**NEW** Starting Chemo March 2009

Thanks PattiB..good info and tips!!Have a pile goin..the mouth wash and all the good toileteries needed!!  Hope you conitnue well and good to know you are goin back to work as well!!!That really would make a difference to have some sense of normalcy during such a day to day journey. Will keep you posted when I start!!!

Hugs,

Donna

kellerka   Patti and I are right behind you and I wish there were drugs to make us forget this whole ordeal sometimes......  All I have done today is pull my hair out literally and I got myself a bit choked up about it on the way home from picking my daughter up from school (didnt need the tissues though).  I am wearing one of the buffs I got all day to prepare myself for tomorrow.  The hair has to go.  Hopefully I will talk myself into not being a big cry baby...but if I do, so be it...tears it is    I love and will miss my hair but yes, I know it will come back.  Just one of the many steps we need to take to get through this BC BS.  Sorry for the foul language.

2 arms around you,

Diane

I buzzed my head on Wed.  I've never thought of myself as beautiful but the compliments I have received have been nice.  Apparantly the shape of my head is condusive to baldness.  Yeah me!  I am having one big problem though.  I am soooooooo tired.  Any suggestions on handling fatigue?  I am much more tired after this round. 

I will now check out the website for a free scarf.  That is awesome!

Good day to all!!

Cyndi

Cyndi,

I've read both extremes about the fatigue.  Mine has also been worse second time around, but onc blames it on changing from Taxotere to Abraxane.  Doc says to do what I feel like doing, no more and no less.  Lie around all day if that's what my body says, go running if my body thinks that's ok.  Other websites say that 30 minutes of walking a day helps with the fatigue, even if you feel too tired to do it.   On days that I've felt crappy (9 of the last 11), I tried to walk around the neighborhood some of those days, but would even get light-headed doing so.  

Anyone else got advice on fatigue management? 

So, I just returned from tx # 2.  Unfortunately, like a few before me, I had a reaction to the Taxotere. Thanks to having read other descriptions I recognized it immediately.  I was about a minute in and thought, great no problems.  Then I became bright red and had trouble breathing.  I tapped the nurse next to me on the shoulder and  said " Houston, I think we've got a problem".  They were awesome in their response.  My blood pressure had shot from 106/68 to 168/90.  We did the whole benadryl, more steroids and waited.  Then they started it up again slowly, increasing it at 5 minute increments and got through it.  I mentioned that I read about some folks having a reaction.  My onco replied, so did we do all the right things?  I don't think the medical profession appreciates patients with TOO much knowledge.

Other than a little scare, 2 down, 4 more to go.

Mom of boys...i'm pretty sure I'll continue the Taxotere, when they started it back up, I was fine. When I see the doc again I'll have to ask him to make sure. I don't want that reaction happening again.

Laurie

I just got home from tx 2 and it went WAY smoother than the first! Whoo-hoo! They gave me the benedryl after the A and then gave me the C, then finally the Taxotere I had reacted to before. last time benedryl wasn't enough and thye had to give me more steroids too. This time, just the benedryl was fine and I was hooked up 2 hours less than before!

 Dh's aunt and her friend who had BC 2 years ago came up for a visit and then all went to lunch with another of his aunts. he brought me bac good food from that and I ate it and then was all done. Very tired from the benedryl right now-

Michellein SJ, Bellydancer, Bethr, WLL, NYdeb48- hope your treatments today went well and I hope all of us have a SE free weekend!

I had my first treatment yesterday and everything went fine.  Like everyone has said the anticipation and waiting was FAR worse than the treatment.  It was a long day but had no problems.  I was actually very calm when I finally got into the room and sat in my recliner chair.  Went back today for my "shot" and so far so good!  I met a woman who was getting her shot at the same time and she also started her treatments yesterday for BC.  She was very eager to talk to someone who is going through the same thing and we will be having our next treatment at the same time, so I look forward to talking with her more.  I will let her know about this board and how very helpful and comforting it can be. 

Because I was supposed to start on March 12th, which was the day after the port was put in, I'm actually glad I had some time for the port to heal.  I think having Chemo right after would have been very uncomfortable.

Thank you all for the kind words and just being here.

Kellerka & DidleDiane - I must be right behing you both.  I am still not ready for the shave, I procrastinated today calling my friend/hairdresser who will shave my head and trim my wig.  She thinks shaving before gives us the power not the cancer treatment.  I'm just not ready, even though I have always "hated my hair".  Don't think I'll say that ever again.  I guess I will call her tomorrow morning after I see what falls out in the shower.  I have some buffs I picked up at an REI store (I wanted to see them first).  I do like them and will purchase more on-line and can't wait to see the Franceluxe headwrap. 5 more days to round 2 then we are 1/2 way through - Yeah!!!

PattiB, what treatment are you receiving? Yes check out franceluxe, I ordered my FREE head wrap today.

DonnaDio - I have a golden also.  He is huge and bad. Kind of a Marly.  He likes to mouth me whenever he wants something, which is often.  I walk him at least 20 minutes each day and was able to even right after the chemo - I wanted to stay active and it also helps him leave me alone after he gets some attention on his walks.

WII - Sounds like you're feeling pretty good, hope that continues.

Everyone - Have a really great weekend!!!

Mom_of_boys, I was told to take the -D version, and I too, for bone pain took 1 every 12 hours.  It seems that as soon as it wore off my nose started running like it had "dried me up" and was now letting go.  Odd.  I thought the twist of bitters and Tylenol sounded like overkill...er...over doing it, but I'll take some Vicodin if the pain is that bad.  (Oh, that was a nasty Freudian slip, and I put on on over my Freudian bra.  Pardon me. We are not goin' nowhere.  Nope, we have things to do on this planet, ladies!)

I, too, have felt like I am taking drugs under the counter, over the gums, and look out tummy, here it all comes.  I'm gonna talk to my chemo nurse about it.  It is just not right that some doctors say "no extra vitamins," because it may interfere with the poisons.  If you survive the treatment, then you can get better - for now, you can just get well.  Good grief, Charlie Brown!  Not lookin' forward to the liver filter queasies @ four/five days out later this next week.  Taxotare, oh, Taxotare (sung to the tune of "Galveston").  No offense meant to any one in Texas or anywhere else.

Love in Christ,

Sessna1

Gina, would you please add my name to the roster for March? 

I really like this forum.  It is great to have a group within the larger chemo group, just for women who started their chemo in March, 2009.  We are not alone  .

I started my chemo March 12, 2009.  I am in the heavy shedding of my hair stage.  I have an appointment with my hairdresser on Monday (day 18 post chemo one) to take off what ever is left.  I am okay with it.  I knew from the beginning that this was a definite possibility, so am ready to let it happen.  I placed an order from planet buff.  I also have a wig.  Had it styled on Wednesday and will have it adjusted (with no hair) on Monday.

Have a great day everyone.

Happy Anniversary Laurie!  Get some rest after work and then go celebrate!

NYDeb48 - Yeah .. 12 steps my butt!

mmdj43 - I'm definitely singing that song now!  My husband had to shave my head this morning because I decided to wash my hair while in the shower.  It all became matted and no matter how hard we tried we could not comb thru my hair!   So now he and I are twins.  He finished cutting, turned off the razor, stepped back to look at me and said "You're still beautiful."  I cried the entire time.  I know it will come back, but still ... so now I'm trying to figure out what to do with my head because I don't have one of those perfectly shaped noggins.  Anyhoo ... while I'm at home, I'll just let it go   I uploaded my new look.

Ricki13 - My husband and I went out for breakfast last week and I was extremely flattered when several men paid extra special attention to me while my husband was away from the table.  Two even got up the nerve to actually tell me I was very pretty .  That's something that definitely keeps a smile on my face!