💛March 2026 Chemo Check-In: You don't have to do this alone!💛

Cycle 2, Day 2. Seems a little milder than Cycle 1. Still tired today since the steroids are interfering with my sleep. Ended up taking essentially Benadryl to get to sleep. Did get clearance from my psychiatrist that I can take Cbd for sleep. (Marijuana and CBD seem to have a similar side effect to grapefruit and my anti anxiety medication has the grapefruit warning.) Mild dry mouth and by dinner time the tinny taste is back, so I’ll be on plastic reusable utensils again for the next week. No nausea yet but I am taking all my premeds to stay on top of it. The only new thing is my face started feeling flushed today but I have some refrigerator face masks and put one on to calm it down.

hi @amerli - change in course for me a rare complication stopping the infusions - stay strong all.
But not hit is totally gone 14 days after 1st infusion shedded out into clumps. Also did get that scratchy tingly feeling that everyone spoke about

hang in there!

cycle 2, Day 6 update.
1. I forgot to share that during the taxotere infusion I did have a complication. It didn’t seem significant to me but the response from the care team was immediate and comprehensive. The nurse had told me to report any change in how I felt at all. So when my stomach started to feel weird - not nauseous, not pain, just different - and I told her, she rushed in. Plus the NP and another nurse. Stopped the infusion, pushed Benadryl, Pepcid and something else via IV. Waited 15 on a fluid push for everything to take effect. Ended up needing another 10 min since the Benadryl was the last drug given. Stomach weirdness (which a few min in added a feeling like I had a small rock in my stomach) abated, we resumed taxotere and no other complications happened. For Cycle 3, they are going to push a stronger dose of Benadryl but the expectation is that the complication only happens on cycle 2. Not 3 or 4.

2. As for this cycle, just very sleepy and foggy with the usual ‘moving through molasses’ impacts. Plus the face and scalp flushing. Using cold packs to help with the flush. Sleeping when I can. Hoping more sleep will mean the brain fog moves through quicker.

I know it gets better. Which is both better and worse. Better because I know it ends. Worse because it isn’t better yet. I am super appreciative though as I know it could be way worse.
Starting to feel a little dread at the thought that I have to do this whole thing again two more times. Which feels silly since the complications really have been mild for me.

How is everyone else doing?

Cycle 2, day 6. I finally got an answer to the question: do side effects change cycle to cycle or do they stay the same? I’ve seen such conflicting answers on here. My MO says “it depends.” Some side effects like nausea and GI troubles follow the same pattern. Constipation on day 4? Check. Other side effects are more linked to a specific thing happening in your body at a specific time and so may be new or cumulative eg RBCs take a bigger hit so shortness of breath might develop on exertion.

Day 6 is smack in the middle of my crummy period so I have that flu-y feeling. My biggest SE so far has been oral thrush. It seems far less common than mouth sores, so I have not found any remedies on here for that. It is unpleasant and uncomfortable and I wish it would go away! The other big struggle is the mental component. I feel demoralized and the thought of doing this 4 more times feels impossible right now. And then what if it’s all for nothing? It’s all really quite a struggle and since I have to put on a brave face for my little family, I guess this is the only place I have to share with people who are going through it too. I hope everyone is having an easy weekend.