Starting chemo January 2009?

Hi ladies! Well finally got my drains out today but I still have fluids. Have to go in next Mon. to be drained. Fee pretty good except my arm is really bothering me and my drs. nurse told me I will have to see a physical therapist because the exercises aren't working for me. Its really hard to do. I will be leaving for W.V tomorrow to visit my sister whom I haven't seen since Christmas. I hope all of you have a great weekend and I will catch up when I get back.

Hey Jewels..

Just checking in/trying to catch up.... Plutz, congrats on getting the drains out... I too had to go to a PT to get my range of motion back... it actually was the most pleasant part of all this treatment stuff...

Lisa, hope you are recovering well... so sorry about your friend.

BrendafromFL - good to hear from you!

Jess.... that is a good reason for new carpet! lol

Jilly.. have fun on vacation!

Misty... hoping Malcolm doesn't wait too long ... sending good thoughts...

I think I'm going to fast forward ovarian removal here... working on that.... MRI tomorrow on my back to see why it hurts all the time (xray came back clear but slight spine curvature)... other than that... feel great.. hair is filling in.... hope you are all doing well this week!!

Hey all.  Well, I cleaned the carpet and it looks pretty good.  Darn....no new carpet!  Oh well.  All is well today.  Trying to figure out when I can get away for a couple of days, but dd and driving....it will all work out.  

Aloha girls!

I hope everyone is doing well.  I have been so busy with vacation and getting kids back to school that I have not had much time to spend on the computer.  It's a far cry from a few months ago when all I did was lay around waiting for a new post to read.  What a difference a few months can make.  

How is everyone's hair doing.  I have a bit of an afro!  It's so curly.....I finally figures out how to keep it from being a big frizz ball....I have to load it up with Paul Mitchell dry wax.....and it look better....how about anyone else...any great hair ideas to recommend. 

I hope everyone is doing well!

Patti: congrats

Jess: had to laugh, but sorry about no new carpeting

YOTH: me too.  People walk right by me in the hallway because they don't recognize me

Alo: I'll try that, right now I'm just plain lookin like a poodle

Lisa: happy to hear things went well.  Baby and be kind to yourself, that's still a lot of surgery so soon after everything else.

I tell you, my myopathy is slowly getting better, and I'm learning how to compensate for the neuropathy, but getting so tired of my feet hurting all the time.  Plus, the fatigue is the same.  That's what I have a hard time getting across to people. Parts of me are getting better, but the fatigure is the same as if I'm still going through it. Sure makes getting a normal life back in a struggle.  I'll take today over a few months ago anyday though. 

Had the wierdest thing happen this week.  DH mentioned a food I ate a lot during chemo but not before or since. He mentioned it and I pictured it in my head and just started gagging.  Guess some memories will be hard to bury.

Oh well, at least the sun is shining today, time to get off to work...hope you all have a great day

I saw my gyn today for a overdue pap and birth control consultation.  My last pap was in 2007, I somehow forgot to take care of it in 2008.  Wonder why?  But now that I am a cancer survivor my test results automaticaly are reviewed by my doctor instead of a clinician.  Normally 20% of the normal tests are reviewed as a control, but us cancer survivors get special treatment. 

 I decided to go with the IUD and take care of while in the office so that it would be in place for our vacation.  OUCH!  It really hurt. It was interesting that my gyn/ob said that he did not think having another child was completely out of the question, just not very easy.  He seemed to think I should ask my Onc what he would say if I said I we wanted to try to get pg.  Somehow I don't think getting pumped on hormones to get pg is a good idea for me.  I have to say thought that did not feel completely comfortable about getting the IUD.  Rationally it makes sense but my gut was not happy about it.  Maybe its just my denial about not having any more babies.  I like have sex with the possiblity of having a baby, even if the possibiity is very very small.

 Ok I need to get some things done around here before DH gets home.  Hope you are all well.

Renrel 

Hawaii--all the above---very good advice.  My ps had me moving my arm right away. I did slow yoga like stretches,deep breathing actions and  moved what I could when the arm hurt too much.  I did find if I sat still too much and didn't attempt to move around, the muscles would lock up and pain lasted longer. 

I was also happy to have big loose button up shirts pains with fairly big pockets in them.  I wore the shirts and put the drain bulb in my pocket.  There are great mastectomy products you can buy to carry the bulbs in, but I found loose fitting pants the best for me. 

Hi everyone,

Thank so much for all the great advice and encouragement.  I'm a little less nervous now knowing that so many of you have gone thru this and have come out on the other side.  It's so great to be able to discuss these issues on this board.  I'm so glad I found this back in December.  Although I haven't always posted, I always read all of your posts and have been amazed at everyone's strength and will.

 Lisalisa - So glad to hear that you're recovering well.

 kt57 - So you golf game improved?  Maybe this will also help my game although i really didn't have much of a game before.  LOL.

Hawaii808 - Sorry about needing surgury but as everyone said no nodes is great!  I had a bilat with expander.  The recovery was pretty easy. I stayed in the hospital 2-3 days but they would have let me out earlier. I chose to stay and let my family get things ready at home.  I was off pain meds pretty quickly.  Having to sleep on my back was hard.  A friend lent me foam forms in wedge shape that I put under my back and legs.  It helped keep me on my back and the angle probably helped with drainage.  I was told not to lift over my head for I think 3 weeks and I was not to lift more than the weigh of a quart of milk for 6 weeks.  It is a good idea to have shirts that zip or button up the front since you can't raise your arms over your head to get into other clothing.  I also got camies rat Costco that I could step into and still wear them all the time.  I got muscle relaxant to help me sleep.  The PS thought that muscle spasms might be what was waking me up at night.  That most of what I remember from my surgury.  My PS is very conservative about what you are allowed to do after surgury.  She scolded me for my handbag being to heavy and when she thought I was back at work since I had my ID on me.  

 DH and I are working on getting our Mojo back. I got an IUD on Thursday, so spontanity is now possible.  I have mixed feelings about it.  I know I should not get pg but I still want to so taking such an absolute precaution bothers me on an emotional level. But rationally it is great to have a form of birth control that is non-hormonal, requires no effort after placement, is very reliable and can be removed as soon as I want to be done with it.  

We saw UP! last night and really enjoyed it. Today I took Gabe on a playground playdate with a child he will be in school with next year.  A chance to make a new friend one on one before school starts.  It took an hour for them to warm up to each other but after that they were doing well.  Tomorrow we leave on family vacation so I will not be on the boards much.  8 days in New Hampshire around Storyland which everyone raves about.  It should be alot of fun.

 I am still doing the Reiki.  It seems to help DH sleep at night and a few friends who are dealing with different stages of canser said it made them feel better as well.  Relaxed.  It is less easy to feel the effects on myself but I think I feel better when I do it for other people.  I have been reading alot about it trying to understand more of the theory behind energy work.  We had friends over the other night and she was telling me how she does not believe in this kind of stuff but that she knows it does work.  A healer in a neighboring town cured her addition to nicotine by just placing his hands in her aura.  And she went to see him in complete disbelief.  She had a pack of cigeretts with her to smoke when she left the appointment.  She has not smoked since her appointment, years ago.  She took her mother to see him due to lymodema (sp) he placed his hands on her arm and shoulder and the sleve she was wearing that had flesh pushing out the ends just fell off because her arm shrunk down immediately.   This man appearantly had a great deal of pain at times in his life and will do his best to heal anyone of pain for no charge.  I would live to meet him just to learn about the type of energy work he does.  

My hair is getting very thick and I need to shave every where I used too, which sucks, but I guess it is normal which is good.  My nails are getting better but are still not good.  My eyelashes are growing in, so they are reasonably thick but short.  We will see if they fall out again. I think there was something else I wanted to share but I forgot what.  

Have a good week!

Renrel 

Crap!

Nothing is ever black and white...

After 3 months of Lupron injections, two blood tests confirm I'm still NOT in complete menopause.  So, the Arimidex I've been taking for months hasn't been doing squat!  Onc told me to stop taking it because I've been getting all the SE's and none of the benefits!! .Fast forwarding ovarian removal... and I mean... AS SOON as they can prepare the table!! KT57, I may just beat you to it!!  And, that is funny about the "chemo couch".. I have "chemo sheets" that I refuse to use on my bed now.. lol

FYI, if anyone is in my same situation - i.e., getting Lupron to shut down ovaries... please ask them to do a blood test to confirm you are in complete menopause.... Oh well.. whatever..!!  I must have raging estrogen... first Tamoxifin failed me, now Lupron failed me? 

The good news is... my back MRI is back.. the pain is not being caused by cancer thank Goodness.. but I have a herniated disk and slight scoliosis... OMG... relief and pissed off at the same time! lol

On a brighter note.. just got back from Indianapolis Colts Training Camp and it was FUN!! 

holtbolt - sorry that you are taking meds and not benefiting from it, hope the surgery is soon and you have quick healing, good luck sister.