Starting Chemo March 2015

ksusan

Oh, Theresa, that's beautiful!

littleblueflowers

michelle, your daughter will be fine, as long as she has a ride home. My mom came with me to all my chemos and while I appreciated it, once I was in the chair I pretty much just fell asleep from all the ativan and benedryl and such. You could always ask for a quick tour of the facility if it would ease your mind 😊

slothabouttown

Michele,

Sometimes the first treatment takes longer than the rest and your daughter might want to keep that in mind, some of us were at the infusion center for 6 hours the first time! At my treatments I saw that about half the folks had someone with them and the others came solo. I had a friend come with me and it made the time fly. Probably the most important thing to keep in mind right now is that your daughter is the decision maker about when and who she wants for company. That's got to be hard for a mom as I'm sure you want to be by her side at every step, I know if my mom were here she would have wanted , I'm sure insisted, on being there and I think I would've told her not to come.

Did you talk about why she doesn't want you to join her? Maybe she's worried that it might be difficult for you? That's what my concern would have been I think.

I'd recommend that if you are able, offer to be " on standby" for her to reach you by phone if she gets bored or feels weird from the treatment ( rare but some folks can have a reaction to the drugs, and need benadryl or similar in their IV.)that might be a good plan for this first treatment.

Italychick

Ksusan, I just asked myself what would Ksusan or littleblue do? We do seem to be the ones out there with sarcasm! I could have hugged the woman holding the baby lol. You can't make that kind of timing happen!

Michelle, not sure about your daughters mentality, but I forbade everybody from going to chemo with me. One, because I wanted them strong and well rested in case I physically or mentally fell apart, and sitting in a doctors chemo facility all day is draining. If I came home and puked, I wanted my husband rested and holding the bucket, not trashed from sitting in a chemo room all day. Two, I didn't want to have to focus on how anybody else felt. My brother came and wanted to go with me, but then I would see his sad face while I was getting poisoned and that would emotionally mess me up. Three, I chatted with all my sisters here on the breast cancer forum, and my support group of friends during chemo. Four, I worked throughout all my infusions. Five, I tend to be a big blubbering baby if there is somebody there to blubber to and with nobody there, I just put on my big girl panties and sucked it up. So there are lots of reasons people want to be by themselves.

My best advice is be there around infusions, that's when moms are most needed.

michele1028

thank you

michele1028

thank you , your advice was very helpful. Good luck to you.

Italychick

Michele, I hope my message came across right. We want our moms to be our rock, there when we need them, but also want to be strong and independent when we can so mom is proud too.

ninjamary

Never - why do you say you are getting 5% or less benefit from chemo? We are both triple negative. Granted our 5 yr survival rate sucks compared to the er/pr/her2 gals, but once we pass the 3 yr mark our odds get much better. I'm just curious.

ninjamary

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/02/opinion/was-it-c...

Excellent article in the OP-ED section of the NYTimes. Though the woman had a rare cancer in her ovaries she went through some of the same emotional turmoil we all did.

Jackbirdie

a great link, NM- imagine a basketball-sized tumor...ugh..

I thought the mention of ataraxia was interesting. I felt something similar before surgery, but did not achieve it through prayer. I'm going to follow up on that.

Jackbirdie

Leigh- according to my mojo calendar

TODAY IS YOUR LAST DAY OF CHEMO!!!!!!

Ringing the bell for you and sending out the dancing girls!

PAH-Tay in Nawlins!

🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🎈🎈🎈🎉🎉🎉🎈💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🎉🎉🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎈🎉🎉🎉🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔🔔

Leighrh

Today is the day!!! Thank you Katy!! I hope today is my final goodbye to the 6 th floor of Mary. Bird Cancer Center!!

shaz101

CONGRATULATIONS Leigh I'm ringing the bell for you 🎶🎼🔔🔔🔔🔔

ninjamary

Yeah Leigh!!!!

Carrie37

Congrats Leigh!!!! 🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎈🎈🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊

Meme117

Congrats Leigh, have a great last day!

shaz101

has anyone had any mamogram or tests yet? I hate being in limbo. I see my BS on monday I guess I'll know more then. I saw my GP today, he's running a whole heap of blood tests and x rating my hands. He said I'll do just your hands because I'm guessing you're a bit over having test done! Yep I am. But im also sick of being in pain. I just want to move without having to think about it first. I want some energy, I want my life back! Rant over 😊

Michelle, im so sorry that you and your daughter have to go through this crap. I wish you both the very best. For all my whining, we do get through this! It's just a nice environment to vent.

IndyGal35

Maryellen, 7 planes, 50 greys over 25 fractions (visits).

Hooray, Leigh! It's so great to see another one of us ringing out!

Michele, I agree with others. I love my mom dearly, but I can read her like a book. She insisted on spending an hour or two with me at chemo despite my protests, and I could see the worry and sorrow behind her smiles. It really added more stress on me. I say let her go alone but send funny texts if you want to check in. The first chemo is very long due to all of the vitals checks and slower drip rates used.

Theresa, that sounds like something I'd do! You are too funny.

ninjamary

Sharon,

I wish they would have given me another mammogram after chemo or radiation. They won't. I have to wait and year and one day from my last one. You know, the one in which I was diagnosed. They look at me like I asked for a bag of crack cocaine when I requested a follow up mammogram.

lovlilynne

Michele - if your daughter wants to go alone, then let her. You could stay home and clean her house or make dinner while she's gone. If her house is already clean, then do laundry. Don't ask her, just do it.

eheinrich

Just checking in. It appears I don't hve an infection - altho I am awaiting a third culture result today. I had a second round of iv abiotics yesterday as a precaution. What PS & the other PS she works with who came in to consult think is that I'm having a rare reaction to the preservatives the adm is stored in prior to use. If that's the case then steroids and antiinflammatories should get me through until the stuff dissipates/gets broken down. If this next blood culture comes back w anything bacterial though then everything comes out.

I cant get in or out or bed by myself,car either. Pain ranges around a 7 give or take. I'm not a big baby with pain - 2 natural child births, trip to Vegas 4 days post MX - this has knocked me right on my ass. I need to ask for better pain meds today. Although I'm really just a foggy mess. My BIL is refusing to leave until I am 100% which is fabulous and truly indicative of the kind of guy he is.

I wish I never started this.

Lee are you getting yours out for exchange or because you are done with the whole situation? I know you have had a lot of pain along the way.

I'm reading everyone's postings but can't keep things straight to respond except that I loved the lesbian hair post - so funny.

xo

ninjamary

Eheinrich - so sorry to hear what you going through. Did your BS recommend a reconstruction at diagnosis? I thought of doing a BMX and after talking to my BS and MO they advised against it in my case. My deciding factor was my genetic testing.

Jackbirdie

Eileen- I am so sorry for your pain. If you went through two natural childbirths then wow.... You are in Deep. I hope they can give you better dope today. Jack is sending his mojo along with mine.

IndyGal35

So sorry, Eileen. At this point, I'm ready to get the TE out as soon as possible after radiation ends next month. Mine were expanded so fast that the skin around my incisions was even peeling, and I'm nowhere near the size I want to be. It's not the PS fault. It's all due to my rads timeline, but 450 mL in 5 weeks was just too much and continues to punish my poor body. It's such a personal decision, but there's no way I'm going to wait until April (6 months post rads) to get the swap. I'd rather go back to flat and get back to an active life with much less pain. We can always try a DIEP down the roadif I want it.

ksusan

Go, Leigh!

Eileen, I'm sorry you're in continuing pain.

pboi

Congrats Leigh!

Eileen I'm so sorry to hear you are still in so much pain. Hoping that you are able to get some meds for better pain relief today. Happy to hear you have such a great BIL who is helping you through this. Hope you feel better soon...hugs.

PB

Meme117

E sorry you are still not feeling well, kudos to BIL!

Mary with regards to follow up mammos I think my BS said 6 months but now I'll have to recheck with her. After some research it does look like the recommendation is 1 year.

http://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/Recommendationsf...

http://www.nccn.org/patients/guidelines/stage_i_ii...

I'm not sure why, reading thru sounds like maybe false positives or the radiation. For me personally I'd like 6 months as my BS said my tumor probably started 6 months to maybe a year ago and it was over 2cm and had mets to the sentinel node.

Anyone else have info from their BS?

Beachbum1023

MeMe117, I just saw the BS in July for my mastectomy follow up from December. All is well on the surgical aspect, but the mammo showed "something" on the other side so I have to go back in January for another mammo. She did say it probably is NOT a cancer, hopefully just "something". Such a relief, NOT! So dodging the rabbit hole once more.

I have a CT, whole body scan, and blood panels at the end of September as well as a visit to my MO for follow up. Then I see the Cardiologist in October to check my heart damage from the chemo to evaluate my EF% rate. I have all of the follow up I can take right now. I just saw my PCP for lingering side effects in July, and back to the BS in January. I forgot the eye Doctor in October to check my blurry vision, and I recently fell and my knee is killing me so probably a trip to Ortho. That's my plan for now. Good luck with yours!! Cheryl

Jackbirdie

Cheryl- nice to see you! Sorry for the worries. Passing back that bucket of hugs.

molly1976

Theresa, I am dying at what you said to the woman in the airport. So perfect. I admit I am getting really tired of all the commentary on my hair, even from people who are so well-meaning with things like "oh, it's really growing back now!" I know, dude, someone mentions it to me every 90 minutes of my life.

I am having my first post-treatment mammogram at the end of this month. My MO said I should wait until then in case I'm still sore from radiation. I'm okay now, really, but I'm going to Denmark next week and if I do have something in there to find I sure don't want to know about it until after my vacation. After this one I will have them every 6 months for the next 2 years and then go to annual.