Has anyone started a forum for Chemo in Dec 2008?

Firni - I too have been on AI's since March after completing chemo.  Things started coming in slowly but surely through the summer and then by September my brows and lashes started to go again.  I now have some lashes, a shadow of brow that looks ridiculous, nothing underarms or down below and leg/arm hair is nonexistent again.  I did however develop a lush peach fuzz on my face which is truly alarming and disgusting and I hack at with scissors.  I see my onc in 2 weeks and wonder what he will tell me this is all about!!

Have a great day ladies.  I haven't been posting but do keep up with you all.  Just couldn't let the hair thing go to see if others are having the same experience.

Bobbi

Hi ladies!  I hope everyone is doing OK.  I want to ask you for some help.  I really need your opinions.  I posted my reconstruction pictures on the Timtam's forum.  I really think I need to have a revision to upgrade to larger implants, high profile to give me more projection.  Let me know what you think.  I can take the criticisms!  Thank you all!

Sonia, Your original result does look good.  I do think you PS has the surgical skill.  But you need to do what you need to feel better.  Bras not fitting is the worst.  With my original implants, I tried on over 100 bras and couldn't find one that fit.  After the revision to go a little larger, I don't have any problems with bras.  There is still some "empty space" with some due to the NAC missing.  But that is nothing compared to before the larger implants.  

In the photos, it does look like your one side is smaller than the other.  Is that why the pocket revision? 

Sonia, my natural right side was smaller than the natural left side.  Still is a little bit.  I'm thinking that's just how my chest is.  I'm not worried about it tho.  I figure if both sides pretty much fit into the same size bra, it's all good.

Texas, I'm so sorry to hear about your sister's friend.  That really sucks.  I'll tell ya, I just about get to where I feel l"m living a normal life again and then I hear about a recurrence with some one and all the little squirrels start racing around in my head again.  I guess that is the new normal life now.

YES!  BC S**KS!!!!!

Anyone else still have missing lashes and brows? My lashes are about 1/3 the length they were pre-chemo,and brows are very sparse. In other words, my eyes still look like I'm going through chemo.

I've about decided that if they aren't better by summer, I will look into permanent (tattoo) makeup: brows and eyeliner. Hard to move on when I look at my reflection and see the "chemo look" staring back.

Texas - my brows are horrible and my lashes just fell out again.  My onc said it is an SE from arimidex.  I don't know.  I too hate looking in the mirror and seeing that chemo look - it's just depressing.  And each day something new -like losing the lashes again.  I'm thinking of trying false eyelashes but what I really hate is the no brow look.  Having to draw them on every morning just sucks and I hate how I look to my SO in the morning.

Well, I have about 10 brow hairs on each side on the inside corner of my eyes.  My lashes are very thin, short and they have kinks in them so I can't even put on mascara.  My body and head hair is falling out again too.  I feel so sure that it's the Tamoxifen.  Bobcat, I'm almost surprised your onc said that losing your brows and lashes is from the Arimidex.  My onc keeps insisting that AIs and Tamox DO NOT cause hair loss of any kind.  He's such a liar.

I've thought about the permanent makeup but I'm so afraid they'll slip and I'll have some super thick line or a bump or something I don't like.  I will continue to draw for now.  You know, I've gotten so used to the chemo face and the bald spot on the back of my head, I don't even think it's unusual when I see myself in the mirror.  Now that is sad.

Firni, it went well, everything is normal, it just made me anxious to be in there.

About the hair thing. I used to be so sad because I always had very thick & long eye lashes & brows and after chemo it just wasn't getting as long as before and as thick. Now keep in mind that I didn't loose all during chemo (probably because of before thickness?), well, I looked at myself today and realized that my eye lashes were finally as long as they used to be. I had heard about the 3 month mark when it starts falling again, now I heard an explanation that made a lot of sense. You're hair are on a growing cycle, they fall all the time, but just a few here & there. When you loose all due to chemo, your hair is now ALL on the same cycle, so when it's time for eye lashes to fall, they all fall because they all started growing at the same time. It can take a year for the hair to start alternating so that they don't all fall at once.

A couple of months ago, my lashes & brows started going by clumps. As much as it stinks, it's normal. The first time I washed my hair and got a handful in my hand, I was almost panicked until I calmed myself by reminding me that I was loosing hair ALL the time in the shower before chemo. It's normal.

You might want to wait a bit before you go ahead with the permanent make-up, that's big step.

Glad everything turned out well with your onc, Caroline.  Hope yours goes as well, Bold.

I guess the whole hair thing is just part of the gifts of chemo.  Actually, Caroline, your hair is getting pretty long.  Bangs down to you eyebrows.  Wow!  You could even wear a head band or use barrettes.  My hair looks like Bold's is in her avitar.  Except my hair is dark and there are some bald spots.  That's 11 months after chemo and one tiny hair cut to shape the sides.  No length was taken off.   

Firni: Try ovation cellular therapy. You might need a jump start. I have never cut mine and I finished chemo in April. No bald spots but no bangs either. Time!!!!

I am just soooo glad to be over the harsh stuff. I am still very fatigued. I have burning tongue sometimes and my hips and lower back are very weak compared to before treatment. My breast that I had the lumpectomy on is sore. It does not help that the cat is always walking on it! (But she is soo wonderful hard to get mad at). Well off to shower and shave and smell nice and look good for my Onc. We are a strange species. I think that he will care more about me if he thinks I care for myself or something like that. lol

Love Love Love

I've chicken out of hair cuts twice already. I kept wanting to get it shaped but was never willing to get the scissors in. I'm actually glad I never cut since it doesn't need as much shaping now. Even though my hair grew through chemo, I kept shaving because it was the fuzzy stuff growing. By the time I finished chemo in March, I think the fuzz part was about done so real hair started growing. Been doing the barrettes since October, headband still looks bad! Hubby & I are going away for a week for our 10 year anniversary this June, so I'm waiting until then to get a cute cut and look great for our second honeymoon

Quite honestly, I'd rather be dealing with the lack of hair right now. Chemo did a number on my liver, I can't seem to be handling wine like before! LOL! I know, I shouldn't even be drinking wine, but I'm French, there's no way around it, I'll drink wine till the day I day My liver does seem weaker though. And I have a bad case of cording right now. Started therapy this past Friday. I love my therapist, she's the best and it's already helping a lot. I spent 3 weeks with a bent arm before I couldn't stand stretching it. The good news, I found today, is that when cording goes all the way to your hand, you usually can get rid of it for good. But now fun, at one point I couldn't even do laundry or dishes! Wearing a sleeve right now. My breast is still sore, not much but enough that it can get worrysome, but I try not to think about it.

While we're all out of the tunnel, it will still take a while before our bodies than be back to before chemo But... WE'RE ALL ALIVE And that's what matters.

Caroline, getting your hair shaped can sometimes add to how full it looks. At least it did with mine, and with another friend who lives nearby. Hers looked adorable after she let the stylist play with it!

Firni, believe me, I'm putting my liver into practice During chemo wine tasted awful, but as soon as chemo was over it was great again. I can't really go past 3 glasses (not that I need more!) So I really can't complain too much.

Bonnie, at least you weren't a big drinking to start with. I just can't drink water with a good meal, I would be a mess in your shoes! LOL!

I'm finally ok with the look of my hair. Seems like every month or 2, I need to come up with a new way to fix them and I always manage to find something that looks good. The short-short was challenging, I dyed them until I got close enough to my natural color and haven't put any dye in my hair since July or August. At this point, I no longer feel the need to shape it to look better. I'm so glad I'm past that stage. And yep, super curly as well, people can't believe it! Whenever I straighten them, it's twice the lenght! I did cut my bangs so that it would be nicer & straight, that helped a lot. Now going for the lenght. I was going through old pictures last night and I was so sad looking at my long nearly straight hair But if it's curly now, I'm hoping it will stick with the lenght, I always wanted curly hair