January 2012 chemo

I am praying for all the ladies having tx today.  Hoping you do very well and se's are reduced and minimal!!!  I think a lot of you are well ahead of my "J", so I am going to school on how your tx's are progressing.

@Lumpynme:  Our driveway had just stopped being a 1/2 mile uphill ice skating rink (from the snowstorm we had before Christmas) this week and then we were dumped on again.  Lots of snow, but we need it as we are on a well.  This is the first year in a long time we have had to dig out the ice cleats just to make it up to the house with the baby in tow.  

I found some of those ginger chews at Trader Joes yesterday.  They are SPICY!  Picked up some Sea Bands ~ do these things really work?  Can "J" wear them on her left arm (where we had the nodes removed without fear of causing lymphadema (sp)?

So far "J" is feelin much better than last tx...no crazy headache and facial pain from the Cytox.  She is resting well at home this am...me going into work.

As far as doing something for myself...not sure when I will have time.  Baby is teething and up at least once an hour during the night...oragel and rocking in the glider seem like the only relief for him. If I can find a spare minute or so to post here or go play my guitar in the man cave that is reward enough.  I am going hardcore at this thing until we are through the other side!  If you ladies and my "J" can stomach the poo you are having to deal with I can certainly work hard enough to match!

riceandbeans,

Thats normal.dont worry

bela 

There are so many of you having treatment today and tomorrow. I will carry you all in my warm, healing thoughts these next few days!!

Thanks to all you responded to my "is anyone else having these SE's". I feel better when I come to this group and knowing I am not alone. Thnak you all for that..

HUGS!!!

Brooke

Sorry ladies, time to vent.

 last week-end I came home from a lovely evening with my girlfriends to find that my son had been vomiting all night.  As this was 10 days since my first treatment, the oncology nurse suggested I get away until my son got better... 

My son is only five so the thought of leaving him while he was sick was terrible, but my loving husband stayed home and nursed him back to health.

So I stayed away for 2 days, came back home to a smiling and happy little boy.  However the next day, I've got the stomach flu!  I spent all day yesterday curled up in the fetal position in bed.  Thinking to myself and repeating to myself: "are you kidding me!" 

I feel a bit better today, still a little queasy.  Anyhow, I'm just uspet, disgusted and plain, pissed off, since the chemo SE were so horrific for me as with many of us, I was feeling pretty normal and then BAM!  take that!!  ... and Monday I get to look forward to starting all over again.

Sorry, I am not giving up or anything and I know this will someday be a thing of the past, but SHEASh!  Enough is enough already!  : )

My heart goes out to each and every one of you ladies.

Miniwheat

I am so sorry you are having to deal with all this.  I know EXACTLY how you feel. My kiddos are 4 years and 19 months, go to preschool and daycare. I feel like the past 6 weeks of my chemo I have seen them so little as one of them is usually sick and I am keeping my distance. Winter for kids is like sickness hell here and we all seem to pass it around. I too have broken down and feel like I just cannot take much more. Being chemo sick and then stomach flu sick just plain rots....

Be kind to yourself and know that you are not alone.

Hello everyone

Good luck to everyone having treatments today. I am also going for AC#3 today.  ot looking forward to it as I hear it is a tough one. I pray for all of us to have minimal side effects! 

I have caught up on all the posts over the last 2 days. As soon as I reached that sweet spot between treatments I caught my DH's bad cold (He's so wonderful he had even been sleeping on the sofa so as not to infect me.  Unfortunately yesterday I recieved some bad news. Seems like on my pathology review the tissue was filled for with lymphatic invasion and I will be going back for UMX and reconstruction after chemo and before rads. Sigh. Just as I was healing from my ALND and partial mastectomy done mid Dec. I know this is a good thing in the long run but it makes it harder to see 'the end'. I gues I should just concentrate on getting through chemo at this stage...

Miniwheat- hugs to you!

Good luck everyone. You are always in my thoughts.

riceandbean;you are a wonderful man...enjoy the teething time- i know it's hard however it's a good bond...to me there is nothing better than holding a baby, swaddling them and loving them...i miss that!!! "J" is alucky girl....

about the pink pee and the well- ok so it's going into a septic right ? it shouldn't backwash into your well...i truly have no clue about that but it's a valid concern....still toxic no matter where it goes! as for the snow and the well- i hear ya!

oh-lucky you to have trader joe's! we don't....anything ginger should be good for "J" for the queasies... i don't know about the sea bands.

Well I am done with the 4th and final AC, we both fell asleep in our chairs and never even heard the beeper telling us we were finished and no Ativan...Were home now and hubby is picking me up pizza...starving!! All is good so far, slight steroid buzz, really tired too. I wasn't nervous as much as resigned to getting this over and being solidly ½ way through "Barbs Big adventure, take two".

I met my Neurologist this morning for a very long discussion & exam. He states that it is extremely rare to have the Issue I have in my Fingers/hands and Arms and now maybe my feet, but it is not unheard of. We are going to do an MRI of my neck to rule out a pinched nerve, which would give me the fingers 1st and then the arms...my feet which only happened 4 days ago could be unrelated as they are calming down and it is just a slight buzzing on the feet, where the arms and hands are like Electricity pulsing threw them and extremely sensitive. He says the AC has nothing in its make up to cause what I have, but as the AC works to kill the BC, Something in my body is having a reaction and causing the Nerve issue (not the AC itself). He is testing for additional cancers other than Breast Cancer, if there is another "different" Cancer then it would fight to survive and attack my nervous system...very very rare but a possibility we must rule out.
After my MO & Neur Doc. conversed it was decided that my MO does not feel comfortable proceeding with the Taxol without knowing why I have had this reaction. She wants answers and to rule things out at a minimum. The blood work will take more than 2 weeks to get the results back, so the Taxol is on hold till we figure out this issue. I Aced every Neurological test he gave me...so he is stumped and working on it. Hopefully this will only put off the Taxol 1 week and they will find it's a pinched nerve or something nice like that...not more C.

Hope this made sense starting to really feel the Chemo...hope everyone made it through as good as I did. 

Took my wig to my hairdresser of 30 years today.  She was able to make it look a little more like me.  She also convinced me to do the buzz as I had bare scalp in the back.  I can't believe that is here and that it matters.  Tx#2 on Tuesday.  A word to those stressing about Neulasta shot.  I did not get it after tx#1.  My WBC dropped to .06 which is serious neutopenia.  I ended up getting 3 neutropen? shots and am much better.  All of the shots were in my belly and are painless.  Thats my location of choice, might as well take advantage of the belly fat.  Claritin was also recommended for these injections and I could tell when I forgot it. I will be getting Neulasta on Wed.  Its so good to read all of your posts and hear all of your support.  You have mine as well.  Thinking of you all.

Nancy - clunky shoes weigh at least a pound!  Hang in there!

Kellogs - thanks, I agree!  I've been eating like a horse and can't fathom why I haven't gained a pound, but am really glad I haven't!  My clinical trial director was concerned - she's worried I'm not eating enough ("you should be gaining weight").  I can't explain it.

waitress169 - that is such GREAT news!  I can't wait to take a cancer vacation to Aruba!

Nancy

So happy for you that treatment #3 is under your belt. So sorry you aren't feeling that great. I have been jealous of your no SE posts and I truly hope it is better for you tomorrow.

I too have a physical reaction when I go to chemo now. The anticipation of what is to come just plain sucks. I find the smells, noises, the look of everything there is just revolting now. I think you should grieve as long as it takes. I know I am.

{{{{HUGS}}}}}

Brooke

Grateful33..

I had a BMX and for some reason it was never a choice for me. I just knew instinctively that is what I wanted and needed. It ended up being the right decision for me. They still did a pathology on the right prophylactic side and it came back ADH (atypical ductal hyperplasia) throughtout the breast. ADH is one step below DCIS. More than likely BC would have developed eventually. So for me my "gut" was right.

Whatever you choose will be the right decision for you. I know it can be difficult so I wish you clarity while you ponder. Also, really hope the nasty SE's stay clear of you.

Brooke

YeaH!   My liver values are getting down close to normal after only one week on Milk Thistle.  ALT went from 165 to 91 (norm 6-40), AST went back to normal from 38 to 28 (10-35), and ALK PHOS went from 174 to 149 (norm 33-130).    They will check them again next Monday when I go to AC tx #3 but it will be a GO for the full treatment.  

 I had more bone pain this week for 2 days, worse than the first time cycle, even with taking Claritin.  I hope that isn't going to increase each week after tx as I felt like a little old lady hunched over from pain in my back.

I had the sameproblem. Didn't want to spend alot and somrtimes when ordering online you don't get what you think you are.  Went to the cheappie wig and beauty supply and bought a cute wig for $25. I use it with a hat or scarf to put less wear and tear on my better wig.