September 2013 Chemo Group

Kbee - I hope your daughter feels better soon. Will be praying for you and your family.

Peacock sorry about the bad experience. These people forget we are not there cuz we want to.

KBee,

Good thoughts and prayers going your way for you and your young one. Hang in there!

Peacock,

I hope you took the time to correct her and/or let someone know what happened who can correct her with authority! I would have asked to make sure I never got that person again and tell them exactly why. And pink chemo chairs??? Really??? Ick spit!!

All,

Today was my 50th birthday. Mixed feelings about it. While It is a milestone year, I'm more interested in next year's birthday... where I will have my health, hair, and life back!! Looking 'over the horizon' to 51, where today's worries will be in the rear view mirror.

For today, though, I had a wonderful dinner with my family and am so richly blessed! The picture on the top left is my son, Thomas, and daughter, Stephanie. Top right is Tom, Troy (Steph's boyfriend), and Steph. Middle left is the birthday cake where they took one of my favorite family pictures and put it on top of the cake. Middle right is Tom's carved Halloween pumpkin. Bottom left are the two pumpkins Tom carved for my 50th Birthday, and the bottom left is the Tom, me, and Steph.

Happy Halloween!!

I get reminder calls the day before too. However, I think they are justified in my case since I bolted out of the room the first day. They just want to make sure I'm not going to relapse. :-)

Hi everyone. Love reading all your posts and seeing my own thoughts echoed in your words. I feel fortunate that I am not working right now and my family has been very supportive of this time. That being said, we moved from overseas in August, I started chemo September 12th, lived in a hotel until this week, and just moved into our home. There are boxes everywhere and I have no energy to deal. Just keeping up with the details of two kids and every day is enough.

On the food issue, I consider myself a fairly healthy eater, and I got scared into being more careful with my meat, poultry and diary cjhoices from the book, Anti Cancer A New Way of LIfe. It has a great chapter on Anti Cancer foods that anyone can read and implement. But that is all out the window right now. Too many other issues - like bacteria from fresh fruit and veggies, undercooked seafood, etc., that I am just eating whatever feels right - pasta. soups, bread, etc. And like someone else said, what's the point right now when we are poisoning ourselves with this chemo? I will make lifestyle changes, when I am stronger and healthier.

For the poster who was afraid of the 3rd tx, I am 9 days out of my 3rd tx and it has actually been better. More tired, still feeling icky, but not as knocked flat as the first and 2nd. 14 days till my last TC. My husband says - its almost over, but I know better. Its not over till the SEs are over.

I am not sure what's going on, but I got my first hot flashes last night. I have had a pretty consistent spotting (sorry for TMI) since Septembe 12th. Had it checked by the GYN, she says I have zero estrogen now and it should just be my uterus shedding its lining. Lets hope so. Really don't want to deal with another surgery. She also said if it isn't I will have to have my ovaries removed. Seriously? Because the tamoxifen didn't work, they need to try aromatase inhibitors. Anyone else in this spot?

Hang in there! Great weekends everyone!

peacockgirl - That is AWFUL about the chemo nurse!!! I can't believe you kept your composure!! My cancer center has really great nurses... I've never had a problem with any of them. I get the reminder calls, too. Mine are automated, and I have to sit there and listen to the whole message just so I can "press one to confirm". Ummmm... like you said, how can we forget a chemo appointment??? LOL

Kbeee - My center doesn't offer ice (or warm blankets!) either. They have juice, water and snacks. We end up bringing all of our own stuff (even blanket). I'm glad you had a feel-good moment with your coworker. Those are always a nice pick-me-up. I'm so sorry about your girl. I hope you had a decent night & get through your tx today ok!

KJ - HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love the pictures - thanks for sharing. So sweet of Tom to carve the pumpkins. :-)

Hockeymommy - I love the minions!!!!! So cute. Thanks for sharing. I hate that so many had bad weather for trick or treating.... we had a beautiful night here!

We had a great Halloween. I'm usually not that into it... we live on a highway so don't get any trick-or-treaters and we always have to drive the kids somewhere so they can go. But the last few years a couple other families have joined us in raiding a nearby neighborhood. None of us live there, but the houses are nice, the streets all have lights and sidewalks and many of them are decorated for Halloween. Well this year one of the dads brought a big 11 passenger hunting truck from the ranch he works at. This was a pickup with an extended bed and had stadium seats in the back... it was awesome!!! LOL We were like the Beverly Hillbillies cruising around the neighborhood following our kids. I was really grateful because I knew I wouldn't have the energy to walk as much as we usually do. We had ten kids total (all families from my daughter's softball team). I've never felt so festive about Halloween before. :-)



One thing I discovered I don't like about having my appointment with my MO on chemo day is that I don't know how my counts are doing until that day. For my first four treatments I would see him on my off-chemo week and they would do labs. Last week my appt was on the same day as chemo, and same thing next week. I feel good, but I know my hemoglobin is very low, so I'm just afraid I'm going to show up and not be able to have chemo. That would suck! Plus it makes the day so much longer when you tack a doctor's visit on top of an infusion.

Better Day: for A/C premeds I get an Ativan first thing, pill by mouth. Then they hook up Emend anti nausea IV, then the Zofran IV and Dexamethasone steroid go in the same bag together. Then A/C gets manually pushed (two syringes by the nurse) and the Cytoxan gets dripped by IV bag after that. Gah just talking about it is making me feel icky. Thank god for Ativan. I usually forget half of chemo day, or at least the memories are quite blurry.

As for me, I'm not looking forward to the pre-infusion Benedryl on taxol. I seriously cannot function on that antihistamine. I will definitely be passed out in the chair for sure. 'm actually going to talk to my onco on Tuesday at my regular appointment about a different antihistamine. I hear some are allowed to take Zyrtec, it makes me sleepy too but not comatose and with my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth like benedryl does and for hours.

I'm also going to ask him about the idea of skipping the LAST neulasta shot after chemo #8 (December 20th, bring it ON!). My counts have been good on it and I really abhore the side effects (it really is what makes me feel SO nasty after chemo day, hasn't been the A/C) ...plus counts don't have to come up for more chemo the last time. Thank you to whomever posted the supplements for Taxol (glutamine, L carnitine and the B Vitamin) will ask about those as well.

Anybody doing acupuncture for help with potential neuropathy? Figure it can't be a negative thing to do.

happy birthday KJ! What great pics but I do understand the bittersweet celebration feeling and the can't wait to celebrate for real when this treatment is over. We will get there.

Kbee. Gosh what a day you had /are having? As if chemo day isn't enough. It's weird how the mom comes out and takes over though. Mon night my daughter scratched my eye badly enough to get a corneal abrasion and then got a bad fever and threw up twice on me. Poor kid. Two things that had nothing to do with cancer. Hate to admit I have been in such a chemo cocoon it was challenging for a minute to realize I wasn't the sickest one here. But also it felt good to be the one offering help and support. I have felt incapable in that regard since this whole diagnosis. Feel like I went from single mom who did everything to back seat parent. But I do see the light at the end of this and am starting to push past some of the dread and heaviness of these past 4 months.

Kbee kick the third treatment's ass! You got it. Hope it is easy on you and one more down!

Best to everyone and love the Halloween pics and stories!

kjsimpson - Happy 50th Birthday, Kathryn!!! You have a beautiful family! And what a great idea for the cake! May God bless you beyond what you can ever foresee in the midst of this difficult time. Here are some words from one of my favorite hymns to encourage us.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;

The clouds ye so much dread

Are big with mercy and shall break

In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,

But trust Him for His grace;

Behind a frowning providence

He hides a smiling face.

HI all, it has been several weeks since I've checked in and I am mostly caught up on the posts. I do hope you are all doing well, seems like most of us are right around the midway point. I have been so busy at work, but I am actually glad I have had something to occupy my time. I'll be traveling to Michigan this week, it is my first trip since starting this process. I am actually looking forward to it, catching up with my co-workers and friends. I am a little nervous about keeping up with everyone, but I'm sure it will be fine. Once i get home I have 2 more to go and I wlll be done with the 'weed killer' - I will have 11 more cycles with herceptin, but no typical SE's with that.

So I have to ask - when did you all stop seeing your period? Mine stopped between tx 3 & 4. Just wondering if it is gone for good.

Sgyukon- I am still having mine every two weeks. Not fun

sgyukon, I had one 2.5 weeks after round one, and none since...probably why my hemoglobin is better than it was before. I had hemmorhaging issues, and was always anemic. Good riddance!

Finally figured out how to add a profile picture yesterday... it's my "current look"... my wig.

LAST CHEMO ON HALLOWEEN!!!! I would have posted yesterday but I came home & promptly feel asleep. My appt. was later than usual, then the lab was packed so bloodwork took longer, & my onc, tho' I love her, is always 2 patients behind (prob. bec. she takes extra time w/everyone - part of why I love her). So I didn't get home till late afternoon & was beat, in addition to being pumped full of benadryl.

But I had to dress up for my last infusion, esp. since I'm missing all the parties last & this weekend & this is my absolute favorite holiday ever. The nurses at the clinic all dressed up too, & they loved my "drag queen cancer princess" outfit (cobbled together from stuff in my closet). My hubbi also chronicled the last one on Facebook. I just posted it all on my blog here: http://corpgoth.blogspot.com/search/label/cancer

Usual SEs have already popped up, tired, heartburn (bad this time, woke me up to take a Prilosec), burnt tongue, & I've been having head sweats all week anyway - not quite hot flashes, but my head gets really sweaty at night. No need to wear the night cap I made when I first went bald. Just gotta get thru these next few weeks, then it's on to rads. Not over the mountain, but I can see the top from here

batcatlady- congrats on finishing and welcome to rads. I had my first meeting for rads today...sounds like a piece of cake compared to chemo. Hope your last SE are not so bad!

CONGRATS batcatlady!!! So happy for you to be moving onto the next phase of your journey. Woohoo!!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE the costume. How fitting to wear a tiara to your last treatment. I may have to borrow your idea & raid my daughter's stash when it's time for my last one.