Chemo group starting December 2014

hi wheelygirl - it is incredible how much better i feel with either eaten or vapourized marijuana in my system! it gives me an appetite and takes away any nausea.

if you can swing it, i say try it

Hi blueflowers,

Welcome to our cozy little group. Good for you choosing good healthy choices and hydrating. Beginning these habits early will make you be able to ease into chemo and come through and not have to worry about getting the right foods to eat.

You mentioned being Indian.. I love indian cuisine and cooking it as well. The first thing i think of are the dals and kitchari dishes that are easy on the system and provide nourishment at the same time. Are you veg or non-veg? I am thinking that you can have spices but maybe take it easy for a few days post chemo session on the hotter spices. I had no problem having anything with ginger in it this past week (I started Dec1 like a few others here). When I think comfort food in indian cuisine the dals and kitchari and various rice dishes are the ones I think about. Maybe stay away from tomato or cream based dishes since those may mess with your system in a compromised state.

Do you enjoy cooking? I may be able to find some nice recipes that are easy that will be good during chemo. Think about what you like for breakfast too since that is an important time to nourish yourself when waking.

Feel free to join our secret FB group if you are interested. Just send me your email in a PM and i will invite you. It is a cozy group over there that visits here too. xoxo Bonnie

Hey Leftyloo - since recreational marijuana is actually legal here in my beautiful state of Colorado, I might take you up on that idea of edible marijuana. I am down 5 pounds already in less than a week and do not have much more to spare. Just no appetite and my tastebuds are completely fried.

Last night I hosted our weekly small group from church, but asked everyone else to bring all the food, including the main dish. I was so frustrated, as everyone brought pre-made/processed/finger food crud! However, the major blessing in all of this, was the lovely friend who took me to chemo, stopped by much earlier and had made me a lovely spinach salad with fruit and yummy veggies and this completely "to die for" salad dressing. It was kind of sweet/asian tasting. Along with that, she dropped off a fresh container of feta cheese and made me promise to hide it away from everyone else, as it was only for me and my girls while my husband is away. Once I kicked everyone out at 7, I immediately made myself a salad and It. Was. Perfect. Praise God for such wonderful friends and always providing exactly what I need, when I need it.

Thought that story might cheer some folks up! Never give up, there is always a helping hand of love around the corner.

Akitagirl

it's day 4 after 1st round of chemo (of 4 rounds), and i feel the most energetic yet.

i'm getting used to the weird random pains and general achyness, the non-appetite (except after ingesting marijuana, of course), the sore throat that comes and goes, the neupogen leg stabs from my sweet bf, and i find i'm REALLLY sluggish in getting my day started - like i could sleep all day if i stayed in bed.

while posting my shorn locks to chemodiva today at the post office, i had a gush of a NOSEBLEED today ... which was a bit embarrassing.

in fact every time i give my nose a blow, it's a pink mucous mix... anyone else have this?

Blueflowers,

You should pretty much stick with whatever makes it past your taste buds and doesn't bother the stomach. The week after my first round, I stuck with scrambled eggs, rice krispies and tuna, watered down juice or tea to drink. Coffee tasted nasty. After about day 10, my taste buds were more normal, and coffee tasted passable, but still not quite right. Cold drinks tasted better. Suck on ice during the infusion, it reduces the taste side effects.

Just a quick update about this past chemo week for me.

First chemo, December 1st.

I was nervous as all get out that day but the nurses reassured me and I did fine and everything went well.

Day 1 after chemo was my worst for nausea. Plus I had a bit of a sunburn like rash that didn't hurt or itch along with a little bit of swelling that was from the steroids. Took benadryl and the rash went away. This was also the day for my neulasta shot. I took my claritin but it didn't work for me.

Day 2 after chemo was my worst for pain and swelling. Pain from the neulasta shot because the claritin didn't work. Nurse Practitioner at my MO's office said I could try Zyrtec next time to see if that worked for me. I was so swelled and in so much pain. I made an appointment to see her or my MO on Day 3. The swelling was still there just a little less but she said we could lower the dosage of my steroids at my next chemo treatment to see if that helped.

I did have some bathroom issues Day 1 after chemo until yesterday, but Immodium quickly helped that each day.

Days 4 - 6 I was a tired and would tire out a lot faster doing things I used to do easily.

Yesterday and Today I am starting to feel like my ol' self again. I woke up feeling like I actually had got some sleep instead of tossing and turning all night.

No mouth sores, no headaches, no vomiting with this chemo session. PRAISE GOD!

Next Chemo is Monday, December 15th.

Hi Shelly, Welcome to the BCO community. We are so glad that you reached out and joined this supportive and informed group of those who share experiences. We wish you the best of luck through your treatment and we encourage you to keep posting and let us know how things go for you. The Mods

Hello LeftyLoo, we will be in chemo together on Christmas Eve - I which you the best and will be thinking of you that day.  Hope the next side effects are no worse than the first, they have been tolerable.

blueflowers, So much to think about now, huh! I agree with Charlottesmommy in having what you are used to including yogurt. Try them in small amounts the days after chemo and see how your body reacts. I personally love yogurt and had some last week with my breakfast with no issues. It is a probiotic and good for the gut. I think anything in moderation avoiding fried foods, maybe tomato based foods (acid) and spicy foods at least for now. Keeping your protein intake up will be important during chemo but be careful not to eat so much that makes you also gain weight! The second week you may feel more like normal food wise. I hear the steroids make you want to eat more so just gotta watch that too. I made a curried butternut squash soup last night that was delicious..and enough to freeze for later too. It was pretty easy.

I had some coffee a few days after chemo and it tasted different, not bad just different and I love coffee now and then. Chai might be nice too with its warming and healing spices. I think aloo gobi would be nice too because its gentle and still has nice spices too.

Think of the comfort foods you have always liked and focus on having those available.

xoxo

bonnie

PS - I am friends with an indian chef (Suvir Saran) from whom I have learned so much regarding home indian cooking. His first book Indian Home Cooking has some great foods that might be good and fairly easy to make..He is veg but there are chapters on chicken and meats too. I think i have cook thru the book. There is a hara keema with spinach and fresh mint that might be good. It is made with ground beef but i bet you could substitute other ground meats too. Spicy peas with ginger might be good too….not too hot. You can always adjust the heat ingredients on any recipes.

For those on taxanes I would recommend icing your nails - fingers and toes - I used bags of frozen peas.  Nail lifting and loss are side effects associated with taxane agents.  I also held crushed ice in my mouth during the Taxotere infusion - starting at tx#2 - I did get mouth sores - a lot of them - on tx#1.  After I started icing, no problem.

farmdau - L-Glutamine is for anti-neuropathy, Claritin is for bone pain from Neulasta - they do different things.

lefty - Taxotere, and all chemo agents, dry out tissues - particularly in moist areas.  I used Aquaphor in my nose, on it and in it - put it on a q-tip, put it up the nostril, and then pinched my nose to squish it around.  By mid chemo I was using Aquaphor as moisturizer on my face, on my feet with socks at night, and on my hands with cotton gloves.  I will leave you to guess where else I put it, lol!

I am taking L-glutamine powder as a mouth rinse then swallow to prevent mouth sores and esophageal issues. It is gentle and so far no issues or sores. Heath food stores have it. I think you can have three times a day or after each meal.

Think light eating day your chemo. Maybe no cream soups like broths and no tomato base soups. The cream and tomato might aggravate a sensitive stomach post chemo.

Find fresh ginger to keep in your fridge. Use it to make ginger tea w lemon or to make a ginger syrup that you can make your own healthy version of ginger ale.

>; ). Bonnie

I took 30g of L-Glutamine powder (10g dissolved in a cold drink 3x a day) and a B6 capsule to prevent neuropathy from Taxotere.  I had tingling in hands and feet that resolved by the next tx until about #5, then it stayed.  It eventually resolved by about 90 days PFC.

When deciding about food it is good to remember that chemo affects all soft tissue and there is a lot of that in the GI tract.  Acidic foods can be problematic - bland and easily digested foods seem to work best.  Potatoes, in any form, were my go to food.  I also enjoyed smoothies, fresh fruit, toast, and Greek yogurt.  The week before my next tx, when taste buds had somewhat recovered, I tried to eat as much high protein food as possible - including a fair amount of red meat to assist my hemoglobin and RBC in recovery.

Hi ,

I have my chemo class tomorrow . Do you have any suggestions what to ask ? I am sure they will have a lot of information, but is there anything additional I need to ask?

I got my wig today from the local Cancer Society, I was in tears all day, just thinking of loosing my hair and putting on that wig makes me cry. Bad day.

Thanks farmdau56 ,

I am so thankful for having this group here - with whom I can share my feelings, and get positive thoughts and advice. Without you all this journey would have been a lot tougher.

Take care all of you.

Hi everyone,

Been checking in on the FB side, but wanted to say "hello" to any newcomers! This is such a great resource and support group.

SpecialK is the BOMB on resource and she is great at putting this world into human verse - easy to understand for sure!

It's funny, I was picking up a new prescription last night and could not, for the life of me, remember which vitamins I was going to get. So...another recommendation. Carry around a little notebook, or get into the habit of using your note app on your phone. Now I have to go all the way back and grab some B6 and L-Glutamine powder! :-)

As far as the stomach. I admit...that has been my worst enemy! Diarrhea and stomach cramps like you have never experienced ( or at least me). I finally got smart this morning and took some Immodium. Wow, go figure, it works! Sing Praises!!! I am actually finally able to get some work done, as this is my first week back and the first three days were absolutely useless. I feel guilty for getting paid the amount they pay me, and not contributing. Yuck.

One more day till the weekend and only two more days until Hubby returns from the U.K. to come help pick up some of the mommy/daddy/house/doggy/cat duties! Yes!

Akitagirl