Anyone.Starting Chemo in October 2016?

good to hear from you, Barb. Yes, family situations always seem to surface at the holidays. You are not alone in that. I hope your Taxol goes well today.

Lynn, yes, I'm having #12 Taxol tomorrow. Even with my side effects I am very glad that I stuck through it. I just really hope that A/C goes easy on me when I begin it at the end of this month.

I am thankful for my kind, competent chemo nurse, Lin, who always has a smile, always has a suggestion, always is positive. When I first began chemo, I thought about asking for a different chemo nurse because I had difficulty understanding Lin. I am so glad that I didn't. We understand each other just fine.

Nanci

Barb - good to hear from you! Hope your Taxol went well. I had #2 today - my onc keeps telling me SE are different from A/C - hardly any nausea and feelings of neuropathy probably not towards the end. Going to hold her to that. Challenge is that there will be a cumulative effect on my hemoglobin counts so my onc is recommending a blood transfusion - she left the decision up to me today. I put it off until next week - don't think she was happy but my level is just under 8 and with this thalicemai thing, my body is used to operating at the low end of the scale so I think I can go another week. Then it's probably another all day at the hospital for the transfusion - joy of joys.

Nancie - good luck on the last Taxol tomorrow. Sounds like you have some great trips to look forward to before A/C - how exciting!  At Christmas dinner, we started to play our annual family vacation - 18 of us traveling together. The farthest we got was agreeing where & when to go which is a challenge when trying to coordinate calendars. This year - Aruba. Can't wait. In the meantime, I'm thinking of planning a long weekend in Maine for the hubby & I after Taxol is done so something else to look forward to.

For those of us that are working, have you considered using FMLA time for the days you take off for treatment or other things? How does it work for you? As I read the policy for my job, it looks like I have to use all my other allotted time before I can use FMLA which seems confusing - thought I could use FMLA instead of other time. Might have to call HR which is never fun.

Julianne

Howdy, Julianne! When the chemo nurse had the oncologist come over to see how the port wouldn't work, the darned thing immediately produced blood! The port worked when the chemo nurse was demonstrating how to work with my wonky Port configuration to a less experienced nurse, then worked again when she was showing the port's performance to the oncologist. That makes me wonder if she's standing / holding the syringe at a different angle when she's interacting with the other people & that might have an influence on the port producing blood. Remember it has a weird loop in it and had migrated 3 centimeters from the original implantation location. May be a long shot, but I'm going to ask her to try different angles next week before we assume that the port is not usable. Wish me luck!

I hope you can use the FMLA. I lost my career at age 42 to the blasted Fibromyalgia and had to quit my part time jobs due to the cancer so haven't explored FMLA. Good luck!

Lyn

Hello all,

I had my first Taxol on Tuesday and it was absolutely fine ... I was drowsy from the Benadryl, but nothing more than that.

My big struggle has been the loss of my beloved dog Max ... we had him put down on Tuesday night. We were fortunate that he was able to make it through the holiday season, but he was having a hard time and it was the right thing to do. I can't believe how difficult I'm finding this ... I miss him so much! We had him for 10 years, and he was so much a part of my daily routine that I feel his absence at each stage of my day, from morning to night. I guess it will get easier with time. I hope so!

Best wishes,

Barb

Oh, Barb, my heart goes out to you. A photo of my then 15 1/2 year old Shepherd boy showed up in my Facebook memories today. He was such a delightful companion. I hate that you're losing Max at a time when life is handing you other daunting challenges, but I consider it a gift that we can help our pets pass so they needn't suffer.

Nanci, YAY FOR YOU on reaching this milestone! I hope the skin heals quickly so you feel comfortable during the cruise. Fingers crossed for minimal side effects from the AC.

Oh, Dee, no! How very scary to have the headaches and fainting incident. Being abandoned at this difficult time must be overwhelming. I'm so sorry that you're going through this. Feel free to vent away.

Other than some numbness in my right hand, a little bone pain and the usual fatigue, I'm doing fine today. I'm a little concerned that my right armpit still feels tender after the oncologist examined the area Tuesday. She didn't find anything, but I'm paranoid about cancer cooties setting up shop somewhere.

Lyn

Barb - I'm so sorry about Max. My heart goes out to you.

Dee - seems like when it rains it pours. We're all here to listen and virtually help in any way we can. Vent away whenever you need to.

Lynn/Nanci - feel the same way. I had a bad case of the "what ifs" over the holidays. Have no idea what brought it on but it snuck up on me and I had a hard time shaking it. I'm trying to get back into my routine of some meditation/deep breathing every day which seems to help. Something to talk out with my therapist this week.

Nanci - where do you go in Maine? We love Ogunquit - just over the border from New Hampshire. The place that we're looking at is on a cliff overlooking the Atlantic - The Cliff House in Cape Neddick. It will be off season - I think - so hopefully I can get a good deal on the price. We'll see.

Julianne

julieanne- we most often go to Ogunquit also- also York which is in the Cape Neddick area. I get emails from the Cliff House occasionally but haven't stayed there. We've also stayed in Kennebunk. An area we stopped in last summer for an afternoon was Portland and I want to go back again. We've also gone to Acadia National Park (in summer) and stayed outside the park - forgot the name of the town. I also want to go to Boothbay Harbor. We live in NH so it's easy to get to Maine.

FightingTheFight- I sorry you have such muscle weakness. But you are soooo close to being done! Hang in there and this will be soon be in the past.

Nanci

Julesbabe55 - You definitely need to check with your HR on the FMLA. Each company does it a little differently. Most commonly, they require that you use your usual leave (sick, vacation) in parallel with FMLA. Remember that FMLA only guarantees that your job will still be there for you when you return, it is not paid leave. You use your usual leave time to get paid during your time off. So, if I have 2 weeks leave sick/vacation time built up and want to take 12 weeks FMLA, I only get paid for the first two weeks off and then can take the remaining 10 weeks without pay but with assurance that I can return to my job. You can also take FMLA intermittently rather than all at once.

Congratulations on Ringing the Bell. It's a great feeling..........

Had my port removed on Thursday and that was a great feeling too.

WOO HOO Charlene1!!! What a feeling ! ( I am singing Lionel Ritchie Dancing on the Ceiling) FightingTheFightCheering you for the 12th. You Go Girl ! I am right behind you. I look forward to this Fri. the 13th. I will be doing my dance to Dancing Queen and Abba's serenade. Ladies seeing the success is so energizing. Countdown alone seems to provide such a boost. kshortenPort removal must bring a sense of some norm too.

Abracadabra…Barb, sorry about the loss of your beloved Max. May the memories wrap you like a comforting blanket.

This last week has had some interesting ups and downs.....UPs - #11 of 12 done. Ultrasound - revealed axilla node clear, and the former 3.75 cm tumor inferior within 6cm fatty cyst is now less than 1cm.

Venting time..... DOWNs - Tragic loss of neighbors I have known for over 30 yrs. a lovely letter from Humana. day after Christmas....thought it was my new premium. They are eliminating my individual PPO effective 6/30/17.No longer writing in Texas. Individual plans tougher to get in Tx. Will be getting creative. Have some unique parachute plans up my sleeve in order to keep my Dr's and Methodist ...since there are extreme limitations for individual self employed in Texas...Many are pulling out. Will be putting all possible procedures, etc pre June 30th I can. Interesting to have a plan for 15 yrs, only using it the last quarter of the year and then to be hit with the letter, seems a little awkward on timing. ( Ok, rant over for now). There is a better solution ahead as releasing the funky energy opens up to opportunity. ( Thanks in advance for ears/eyes ladies)

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Courtesy from more of my support team..POWER Women ( Powerful Outstanding Women Experiencing Results ) ... when they saw me post the saying weeks back.

Here's to each of you.......Now POWER Women in your own right ! Attitude and Support the skies the limit .

Terry ( aka Whistlestop)

Julianne, great news on the blood work!

I had Taxol #3 yesterday myself. My port was initially uncooperative, but they were able to finally draw some blood out so that they could proceed. They didn't have to use the anti-clotting medication, which saved me 20 - 30 minutes in the infusion room. I just wish the darned port would work first time, every time. I hate to think about the cost/hassle of a port study and perhaps facing a fourth surgery in less than 6 months plus now it's a new insurance year with another $5,000 out-of-pocket before I meet my catastrophic requirement. My arm is still really bruised from having to go the IV route last week. Ugh!

Lyn, Donning her Wendy Whiner Hat. :-D

hey there ladies!! Just checking in on you guys. Sounds like most of you guys are getting pretty close to being done. I had Taxol 2 today. I'm on dose dense Taxol. Only 2 more!! Wahooooo! Anyone have luck icing to prevent neuropathy? I'm limited to Vit E and B6 per the MO, but I still had numb fingertips in Taxol 1. I iced about have of today's session, so I'll see if I notice any difference.

Dee, I have a fatty cyst called a lipoma on my butt, it's pretty deep under the skin. I know you were visualizing a lump on my butt. 😂 Anywho, my chemo has even shrunk my lipoma. I'm hoping your cyst is nothing more than another lump. Thinking of you!

For those that are finishing, give that bell hell!! 1 month from today, I will be!!

Luwusu - Thank you so much for the encouragement to hang in there.

VLH - I'm sorry to hear you've been dealing with muscle weakness also. It makes even the most mundane tasks really hard and tiring.

Charlene1 - Congrats on making it through your chemo and getting to ring that bell!!

Kshorten - I'm surprised they let you remove the port. I keep hearing that they want people to keep it in for awhile after chemo, as some just in case measure. Personally I'm eager to get mine removed, once I'm done taking herceptin for the year.

Whistlestop - Good luck tomorrow and congrats on your last chemo round!! I know I'll feel good. I hope the side effects after this last round are minimal for you. But I'm sorry to hear about your insurance. I'll say a prayer about that for sure.

Abracadabra - Thank you for thinking of me regarding my last treatment.

Nfullblume - Sorry to hear about your cyst, but glad to hear that the chemo may be helping to shrink it.

Finally, I had my last chemo today! It was a relief to get it over with, though I've had some anxiety in the days leading up to it. There was no bell to ring, but my cousin came with me and presented me with a nice bouquet of balloons and my favorite candy. So that made getting through today that much easier. And for my herceptin doses that I'll still be getting every 3 weeks, I'll be getting them done at a different infusion center in the same network (that my MO also goes to) and it will be a nice mental separation to never have to return to the place where I got my chemo. Everyone there is lovely, but I can't help but associate the place with something that makes me feel bad. I thanked all the people there today for being great, but I won't lie and say that I'll miss that place. If I never see it again that'll be fine with me.

And regarding the muscle weakness, I think part of it recently was exacerbated by retaining water. I felt like a blown up water balloon about to burst for about a week. But a nurse gave me some advice to elevate my legs above my heart. So I've been propping my legs on a pillow at night when I go to sleep the last few days and it has been helping. The swelling has gone down considerably, though I am still retaining some fluid, it's not as bad as before. But at the same time, I did have my MO fill out the form to approve me to get a temporary handicap tag. Since every step counts these days, I need to be able to park as close as possible to my destinations.

I really hope my side effects are minimal after this last chemo round today. My toes are tingling more than ever before after today. And I'll need to be diligent in taking my Vitamin B12, Vitamin E and Vitamin D3. I don't need to more neuropathy at this stage in the game. I just want to put this part of treatment behind me and work on getting stronger and heading back towards normal.

Agai, good luck to all the others that are closing in on the last of their chemo also. I'm glad we have each other to cheer us on.

Hi everyone,

It's a beautiful sunny day here ... the puddles from yesterday's mild weather have frozen solid again, so we're back to icy sidewalks and slippery steps. Pedestrians ... beware!

Lyn - It must be so unnerving to be caught by those spells of weakness. I know it's tempting to go full-out when energy runs high, but try to rein it in, just a little. Gracie wants her momma home safe and sound!

FightingtheFight - Yahoo ... it's done! Best wishes for moving onward from this.

Connie - You and I can travel along together ... I still have 10 more weekly Taxol to go, so I'll only finish in March as well. I hope that you are feeling well these days.

Hoping that each of you find something to smile about today!

Barb

FightingtheFight, I'm so glad that you had a celebration in recognition of your last chemo. WAHOO! Most ladies seem to have minimal problems with Herceptin. I hope that's true for you as well.

How funny that you do a face plant and immediately think of me, Barb. :-D I'm glad you weren't hurt badly, but the wipeout must have been very startling.

Lyn