Exhaustion Before & After Diagnosis

Margot62 unremitting fatigue is what helped get me diagnosed (finally). After years of "clean" 3D mammograms and letters saying come back next year for your annual, I made an appointment with a breast surgeon and described to her my concerns. I had markedly different fatigue for the past year and my left breast felt off somehow. Heavy was the only way I could describe it. No one could find my tumor as my small breasts were very dense and the mass was close to my chest wall.

I think as well that when my cancer moved from DCIS to IDC, my body was fighting fiercely to contain it. I live on a farm and do a lot of physical work at times. I would literally work for an hour then have to come inside and lay down for 15 minutes to recharge. I knew something was seriously wrong. This newer level of fatigue was occurring the two months leading up to my diagnosis. That little voice inside my head was screaming at me to do something! I am so thankful that I found a cautious doctor who listened to me and reacted by setting me up for an MRI.

My recovery from the BMX has been longer than I thought it would be. My energy levels I am happy to report are beginning to crank up again. I am doing (gently) work outside and painting in the house. Tasks that I couldn't have done last year. The anti hormonal meds definitely slow me down. I would say I am running about 70% of my old energy level. So I am focusing on nutrition and proper exercise and feel I am making headway. Just remember this is a marathon, not a sprint. There is a lot of emotional upheaval that comes along with this experience and you have to find ways to work through that. I found that yoga with a group of cancer warriors and meditation have been extremely helpful along with some acupuncture.

So get the rest you need, when you need it. Be gentle on yourself and allow things to flow. You will be feeling much much better as time goes by. Good luck on the April 22 surgery. It will be here before you know it.

I got diagnosed in May last year. That spring, I was unusually tired. I said to my DH on several occasions things like "my springtime fatigue is unusually heavy this year!" and "I hope I am not developing chronic fatigue!". My unusuall fatigue set in just 2-3 months prior to diagnosis. The tumour grew very quickly. I had been going to yearly US checks because of family history and they were always clear. The tumour was clearly visible on ultrasound and it hadn't been there just a few months before.

JulieSim I prefer to think this way - your fatigue is/was generated by your body fighting that DCIS and keeping it contained in that milk duct. So once you get it out of there and get your primary treatment completed, your body will have all that energy that was working so hard for you behind the scenes. For me that recovery has been a little slower than I would like but remember you expend a lot of emotional energy with this diagnosis as well. I know at least I did and sometimes still do. It will get better but you are still in the center of the storm. Take it easy on yourself, you are processing a lot right now.

I was taking meds for migraines before I was diagnosed. We attributed my daily naps to the meds. In retrospect, we probably missed an early symptom. Otherwise, I was exercising and in good shape but I did feel an unusual fatigue. No way to tell now for sure what caused it but my b/w wasn't ideal from my 1st MO appt.