TAMOXIFEN AND BODY HEAT CHANGES

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heartbroken1
heartbroken1 Member Posts: 54
edited May 2017 in Hormonal Therapy - Before, During, and After


 
My whole body compostion has seemed to change- I never had a problem wearing- soft cashmere - or any kind of good wool sweater- now- even with a pure cotton shirt under it- I still feel like whereever there is any kind of wool( even a blend w/ acryilic- I get an itchy hot feeling- now- before tamoxifen- always had sensitive skin- but nothing like this- 80 % of my wardrobe for winter I can't wear. I have even hand washed my sweaters in the mildest of bar soap that I use on my body- Dove unscented for sensitive skin- also tried Aveno for dry skin- - of course - if I could go around in a cotton shift- I guess I would be ok- but it is freezing where I live in the East part of the US- anyone else have this? Any suggestions
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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited December 2007

    Sure wish I had the answer.....I too noticed that I cant wear some of my sweaters....not all of them but some of them itch the daylights out of me when I try to wear them....I also get that warm, sweaty feeling just before the itch starts...

    I asked my primary about it and she said "dont wear the ones that bother you".....great answer but it is winter here too...

    Sorry I couldnt be of more help.

    Jule

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  • iodine
    iodine Member Posts: 4,289
    edited December 2007

    I wore t-shirts year round for over 3 years.  Just put all my sweaters away, mostly they were cotton.  I'd wear a long sleeve shirt as a coat to the store!   LOL

    I was just too hot to wear anything, even long sleeves in the house.  My dh had to wear heavy sweats and even a hood sometimes in the house. 

    I told him pay backs were hell.  In our first 3 decades of marriage he was the one who opened the window at 26 below!  I had the electric blanket on high and wool socks.  Now it's a complete turn around.

    I bought cotton long sleeve t-shirt type shirts, they look great under a blazer.  And you can take off the blazer.  No turtle necks tho--way too hot.  Still cannot wear them.

    I also went thru a period last summer '06 where I would freeze--I even put a heating pad next to my chair because my feet would get so cold. 

    Hormones really do a number on us.

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  • conniehar
    conniehar Member Posts: 954
    edited December 2007

    Well, I guess I wish I had one or the other, but I have both!  At night I lay in bed freezing most of the night.  I don't know why I am so cold but I just can't get warm.  Unless of course, I have a hot flash!  I find myself hoping for them at night! During the day I'm ok but I do have the occasional hot flash.  I have been having trouble sleeping because I'm so cold!

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  • iodine
    iodine Member Posts: 4,289
    edited December 2007

    Two words: electric blanket.

    That's what I got on my first wedding anniversary.  I was freezing and dh was burning up.  Dual controls!  gotta love technology!  Oh, I also remember my first job at 14, wrapping Christmas gifts at a dept. store, my first pay ck went for a twin electric blanket!

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  • pod1257
    pod1257 Member Posts: 262
    edited December 2007

    Freezing is what tells me a hot flash might be coming. I can be so cold one minute, to the point of shivering, in the house at 69 degrees.- Then I get all bundled up with a big sweater, thick socks and even tuck my pants into my socks. For about one minute I feel warm and comfortable. The next minute, I'm sweating and all the extra clothes come off.

    It really does drive you nuts at times.

    Julie 

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  • rumoret
    rumoret Member Posts: 685
    edited December 2007

    Iodine..........YOU MAKE ME LAUGH......thanks!

    Love,

    Terry 

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited December 2007

    This is interesting...it really isn't a hot flash...but like you've said, more of a body heat change "thing". It really is frustrating...all day long, I put on my sweathsirt to get warm and then as soon as I'm warm, I'm then overheating. I take the frickin' sweatshirt off to cool down, and then I'm freezing cold! IT'S DRIVING ME NUTS! And it puts me in a real bad mood! LOL I wish I had a suggestion/solution ...but I don't.

    Also, do any of you have this?...when I'm in the overheating mode, tingley/pins and needle sensations rush to my face. LOL It sounds weird, but I can't think of a better way to describe it. I know I should be concentrating more on the fact that I'm lucky to be alive, but come on! LOL It's just awful.

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  • JoyRebecca
    JoyRebecca Member Posts: 787
    edited December 2007

    I think it's my inner child playing with matches. I feel it coming, pretty soon, hair is wet,sweat on my body,ripping clothes and shoes off. Then, instant freeze and everything that's wet gets cold. All the clothes and shoes go back on and on and on and on.......................!

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  • Maire67
    Maire67 Member Posts: 768
    edited July 2010

    yes,definitely I get very cold just before the heat comes ...Cotton everything as a base is my suggestion. lots of layers...Sweats are  better during the cold weather because the sweat doesn't run down your face. (very embarassing at work) I keep t-shirts on my night table for a quick change ...sleep is so different now. I just keep telling myself that every hot flash is burning up the bad cells....that works 50% of the time.  The rest of the time....well you have all been there.   But we are here and it is fun to be the one to keep the heat down. 

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  • QueenSansaStark
    QueenSansaStark Member Posts: 207
    edited December 2007

    I get the "first cold then hot" thing too! I turn up the heat, then WHAMMO! Hot flash! So I run to turn it back down.

    I also feel like the heat comes bubbling up through my chakras and out the crown chakra - the top of my head gets so hot! I mean I feel the actual heat radiating off the top of my head.

    Oh well, if it comes down to a choice between hot flashes and recurrence, I will take the hot flashes - at least it means I'm metabolizing the tamoxifen! And I'm saving on heat, too. Smile

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  • Nancy101
    Nancy101 Member Posts: 59
    edited December 2007

    I too get real cold several times during the daytime and at night...so cold that my nose, hands, and toes are ice cold.   At work I'm always wearing a sweater on top of a sweater.  To relieve the cold, I drink hot tea...then I get a hot flash and I'm fine...hot, but fine for a while.  At night, I have a sheet, blanket, and comforter on me and I'm still freezing until the hot flashes kick in.  I believe I read that chills/coldness are a side effect of tamoxifen.   I think I prefer the hot flashes over the bone chilling cold! 

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  • san4850
    san4850 Member Posts: 117
    edited December 2007

    My co-workers must think I have a loose screw.  I've been on tamox for over 7 months now.  When I arrive for work I'm all bundled up.  As soon as I get to my desk, I take my coat off, and 5 minutes later I'm turning on my fan because I feel hot, but at the same time my legs are cold (I need to get a heater near my feet).   I leave my fan on for only about a minute, then I turn it off because I'm cold again.   This goes on at least a dozen times throughout the day.  Argh....

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  • jinky
    jinky Member Posts: 746
    edited December 2007

    wow!!!! Laura....you are describing what happens to me all day long

    plus i also have about 10 hot flashes a day....face and neck and

    hair wet and face bright red and  i feel weak all over when it happens.....

    I was like this on 5 years of tamoxifen.....one month of.....now almost 8 weeks

    on femara....no change.....little more pain in hands and wrist....been on celebrex for

    years so i imagine it helps a lot......

    Glad to see i am normal....lol....bc hugs jinky

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  • kcpc
    kcpc Member Posts: 66
    edited December 2007

    I'm so glad to hear I'm not the only one having cold flashes as well as hot flashes. Combined with constant mild nausea, I call it the "tamoxifen flu". Hopefully it will get better after a while (I've only been on it six weeks). And if I have a small glass of wine, I get the world's worst hangover.  How long till your body adjusts, if ever??

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  • denny4
    denny4 Member Posts: 4
    edited January 2008

    Wow, it feels great to know it's not just me, I feel like waking my hubby up and say look this is what I've been telling you. With me the heat stays only in my head, my face get real red, hair soaking wet and my face is extremely hot to the touch while the rest of my body feels cool. It scares me at times because the heat is so concentrated in one area. It is so embarissing, I tell folks I'm having a chemo moment (a year after finishing chemo). I've told my doctor that it's not hot flashes, but he doesn't understand. I don't wake up at night hot so I guess I'm lucky there.

    I am glad I found this site I signed up in 2006 and never  came back until tonight, and so far I have learned that I'm not the only one that the tamoxifen causes bone pain in or depression and hot spells, if I keep looking I might find out a reason for the brain fog and forgetting.

    Thanks folks

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  • Carolynne
    Carolynne Member Posts: 1
    edited May 2017

    I have been on tamoxifen for a couple of months now and have the same thing going on. It drives me nuts as wrll

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  • CCtoo
    CCtoo Member Posts: 41
    edited May 2017

    carolynne, After just starting Tamoxifen, I also got , like incontinence! Vaginal dripping!! As well as hot flashes, and I am 80! But never had those problem before....I doubt I have much if any estrogen left anyway so I stopped Tamoxifen....also wonder if anyone got itching from hormone therapy. I am very sensitive to meds and so I decided quality of life was as important as quantity! I live each day just assuming I will not get recurrence of breast cancer. My Onc. Told me she did not want me just doing nothing, but cannot deal with side effects at my age and I am alone.

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