FEMARA

Is the melatonin prescribed or OTC, thanks for the suggestion.  Woke up again at 3:00am.

Everytime I take melatonin, I seem to be groggy in the morning.  I notice the bottle says it lasts 7-8 hours.  maybe I'm groggy because I'm getting up before the 7-8 hours is up???

I know that the Se's are different for everyone, so has anyone had pain that feels similar to hitting your funny bone?  and if so, any advice on how to deal with it

increase cholestrol & blood sugars, but starting to go back down after several months

Mine went up from the 170s to the 190s in one year.

I have a two month followup with my MO next week and I have lots of questions for him.  I have been surpised my SE have not been as bad as some.  I have not had my cholesterol checked in a while but I am sure my MO is keeping track of that?  I think I need to see my GP soon, he has been monitoring my thyroid levels since I am on syntroid.

Lack of sleep is better though.

Has anyone gone on a femara" vacation" to see if some these things resolve?  I am thinking about asking for that this summer....

momand2kids- I did go on a femara vacation. When I started it Jan 2009, I had slight trigger fingers in 3 fingers and severe joint pain within just a month or so. I took 6 weeks off, and it all went away. I then started back, but decide on my own, I was just going to take 1/2 a pill. My Onc agreed, though he would rather me take a whole one of course. No more trigger finger, but still pretty bad joint pain. I did have an ooph as well, so I'm sure that has contributed to the s/e's as well. I had my estrogen level tested, just to make sure I was achieving estrogen suppression with a half a pill. And it came back low, so I feel comfortable with that dose.

 Hoping now to find some way to alleviate joint pain, without taking pain pills. Taking glucosmine/chondroitin, gelatin capsules, calcium and Vit D. Just started a low dose of Nuerontin (300mg) for hot flashes, and hoping to get some benefit for the joint pain from that. BTW, the nuerontin has greatly helped the hot flashes. I was having 8-10 hot flashes a day, and my endocrinologist said " that's alot". He said Nuerontin (gabapentin) is prescribed up to 5000mg for seizures, depression, etc., but has been found at low doses to help with hot flashes. I hated starting another med, but at the same time felt like I was about to burn up, dry up, shrivel up from all the hot flashes:)

Joni

I am having trigger finger in my thumb!!!  This stuff is so painful!!  To all my femara friends who have had trigger finger, does it go away as a lot of the other things do on the med?  Or is it here to stay?  If it is here to stay, I am gonna talk to my oncologist about going to half a pill a day.  Also, my last surgery was under my left arm.  Cancer is now gone but I am having one heck of a time with numbness and tingling in fingers and also bottom of arm from hand to elbow.  Has anyone else had this?  I am wondering if it could be a build up of scar tissue.  I see onc. again in March and will ask him about it.

I just read what trigger finger was.  Evidently I had this slightly before cancer and yes it is acting up big time in the last two weeks. I have it in my middle finger.  I too have numb fingers but so far the Femara has not made it worse.  Mine is from taxol and I also have numb feet and from the knee down on the inside of my legs.

Ive been on femara 2 years now and I am having terrible joint pain- especially in my right knee. I see my onc in a couple of weeks and am tempted to ask for a bone scan because it hurts that much. Our household all got the stomach bug during the holidays and I skipped three days because I couldnt eat at all or take anything and the bone pain started decreasing in just those three days.

My cholesterol has also gone up- I really dont want to add another prescription for that so Im trying some alternatives. Also noticed some blood pressure increase- dont know if that is femara or some other SE of all the crap in the last 3 years.

My hair came back after chemo and is thicker than ever according to my haridresser! 

To my trigger finger friends, someday my wrists are affected with neuropathy. Somedays good, somedays not so good. First thing waking up with wrist problems is awful, but much better than in the summer when I was taken off Arimidex.

I have a question to ask.  I had the Novartis coupon, and after 4 $10.00 prescriptions, CVS told me that Novartis pays only up to $800.00 of what the co-pay is. Tonight I had to pay $99.00.  My co-pay will be 50% of the drug which has gone up to $522.00, last summer it was $430.00. Has anyone else noticed an increase in the retail drug cost. Oh well, it will keep me bz tomorrow calling the drug company. The retail price is going up and up and up. Has anyone on this site used the Novartis coupon. Will check back tomorrow.

Thank you. Good night.

Okay, now I have a new problem to worry about (always something!)  As you kknow, I am currently on femara, having normal side effects, but nothing too terrible (except the higher cholesterol)  My onc asked me at my appt this week if the pharmacy had called me about switching to arimidex.  I'm assuming they are asking all willing patients to switch since it is so much cheaper now that the generic has come out.  I think it's pretty much a done deal (that's what happens when you have an HMO, I guess) but he did ask me again, right before I left if it was okay to switch.  I told him I'd have to think about it--I'm not having any more than the usual side effects (besides feeling old and crickety etc) but I'm afraid to switch--what if it's worse?  What do you all think?  Should I put up a fight and kick and scream to keep the femara?  Or should I choose my battles and let this one go, since they are basically the same? 

Ronna I get my Femara at Walgreens and I've been using the coupon for 8 months, every time I pick it up I have to tell them I have a coupon on file and they readjust the cost from my copay down to $10, can you call a different pharmacy and ask them if they accept your insurance and the coupon and see about getting your prescription transferred over?