January 2012 chemo

Nancy - Don't know if this will help, but I read on a previous thread of someone who said eating Raisin bran worked for them.  I tried it and it worked for me as well.  I've been eating it pretty regularly now.

Sleepless -  The dosage recommended for Zinc L-Carnosine is 8mg Zinc & 29.5mg L-Carnosine.  I bought it off Amazon for $7.99/bottle.   Just ordered Saturday so it's not here yet.  I'll give feedback after next chemo tx.  Let me know if you try it what you think.

Welcome annie3310 :-)



We were all nervous. I took an anti-anxiety med in the days leading up to my first and am planning on taking them again next week before my second treatment...



regards Jenn

Momof2inME

Hey there lady hope all is well with your tx. Hope you have a SE free cycle. I have been working this week with my hospice family tx in yhe morning never can sleep the night before no matter how much meds I take. Just also found out my husbands cuz was dx with bc this past week. Not sure if she is willing to talk about it yet. I did reach out to her just to say I was thinking of her, and if she wanted to talk I was here. Dont want to push too much. Just dontunderstand why bc is so prevalent.

Have somethings I would like to share with you so will message you while I am at chemo tomorrow.

Jenn - You look great!  What a good job your Hubby did!  I love your wig selection!  Thanks for posting the pics. 

I bought another wig on Wigs.com. I have a large head, so my choices are more limited. Can't wait to try it on!  This might become fun!

I'm not used to my new 'look' yet.  I don't hate it but I ain't lovin it yet either!  I wore my wig for the first time to school yesterday.  I teach in an alternative high school for kids struggling with emotional and social difficulties.  It is small and intimate, so we all know each other pretty well.  Well, some of the kids were a little upset.  Change is not good.  I think only one or two girls realized exactly what was going on, but no one asked.  One of the guys couldn't look at me for a while.  He said I looked too different.  Today will be better.  Most will have forgotten that I look different. 

Annie - Welcome!  As you noted, everyone takes their own journey, but we all seem to be heading in the same direction - health!  I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers that your path is smooth.  And let your partner care for you.  I'm sure you would do the same for her.  This was my biggest difficulty.  I'm an independent person.  However, I realised that I wasn't helping my relationship by limiting my husband's participation.  He thought I didn't want his help initially.  Once that was cleared up, our relationship has grown so much stronger.

Oh, I'm 4 days past my secont AC tx and I actually feel pretty good.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed.  No pain from the neulasta (no claratin), no real neausea, minor heartburn, fair appetite. I can't complain!  

Hope everyone else is hanging in there!

Jenn  You look great.  Love the wigs.  Thanks so much for sharing that.  You have a beautiful family.

Racelvk - So happy you were able to do your performances and to go out for your birthday.

 So far so good here on Day 7, except for some stomach cramping and tiredness I am ok.  I started getting a bit of a sniffle yesterday but temps are normal and it doesn't seem to be turning into anything more. 

Second treatment is coming later today. I so dread it! I'm on DD AC, so my treatments are every other week. The last 5 days have been normal and fantastic! I was able to go to yoga on Sunday and pilates reformer class yesterday. I've been out and about with good energy and good appetite. It's been great! Now the dread! It's amazing how you cherish the good days! I had acupuncture last Friday and am going back tomorrow. I hope that, in conjuction with Zofran and ativan helps with the nausea.

Welcome to the new folks. So sorry to see you here.

Shell-seeker-your posts are touching. If you like to go shelling, please check out an area in my neck of the woods-Shackleford Banks, NC. It's where I go in my mind for peace, beauty, solitude and shells by the bag full!

Jennt28-great pics, beautiful, beautiful! Very brave of you!

Have a great day everyone!

Angie

Shell - Seeker.. mom 's hair was the same way on Sunday.. I massaged her scalp as it was sore.. and we gathered all her hair in a bag.. to do exactly what you said in the spring- to put it out for the birds to make a nest!!!! Then with only a few patches left my dad buzzed it.. It was the hardest for her so far but we were all a part of it. My brother even shaved his head with her. Last night I picked her up to go to dinner and to the Feel good look good class and my dad took the pic I have as my profile pic.. I just love her sooo much=)

Rachelvk - Happy Birthday!  And congrats on making it through your performances! Do you perform locally? I could not imagine having the stamina at this point to perform in anything!  I barely get through the day as it is.  Also, if you don't mind sharing, where did you find the wig you saw?  I'm on the lookout for more interesting wigs.  I'm already bored with the one I have.

Kameli16 - You are a good daughter! What a wonderful support for you beloved mother!

DianeNMil - Jenn posted a link to her facebook album.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150414653061560.359270.506521559&type=1&l=71ae211509

Jenn - Your daughter is a cutey!  She will adjust, it just takes time. I want to cover my eyes too when I catch myself in the mirror.  Kind of frightening!

NCbeachgal  Hope today went well for you.

 CharB22  Hope Thursday goes well for you.

CJRT -  Also hoping tomorrow goes well for you also. 

Pat989 - We'll be doing treatment together, it looks like. I have to remember to take the steroids tomorrow. I'm also hoping my wbc is normal. Got my neulasta in the mail today. Taking the Claritin an extra day early might help - a woman in my support group this evening said no one ever mentioned Claritan, but she was on some allergy medicine the whole time anyway and didn't have any reaction, so maybe having it in your system earlier will be good.

Jenn28 - The pics are great!

Janetanned - The show was at a theatre attached to Mercer County Community College, where I work (the classical music station I work at is owned by the college). The wig store was in East Brunswick. If you ever want to head out to the Princeton area, I'll be happy to take you along. It's pretty small, but they seemed to have a decent collection.

PCBarbie - Keep laughing! I find that laughing nowadays just plain feels good. I'm not sure when I can start blaming things on chemo brain - I've dumped orange juice in my cereal when I'm not completely awake long before I was even diagnosed...

CJRT - Good luck tomorrow!

One of these days I'll post a link to some photos. I took some pictures as my hair was cut and then as it thinned. Now I'll need to get some with my hats and wig - actually, I'll post the wig one as my new avatar. To be honest, I think I'm enjoying the wig/hat thing. I've made a point to wear long, dangling earrings almost every day, and a good shade of lipstick, and it does make me feel good. No bad hair days! I figure it's the only SE I have some control over in terms of how I react, so I might as well make the most of it. I wore a hat all day today - including at work - and felt completely at ease, and got a lot of compliments. 

Yum! Thomas Sweet! Still there. I love MCCC. The campus is gorgeous (and their women's soccer team has been kicking some serious butt in recent years!). I also love the area in general.

Well had my picc line in today she had to stick me twice. 2nd tx TC tomorrow .Real sore in the missed site, but at least no more sticks for a while, had 5 or 6 sticks last tx. Arm is a mess rash up arm from last tx beginning to flake and peel. I too have felt almost normal the last 3 days. I have what I call my little prairie dog At random time he pops his head up in my thoughts and I blurt out, I don't want to do this again. I get horrified looks from people around that hear it. I tell them I know I will go to all my treatments but it makes me feel better to say it. I seem to go more without my wig than with it it gets so hot at work I take it off and put in in my drawer occ I forget and walk out without it, my nurses manger just laughs and reminds me to get my hair out of the drawer. I told her it was at least better than when I carried my bra in my pocket for days. I am blessed with all the support and humor at work they understand me and just roll with it. I don't want anyone to feel like they have to be careful what they say around me. Yeah I have breast cancer I have no hair but I am not going to die now or in the next 10 years. This bald head tells me yeah these drugs get the good guys but it is a visual of what it is doing to the bad guys inside, so hair fall out take the cancer with you.

Welcome, Miriam, even though you (and none of us) really want to be here. I hope the clinical trial works out well for you. There's lots of great advice on this thread (and you can check out December too). But I'd say that basics are: 1) Hydrate as much as you can. Bring lots to drink on your chemo day (they'll have some there as well if you run out) and really try to drink a lot on a daily basis. 2) Ask your MO for anti-nausea drugs so you're ready - I get Emend that I take regardless, and I have Zofran if I start feeling sick and Compazine if that doesn't work, so my arsenal is pretty full. You can also try the sea bands they sell to prevent sea sickness - some women have found they work. 3) Start taking stool softeners a few days before and a few days after (as long as you need it). 4) Talk to your doctor about other drugs to ward off side effects - you'll probably get some type of steroid like dexamethasone, but also ask whether you'll get Neulasta - which helps boost your white blood count and helps your immune system. 5) Get lots of rest, and don't push yourself, even if you feel okay.

Good luck. Let us know when you'll be starting. 

I finally feel part of the "club."   I had my first DD A/C on Monday, so I'm on day 3.  Had the Neulasta shot yesterday.  I took the Caritin yesterday morning before the shot.  So far, just some quesiness in the stomach, headache and shakiness.   I am taking the nausea med's regularly.   Today, though, my whole face and scalp feels numb-like and I am starting to feel fatigued.  I guess the drugs are setting in.

 Welcome Mairimsita.  This is a great group. Besides what others have said, make sure to eat lightly before chemo and take snacks with you so that you can keep something in the stomach during infusion.  I think that helped me.   Could you point me to the trial you are on?  I am diagnosed as triple-negative but my HER2 was slightly elevated.

Hi everyone!

Rachel - I saw one of your posts and realized we are quite close in location.  I work in New Brunswick and live in Bridgewater.  What a small world!

Today is Day 13 for me.  No noticeable hair loss yet.  Trying to make it one more day so I can go to a meeting with my boss tomorrow.  Then after my 2nd round of AC tomorrow afternoon, my husband will shave my head either tomorrow night or Friday morning.  I'm dreading the 2nd round.  I didn't know to try Claritin the first time, so will take that tomorrow in advance of the shot on Friday.  Hoping it helps because I had so much lower back pain after the 1st one.

I wanted to ask if anyone has found good options for what to do at the gym in terms of hair loss.  I go to a company sponsored gym and work out around people I work with and don't know what I am going to do once my hair is gone.  I have a wig for work, but I'm just imagining it won't be comfortable or practical to wear to work out.  Does anyone have an option that has worked well for them?  Or maybe I can wear the wig, but will need to wash it more when I sweat in it at the gym?

Thanks!

Kim