The Living Life Hang Out

Feeling lots better! Had first post-chemo check in with inc: blood good, red blood cells almost back to normal which he says s why my energy is much better. Eyes watering but less, nails look terrible but DON'T HURT at all anymore and none fell off.



Now I'm gearing up for exchange surgery and Arimedex. Have my prescription but nervous about starting, even though I know several people who had no bad effects. My Onc said 35-40% of women get joint soreness,. My DH pointed out that means 60-65% don't. Sigh, what a long strange trip this is.

Lisa - great to hear how much better you are feeling!  

I'm dragging my feet on Tamoxifen, too.  I've set August 1st as the date I will start.   That will be 7 weeks PFC...yep, dragging my feet! 

slak, glad to hear Tamoxifen is going well.  Did you start out with the full dose?  Taking it in a.m. or p.m.?  I read that taking it in a.m. is better for avoiding more sleep issues, but could result in nausea if you are prone to that.  I'll probably try morning first.  I know some people split the dose 1/2 and 1/2.  

lisa2012- good luck with your exchange.  Glad you are feeling better. I am 10 days post my exchange and feel fine. It is much easier than any other surgery.

Ladies: Glad you are doing well on Tamox.  So do you take it AM or PM?  The full pill or 1/2 and 1/2. I am waiting for my post op exchange appt to start it. 

dancetrancer: I know how you feel. I started it for two days got scared and stopped due to the exchange.  I guess I will give myself the same start date as you!

slak-  glad it is working for you.  Hope it goes well for you

Lisa:  I got my rx for arimedex today.  Asked my MO if I could start on Monday.  She said I could start August 1.  I think I will wait.  I guess I am just scared....

Myleftboob:  I agree with you about worrying about the SE.  I try not to, but it looms in the back of the mind.  I agree with the chemo thing...I am just so glad it's over with. 

LIsa:  thanks for your input.  I may start it sooner.  I started chemo end of April and she didn't recommend it until AFTER my chemo.  Some people tell me they don't start it until after radiation.  It's weird how every MO is different.  

Let me know how you do after a week or so on it.  One of the S/E's is trouble sleeping, so I will probably take it early a.m. I have enough problems with sleep.  Unfortunately, it's been chemically assisted since my DX in January most nights. 

PS I have actually had improvement in my sleep the last week or so, after Ambien/Ativan

Assistance pretty insistently since me Feb surgery. Hope the A doesn't mess that up.

Lisa - there is, unfortunately, always the chance that a few stray cancer cells escaped from the breast and got into the bloodstream prior to surgery.  Chemo is intended to blast any microscopic cells.  Hormone therapy is intended to keep any cells that weren't killed by chemo from taking hold and growing over the years.  

Looks like you had a small tumor, yet chemo was still recommended.  I'm guessing your onc ran an oncotype and determined your recurrence risk was high enough to warrant chemo.  If I were you, I'd ask your onc what your distant recurrence risk was pre chemo, post chemo, and what it would be further reduced to if Arimedex is added.  This will help you understand why he is recommending it, or question him if you don't feel the benefit is worth the risk of the med.  I think, if I recall correctly, hormone therapy reduces recurrence risk by 50%.  So, if your recurrence risk after chemo is still 10%, perhaps reducing that risk to 5% is worth it to you.  However, if your recurrence risk after chemo is 5%, you may think reducing it to 2.5% is not worth the risk.  By this example you can see how individualized recommendations need to be based upon your personal pathology.  Hope this helps! 

Dang it, Dance.  I hope it doesn't cause long term sleep issues for you.  Sleep aids do stop working after a while...just like pain meds or just about anything, I guess.  One of my biggest complaints has been that I went from being someone who never took any pills, to someone who pops pills like candy.  I hate it, but they're necessary.  I shouldn't have to celebrate a night of 8 hour's sleep without a sleep aid, yet celebrate I do.  Damn cancer.

Thanks Fierro...I so agree!!!  Well that's good to know about the sleep aids - I will reserve them for just when really needed, b/c I don't want them to stop working.  Dang I hate taking pills, too!  I wasn't a great sleeper before all of this, usually up 2 times a night - but this 5 and 6 times a night (sometimes I think it might be more!) - is ridiculous!  I read that menopause, even without the hot flashes, can cause sleep disturbance.  I find also that when I wake up, I feel like I need to use the bathroom each time, even though I don't have to go all that much.  I looked it up, and this can also be a symptom of menopause, b/c the urinary tract thins, etc. b/c of less estrogen.  Holy crap, feel like my body is not my own anymore!  Oh well.  Will stop complaining now...it could be worse, as we all know all too well.   

Dance:  I have had sleep issues for about 6 years.  Keep in mind I am substantially older than you, and basically, it's when I hit menopause.  (I will be 57 in September).  Anyway, I would wake up around 2-3 am and be up for 2-3 hours... Then there's work.  I was falling asleep at 8 am meetings.  Not good.  Falling asleep at my desk in the middle of the day--again..Not good.  I complained to my pcp and he suggested melatonin.  When I went to the drug store (a compounding pharmacy), the pharm. recommended I first try 1-3 capsules of magnesium.  It didn't seem to help, so then I tried the ambien.  I only used it (prior to my dx) about once a week or if there were 3-4 sleepless nights in a row.  Now I am back to square one.  I hate this.  I envy people who can sleep the entire night.  My mom has had sleep issues for 25 years.  She finally got an rx for ambien about a year ago and takes it a few times a week.  I want to be off everything!  I just can't stand being dependant on drugs.  I am going to start to do PM Yoga (with Rodney Yee) and see if that makes a difference. Maybe try the magnesium again.  Hot tea with valerian root is good (Celestial Seasonings Sleepy Time has it).  However, I don't like to drink hot tea when it's 100 degrees and I am having hot flashes.  My hot flashes had subsided two years ago and thanks, chemo, they're back.  Another wonder S/E.  Plus, now I am going to start the anastrozole (generic Arimedix).  Fun, fun, fun....

Gosh, this sleep stuff is so familiar. Like KJ, I just turned 57 and had all this crap when I hit menopause at 50. (And went on the HRT patch for 3 yrs.. oh well.My quality of life was so bad at that time.. but my doc says the BRCA1 gene trumps everything) So anyway, I got ambien, used it sporadically- like you said, after a couple crummy nights lets get some SLEEP. Mmm, last night it was 12:30 am and I couldn't fall asleep, took a 1.0 ambien, actually slept 8 hours. Soo great! Usually it'll give me 5-6. I generally try to go to sleep with nothing, and keep an ativan or ambien by the bed so if I wake up at 2:00 or 3:00, and 20 minutes doesn't get me back to sleep, I'll take one. Ambien if it's earlier, Ativan if it's later since that lasts about 4 hours. Anyway, I have these little systems... and like Fierro, I am so stoked if I have a good night pill free, I text my sister about it proudly!!

So I am reading this thread and there is a commerical on for Unisom?  It says sleep better naturally and not habit-forming.  Contains melatonin.

Lorraine:  I am going to try to the cold packs in a cooler. I can't stand it.  

Lisa:  Sounds like we are kindred spirits--kind of scary there are so many of us with the same issues.  I keep the stuff next to my nightstand and depending on when I awaken, I do the same thing!

Leeza:  Do you take this "Midnight" twice a day--morning and nightime?  Or one or the other? 

Awww....Lisa.....Hugs to you!