November 2014 Starting Chemo Crew

Ok, thank you both I'll just keep him away from my water as I have been.

Good luck with chemo Shayne! You have a lot of great ladies here on this thread who are praying for you. I am in the same boat as you are now and start next Monday. I think there are a few of us (December group) that start Dec 1 so we are riding the wave with you. Take your chemo bag with little snacks too..just in case.

Erica, How are you doing? I have been wondering how you are and when round 2 is.

[Feel free to join us on the FB page if you like Shayne. Just PM me your email and I will send you an invite. Check your spam box too incase it ends up there. ] There is an interesting wig discussion going on over there at the moment. And, it is a secret group. No outsiders can see it but us.

Easy Thanksgiving here. We stayed at home and didn't even have turkey. We did a pork shoulder, black beans and winter squash. Wonderful. I recently had turkey for the office party so brought home all the leftovers.

I think sanitation will be important around chemo time and beyond. This weekend we are cleaning up the bathrooms and doing some vacuuming and changing shower curtains. I bought some Dove soap that is gentle on the skin for showering. It is a bit fragrant so wondering if that will be a problem. Shopping and planning for hair loss next week but I don't anticipate hair loss till second week or so in Dec. My husband Peter wants to shave my head with the clippers when I am ready. Think we will make it an event.

Sorry for the ramble. I am an early riser anyway so am alert at 6am every morning. No work today. Yay! So long weekend. sigh

Hi ladies, just wanted to offer some encouragement. I'm on day 5 of TC and it has not been nearly as bad as I thought. In fact, yesterday I was still able to eat a full Thanksgiving meal and taste everything. No big "D" or "C" happening. I feel tired and slightly sore with headache but that is really it. I plan to exercise a little today. No nausea. HUGS for those just starting 1st rounds and those almost on round 2. Keep drinking the water! I have to keep getting up all night but I think it's worth it to minimize the SEs.

The Ativan actually makes me sleepy. My oncologist also suggested Benadryl at night. You might want to try that.

Tallalassie- did they say you can have an occasional drinK? My MO looked at me like i was an alcoholic for asking and just said no. I didn't think to ask if that was a total no or maybe after a couple of weeks you could have a drink before the next round. I'm afraid to try any wine in case it make me nauseous, but I haven't been nauseous lately.

nitengirl1- my MO actually asked me if i ever drank alcohol. when i told her i did i was shocked at her response which was "oh, good. my patients who drink tend to handle chemo much better with fewer side effects than those who never drink alcohol..." she said it has to do with your liver being already "primed" to tolerate it. LOL! anyway, she said if you feel up to it, it's ok to drink occasionally. she did recommend folic acid supplement, though. i have had maybe 2 glasses of wine since starting chemo Nov 3, but honestly it just doesn't taste all that good to me right now.

I had chemo today so far so good Benadryl they gave me had me drowsy other than that I have a slight headache but I'm doing well

Love the takes on alcohol! I asked the nurse prior to chemo if I could drink a glass of wine now and then and she asked "well, a whole bottle is a glass, did you mean that?" She said a single glass now and then would be fine. Funny about the livers being prepped! I'm not sure if it's helping with my SEs. Yesterday at Thanksgiving dinner, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed TWO flutes of champagne. But then I tried a sip of chardonnay, my favorite, and it tasted like gasoline.

Just as well. Gotta stay hydrated for #2 on Monday. Sigh, I'm feeling so good now I hate to go back. Celebrated with a hike today. I have found, if possible, that staying active even when I just want to crawl up on the couch, is helpful for sleep and regularity.

The warm milk is a good idea. If you don't like dairy, you could warm up your favorite nut milk. Take a whole nutmeg and grate it over the warmed beverage. If you add a good teaspoon or more of fresh grated nutmeg to the warm milk at bedtime and give it about an hour you will drift off nicely… nutmeg has relaxing qualities..

I think most onc's recommend taking the Claritin

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving....

I agree that water has been the most important component to keep side effects away for me and take the anti nausea on schedule with some food in your stomach....I am half way thru AC finished second one on Monday and seem to be doing well just more fatigue and not much of an appetite. Lots of small snack meals are helping....

KnittingPT...I would try some double sided tape just a piece inside the cap in the front and back to hold it in place...I still have stubble which seems to catch everything even when I sleep so I have started sleep with a cap and have a silk like pillow case (couldn't find a real silk one). When I got my wig they gave me a roll of double sided tape to use.....

FYI for Northern Va ladies I went to Joi's wigs in Springfield and they were great and very reasonable-person I saw was Suki.....but not sure how often I will wear the wig....it's hot and not in a good way ...

Claritin seems to help and my doc said take for 2-3 days after the shot....also MiraLax the day before chemo, day of and day after if you find you have constipation SE. Just mixes in water and there is no taste. I chew on ice chips during AC portion which is supposed to help prevent mouth sores seems to work so far

Grateful for this group and dialogue....thank you ladies and I wish you all good health as we go thru this journey together.

This group has been so helpful to make you feel like your not alone! I'm on Day 10 since my 1st Chemo and feeling much better than this time last week. My muscle pain has pretty much stopped. I've still been taking the Claritin and am afraid to stop taking it. My energy level is better but not 100%. My taste is a little better too. I still have to eat small meals and often. On thing is that I still have stomach issues and the big D. Seems like when I eat it goes right through me. How long is that supposed to last I wonder. My next treatment is Dec 11th so I'm hoping to get some things done while I feel better.

Welcome Donna! Sounds like you are working through the first round pretty well. I will be anxious to hear from the one nurses and dr on monday about managing SE with OTC drugs…claritin etc. I think i outta put some on my shopping list along with L-Glutamine powder. I've been reading about that for mouth sores and ulcers further down in that system. Its a powder (an amino acid) that helps speed up repair of sores in the digestive system. It is usually a component of protein whey powders too.

Tallie, I love the takes on wine! I was enjoying rum and eggnog last night…kind of like a last boozy indulgence before chemo 1. haha

Have a nice weekend..

Kimberli43 and Mrshq1: I'm rooting for my hometown Seminoles today. These college football rivalries are a fun distraction. Yesterday I cheered on my alma mater University of Arizona on to victory over Arizona State. It would be ironic if the Gators beat the Noles today, since they were the team we last lost to. They gotta lose sometime, right? But not at home, not today.

Seriously, Kimberli, I am glad you feel better and from my experience, it should get better each day. I am keeping a little journal daily to track when and what meds I take (helpful for chemo brain in the days when I take more meds) and I also have a little numerical scale of 1 (don't want to get out of bed) to 5 (what chemo?) and the last week has been all 5's, and I hope the same goes for you. I had 2's my first week, 3's and 4's the second week. I'm just adjusting my expectations now, but still trying to get a little fresh air and exercise even on the worst days. We are blessed in Florida to be able to do that, and thank goodness it isn't as hot as in summer.

My info said that any non-dehydrating liquid counts toward hydration (caffeine and alcohol don't count), so I would think ginger ale would work. I have always felt better after drinking lots of water, and adding electrolytes is also helpful for me. I use a very diluted powdered gatorade (no football jokes!), but Bonnie has posted several homemade recipes that will also work for those who don't like commercial products. Gatorade has always gotten me through tough hikes, and this is the toughest!

Hope you all are feeling better. Go Noles!