Starting Chemo in July 2009

Three words:

Activia, Colace and Prunes...

Aaaaahhhh! Relief!

Have a Great Sunday Triple J's!

Hello Triple J's!!!!!

Today is a no SE day for me!!  I'm 10 days after 2nd tx. Going to get blood work tomorrow. Hopefully it will all go well!

glassist:  You crack me up!  Labrador retriever..hehehaha  Thanks for the hot flash tip!

o2bhealthy:  Glad you got some relief!!!

Hope everyone has a great day!

Happy weekend JJJs!  Day #4 post treatment #2-miserable this time around; mostly because it's been way over 100 for days now & my a/c has decided to work inefficiently.  My daughter & I slept with every door & window open last night.  Had to do a prayer circle around the house before I went to bed for protection from critters & burglars!

Rachel shaved my head for me last night-couldn't stand the stubble anymore.  I like the smoothness-just wish I felt better.

Joni2

Just have to share that my taste buds are back!!!  I celebrated with a steak on the BBQ for dinner and even though it ended up overly well done, it tasted great!!!

Gill... Sorry to hear that your mouth is sore today,  I know exactily what you mean about cardboard corn though,  For a few days everything I ate seemed to taste like cardboard.  Because my tongue felt swollen and fuzzy, food was actually unpleasant and I was having a hard time eating.  When I woke up this moring, I realized that my tongue was returning to normal.  I savored my coffee and enjoyed every morsel I ate that tasted as it usually does. 

Now I know what to expect in my next chemo cycle   There will be a few days of tongue fuzzies where eating may be unpleasant, but I will be well stocked with soups, deli meats and other items that I found to be palatable during this cycle. 

In the meantime, I have a new appreciation for taste buds!

Dianne...

I am with you on the fatigue thing, spent most of yesterday in bed, and it was day 4 after 2nd AC.  Today, I am still tired, and slight nauseous...this really gets old FAST!!!!  I am hoping for a better afternoon and an even better tomorrow for both of us!!!

Linda

Went to Look Good Feel Better...what a great program. Thought I looked like a hooker with all the makeup on....jk!! Such great makeup and cleansers. Also got a nice little silicone breast insert for my bra.

Whair oh whair did all this hair come from???? It's falling out by the handfuls. I'm almost certain tonite will be the night I shave the head. What a nuisance to have hair falling out all over the house, car,work....

Still feeling good and tasting good as well. One week without symptoms will be very welcome.

Happy Monday Triple J's,

Joni1

Hey-it's Monday!  Well, I'm at work today, but certainly not dancing through the office like I did the 1st go around.  This time has DEFINITELY been harder; part of it is the heat and the broken air conditioner, but most of it is lack of energy & feeling like crap.  I must say though, I was channel surfing last night & came across the movie True Lies with Schwanzanager & Jamie Lee Curtis-pretty fluffy for an action movie, but the scene where Jamie Lee is pretending to be a hooker is funny stuff!  I love that woman-In my mind's eye I look like her, but of course, don't even come close!

Joni2   

Hello Triple J's!!!!

Came down with another sinus infection yesterday and today it has decided to travel down to my bronchials.  After my first treatment the same thing happened...so called my doc and they are calling me in an antibiotic....I've tried to be good about germs....I use sanitizer like it is going out of style!

Went and got blood work today (fingers crossed!).  While speaking with the girl taking my blood she told me she is doing the three day Susan B. Komen walk in Chicago coming up and I thanked her.  She went on to say her sister had breast cancer.  I said, oh, how is she doing?  She said she had it 8 years ago and everything has been fine until recently.  They just discovered it is in her bones.  I heard if cancer comes back it usually doesn't come back in the breast, but somewhere different. UGH!!!  I have been so bummed now.  I didn't ask what stage she was diagnosed originally and I wish I did.  I just feel like crying.  CANCER SUCKS!!!!

Eph3_12:  Sorry you are having such a time with the weather and SE's!

PauldingMom:  Your hair keeps growing through this?  I'm still down to stubble and am just waiting for it to do it's own thing, one stubble at a time..or lots or whatever it decides to do.  I do have some red dot rash things...like little stupid pimples or something....anything to do for this?  Your mom is so smart!  I tried to cold rag on my neck trick......cooled right down...tell her thanks!

NewportLori:  Glad to tasters are back!  Isn't that the greatest feeling?  You never know what you can't taste until you can't!

Gillyone:  Have you tried Biotene?  Seems to help with my mouth.

Nicknak0320:  We all have those tired, depressing streaks.  Keep reading and pull yourself up and out of it.  Some days I just count the hours til the day is over and hope I wake up the next day better than I was the day before!  I'm thinking of you and praying you perk up!

O2bhealthy:  I'm with you.....I too miss life before BC.  But, it will make us stronger in the long run.  I can say I definately have a new appreciation knowing someone is going through chemo. Before, it was like, oh bummer, but I didn't really know what that meant.  Now I do.  This is definately the place to whine...so go ahead and whine and get it out!  Can I ask what type of work do you do?  If you need the money, and they are willing to work with you through this...go ahead and go for it!   It may help take your mind off the whole "c" thing too!  If they decide they made a mistake, it wasn't meant to be.  Do your best...that's all you can do.

Well, I have been looking for a job, but very nervous as I don't want to scare them with the "c" thing.  So, I don't know...I just don't know.

Ladies....hope you all have a great day today! 

Just got back from having my 2nd A/C today.  My hair started falling out yesterday.  My hubby told me I was shedding worse than the dogs. 

Hope everyone has a great day.

I did it!

For all of you struggling with the shaving thing, I have to tell you what happened to me.  I started shedding terribly yesterday so I drug myself, along with all my pity and misery, to the wig store.  The first person I saw was a young girl walking around with a huge smile, beautiful tan, and completely uncovered bald head.  She was just so beautiful and confident.  She told me she was 25 (she has a very young son) and on her second breast cancer.  Her first was at age 19.  She bought a wig, but she left the store with her husband, son, and lovely bare head.  I can't tell you what an inspiration she was to me.  I bought a wig, came home and proudly shaved it all off!  And yes, Pauldingmom, it does feel empowering.  Go for it gals, it's not near as bad as you think.

good for you glassist!  I think we need a new thread to proudly share photos of our bald heads...it can be a source of comfort to those who are not "there" yet

Hello Triple J's,

Got chemo #3 (AC) at 1:30 today.  Felt really hungry and tired when I got home so ate and took a 3 hour nap.  Woke up feeling great, but gassy.  My husband just laughed because I would walk and fart very loud.  Well at least no heartburn and burping thanks to prilosec.  My doc said to take prilosec everyday during AC.  I plan to take 2 benadryl to see if I can sleep through the night. That's my doc's biggest concern and I'm not willing to take prescription sleep medication.

I did not shave and my hair began falling out on Day 17 through day 20.  Although many might not agree with my approach, I'm glad I did what made me feel good and was best for me.  I cut 12 inches off on July 4th and donated it to locks of love.  I did not shave my head and lost most of my hair except for the hair along my hair line so when I wear hats or scarves, you can't tell I'm bald on top.  Losing my hair was a little sad, but I'm glad it hung on around my hairline as it did my mother's 12 years ago. The hair falling out can be messy so my vaccuum and a lint roller really helped speed up the process.

Wishing all a good night!

Connie

Hi ladies - had my 2nd of 4 T/C tx's today.  Didn't go as smoothly as last time.  Had an allergic reaction to the taxotere.  Nurse sits with her taxotere patients to make sure they don't have a reaction before she leaves to tend to another patient in another room - lucky for me.  We were chatting about her upcoming vacation when I had to interrupt her to tell her I was feeling warm in my abdomen.  Before I even finished saying it, she saw that my skin was turning red and she jumped up and stopped the infusion and went to get me some benadryl and pepcid(not sure why the pepcid - but that's what they give).  I did start to have a little trouble breathing, but it didn't progress.  I'm not really surprised that I had a reaction.  I have allergies - suffered for 2 years with a bout of cold induced urticaria (I was allergic to the cold - who's ever heard of that?!) so I think my immune system is flaky.  And last tx, I did have the tiniest bit of an itchy throat just after she left the room.  It went away though.  Then later after the allergic reaction, when I was in the bathroom, my saline ran out and my tube got clogged or something and they had to fuss with it to get it going again. I felt like a bad patient.  I also had the slightest headache on my way home - possibly from the Cytoxan - even though she ran it pretty slowly.  But it went away.  So all in all- I guess the tx turned out well so far.  Aloxi is doing its anti-nausea job very well. 

Still being stubborn about the hair - just can't make myself cut it off.  There isn't much left.  I'm sure most of the rest of it will come out in the shower in the next few days.  I have spent more time cleaning up hair in the bathroom in the last few days...I guess I would just feel more comfortable going around the house without my head covered if I had even just a little hair.  But I can't get a good idea of whether the wigs I bought fit right or whether I need to exchange them until the hair is gone.   It would be easier if it just hurried up and fell out on its own.  Maybe now that I've had tx#2, the rest will come out this week.  If not, I guess I'll just have to get the scissors.

Hope all the SE's subside right away for all the ladies suffering with them.  Best of luck to everyone having tx this week. 

Connie,

Hope you are doing great after #3.  I had # 2 today, feel pretty tired and lightheaded but otherwise okay.  Did the ice chip thing during chemo today hope it helps keep some of the SE's in check.  I am following your lead on the hair.  I could not cut it, it is real thick so I am hoping some stays around the hairline.  Its starting to come out now I am sure it is going to get worse over the mext few days. 

Good luck to all, hope the side effects are minimal.

Carole