For Older People with Sense

dragonflymary

LOL!  Antidepressants have helped me but who knows, I may be taking a sugar pill!  I once gave a pain pill to a patient and the minute she swallowed it she heaved a big sigh of relief and reported instant relief!  I truly believe she felt better, not because of the pill but because someone had understood her pain and taken time to get her something for it.  The most difficult thing is when a doctor or nurse doesn't believe a symptom that you report.  Don't continue with such a doctor--they can be wrong and you are the one with the symptom.  Lynda

chrissyb

I truly believe that the mind is capable of many things and that includes healing and death but I still put my faith in the knowledge of the medical professionals.  I for one certainly don't want to go back to a time when the word cancer meant death no matter what was done.

There have been times in my life when I have needed the aid of an anti depressant but only to get me on the right track again so I could do what was needed to come to terms with what was going on at the time.  It's always hard to accept that you cannot control all things and this I think is the cause of a lot of depression.  Working toward that acceptance for me is always a key.  I do understand that there are people who do need the drugs to get them in that better frame of mind and being and am very thankful that they are there for our use.  Can you imagine what life would have been like in the time before modern medicine with the anti biotics and painkillers?......................I'm glad I live now!

Love n hugs.  Chrissy

Dilly

I, too, am glad for modern medicine, yet appreciate what might be called "folk" medicine and citizen science .  But I definitely believe in my medical professionals and trust their skills and good hearts & minds. I don't think they or we know enough yet about how everything works together -- science-wise, but some of the advances made in our lifetimes have been pretty phenomenal.

Dragon, you might enjoy the thread OMG, They Found the Cure for Stupid - I forget which forum it's in, but it's hilarious.   That thread and the "you know you're a cancer patient when...."

 QCAKathy, my heart goes out to you and your sister.  no good words, just heartfelt.

3jays, I'm hoping you are recovering, getting better. (((3jays)))

Kaara

Saw the movie "Forks Over Knives" tonight....great documentary about eating a plant based diet and putting many diseases in remission.  Lots of testimony and lots of sudies to back up the research.  It can be rented on Netflix.

Anonymous

Chrissy - that mouse story, lol - I would bet the mouse beat your hubby back to the house.  I use to catch mice in live traps and let them go in Hubby's pole barn, were I made little mouse castles with food, blankies, places to hide.  Everyone said they weren't crazy, they beat me back to the house. 

Chrissy and LoneCreek - reminded me of when I had the nuclear bone scan last week,  Was on the table looking at this massive machine, said to tech, what a great time to have cancer.  She was like, oh noooo.  I said, really, so many noninvasiive ways to check what is happening, used to only have x-rays.  

barbe1958

What's a "pole barn"?? I have this image in my head.....

Dilly

You are too modern with your poles (you made me laugh), but the explanation may tickle your imagination as well because these barns are made using poles (small trees) that have been stripped and peeled of their bark, instead of using regular sawn lumber in the framing.

macatacmv

Hey everyone on the boat again. Still feeling lousy. The RO dismissed my symptoms and wants me to see my PCP, which I have an appt with next week. I am also getting short of breath just walking the dog. This is so unlike me. I am glad I have ya'll to talk to because I would really feel crazy if I couldn't laugh and feel like I am not alone.

I have lots of "outside pets" as I call my squirrrels and mice and chipmunks. I know I would not feel so kindly to them if they were inside. They get to live under the shed which is not as fancy as a pole barn I am sure. But it did use to be a county fair booth in another life and still says juice caboose on it. Someone gave it to me and I like to recycle and reuse.

Hope everyone has a good day!

 Nancy 

barbe1958

OOoohhh, I WANT a Juice Caboose, too!!!!!!

I kill bugs inside, but not outside. If they stay in their place they live. Good thing they don't feel the same way about me!!

mostlymom

Nancy - a couple months after compleating rads, I had shortness of breath.  I had heard rads can sometimes scar your lungs so I saw my RO & he essentially said I was nuts if I thought they had been anywhere near my lungs & recommended I see my PCP.  My PCP referred me to a lung specialist who referred me to a heart specialist who referred me to a muscle specialist....you get the idea.  Not one of the docs found anything specific & I slowly got better - so I'm still thinking it was the rads.  Plus I sure wasted a lot of $ we can ill afford.  I'm afraid if I had it to do over again, I'd have to do the same thing cause it did eliminate a lot of fears.  SOB isn't something to ignore.

Gingerbrew

I had the same symptoms Nancy and Mostly Mom. I could hardly walk I was so out of breathe. Even going into the kitchen was very difficult. I felt like I was dying I was so short of breathe.  I gradually got better. My MO and my RO were both not surprised by the symptom. With so many women having this symptom I can't imagine the RO thinking it wasnt related. Perhaps the "Fatigue" we know will come also encompasses this severe breathlessness?

Ginger

dragonflymary

Nancy, if you've had a blood count done recently you should look at your hemoglobin.  Anemia can cause SOB.  It can also be caused by heart disease.  It would be nice if your doctor would go over possibilities with you instead of just sending you on your way.  I have asthma so I'm familiar with this symptom and it is very debilitating.  I give you permission to be "difficult!"  I never miss the chance to give them all a hard time!

Lynda 

lassie11

It's not the same thing as the shortness of breath some of you have described, but here's my story.

First, you need to know that I am overweight - not the "I need to lose 10 pounds" kind- sadly not at all. Also, I am on Femara and parts of me hurt, different parts from week to week. So when I go upstairs in my house, I take a deep breath to start. For ages I have noticed myself out of breath and puffing at the top. Same thing happened when I bent over to the bottom drawer of my dresser for necessaries. Of course I blamed my weight even though my fitness level is otherwise decent.

The greatest revelation came to me last week. After taking that deep breath at the bottom of the stairs, I didn't breathe again til reaching the top! And not while bending over at my dresser either! Probably people who do formal exercise regularly get reminded to breathe. I forgot to remind myself. It's a miracle. Just by reminding myself to breathe, I no longer am out of puff at the top of the stairs or after bending down to do a task.  Please tell me it's not just me.

Kaara

lassie11:  You are right...one of the causes of shortness of breath is either over breathing or under breathing.  I discovered that when walking up hills in NC and was short of breath at the top.  I was breathing too deeply and then I hypervenilated.  You just take slow steady breaths.

barbe1958

lassie, I met you last August (didn't I?) and I thought you were a peanut!! Or is that just compared to me.....???

macatacmv

Hi everyone,

 Well when my friend picked me up at the boat yesterday she took me right to the walk in clinic. I have some very pushy friends. I saw a new doctor and nurse. My blood pressure was high again, the nurse walked me around the office with the finger clip on and watched my oxy levels fall as my bp went up. We talked about another CT but since it was Friday afternoon he decided to put me on a zpac of antibiotics in case it is pneumonia and I go back to see them next week. I am so confused. Some doctor has added hypertensive disorder to my list of conditions on my patient gateway site. I just want to feel better. 

Lynda, the techs already call me their problem child. I need lots of positioning to make me comfortable on the table, but they are also the most compassionate. The RO has ordered me to PT which I hear has a bc specialist, which is a blessing.

 Taking every kindness and being grateful.

(((((3jays))))))

thanks for all the helpful comments.  

  Nancy 

lassie11

Oh Barbe you are too kind. We certainly have met.  A peanut I am not.

Kaara

Nancy:  So sorry you are still feeling ill.  I've had one of those tough upper respiratory infections as well and I wish I had gone and gotten a zpac right in the beginning because it has lingered and worn me down.  I see how it could easily go into pneumonia if not taken care of quickly.  The only thing that has helped me is rest, rest and more rest!  It's been a week and this is the first day I've felt normal.

Sending prayers and hugs...take care of yourself. 

macatacmv

Thanks Kaara, it is so hard to tell if it is because of the rads or something else that is going on for me. So we are treating it as an infection. I had an upper respiratory thing 2 weeks after surgery so a good 7 weeks ago now and still coughing. I am usually a very heallthy person and hate complaining so much esp when there are others that really have something to complain about and yet they make me laugh. Oh well, more inactivity today or as some people call it rest.

Here is a picture of one of my outside pets.  

lassie11

Is anyone else offended by the ad that turns up on the right top of the screen warning that older women have worse chances of survival of BC? I read the article and it was pretty much "on a yellow Tuesday if the moon is full" kind of case and small differences from what appears to be just one study. And what could we do about now anyway? 

barbe1958

I don't read anything except what my peers write in the comment boxes!! Also, the girl below in the pink scar is a generic public domain picture. I saw it in a magazine ad!!!

Kaara

lassie11:  Yes, I read it, but if you read through all of the details, it really says in the end that older women who have larger tumors that went undetected from not getting regular exams were at higher risk for the poor prognosis because they couldn't be treated as aggressively as younger women.

 This after I read another study that said women over 70 have a better prognosis and don't benefit all that much from chemo and radiation....so which is it???

chrissyb

Nancy I sure hope you begin to feel better soon and your ailment is just a chest infection that the anti-biotics will get rid off.  I love you outdoor pet!!!!  It is sooooo cute!!!!  That's the one thing that facinated me while I was in America as we don't have those little critters here in Australia.  I didn't realise how tiny they were!  Thank you for posting that.

I should be getting my new glasses this week, I'm just waiting for the phone call to let me know they are in.  Can't wait!!.....lol......I decided to get new frames as well as lenses and the ones I chose are purle with sixties multi-shade circles on the arms..............they are so cool and I just love them!  I tried on a multitue of frames but this one just did it for me.  I am also going the get a visit from my niece and her children on Wednesday so I'm really looking forward to that as I haven't seen Katlyn since the day she was born and she is two months old now, so many kisses and cuddles will be rained upon her........lol........and I'll also get big hugs from her big brother Lucas......bonus!!!

I'm starting to get a little antsy as the weeks keep flying by bringing surgery date for my knee ever closer.  I'm looking forward to having it done but not the process of getting it done.........know what I mean?  I have been trying to loose some of the blubber that inactitity and Femara have deposited on my body by completely cutting out a lot of things including all bread (and I really miss that) and sugar (thats not too hard as I did't eat much sugar anyway) but at it is working as over the last two weeks I've lost 8lb.  I hope I can keep it going as any weight loss is a good thing and will help to take the pressure off the other knee.

Hope all are having a good day!

Love n hugs.  Chrissy

Gingerbrew

We have red and grey squirrels in the US. In Illinois we had grey squirrels in the North where I lived.  When I was a kid we had a squirrel that felt almost like a pet until he got more and more insistent that we have something for him when we left the house. He even figured out that he could quick run to the back door if we were avoiding him. We had to stop giving him treats. He had been a lot of fun for me, he would even sit up to get a peanut.

I hope your knee surgery comes quickly and goes smoothly. Remember take the meds, let them work for you. 

Hugs 

GInger

 

macatacmv

These squirrels can be pretty demanding. The birds too, if there is no seed out there they stare at me until I give them some more. Between them and the dog I get outside no matter how I feel. I have had a very quiet relaxing day. Just a slow walk with the dog and a friend in the fresh air. Back to the traveling grind tomorrow.

So Chrissy are you gonna take a pic of you in your new glasses for us?

Hope you all are peaceful and joyful.

Elisimo

Chrissy - So glad to hear that you will get to see Katlyn and Lucas this week.  I know you enjoy all the hugs and have a truckload of kisses stored up for them.  Glad your surgery is quickly arriving.  Know that my heart is there with you in love and prayers.  I can hardly wait until I get to come see you. 

Leah_S

Chrissy, that's great about the weight loss! And I second what Mac said - post a picture after you get them!

Mac, I hope you continue to feel better.

My retreat was wonderful. The programs were helpful, and it's so good to meet up with others going through the same thing. I felt normal since all the women had cancer. That's one of the best parts of it.

Leah

chrissyb

Welcome back Leah!  So glad you had such a good time at the retreat and you had a chance to feel 'normal'.

Yes I will post a pic with them on and of them on their own....lol.  I got the phone call this afternoon saying they were at the optometrists but the appointment for fitting is not until Thursday afternoon..........so we all have to be patient.........lol

Love n hugs all!  Chrissy

Elisimo

Leah - so glad you had a good timeat the retreat and got a chance to feel normal.  That is a good feeling when we can find it.

Chrissy - here's hoping you great success with weight loss plan.  

QCA

What a blah day it's been here!  Cold, clouds, and rain but hope to see the sun tomorrow.  This weather, plus trying to get our taxes done, makes me depressed---although it's probably more the taxes!

Mac, hope you're feeling better, and it's good to see you AmyJo!  And Leah, glad you had a good retreat!  Chrissy, I want to see the new glasses too when you get them. Your surgery date will be here before you know it and we'll be hearing about your recovery!

3jays, always in my prayers.  Hope today was good for you.

Kathy