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Anonymous
Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
edited June 2014 in Stage III Breast Cancer

Your Brain after finishing Chemo?  Geesh, I really feel like I've gotten a little "slow" or "retarded" or something like that.  Then, I think, OMG am I getting Alzheimer's now too???  I have some wierd experiences, anybody have this?  And is there really "chemo brain"?  I can't believe I did this today.. DH and I went to the garden ctr to buy mums 3 for $10.  He paid for them and told me to just get the 3 pumpkins he already paid for the mums..  Its like I never heard him.  I picked out the 2 pumpkins,which were 3 for $9 and gave the guy $20 to cover the mums too. Later after we left he reminded me "he already paid for them and he told me"  DUH..... So is this chemo brain?

image

Barb

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  • Mamita49
    Mamita49 Member Posts: 538
    edited October 2010

    I would call that normal life............

    Not everything is Chemo brain. Things like that happen. To any one. My daughter is 16 years, and forgets ALL the time her Cell here and there.

    All very normal. Dont worry........ 

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  • dlb823
    dlb823 Member Posts: 9,430
    edited August 2013

    Barb, it sounds like you haven't found this thread yet...

    You know your a cancer patient when....

    If that link doesn't work, just use those search words.  It's a sometimes laugh out loud funny thread about chemobrain or chemotard moments, and very comforting to know you're not alone!    Deanna

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  • Annie62
    Annie62 Member Posts: 1,081
    edited October 2010

    Yes, it's chemo brain! It does get better. A lot of it is being tired too. It took me 1-2 years to get my full energy back and my memory got better too.

     I still tend to not be able to remember specific words I want to use. Its more noticeable when I'm distracted or multi-tasking so I think that problem is a normal part of aging.

    Annie

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  • Hope_M
    Hope_M Member Posts: 261
    edited October 2010

    I felt that my difficulties began to get better about 5-6 years out from chemo.  Of course, the chemo put me into perimenopause, so I was never sure what was aging and what was post-chemo brain.  But it did get better.  I will still make odd mistakes, and I have difficulty with learning new things.  I probably have mild cognitive something-or-other (there is a name for it that I cannot remember!).

    So just to give you a little hope, maybe you will be better later.

    Hope M.

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  • SpunkyGirl
    SpunkyGirl Member Posts: 1,568
    edited October 2010

    It gets better, Barb!  You've been through so much, but I can say that three years after the end of treatment, I feel ALMOST normal (and so thankful for that feeling).

    Hugs

    Bobbie

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  • diana50
    diana50 Member Posts: 2,134
    edited October 2010

    Barb

    as bobbie said; it gets better. your brain will un-fuzz.  it does take awhule tho. i know it is weird to feel fuzzy...but it is from the chemo.

    hang in there

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  • NancyD
    NancyD Member Posts: 3,562
    edited October 2010

    I definitely have the "missing word" syndrome. I can even sit there and describe the word...the meaning...but the actual word eludes me. I know this happens to everyone once in a while, but lately it's been happening to me very regularly. It's terrible when it's in a business meeting.

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  • D4Hope
    D4Hope Member Posts: 352
    edited October 2010

    I had chemo summer of 09. I was a bit forgetful before now it's ridiculous. I have put my glasses in the freezer, put hamburger meat in the bread drawer, I also have problems with remembering words when I am speaking about a certain topic. Does tamoxifen play a role in memory mishaps too?

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  • amoccia53160
    amoccia53160 Member Posts: 57
    edited October 2010

    Same here! I forget words all the time.  I dial the wrong telephone numbers of family members and lose my keys at work at least once a week.  I even locked my purse and car keys in the car one time!!! Glad to know it doea get better in time....whew!  xxoo Annette

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  • karen1956
    karen1956 Member Posts: 6,503
    edited October 2010

    I still have memory issues 4+ years since finishing chemo, but it is improved since I stopped the Aromasin.  Memory is not what is was before BC...yes, I know I am 4 years older, but do people really age this much in 4 years!!!  Oh well, I guess aging is good!!!  Karen

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  • NancyD
    NancyD Member Posts: 3,562
    edited October 2010

    I forgot to mention (uh-oh, another symptom, lol) that when I have a series of tasks to do together, I have to conciously plot them out to remember them whereas before bc, I would just think about the end result. Then the series of steps to get there would just happen without my thinking very much about it. For example, if I have to take some recyling out to the storage on the back porch and continue to the porch door to let the dog in, I have to remember to drop the recyling off first otherwise I'll let the dog in and go back in the house with the recycling in my hand.

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  • Texas357
    Texas357 Member Posts: 1,552
    edited October 2010

    My gynecologist is the one who told me that our brains need estrogen, which is why he put me on low dose estrogen after my hysterectomy. This was a year before I was diagnosed with BC. I definitely believe that aromatase inhibitors can create memory lapses. It's frustrating!

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