Dehydration

Walden1 · April 2018

I had a strange reaction to chemo last week. Was doing regular activity around the house for an hour when I suddenly became fatigued, short of breath, pale, weak. It took several days to get over it. This was day 4. My doctor said it could be due to the fact that my dexamethazone was finished. However, I’ve read that dehydration can cause similar issues. I was drinking lots of water, but didn’t improve much until I had a pedialite type drink. Also I’ve noticed my blood pressure is down to 107/76, I’m normally 120/80.

Feeling frustrated that my doctor didn’t have much to say to help. Anyone receive guidance from their medical team about hydration beyond “drink 8 glasses of water”. Anyone experience changes in blood pressure?

Moderators · April 2018

Hi Walden,

We're so sorry to hear you're dealing with this unfortunate side effect of treatment. The main Breastcancer.org site's side effect page on Dehydration has some helpful tips beyond the drinking water suggestion!

We hope this helps!

--The Mods

Momchichi · April 2018

I had a terrible time staying hydrated during chemo and went in for IV fluids on several occasions. My MO was always supportive of this. I also had low potassium levels and I felt better with K-clor pills she prescribed. Some people also have low magnesium or get anemic which may cause symptoms, too. I know they monitor your blood work for these things during treatment but you know your body best so make sure your MO doesn’t dismiss your symptoms. Especially shortness of breath - that must’ve given you quite a scare

Walden1 · April 2018

Pre-K79,

Spoke with my MO, and she had little to say about dehydration with respect to my extreme fatigue. Thought it was just normal chemo reaction and possible dip in energy after stopping first few days of steroids. They don't test for potassium or magnesium so who knows. I a man slightly anemic though. The nurse thinks I would have other signs of dehydration though

Denise-G · April 2018

A friend of mine just finished AC - her MO gave her IV fluids every week. It REALLY helped her.

Before that she was in the hospital twice because of dehydration.

SpecialK · April 2018

walden - it may be that too much water is actually causing you to be low in some minerals and electrolytes - try some watered down Gatorade or fruit juice - the fluid intake doesn't have to be all water. It may also be that even though you are drinking you are not absorbing, so IV fluids might be more effective. It is not at all unusual to need to go back to the center for an infused bag, sometimes for a couple of days in a row. I had a steroid crash from stopping the day after infusion - I ended up taking the last days dose and breaking it in half and taking a half over two days so I had a step down effect. Something to discuss with your MO.

KCMC · April 2018

Hi, Special K is right, my Oncologist said drinking too much water is not good because you can flush out all the electrolytes. He suggested gatorade and he said if I was worried about the calories I could get electrolytes to chew on called Nuuns. My oncologist is an avid bicycler and he would use them while riding instead of stopping and drinking. I actually never purchased the Nuuns because weight wasn't an issue. I drank Gatorade instead. I also went back in the day after my infusion for an IV of fluids. Good Luck.

beauz · April 2018

hi Walden, I went to hospital emergency twice in ten days after AC #3 with low blood pressure and lethargic. Each time I stayed in hospital overnight. I felt better after they gave me IV fluid. Thinking back I realized I was dehydrated at the time. Here we have a drink called hydrolyte for people suffering from diarrhoea. It may help with dehydration. I also had low potassium level during chemo. My potassium count is included in my routine full blood count test. I am eating a banana a day which helps to boost potassium. I eat chicken livers to boost iron. I also make chicken and beef broth to help healing from chemo, surgery and radiation. My blood pressure has returned to normal now.

Walden1 · April 2018

Thanks so much for all your wonderful suggestions! Honestly you’ve given me more useful information than my MO. I’ve been using hydro lite which contains potassium and it seems to help. Also added other drinks like orange juice and ginger ale. My blood pressure never officially reach a low level that concerned the doctors but I do have trouble if I stand up too fast so it’s not my normal. I don’t have other obvious signs of dehydration like dark pee or infrequent urination. What were your obvious signs that lead to IV fluids at the hospital? Unfortunately I get nauseous from bananas, but a nurse at the chemo ward also recommended one a day to keep up your potassium. She said it is a common issue and causes more fatigue

beauz · April 2018

Hi Walden, it seems many people went in just for IV fluid during chemo. With your symptoms, I would ask MO to give me some IV fluid. It may be the case that you drink plenty of water but it doesn't get absorbed. When I went to emergency department, they just automatically took my blood test and put me on IV fluid. I just felt better afterwards. Hope you feel better soon.

Dehydration

Comments

Categories