February 2012 Chemo

Momtoncc

Hello everyone, I hope you had a great holiday.  I went in for my herceptin treatment Monday only to find out that I once again needed magnesium (an hours worth) and another blood transfusion.  They couldn't do the blood on Monday so I had to go to the hospital on Tuesday.  It's been three weeks since I have had a chemo treatment, I can't believe that it is still affecting me so much.  Also, I have a question and I hope that it is not too personal for these boards.  I am embarrassed to ask my doctor so I figured maybe you gals could help me.  Is sex for anyone else undergoing treatment really painful?  I've never had this problem before in my life so I"m thinking that it has to do with the treatments.......

ali68

Sex - when I was having chemo lets say I was a bit dry and it was painfull. This only happened a few times but I have to say DH had to work very hard on the foreplay- hehe.



A glass of wine helped too.

Sissydi

Montocc, oh my gosh, yes......it hurts really bad! It almost feels raw inside......I hope it gets better, I will be interested to hear responses!

gonegirl

i don't have a partner so haven't had to deal with the sex issue. but in a paste life, when i did have sex, i always kept a lubricant handy like ky jelly just in case.

ali, why don't they use pain killers where you are? that's just weird and cruel.  years ago, when i had hernia surgery, the surgeon came in and ripped the bandage off the wound. when i winced and made a sound, he said, "that didn't hurt."  i was 18 at the time (this was a long, long time ago).  if that happened now, this would be the last time i ever saw that doctor.

surgery, pain, etc are hard enough without some jerk making stupid comments like that.  some medical folks can be jerks.

susan

Moonflwr912

Momtoncc, I just had my nurse checkup, and my magnesium level just came up to normal. I am 4 weeks PFC (except for Herceptin) and needed the magnesium iv last week. I was waiting to see if my hemoglobin came up. It was under, 9 and if it dropped, I would need a blood transfusion. But, it did come up to 9.5 and I hope it continues to go up. That was good to hear. So maybe you just need more time. Much love.

gonegirl

momtoncc, i'm so sorry to hear that.   this stuff is saving our lives but it sure is nasty.  my swollen ankles, etc are nothing compared to that. hope you feel better.

i managed to get a picture of myself with thinned, growing hair.  i've been encouraged to see other folks post pics showing hair growing in. i hope my next round of chemo is much more gentle and that i get to keep my hair this time.  i'm fond of it.

Moonflwr912

Hey grit you look great in the fluffy duckling stage. I wish I could figure out how to post pics but I am usually on my phone and I think I need to put pics up on the pc. I am in the duckling stage as well LOL Much love.

ali68

You girls have it good in America they give you pain meds, please tell English docs to do the same.

Moonflwr912

Oh, Ali, you certainly do need pain meds for procedures. I don't know why those docs don't use them. I am sorry you were and are in pain.

schatzi14

Hey ali...some of us are in Canada and WE get pain meds too...we even have socialized medicine like you do!  LOL

christina0001

flddreamer - no advice from me but I hate that you are going through all that. Neuropathy is so painful. I have had bad fingernails since my last treatment. Do yours hurt? Mind hurt for quite some time and I can't imagine coping with it + neuropathy. I hope your onc has some sort of relief for you.

myleftboob - thanks for the reassurance. I scheduled a consult with a PS but I am going to talk to my surgeon about it tomorrow. If there is no harm in waiting I think I would rather wait. I am so overwhelmed right now...

OMG Ali what is wrong with your surgeon!?! Why would you not get pain meds?!? I hope there is no next time but if there, bring some hard liquor. That is outrageous!

Wow I cannot believe so many of you are getting hair in. I don't think I am yet. I still have pretty much the same sporadic stubble on my head that hung on after being shaved. If it would grow just a little bit, my head would look just like a kiwi.

momtoncc - I have had the same problem. Vaginal intercourse has been impossible since treatment #2, even with trying different lubes. My onc's PA told me to keep my vagina moisturized, so the tissue would stay healthy, so I used KY Liquibeads every 3-4 days. I'd like to think it helped the tissue but it definitely did not help make intercourse possible. I'm hoping things go back to normal soon (I am 5 weeks PFC) but I'm not there yet.

moonflwr - glad that your numbers are getting back up.

Susan - glad to see you on the boards again. Wow you are getting in quite a bit of hair!

ali68

I was told by surgeon and the other woman, they can't give you pain meds because it is too soon after the surgery and it wouldn't be good for my recovery. I did get pain meds and asked for more with my biopsy so I think myself lucky.

I told them I was still in pain she said stop taking codine and take ibuprofen.

Hubby thinks we should be back in the swing of sex but I'm in pain and not ment to move my arm.

Moonflwr912

Christina, Ali, grit, sissy, there is a thread on the boards called "yippee, the solution to painful intercourse" it has the formula for a cream to use that most oncs ok'd. they also suggest coconut butter, not oil, but butter. Sorry I can't do the link.

gonegirl

Ali:  I wonder if it's just that medical office that is not using postoperative pain management. In the last 15 or more years, they been doing studies on keeping ahead of the pain and how that helps the patient recover.  Here's a good article on it that I found on Pubmed.gov which indexes medical literature around the world.

 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12678572

The 2003 articles says:

"Over 60% of surgery is now performed in an ambulatory setting. Despite improved analgesics and sophisticated drug delivery systems, surveys indicate that over 80% of patients experience moderate to severe pain postoperatively. Inadequate postoperative pain relief can prolong recovery, precipitate or increase the duration of hospital stay, increase healthcare costs, and reduce patient satisfaction."

Can you go to someone else if you need surgery down the line? That practice sounds like it tortures the patients. Geez.

ali68

My boob is hard and painfull also twice the size. The under arm where fluid was drained is building up again. I will put up with it, not wanting a bloody big needle in me again.

gonegirl

ali, careful of infection. is there someone else you can go to for help, someone who uses pain killers?

susan

ali68

No, I spoke to the breast nurse she said try and put up with it. Only come back if it gets very large swelling and take ibuprofen. Also told no arm movements for a week to try and stop the build up of fluid.

Moonflwr912

Ali, is there no where else to go, even if its a ways to go? I am worried about you. Are you running a temp? If so, I think you need to go back. And your practice sounds stone age. Is there an internet page that lets you rate doctors? There usually is, so if they refuse pain meds again, you could tell them you are going to rate them very low. Maybe it would help, at least for now. I will pray for you.

ali68

Can't go anywhere else only one hospital and surgeon is the best. She has done a great job on my Lumpectomy, having a glass of cider and two codeine tablets. Don't care what the doctors say this is making me depressed with the pain. Asked DH to go and get some wine but he says that's not a good idea.( sounds great to me)

Moonflwr912

Well girl at least put some ice on it for a while.

gonegirl

Mixing wine and pain killers, and some Valium, is what put Karen Ann Quinlan into a coma.  So I'm with the hubby on this one, Ali.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Ann_Quinlan 

ali68

Haha, don't worry I had a glass of cider and two codine.

Hildy910

I'm joining in the worry group, Ali--that medical group sounds medieval!  I wish I could ship over my excess pain killers safely and legally.  I never know what to do with this stuff--they say not to flush it, but I sure dont want it lying around....

Moonflwr912

Hildy, call your pharmacy they will either take it and destroy it or tell you where to take it.

Myleftboob

grit

The good news is that its growing!!!  I can't wait until I have at least a decent GI Jane LOL! I do find I'm going topless more and more in front of friends now.  With it being so hot I just can't bear to keep the wig on unless totally necessary for business or being in public like shopping.

Ali

God, I though the doctors in the UK would be pretty similar to Canada.  Man they really make you suck it up don't they.  I hope the swelling goes down and the pain susbsides for you. 

christina0001

Ali I had the same thought as Hildy. I would send you some of mine if it were not illegal. I always have extra, I seldom need more than a few out of the bottle. I just trashed some from two years ago - oral surgery, and then had a cyst removed from my sinsus...I put mine in my used kitty litter.

Had my new port put in today. I basically feel fine. I was scheduled to go in at 7am and I think we were home by 11am. When I had my first port, I was so sore for a few days. All I've needed this time so far is 2 tylenol. I plan on taking the prescription stuff tonight just to make sure I sleep well. I've been a bundle of nerves all week and have been too overexcited to sleep, so I'm exhausted.

I had set a consult with a PS in 2 weeks but I feel so overwhelmed by everything - medical appointments, thinking about the UMX, school and work, husband and family. I spoke with my surgeon today and he said I do not have to consult with the PS prior to the UMX...I can work on learning about reconstruction anytime. So I cancelled the consult...I just can't mentally process reconstruction options right now on top of everything else.

Moonflwr912

Christina, you are so right. No need to rush it will happen when you are ready. into reconstruction.

ali68

Woke up this morning and the pain is so much better and I think the fluid is staying the same.



Coloured my hair with henna cream and it is warm and has a shine, a few small grey hairs on top but you have to look hard. Very pleased and what a difference it makes to how you look. So everyone use henna as it has no chemicals.



Ps, I left it on for 15 mins it does say 15-30 mins, I can colour it as many times you want as it washes out after 8 washes.

Julia48

Hi, I am just now getting the courage to sign in and read. I too started my chemo in Feb. same diagnosis as you. I made it through 5 treatments. Surgery set for July 24th. Lost my hair but that is not a bother. I just want to get well. I will also have 5 weeks of radiation. Would love to hear from you and how you are doing. God bless.

ali68

Hi Julia, how are you doing? Not sure who your talking too. Anyway why be so shy we are all made as hatters on here. So tell us a bit about yourself we are all friendly and love to chat.