February 2011 Rads

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  • happytobhere
    happytobhere Member Posts: 10
    edited March 2011

    I go this week to get marked what all should I do?  I know that you said drink lots of water.  Does any one know about what we should be eating or not eating?  I should know all this my husband passed away 9 yrs ago.  I would not do the chemo due to how sick it made him.

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  • lestwin
    lestwin Member Posts: 83
    edited March 2011

    I had tx #30 on Friday and except for last Saturday and today I have not noticed the fatigue.  I did not sleep well either night and that is why I am tired.  It maybe because I also have leukemia and my meds for that make me tired already but, honestly, I have not found the normal tiredness any worse.  I'm also 68 and will be so glad to be over this stage.  I opted out of chemo too for the other medical problems I have but this has been a pretty easy step for me except for the fact that I am itchy in the rad area and have open, bleeding sores with green crap coming out of them.  Sore but not painful.  Three more boosts and I am done!  The boosts are the worse part for me.

    Enjoy your weekend everyone and hang in there. 

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  • ToriGirl
    ToriGirl Member Posts: 1,188
    edited March 2011

    happytobhere--Welcome..sorry you have to be here, but you have come to a great place for comfort, friendship,and advice.

    There is not a lot (if anything) you have to do before you go to your appointment for you markings and simulation.  Your RO and his/her staff should fill you in on everything that you need to do before and after your rads begin.  

    Most say to keep up on drinking plenty of water and get plenty of protein...ask your RO about any supplements, vitamins, you are taking now to make sure they are okay to take during your treatments.  Make sure to keep up on lubing up with the creams and lotions they give you and don't put anything on your skin without asking your doctor first....

    You are more than welcome to come back here and ask all the questions you want at any time, but you may also be interested in checking out the thread for those that are starting rads in March....most of them will be exactly where you are in the process and you will be able to get some sound advice from them as well as being able to go through the process together.

    Good luck with everything!

    Tori 

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  • Elisimo
    Elisimo Member Posts: 1,601
    edited March 2011

    Kallimom - I am starting to get a rash in the V of my breast. I have finished 19 of 30 rads.  The Calendula gel works really well.   The rad tech said to use a cortizone cream, but that does not seem to work as well. The Miaderm works the best  if you have some of that.  As for the tiredness, I have litterally slept for the last 2 days! Hope I can wake up in time for my treatment tomorrow!!!

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  • Teklya
    Teklya Member Posts: 435
    edited March 2011

    Hi all.  Just back from Jamaica and have a great time, only wish I felt better so that I could have enjoyed and would have been able to have done a bit more.  However, sitting on a beach with a flavorful rum drink relaxing was not the worst time in my life, trust me. Arrived home to a fresh covering of windswept snow!  SHEESH!!!

    Teklya

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  • Eloise
    Eloise Member Posts: 137
    edited March 2011

    Sharon, wow, that's scary about your dentist.  I know radiation to the mouth and throat area does that, because my mom had rads for an oral cancer and it basically burnt out her salivary glands so she had a dry mouth for the rest of her life.  But I'd never heard that radiation elsewhere in the body could have that effect.  I hope it's short-term for you.

    Tekiya, I'm glad you had a good time in Jamaica.  But no report on the pool boys? 

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  • kallimom
    kallimom Member Posts: 54
    edited March 2011

    Glad to hear my rash isn't special to me....I to have it in the V of my breasts.....I don't have any of the Miaderm but will pick up some of the Calendula Gel tomorrow...I found a natural food store in our area that carries it....almost dreading tomorrow when the treatments begin again...wonder what my skin will be like by Friday....still tired...I think I could have taken a nap even though I slept until after 12.....but thought maybe I wouldn't sleep tonight...so tried to stay awake....good luck to everyone as we begin another week of treatments.

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  • Teklya
    Teklya Member Posts: 435
    edited March 2011

    oh, there was a fine lot of eye candy there, trust me. 

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  • FireKracker
    FireKracker Member Posts: 8,046
    edited March 2011

    Welcome home Teklya....hope you had a wonderful time and those rotten shingles are alllllll gone.

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  • beacher4209
    beacher4209 Member Posts: 540
    edited March 2011

    yay!  HEATHERMCD your done! hope u heal fast. I know what you mean about the expander mine is pinching me under my arm. Mine will contract so hard sometime it feels like its gonna pop,and i can hardly breathe! i hope it gets better soon i cant imagine 6-12 moths of this before the exchange!  what are you putting on your axilla ? that sounds painful  my thoughts are with ya. lets see who get the exchange first,then we can compare notes.... take care

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  • cmbear
    cmbear Member Posts: 1,086
    edited March 2011

    Hello ladies! Today was 14th out of 33. I have been reading daily, but having a hard time posting cuz its hard to be positive lately. Night time is hard, I just get sooo tired and my body aches, every single joint. Over the weekend, I got a nasty sore throat. It hurts horribly when I swallow. Will ask RO tomorrow if this is a side effect. Has anyone gotten this SE? Bought Cepacol spray and Aloe Vera Juice this morning, hope that helps. 

    Its so great to hear all of you that are finishing up, how wonderful!! Bet you are so excited to move on past all this! And Teklya, Jamaica sounds like the perfect place to be this time of year!! Eye candy, a fruity rum beverage and the sound of the surf, sounds like a cure for almost all that ails you!! Now you have that happy place memory in your mind for when things get tough!! 

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  • Adey
    Adey Member Posts: 3,610
    edited March 2011

    20 down / 8 to go...

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  • elaineg
    elaineg Member Posts: 198
    edited March 2011

    Cmblastic I had a sore throat too but they swear the rads can't cause that. Just at the very start then it went away so who knows...

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  • GirlFriday
    GirlFriday Member Posts: 461
    edited March 2011

    Cmblastic:  I heard sore throat and a persistent cough can both be SE...I guess it depends on the angle of the rads.

    heathermcd:  I'm so happy to hear you made it through!  It must be such a relief to you!  I hope you heal super quick!

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  • kallimom
    kallimom Member Posts: 54
    edited March 2011

    14/33...and who said I wasn't going to count !! LOL......also have a rash that is spreading, the rads nurse said it was MINOR....but not to me...really itchy...stop at the natural foods store and bought Emu Oil and Calendula gel...anzious to get that on the rash...they told me to use Cortaid, I did over the weekend but it didn't seem to help. As we continue to count....

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  • Adey
    Adey Member Posts: 3,610
    edited March 2011

    I love me some emu oil, feels nice!

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  • Elisimo
    Elisimo Member Posts: 1,601
    edited March 2011

    20 done 10 left.  I also had a sore throat and a cough, but it has cleared up now.  I started getting a rash but the emu oil and calendula gel have helped tremendously.  I started to peel a little today, but it is not painful. The Miaderm cream smoothed away the peeling and the calendula gell eased the tenderness.  I have been so tired lately.  I have slept all weekend and today I have had 2 naps and am ready to go to bed.  The worse part of all of this so far is the tiredness.

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  • GirlFriday
    GirlFriday Member Posts: 461
    edited March 2011

    I've had 12/33, and sleep is not my friend.  I feel the fatigue wash over me, about an hour after the appointment, and then I drag all day long.  I've tried taking naps and I just can't sleep.  And then at night, I'm so tired, and no sleep will come.  Last night I took two benedryll, and it still took me 1.5 hours to fall asleep.  I'm figuring I'm going to crash all at once and end up with a keyboard print on my face!

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  • kallimom
    kallimom Member Posts: 54
    edited March 2011

    Another one down....my rash is still so itchy...amazing how much better it feels with the Calendula gel on it....mucsh better than the Cortizone....so glad you all told me about it. Trying to get myself to do something this afternoon besides take a nap...but a nap sounds really good. Perhaps I will finish a scrapbook page.....I do love to do that. Hope everyone is having a good day, without any strange pains.

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  • Adey
    Adey Member Posts: 3,610
    edited March 2011

    21 of 28

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  • Blindsided
    Blindsided Member Posts: 68
    edited March 2011

    26 of 30 completed.  I suddenly have developed 3 dark brown spots on the bottom of the breast that look like moles or age spots. WTF!!!!  The techs and the nurse all said- I don't know what that is- check with your dermatologist if it doesnt go away in 3 -4 months.  Hard to believe its not due to the radiation since they were never there before!

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  • Elisimo
    Elisimo Member Posts: 1,601
    edited March 2011

    kallimom - so glad the calendula is working for you too.  It does feel good on the burn and the rash. The miaderm helps with the tenderness and the peeling.  Naps can be a good thing to help your body heal from the trama of raidation.  But I know they can seem dibilitating too when you have to take a nap after doing the smallest task, like take a shower!

    21 of 30 done.  Getting close to the end. Yeah!  We are all going to get to the end of this soon.

    Hope everyone has a restful evening. Amy Jo 

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  • elaineg
    elaineg Member Posts: 198
    edited March 2011

    19/38. Halfway there! So far no skin issues so I feel lucky.

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  • heathermcd
    heathermcd Member Posts: 142
    edited March 2011
    Thanks everyone for your kind words and thoughts. I am starting to heal VERY slowly!! My skin under my arm is weeping very badly and I wake up some mornings with my shirt soaked on the left side from all the weeping skin under my arm. The good news is that my actual breast seems to be looking better and the area around the breast is itching BADLY! I'm assuming that the itching means its healing? I'm going to have to start wearing oven mitts to stop myself from scratching!! Wink
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  • Adey
    Adey Member Posts: 3,610
    edited March 2011

    22 / 28 done today.  Taking off Thursday and Friday due to "sunburn".  No peeling or blisters but I hope to avoid those so I'm free until Monday, woot.  Lubing up, got my Moogoo delivery from Oz today.

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  • lestwin
    lestwin Member Posts: 83
    edited March 2011

    I am done!  Last one today 33/0.  Bit of a disaster, they left a message that the machine was down but I was not home, busy buying them all flowers.  Got there and had to go to the hospital instead.  Almost gave up after waiting for 45 minutes and was about to leave and forget the last treatment and a female (waiting for her husband with prostate cancer) convinced me to stay.

    My doctor said I could go on a cruise the beginning of April so now I am stoked  (sorry British expression meaning excited).  Went out to dinner, and yes, I imbibed, probably toooooo  much,  but I am so happy to be done!  You guys do not know how you helped me sooooo much.  I am so glad I found you.  For the guys who do not know much about me, I have faced so much diversity in my life and you were my rock.  Do what you need to do, it is important, and guess what, YOU CAN DO IT!

    I am going to post this on all three boards for rads, Jan 2011, Feb 2011 and March 2011 because I participated in all three.

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  • GirlFriday
    GirlFriday Member Posts: 461
    edited March 2011

    heathermcd:  Itching is a wonderful sign!  New skin! Thanks for the update! I was wondering how things are going.  Don't forget to eat protein, that should help things along inside.  There's a post rad string now too....grannydukes is the hostess.  Gals are checking in to compare notes on the after effects. 

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  • FireKracker
    FireKracker Member Posts: 8,046
    edited March 2011

    Lestwin----YOU DID IT. we walked Jan and Feb together....congrats....it feels sooooo good.do something nice for yourself.real nice.dont forget to still do everything you were doing before.And dont forget to rest up....God bless you.hugggggggggs K

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  • kallimom
    kallimom Member Posts: 54
    edited March 2011

    Lestwin....comgratulations....you made it...so thrilled for you. Sounds like you enjoyed your celebrations......you certainly earned it ! I finished 16/33. The Calendule gel really helps the itch. So glad you were all talking about it. Met with the Dr. today....he didn't have much to say, other than use cortaid and aquaphor....felt like saying thanks for the help !! NOT. Two more this week....the weeks seem to be getting longer and I am definately tired....sure would have liked to just stay in bed this morning.

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  • Elisimo
    Elisimo Member Posts: 1,601
    edited March 2011

    kallimom - soon we can sleep in and not have to worry about going to treatments.  Until then there are the weekends. Smile

    Lestwin - congratulations!  You made it and the rest of us are not far behind you.

    Hope everyone has a restful evening.  

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