Has anyone started a forum for Chemo in Dec 2008?

Hi Brenny,

My onc did not say anything about alcohol, (she does not say much anyhow. ;(   She and I are not a good match.  I don't question the TC Rx, but she is not warm.  I need warm and fuzzy!  Hell, I would take luke warm.  Thinking about switching oncs.)  I just thought I should stay away from wine  I just love to sip on wine when I am cooking on the weekends or sit with a candle and relax as the kids have Rock Band at its loudest decible. 

okay sorry for that silly obnoxious post, blame it on a bad sense of humor. Seriously I had not heard that hint. I am better this morning headache is only a 2 on the richter scale and it has warmed up outside so instead of snow we are getting rain. Glad I dont have to drive anywhere today. Going to try putting the tree up today as my five year old is sure that Santa wont come if we dont have a tree. May even try to make cookies. I do feel pretty human this morning.

ENFENETEE - Sorry you had to join us, but THANK God for that accident!

simvog - Where did you get these masks? I'd like to have a few sitting around here just in case. I didn't realize that week 2 was going to be the weakest week, I had assume I was getting out of it. Looks like my son is getting a head cold, so I'll be staying away from him. I feel bad as he's been having a hard time since my cancer trip started and now I'll have to push him away But I did tell him this morning that mommy can't get sick, so hard to understand in a 5 year old's head.

Colleen - That's a tricky one. My first thought was to say that chicken is really starting to taste bad, but if you do, NO more chicken, they'll all switch to ground beef, the other cheap meat, so be prepared for tons of spaghetti & chili! But.. I hear you, we were fed from Mon-Thursday this week and we had chicken & rice EVERY night this week, not true, once it was chicken & potatoes Yeah, I'm pretty sick of chicken as well and I love chicken! Starting next week, they'll be bringing food Mon-Wed-Fri until treatment is over (probably around May). I am thankfull and don't want to complain, so we'll try to do variety on nights we have to cook. Our problem is that everyone wants to bring hot food. It's Winter, by the time it gets here, it needs to be warmed anyway, so chicken tends to be dry, which I have a hard time with since tasteless dry meat, all I have is texture, not very appealing. I've been trying to say that food doesn't have to be here AT dinner time, I can heat up, but it's not working. Oh well, still very thankfull I'm not having to cook. Didn't think I would, maybe it's the lack of taste, but I do miss my cooking. No problem with cheese here, we all LOVE cheese, but can't stand american cheese, again texture.

Firni - Bone aches are from the Neulasta shot. I'm working as hard as I can not to be sick and to keep my blood counts high enough. I DON'T want that shot! Got aches bones from Taxotere, the nurse said it would have been worse if I had the shot. But it should pass. Have you tried a hot bath?

Brenny - on the wine issue. Not sure why, but you shouldn't be drinking every day. My nurse said, it's ok if you want a glass on Christmas but should be too much! Yeah right, I'll be having more than 1 glass per cycle (if my taste buds wants to show up again!). Like hubby said, if she said 1 glass, she means 2 because she knows that patients always push limits a little therefore they can't give you the exact limit. I'd have to ask why we can't drink. But if you have1 glass/week I'm sure you're fine. I need to work on a question list for next appt!

sdavis - You're too funny! My first thought was, WOW, I can't believe she actually wants to have sex!! LOL! Then I figured it out. You know hubby got a book about husband dealing with breast cancer (how to cope withy wife BC). Of course he's a man, so he turned to the sex part, books says "be prepared to take care of your own self for a few months!" He's been nice though, hasn't even tried, but I'm starting to feel bad for him, but this is NOT even near being in my thoughts yet. I keep telling him I'm starting to look like Frankenstein's wife with all those cuts! But yeah, I was told to use condom as well. While chemo causes infertility, in some cases and can cause fertility. We have already been dealing with infertility since they day we were married, with our luck, that when I'd finally get pregnant!

Well, gotta go. Have to fix my hair while they're still here

Bone pain from I assume the Neulasta took me by surprise last night. I was going to call my onco's office if it didn't get better today but it did. It felt like I'd been beat up and I couldn't sleep - again. I've been reading a book entitled " What Helped Me Get Through" and there is advice from an oncologist who said that in 20 years of working with people, the ones that did the best were the people who made sleep a priority. I have always had sleep problems but I am trying to make sure I get my rest right now. But it's really hard if your body won't listen! If the pain has subsided for this shot, can I expect to be done with it until the next?

P.S. Check to see if there are books, magazines, etc. at the hospital for you to take out. The American Cancer Society drops off books at the local hospital cancer center and you can just take them and return them when you're done. The one I'm reading is from them.

Hello Divas

Just got home from a day at the mall shopping.  Today is day 10 for me from first TX and I feel great.  My taste buds are still off and I don't want anything to do with sweets...been eating pickles like nobody's business.  Wine is still awful tasting......

Getting back to normal as far as teaching my Zumba classes...taught four classes this week.  Will be back to 6 after the holidays. 

I did have a few more pains from the Neulasta shot that I had gotten last Monday.  I had pains on Tuesday and then again on Friday...but working out helped with that. 

I have my follow-up appointment with my Onc and bloodwork on the 23rd...anxious to hear what my counts are! 

What NO SEX????!!!!!!!!!!!!  Nobody told me that!!!!!  Why is it that we all don't get the same information!!!! LOL 

Hugs

Lisa

Too funny, ladies. I didn't bring my little Sex and Chemo handbook with me to STL, but the onc suggested refraining the second week after chemo because of your increased susceptibility to infection due to what is probably your lowest blood count.....now when I go home on the 23rd, I will actually read the book and see if it says no sex, or perhaps only sex with condom.  In the meantime, I'm here, he's there, and it's not an issue.....

My glass of wine tasted fine tonite; I am going to try a red and see how that goes -- I am not usually a red fan.  Makes sense that you refrain the days immediately before and after tx. One glass per cycle???  I don't think so!  That would be equivalent to no sex!  Maybe a glass two or three nights during week two.  I have also been drinking Crystal Light Tea and water, water, water.

I did buy a treadmill for the work apartment -- just don't see me going to the company gym with my little beanie and wig in tow. And the weather is starting to get pretty crappy, so.....

Good luck to the Monday warriors. 

What are you all drinking that taste ok? Today is day 7 and as of last night I can no longer stand the taste of water and I've been drinking bottled spring water! It became an horrible taste  Pineapple juice is ok for my 4oz in the morning but too acid for all day drink. I've been getting fluid with banana milk shakes, but again not an all day drink. Hubby told me at dinner time that I had to force myself to drink something, I totally snapped at him telling him I know but everything taste awful, then got up from the dinner table in tears! I'm having a hard with food/fluid intake right now. I've lost complete interest in eating & drinking. Dinner wasn't horrible but, it's usually barely spicy and by the time I was done my entire mouth was on fire. For the first time I've been thinking that I would much prefer nausea over lack of taste. And for the first time I've actually felt really down over this whole chemo. I don't know, this just plain sucks! Sorry about my pitty party, but I just want to taste my food! Still need to find something to drink. I'm seriously considering going to the grocery tomorrow and buying every different juice & drinks out there and try them one by one... geez

Caroline, Try Gatorade, that and ice tea is about all I can stomach.  I'm going to the store tomorrow to restock and try the G2 which is sugar free, I usually drink sugar free drinks, wasn't thinking and was drinking 4 bottles of reg Gatorade a day! No wonder I didn't loose a pound.

Good Luck

Caroline: I haven't had that problem - yet, but I do know that drinks taste better to me generally when they are ice cold. When I'm tired of water, I found ice cold vitamin water doesn't taste as sweet as juice. Good luck finding something.

Hi Caroline,

Try some of your kid's juice boxes.  When I had West Nile and now with Chemo, when all else fails, Minute Maid Apple Juice works for me.  You can also eat jello, Maybe make some with fruit in it.  If you want something hot but don't want tea try some broth.  Chicken broth is very soothing.  Try to drink different things throughout the day so no one thing turns on you.   I also have some V8 Fusion which is really sweet.   I cut it with water, put in a lot of ice and it's pretty good.

After we went to that holiday party on Sat. and the hostess got my tears going, I cried over everything the rest of the day.  I guess that's when we know this is real.  When we just break down, become some raving lunatic with our families and in general, not ourselves.  Thank goodness we are a strong group and it doesn't happen all the time.  When it does happen, we are strong for each other.   

Cinda, I too am really loving spicy food.  I was hesitant to try coz the little book says no to spicy food.  I'm so glad I gave it a try.  Now have you only had one treatment?  And you have chemo brain already??  That poor kid.  Nadir is when you are most vulnerable to infections because of low white blood counts.  Each chemical has a different nadir.  For those of us getting TC, nadir is days 5 thru 14.  I don't remember what you're on and I don't want to look and lose my post.  Simvog has a link a little farther up the page to chemocare.com where you can find the nadir for your treatment.

We put the tree up last night and got the lights on it.  I guess I'll spend today leisurely decorating.  It's  -9 degrees out, so staying in sounds good to me. 

Good morning ladies I'm feeling better this morning. After I posted last night, I went upstairs and tried everything we had in the house that was liquid. Nothing did it, I can do milk with added sugar, but not very refreshing and I was sooooo thirsty. Went back to my milkshakes, but changed it a little, this time no bananas and I added pure cocoa, about a tblsp. I told hubby it actually tasted like chocolate cake batter, he tried and said "yeah, ok!" LOL, he said I put in WAY too much cocoa, I could barely taste it. Well, as I was putting all the ingredient in my blender, I just lost it, can't believe I finally cry and it has to be over a silly drink! Drank the milkshake and went to bed. Thanks for all the suggestions, I need to make a run to the grocery today. I plan on buying ALL your suggestion plus anything else that I might find! Won't be a cheap run, but I seriously need to find something. It's a bummer because we're really water people, but the kiddos will enjoy drinking everything I don't care for  So far, adding stuff to water hasn't worked, the water taste comes through so strong. Soda typically gives me heartburn, so that wouldn't work either, I can't finish a can before getting horrible heartburn, imagine now.  I'll find something, and I'll try eating soup for lunch everyday.

msbusdriver - Sorry about the hair. Hubby's only request was that if I lose my hair while he's at work or sleeping (he works night) to at least cover my head first, then tell, then uncover. He said he might panic if he finds me crying & bald! LOL! but he's fine with it too, just wants warning.

Lainey64, here's the link to the chemo drugs http://www.chemocare.com/bio/ didn't know anything about it until yesterday! Nadir is the period at which your body is at it's weakest, lowest WBC so the time you REALLY need to protect yourself from sick people. Cytoxan is day 10-14, not sure about Adriamycin.

For those on a TC regimen.... my nadir (low point of white blood cells) was day 11. The combined drugs just happened to synch beautifully to virtually destroy all my WBC. Even though they could find no source of infection I still had a fever of 101°. I too was super careful and still had a problem. Next chemo I will be taking the Neulasta shot to prevent this drop. BTW, the other blood counts were OK! Now I am fighting a cold...ARGHHHHHHHH definitely want to be well for the next chemo treatment next week.

Day 14 TC - Yep, the hair is on its way out. I find I can still drink water, but only if it is from home (we are on a well). Evidently city water has additives that give my taste buds fits! Cranberry juice is delicious, and chocolate milk is still a treat.

msbusdriver, I'm sad about your hair, still obsessing about my own falling out, I wonder what it will feel like bald, I almost want it to be over....and then again I don't, I know this is the week!  If my guidance councelor makes one bald joke that will be it, my husband may have to bail me out on murder charges!  I don't have any patience for the jokes.  I can make fun of this, my good friends and family can but not co-workers or aquaintances, is anyone else feeling that?  Or am I just in a pissy mood?

Firni, I really do think it was chemo brain, because I'm way type A personality and would never have left her in the BR like that!  Poor kid!  Thanks for the lesson on nadir, I don't know how I missed that, I did know about the decrease in RBCs, WBCs and platelets, but was unfamilar with the term nadir.

Have a good afternoon ladies, I'm going down to my art room to play!  I slept 12 hours last night!

Cinda

You know what?  My onc nor the nurses told me anything about Nadir either.  I learned about it from someone on another thread on these boards.  Then I did a little research to clarify things.  Why don't they tell us stuff?

Haven't noticed any ear wax issues.  But my hair is getting pretty straw like.   And it smells funny.  Have any of you noticed that?