Am I the only with Nausea??

Hi Strongmom,

You are not alone, but you should not have to feel this bad.

My own experience was better than I expected but not nausea-free.  I finished AC chemo in Aug. and although I never had severe nauseau and never actually vomitted, I pretty much always had a low level nausea.  I was on Emend and dexamethasone for 3 days and ondondestron (sp?) for 1. The zofran I was given for breathrough naseau had no effect for me. 

However, I know several women (through a BC exercise group) who had more trouble with nausea than I did, and Emend, even tho it is often hailed as a wonder drug, did not work for everyone.  Some women on dose dense AC in particular.  Whenever one of us was having bad SE, our trainer would push us to go back to the nurses or our onc and demand different drugs - that with all the anti-nauseants available today, no one should suffer through severe nausea.  We all react differently to different drugs, so if Emend isn't working for you you should ask to try something else.Don't be afraid to go back to your onc and ask if there is anything else you can try.

Hope your drive was okay.  Can you get someone else to drive you to apptmts.? 

Hang in there and good luck.

Hi Strongmom,

Ouch, I'm sorry! I recognize those problems you are having! Drinking plain water became impossible when I was on AC, I could not even stand hearing the word.

Seltzer with flavoring, but no sugar, worked for me. (think Poland Spring w. Lime, as an example.) Also lemon water: Cut a lemon in half, squeeze juice into a tall glass, drop lemon in and add ice-water or hot water.

Both the fresh, citrusy smell and the tart flavor really helped! 

Try finding foods that don't turn you off - cold, tart foods worked best for me - I ate a lot of  plain, unsweetened yoghurt with frozen raspberries and bananas mixed in.

Be well! 

Ixia 

Hi Strongmom,

Gald you were able to get something else.  One thing I would recommend, even tho it sounds difficult, is to eat a little bit as often as possible.  I had a hard time getting myself to eat, but once I ate something my stomach usually felt better for awhile.  The trick is finding things you want to eat.  I could not eat bread, anything salty, most vegetables except tomatoes, coffee. I am vegetarian, so this left me with eggs (sometimes), fruit, yogurt, cereal, black tea.  Unfortunately, I only ate at mealtiimes, which meant I ended up losing weight (which for me was not a good thing) and becoming weak and anemic.  I would have done so much better off if I had eaten more frequently.

Have you tried gatorade? This got me through chemo day and the days right after when it is especially important to drink water (for the C part of AC).  Keep experimenting until you find something you want to drink.

Hope the next cycle is better for you.  You are getting there.  Don't despair.  You will get through it.

Hugs

Hi Strongmom,

    You are not alone.  I finished AC in May 2006, but I can still remember the severe nausea I had.  I was on three or four different anti-nausea meds and I still had it, even vomited a couple of times.  I ended up losing 10 pounds while on AC chemo.  It took me two years to gain it back.  I am now at my official pre-chemo weight. 

    The best things that worked for me was fruit smoothies and soups.  Plain water aggrevated the nausea for me.  So, I would sip the clear broth from certain soups, drink a fruit smoothies when I could, and ate plain chicken breast.  Exercise also helps...try to go for a walk if possible.

    I wish you the best.  You will get through this.  The last couple of treatments are the worst.  Hang in there!  Hugs....

    Nancy