wig, and will try that tomorrow. I still want to go to church, and that is probably the place I will show up with my wig on on Sunday. Small church, not that crowded, able to keep 6 feet away, but indoors. I wonder if I should go or not? I have been going till now (with hair). I can wear the wig all the time to church and just have "a new hairstyle". No, I don't think I will ever go out bald except maybe in my backyard doing gardening. Thanks for the reminder about suncreen! I wasn't thinking about that, Noodlesg.
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Hello all,
Hope everyone had a great Halloween. The girls and I enjoyed finding healthy party snacks. The most fun was turning apples into little monster faces with strawberries for tongues and sunflower seeds for teeth. I miss being able to have our friends over, but we had a lot of fun with the three households in our family that make up our social bubble. Trick or treating was fun this year, particularly because everyone set up tables outside to hand out candy, so the kids didn't need to knock on any doors. One household put the candy up high and had long tubes that their young children slid the candy down to recipients to maintain social distancing. That was a clever and fun idea! The kids loved it. My girls decided this was their last year trick or treating. Next year, they want to go to town on decorating and hand out candy instead. They were pretty inspired by some of the awesome houses we saw.
I had a visit with a physical therapist last week who gave me some guidance on exercise that I thought may be helpful to this group. I'm generally addicted to the feeling of pleasant exhaustion that comes after really working my body, so adjusting to physical limitations has been hard. She scolded me properly for that, and explained that high-intensity workouts are really dangerous, particularly with Adriamycin because it can affect the heart. Contrary to what I thought, ramping up your heart rate is NOT a good way to protect against heart damage. So, here is the general idea she laid out for me.
Regular workouts are important and helpful for managing all kinds of side effects.
Low intensity, long workouts are better than short, high-intensity ones for cardio.
Weight lifting twice a week is helpful to avoid losing muscle mass. However, the goal should be to keep the muscles engaged, not to work anywhere near your maximum. She advised lifting at half of what I did before treatment began for my legs and core. Since I had a mastectomy 9 weeks ago, arm work should be super-light (starting with 3 lbs). So her plan is twice a week for weight lifting starting with 2 reps of 10 for each exercise for a week, then 3 reps of 10, then 3 reps of 15, then adding a couple of pounds and starting the cycle again. If I ever need a break, I need to start over at the beginning when I start again. (That alone might be enough to motivate me not to take breaks.)
In general, no workout should ever feel hard or make you sore. If it does, lower the intensity.
Finally, she recommended yoga classes for people with cancer (there are a lot of virtual classes). She said that can really help with the nausea, as well as all the other general health benefits of yoga.
My appetite FINALLY came back today, so I am feeling officially recovered from round 2. Unfortunately, I have my third dose on Wednesday, so this is not much of a break. Oh, well. I had a wonderful day today because feeling good is an amazing gift when you don't have it all the time. Tomorrow will be wonderful, too, especially since my mom is coming back. The plan is to go into Wed feeling as physically and emotionally strong as possible, so I can deal with whatever comes.
Oh, last thought. Oldladyblue, does your church have some smaller events that you can attend where people may be able to accommodate your needs better? Perhaps a bible study group, or a prayer gathering? I have really loved going to devotional gatherings on Sundays, but the group is small and everyone has been more than willing to move the gathering outside for me whenever I can go. Praying and singing God's praise with my faith community is wonderfully healing, but I am avoiding the larger events because they qualify as crowded indoor events that have a higher chance of making me sick.
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Hi all, The thread has been quiet, I hope everyone is making it through OK.
GRZ7279 Thanks for the tips on exercising. I have been remiss about doing any at all except for walking the dogs at night. Since they are so slow, it is more like a standing up exercise with a bit of walking for 20 minutes. I need to start back with my faster morning walks. I did feel better when I was doing them. Good tip on settling for smaller outside church gatherings. My WBC count is down, so the nurse called me to warn me to particularly social distance this week while it builds back up again. I think I will stick to family prayer time and phone calls, and be especially careful. I feel pretty good, the only real side effect for me is the horrible large itchy rash breakout on the back of my neck and head. I can't even wear a hat or scarf or wig right now, so I couldn't go out anywhere if I wanted to. Thankfully, still working from home.
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hi everyone. Brand new to this. Don’t know if replying to all of you or what. Starting chemo in two weeks and am really worried about my work situation. I had planned to continue to work part time (outside the house) but I realized not one of you have talked about working. Is it unrealistic of me to think I csn
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Hi Suegibs, I have had 3 cycles of chemo so far (1 TC, then switched to AC due to allergic reactions) and have been continuing to work. I'm technically on an intermittent medical leave because I take off a few days for each infusion. My infusions are on Friday so I take off Friday, Monday, and Tuesday, and I've made sure that my schedule my first 2 days back doesn't include anything too active or anything that can't be cancelled since I still don't feel great those days, but I feel well enough that I'm comfortable driving into work. There have been a couple days I've had to leave work early. I'm actually really grateful for being able to continue to work. I enjoy my work, enjoy being around my co-workers, and I appreciate the routine of the work day. I hope you're able to find a work schedule that works well for you too if that's what you want.
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Hi ladies,
Sorry I haven't been online much these last few days. It's been a tough week, both physically and emotionally. I had infusion no #5 last week, my nurse sat with me the whole time due to hypersensitivity previously. The fatigue is getting worse each week, I'm now pretty much napping everyday on days 1-4. I also started to notice taste changes. I don't think I can taste sweet anymore. I ended up eating some of my little one's Halloween chocolate to prove the point (ha)! I know I shouldn't have any refined sugar, but whatever. So these days I've been having spicier foods, just so I can taste something. This will probably happen until my stomach protests. I'm also starting to have a bit of nerve pain on my heel. Just started last night. I've never had nerve pain before, so this is new for me. I've been using cold socks and gloves so this was really unexpected and is bugging me the most. If the pain stops me for working out, it'll crush me. Thank goodness hands are still okay.
Despite all this, I've been exercising daily, getting in at least about an hr (3-4 mile) walk daily. I'm also doing yoga twice a week. I used to do power yoga, but my instructor has modified this to a much more gentle practice. Half way through my workout last week, I found that I couldn't do one of the poses that used to be so easy for me, and out came the tears. I guess it's just the accumulation of all the stress, but I felt sorry for myself. GRZ7279 thanks for the exercise tips, I will be doing A/C next and will be mindful about over exertion.
The day before my infusion last week, I went for a massage and found that it really lowered my blood pressure and helped with anxiety. I never mentioned before, but I get super nervous the day before and my blood pressure sky rockets. The anxiety causes insomnia, and it was bugging me because I know I need a good night's rest to fight this. Anyway, long story short, the massage worked wonders and I will plan to have one every day before infusions. I did check with my onco nurse before I booked the massage and she said okay to do this, as long as my platelets were still good, and gentle massages only.
oldladyblue - Sorry to hear you got more rashes! The other ones were just going away. I hope your doctor is giving you something to treat this.
Sending everyone lots of positivity.
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