Fatigue, Fatigue and more Fatigue...

Options
luckeyz73
luckeyz73 Member Posts: 4
edited July 2015 in Just Diagnosed

I was just diagnosed with IDC on Monday. Needless to say it's been a long week. The cancer was found on a 6 month f/u mammogram (after a core biopsy of course). I was not able to feel the tumor, nor was my doctor able to. I am 41 years old, Registered Nurse, fairly healthy (medical issues through the years but nothing terminal). The thing that I can say that has been consistent over the last few years is fatigue. I'm talking true fatigue. Not the "I didn't get much sleep so I'm tired today" kind of fatigue. I have went to my doctor regarding the fatigue in the past and I get "well I think you're depressed", "you work really hard in the ER", "you're sad your dad died", "you're overweight, that's why you're tired", ect... Well I lost 50lbs, stopped working overtime, received deep therapy for the loss of my dad, guess what, still utterly exhausted. I just wanted to scream that I'm not stupid, I know my body...SOMETHING IS WRONG. Well something is wrong, I have cancer. I felt like I finely figured out why I'm so exhausted. NOPE. Well at least it's not definitive according to my breast cancer navigator. She says I should look into the depression route. ARGGHHHH!!! I am absolutely depressed now while I'm trying to process my diagnosis, but that has nothing to do with how I felt before my diagnosis. I don't have EBV, I don't really put much stock into chronic fatigue syndrome. I'm a long time ER nurse who is cynical and believes in going with my gut, I believe in data and yes I know that can be construed as a contradiction, but aren't we was human beings the definition of contradiction?? I just want to know if there is anyone else out there with overwhelming fatigue who has yet to start any treatment???

· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • grammakathy
    grammakathy Member Posts: 407
    edited May 2015

    my fatigue started after my diagnosis. I believe my brain was on overload as I learned that everything I thought I knew about BC, wasn't true. Like you, I believe in gut feelings and pressing for something if we feel it needs to be looked into. I'm so sorry for what brought you here, but there are many wonderful people who will listen and get it.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • luckeyz73
    luckeyz73 Member Posts: 4
    edited May 2015

    Thank you for your response grammakathy. Just to clarify, are there wonderful people on this site that you are referring to? I wish you the best :)

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Kicks
    Kicks Member Posts: 4,131
    edited May 2015

    Has your Vit. D level been checked? It is often low in women anyway and especially in ones with cancer.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • NATSGSG
    NATSGSG Member Posts: 231
    edited May 2015


    luckeyz73 , sorry your body is feeling this way.....I read about this fatigueness in everyone when I was first diagnosed, and kept on thinking what I could do to make it less so....I'm over with surgery and has just finished my chemo #4, going on to chemo #5 next Monday. It seems many people starts becoming fatigue from the time they start chemo...so I kept thinking perhaps that's due to insufficient fluid in one's system to help flush out these chemo drugs....so what I have been doing since I started chemo is

    (1) increase my fluid consumption to 4-5 litres a day, normally after every meal and when I feel my lips getting dry. The dryness, I feel, is our body's way of cueing us to hydrate it;

    (2) on chemo day, I would make 1.5 litres of green bean soup (no sugar, beans discarded). I would boil it until the soup turns green (not brownish), crushed the beans, and discard it. Then I would take it with me to chemo and drink it in between infusion. According to TCM (traditional Chinese medicine), green bean soup helps to detox the body.

    So far, it has worked and I have only had 1 day of fatigue. My TP is weekly chemo for 12 weeks, but I am only planning on completing 10 weeks. If you are experiencing fatigue daily, perhaps you could try drinking green bean soup every day or every other day and see if it works for you too (even though you are not on chemo).  Also, in TCM, this soup cools and calm the body system down. But don't drink it in the winter, only spring, summer and early fall. In the winter, it would be too cool for your body.

    If you believe in holistic treatment, you could also visit a reputable TCM doctor (you really have to find a reputable one), who can use acupuncture to balance your chi (energy). I found acupuncture helped me when I was living in Beijing, especially during the winter when the dry weather caused my entire body to itch like crazy. Reading up on acupuncture can give you some idea as to how it can help you.

    Good luck.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • bettysgirl
    bettysgirl Member Posts: 938
    edited May 2015

    I agree you know your body and know that there is a cause. My body deeply fatigues with infection. Before my gallbladder surgery (with no idea the gallbladder was so bad) just drying my hair was exhausting. Once the bad gallbladder was gone, improvement. Then before the BC i was just not feeling myself but attributed it to a house full of people ( including a 1 yr old and infant granddaughter) Of course it took some time after surgery and treatments to feel some better. 4 yrs after tx i was so tired, heavy and lethargic..MI. Had a stent and meds and improvement. I know that if I took better care of myself I would indeed feel better. I DO think that some people are more in tune with their bodies and know when something isn't right. There are many SUPER people on this site. I don't come here every day like I used to but pop in from time to time. Over the (almost) 7 yrs since my DX i have met some amazing people on here and there is usually someone that is there for the answer you need. I pray that you find the answer to your fatigue. The early part of DX for me was exhausting due to all the unknowns and appts. Once I got a plan i felt empowered to have a plan. I wish you the best.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • msphil
    msphil Member Posts: 1,536
    edited May 2015


    my fatigue also started after my first treatment, and after all these yrs i,m still like that some days, But thank God i am a long term Survivor, 21 yrs, so i,m still here ill take the fatigue, hope u feel better. msphil (idc,stage,2, 0/3 nodes, L mast, chemo and rads and 5 yrs on tamoxifen).  P S diagnosed while making wedding plans

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • luckeyz73
    luckeyz73 Member Posts: 4
    edited May 2015

    thank you everyone for your replies, I truly appreciate and love hearing everyone's stories and it is great guidance :)

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • debiann
    debiann Member Posts: 1,200
    edited June 2015

    I had a lot of stress, fatigue, anxiety, weight gain and depression (my dad also died), ect, before my cancer dx. Something just seemed very off, I was not myself and despite my attempts to improve I kept feeling worse.  When I got my cancer dx, I thought too, perphaps my symptoms were my body's way of trying to tell me "hey, take notice, something bad is happening here". I now think I was suffering from estrogen dominance and it was actually the cause of my very estrogen positve cancer. I was going through menopause at the time and had one test that showed my estrogen to be extremely high, followed the next month by a more normal reading, but the doctor didn't consider this a problem. I think my hormones were way out of whack for a few years. I'm just finishing a year of tx and surgeries and I'm on AI's,  no more estrogen. I'm actually feeling so much better.

    No matter the cause of your fatigue, I hope you feel better soon.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited June 2015

    Welcome to BCO luckey. You picked a great place for support throughout treatment.

    My fatigue started AFTER treatment, with the worst being right after rads.

    I felt better than I had in years right before my diagnosis. I was walking half an hour each day, eating well and doing my stretches. I even had my RA under control. I felt so good, I considered foregoing all treatment for the exception of surgery. Turns out my doctor's had other ideas. haha

    Now that I'm supposedly "cured", I feel worse than I ever have, but I'm told it's RA related. Go figure!!

    Sending best wishes to you. Please keep us all updated on your progress.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • bevin
    bevin Member Posts: 1,902
    edited June 2015

    Have they  checked your thyroid .? simple blood test and hypo thyroid can cause major fatigue. Good luck and hoping that at least rules that out.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • JJOntario
    JJOntario Member Posts: 356
    edited June 2015

    What spurned me to go to my Dr initially was a rash on my hands. The breast cyst was my secondary complaint. (My tumour was hiding behind it) I've had breast cysts for years and I had a clear mammo just 10 months prior to dx. I think our bodies do talk to us. The rash on my hands was saying something was up. I'm 2 wks post rads and absolutely exhausted. The problem with that is is that everyone thinks that now treatment is done I should feel great. It just so sucks.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited June 2015

    It does suck JJ. But it does get better. My fatigue is so much better than right after rads. It just takes time for our bodies to heal. Hang in there!! Sending you gentle hugs.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • cchix49
    cchix49 Member Posts: 43
    edited June 2015

    I had a severe reaction to prednisone with 7 bleeding ulcers and 4 days in ICU with 4 units of blood. I can understand the fatigue after all this but Drs. brushed it off as depression and so started all the meds. After a couple of years I was in worse shape. Anti depressants came with side effects. Doc would say try this one and if it doesn't work we will try until we find one that does. I said I was not depressed, but he insisted I was. Then came the weight gain. Was told I ate too much because of my depression. Then came high blood pressure. Water retention from bp meds. More meds for that and on and on til I quit it all. I started feeling better but had to continue bp meds. I was still fatigued. Dx with sleep apnea so use c-pap and it does help my sleep. But still fatigued. Changed docs and told my story to new doc and at least he listened and focussed on heart tests. All were good. Vitamin D deficient. Still fatigued. No answers for that and all tests were good. I just gave up and accepted fatigue. I knew something was not right. My breasts started aching and I found a lump. It was painful and encouraged that it was probably not cancer because of the pain. Mammogram and ultrasound found 2.3 cm. MRI showed it to be 6.1 tumor and into chest wall. Doc said it had probably been growing for several years. So I went into the cancer journey fatigued. First chemo was not bad but just finished 2nd and it has slammed me. I am 7 days after treatment and feel bad where I bounced back in 5 days on first treatment 2 more to go and then surgery and more chemo. My hope is that the fatigue will someday be gone. I am tired of being tired. I understand your frustration with fatigue and not being taken seriously. YES cancer fatigues! I am so thankful for family and friend support. I have experienced a wonderful sisterhood of ladies that are writing their own journey in this forum. Prayers for strength to you all!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Artista928
    Artista928 Member Posts: 2,753
    edited June 2015

    Oh my. I think I'm doomed. I've been fatigued for months now pretty much with no letting up. My thing is too I battle depression and anxiety and have a diagnosis and am on meds too so that doesn't help. But for the past several months or so, it's been bad. I just got diagnosed. Forgot the technical name but it's not a simple lump as drs never saw this on u/s before. It's like a lump with 4 leaf clover wings with I think the lump itself close to size of golf ball. So I'm pretty sure lumpectomy is out. Plus I didn't get on it right away with it with my anxiety issue so no mamo or anything since 2011. So I don't know if since my immune system has been battling it for apparently awhile now if that's why I could lie down and sleep all the time (well if I could sleep, just the fatigue is making me feel that way) or what. So I'll note the cold green bean soup, thanks. Anything else? I live alone am 50 and while I will have help not sure for how long as my friend has her hands full with her ailing mom too and my bro lives in LA---so they will do their best but that's it with me. Oh and I have obstructive sleep apnea and am supposed to use a cpap but can't because even with the nasal mask, the smallest thing, I'm awake! Very light sleeper so I sleep better without it but know it's not good. What luck.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • ksusan
    ksusan Member Posts: 4,505
    edited June 2015

    I had no fatigue from an indolent grade 2 IDC that I've clearly had for awhile since, despite a low Ki67, it was into a SLN. It did not show on mammogram. No fatigue from anemia. No sense of less fatigue with iron in fusions. Some fatigue from chemo, but water and exercise help with that. Wishing everyone relief!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • annika12
    annika12 Member Posts: 433
    edited June 2015

    hi,

    Im 2 years out since my diagnosis and thou I did not have fatigue or any other symptom . When I was at my MO for a check up yesterday I asked him for signs to watch for and he said # 1 fatigue! !! He said his job is to feel ,listen and look at body changes!!!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Artista928
    Artista928 Member Posts: 2,753
    edited July 2015

    I'm always fatigued and my surgery isn't until Aug yet. It's either want to sleep too much or am up wired. But I have kind of always been like this so I anticipate it will get worse. :/

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories