TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP

kae_md99

hap, bloodwork is ok.

Cherry-sw

Saadia1, T-Sue, BJI, thank you for the responses, that I just can post a question and get an answer from people going through the same thing, this is worth a lot.

I probably only have 30-40% of my hair left on my head, I did not dye it since July so there is a lot of grey coming out. It is already cold here and I am wearing hat. I cut my long hair so I have a short bob and it is still visible under the hat. All other hair on my body are still on, but some start shedding. Eyebrows are still on but they stop growing, the same for my nails, they got a little longer during the past two weeks and after the last two infusions got pink half way through from the nail bed.

I also have some spasmatical head aches once in awhile, like it hits inside of my head in different places at a time and then stops. Worries me a lot actually, is kind of scary. Yesterday evening I also got it in my neck. My back is hurting too, I went to two PT this week, one of them worked manually on my muscles ties and another one confirmed that it hurts because of this.

Cherry-sw

Deni1661, just take it in your pace and think about yourself, no one else knows what you need better than you do. I was very social few years back, then I had some rough years and stopped inviting people over throwing the parties, I still did but not on the same scale and I saw that some people got less interested and I actually saw of them less and less. Just stay focus on yourself and your own needs. I am worried about everything, my PT told me that my back pain is related to my stress levels and I should try some yoga and meditation otherwise I am just so tense.

Cherry-sw

I have another question, why should we avoid aluminium-bound deodorants? I just saw that the anti-perspirant I was using had some aluminium in its description. I remember someone has mentioned it here.

Cherry-sw

KB870, How long did it take until your eyelashes grow back? You said fast I just wanted to know how fast?

SpecialK

cherry - link about deodorant

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/myths/antiperspirants-fact-sheet

For those recovering from chemo and targeted therapy - allow yourself as long to recover as you were in treatment, and then some. Most see a return of some energy at about the six week point as their blood counts and hemoglobin start to normalize, but know that the process of a return to pre-treatment counts can take 6-12 months. This is an incremental process, so be patient.

Cherry-sw

Thank you SpecialK, I will try to find another deodorant. I am only in the beginning of my treatment and it feels like such a long way that I am just cannot see any end of it yet.

T-Sue

Good advice SpecialK, thank you. It's hard want to get back to my pre-treatment activity level. I really have to stop myself from overdoing it.

Cherry - the link that SpecialK provided sums up why I switched to a "natural" antiperspirant. When you first switch, it takes a few weeks for your body to adjust and you will notice some body odor. Stick with it because after a few weeks, the body odor goes away and the "natural" antiperspirant works just as well as the aluminum deoderant. Someone told me this AFTER I had done all of this and I wish I had known about it beforehand.

Cherry-sw

T-Sue, I was just checking online for an aluminium free one. So far I did not find any that is both an antiperspirant and aluminium free. What is yours?

Cherry-sw

No, we do not have this brand but I will keep looking

Cherry-sw

HapB, Amazon is online so we do have it, but back in July I ordered a book from there and it never arrived, but I will try with this deodorant. The delivery may cost a fortune though

T-Sue

Cherry, As HapB mentioned, I have used Tom's of Maine. Another one that I like is called, inelegantly, "Primal Pit Paste." It's made here in the U.S. and I get it at a natural grocer. Not sure if it is available abroad but they have a website: primalpitpase.com. Also, both are ich is available on Amazon.

Cherry-sw

No, got the answer: Sorry, this item can't be shipped to your selected address.

coachvicky

About deodorant ...

This is strange.

When I first got my diagnosis, I thought I smelled differently. My husband and MO said they didn't smell anything.

After my mastectomies, I did not need deodorant. I have not worn any since July 2016.

I have no order not even after a hard workout or a day in the garden.

Vicky

toughcookie_21

cherry,not sure how close to you are to Stockholm, but I have a friend who shops at paradiset. She said you might be able to find all natural deodorant there. She's from Sweden and married to a good friend of mine from college. They moved back to Sweden about 10 years ago.

Cherry-sw

T-Sue, no, cannot order this one either

Cherry-sw

toughcookie, I am in Stockholm. I googled Paradiset, it seems to be a grocery store but I will check it out, thank you for a tip.

deni1661

Thank you everyone for your words of encouragement. I really needed that boost!

Specialk as always, excellent tips. My expectations are definitely unreasonable because I suffer from impatience. I need to remind myself, as we all should, that our bodies have been pumped full of drugs and we've gone through major surgeries. It makes sense that it would take up to a year to feel better. Thank you for giving me hope.

Cherry, you are so right I need to focus on my needs so that I can completely heal. I must get better at saying no! Good point too about the stress and pain connection; I am super stressed from work and I bet that's why I'm experiencing more pain lately. Thank you for your insight

Your wonderful responses made me realize how much I need to stay connected to all of you....I feel better now than I have for a while 😊

deni1661

Coach Vicky, I too don't seem to need deodorant although I still do out of habit. I thought maybe my sense of smell wasn't working any more because I had to use clinical strength deodorant before diagnosis. I thought maybe my diet changes contributed to not needing deodorant....or maybe it's related to my mastectomy.

I've used Tom's of Maine and my daughter recently introduced me to Schmidt's Natural Deodorant. Regardless of how, I smell pretty good these days - there's a positive SE!

Juli24

Of note on the antiperspirant topic - Tom's of Maine mostly sells natural deodorant. They do have one antiperspirant but it does contain aluminum-chlorohydrate which is basically recycled aluminum...yuck!! If your body got a reaction from antiperspirants before a cancer diagnosis (which mine did) you will get the same reaction from Tom's Antiperspirant. Primal Pit Paste is a great natural deodorant but they do not sell antiperspirant. The body does basically need to sweat which is natural!! 😏. Where sweat gets a bad rap is when it smells bad which is caused by bacteria. A good natural deodorant will stop that bad smell in its tracks and cause no adverse reactions

debiann

I use Arm & Hammer Essentials deodorant. No aluminum, no parabens. Natural deordorizers. Not an antiperspirant. but it works well.

Cherry-sw

Hi, this is actually a question but even a rant. I am sorry. I would not be asking or even acknowledging this feeling if it would not have been so overwhelming.

I wonder whether Taxol can cause depression and if anyone has been on anti-depressive during treatment? I noticed already last week that I was depressed Tursday-Sunday. Monday I had the next infusion and concentrated mostly on how I handled the SE, but this Thursday it started again and it has been really tough. I still tried to handle it and took a pill of oxazepam substance once a day when it really was like I cannot do it anymore. It is an anxiety medication I got prescribed but it helped only for a few hours and then everything started again. Today I woke up early in the morning and really tried to breathe and tell myself that everything was going to be ok but it just got worse. I had no appetite, we went to the forest and it was beautiful but I was really fighting this feeling that all my struggles are in vain, that I do not belong here anymore and my family, they belong to the future that I no longer have and I will just feel miserable until everything will be over and it could take long time and all this time I will feel like this and I really cannot do it anymore. It is like two different voices in my head trying to convince me what to do. Well it is not like voices but I either think one thing or another. I told my husband that I was basically well considering a pretty rough stuff and he said I need to start with anti-depressive because they do not know how they can help me anymore. Then he went to pick the youngest from her training and I felt so bad that I just took another pill, slept a little bit and then told my husband my thoughts and called a mobile psychiatric unity, got a doctor appointment next week and was told to call them whether I will feel like this again.

I was wondering whether anyone else felt this despair during treatment? Because when I started I was not doing well, but who does in this situation, but I was at least determined to go along with the treatment because I want to be here for my family and these thoughts of ending it all up just sneaked upon me and I wonder whether it is Taxol causing them and what can I do to get rid of them?

I am sorry for the rant again, it has been really tough today and I have infusion tomorrow and my husband is worried.

Cherry-sw

HapB, this is so hard, I was fighting the anti-depressive offer for so long but now I feel that they can talk to each other my doctors and decide what I can take, I do not even know whether you can have anti-depressive while on chemo. But I cannot fix it on my own and I guess I do not worry about the addiction anymore. It feels like failure but I has been too much.

coachvicky

Cherry,

As HapB wrote, get to your doctor ASAP.

Your medical team can prescribe meds for you to deal immediately with your depression (or diagnosis what you are experiencing) and something for long term.

Hang in there. One day this will be in your rear view mirror.

Hugs your way,

Vicky

Cherry-sw

Thank you coachvicky and HapB, I will talk to the doctor in the treatment center tomorrow and will ask them to pass the message to my oncologist and will see the psychiatrist on Wednesday. I can also imagine staying on oxazepam since it is not causing any SE except for addiction and then after treatment switch to anti-depressive but it has to be something I feel because I cannot control it anymore and I need to calm myself down because according to my PT the stress is one of causes of my upper back pain and my muscles ties, I am just so tense all the time.

AliceAgnes

For whatever it's worth: I have been on two antidepressants for at least ten years already. I started them well before my March 2017 cancer diagnosis. However, in my case they are used to treat fibromyalgia. They are amitryptiline (brand name Elavil) and fluoxetine (brand name Prozac) and they help calm down my nerves so I can sleep at night. I completed six rounds of chemo with no ill effects related to my continued use of these two drugs.

Cherry-sw

KB870, I have bursted into tears everywhere I have been so far. On Friday I cried at counsel office first, right after it at the PT office and right after at dietitian's, all ladie sit on the same floor. I am a real mess, but today was not so good, I do not want to feel like this again, it was like I lost completely. I was afraid to take anti-depressive because it takes like two weeks until you adjust and those two weeks can be pretty harsh and I am already having so much in my system so I hope they have some long term suggestion.

Dannajae

Hi all,

I don't post that much because I think I'm still sort of in shock. I've been very positive and tried hard not to let BC break me down, but last night out of the blue I started crying when a song came on. It's like everything is just below the surface. I've been on anti-depressants for many years, and that's probably holding me together somewhat.

On Wednesday I'm having the catheter placed for brachytherapy, and my radiation will be Friday-Thursday. Ironically, my birthday is Wednesday...but it's really the least of my concerns. On 10/5 I'm having an EKG (standard baseline before chemo?), and on 10/12 I'm having a chemo education class. Still waiting for my port placement appointment. Chemo will start 10/26.

I think everything is just now beginning to hit me.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Cherry-sw

Dannajae, it seems we are at the same point, just posted about it before you. I still do not have any anti-depressives but feeling that it is time for me. This is a very normal reaction, it is tough on everybody.

Cherry-sw

Thank you AliceAgnes, Prozac is a serotonin intake inhibitor, I believe I can take it. Any SE of Prozac?