Post Chemo Spa & Shape Up

Casey- That squash, spinach ravioli, alfredo sounds pretty good to me right now- especially if it would just appear. TGIT (Thank god it's Thursday) and my work week has come to an end. I took on a little too much today, got home too tired to prepare a meal other than vegetarian baked beans and leftover pasta w/sauce...not SO bad I suppose.

Raye- No kidding re: the tiredness. I keep slipping back into this delusion that I should feel normal now. Sometimes I do feel normal and energetic which is what leads me to forget. Never read "Skinny Bitch" the title is certainly catchy- I'll have to check it out.

Mizsissy- That's some quick result with the diet. The running must be doing it's work too.

Puppy- hope you feel better. The good thing with strep throat is that the antibiotics can kick in fast- here's hoping they do.

I am definitely running to bed early tonight. Allyson

Good Morning Girls.  Puppy is still very sick and too sick to talk on the phone.  She went to the doctor's yesterday and they seem more concerned about quarentining her than taking care of her...she was sent home even though the doctor thought she needed hospitalization. 

Got a PM from her this morning and she says she is in a lot of pain and will call when she's better.  Sorry to start the day with such a grim report.  We've been very worried about her.

Miz 

Allyson, as far as we know it is strep.  She has a lot of swelling and pain and bumps in her throat, but no fever!  Seems odd.  I thought she might be having an allergic reaction to chantex when I first heard about her symptoms. I guess we'll just have to hope for the best.

Miz 

I hope Puppy gets to that doctor soon.  My DH had a very bad sore throat a number of years ago and he tried nursing it at home. By the time he finally got to the doctor, his throat had almost completely closed up: tonsillitis.  The doc sent him to an ENT doc, who immediately gave him IV fluids and anti-biotics; DH had his tonsils out several months later.

BTW, the ENT doc said another few hours and DH would have suffocated to death!  That is how George Washington died.

Any news of Puppy today?

Tina

Good morning. Hope all is well with everyone. Mizsissy- I sent you a PM. Raye thanks for the encouragement/sharing re: the energy. It is getting better, dramatically. I'm just not "there" yet. Haven't gone quite so far as to hope the breast will grow back-I've adapted to having a "chest wall" instead. I did mast too with no reconstruction planned. Your hair looks SO great! Miz- hope your hair looks great too, after all those foils I bet it must. Allyson

BTW Allyson, to insert on new row in our Stats document, press the Insert tab at the TOP of the screen (next to the Edit tab). It took me a long time to find this!!

Girls, girls, girls, *take a nap* daily.  You know what time of day you start to sag.  Just give in to it and nap!  I've been napping all my adult life.  Even fell asleep on the sofa in the ladies lounge on my lunch hour when I was working at the age of 20.  You don't have to tough it out.

I know that some people say they feel lousy if they nap during the day but my experience is that I feel totally and completely rejuvenated.  I konk out for exactly one hour.  You could set your watch by me.  I never set an alarm but my eyeballs just boing open at the one hour point.

I love naps.

Tina

Tina thanks for the nap advice. I love naps too but sometimes have trouble falling asleep. I was able to catch a little nap this afternoon. It helps to trick myself into sleeping by putting on a relaxation/ imagery tape or similar. Mizzy -been there with the back issues. It always seems to be at this time of year for me. I am pretty sure that a couple of times I have had muscle spasms triggered by being cold and then doing some little thing.

If anyone here is interested in participating I started a food log thread at the healthy food area of this board. Thought it would help me stay on track and might be fun. Sweet dreams to all you spa women. Allyson.

Mizsissy, sorry to hear about your back - is it any better now? I understand about the declutter. My husband and I have  a basket on the kitchen counter, which he calls a "glorified trash can." Anything we don't know what to do with, in the basket it goes. I've been trying to get better about just tossing stuff. Your studio sounds exciting - who needs a bathroom anyway .

Allyson, I am laughing at your repeating yourself. Not that it's a laughing matter, but I felt exactly the same.  During chemo, I thought "wow, I don't have this chemo brain thing they talk about" - well, I mentioned it to a couple of girlfriends and my husband, who all said I was repeating the same stories - sometimes within 5 minutes. Even now, over a year after chemo, I cannot think of a word or I will use the incorrect word, but I don't think I am repeating myself anymore, but then again I needed someone to point that out before!

Casey - I haven't finished the book "Skinny Bitch" yet, but I take it with a grain of salt.  So far, I like it and find it funny. I don't agree with everything point they make, but what the hell.

Wow, what a bike ride. Sorry to hear about the rain! Good for you for hanging in there.

No word from Puppy yet? I hope she is doing and feeling better.

Cleaned the house today and went to see the movie "The Bucket List".My husband wanted to see it and I honestly didn't think I'd like it, but it was really good. The theatre was packed.

No work out today - will try and do something tomorrow.

Have a good night all!

Raye

Casey- you give me hope that there's a 45 mile bike ride in my future. Haven't been on a real bike ride since two weeks into the chemo. The first treatment didn't seem to do much to me and I was still thinking "What's all the fuss about this? These other women must be wimps." I have since been humbled.

Raye- I guess the good thing with the memory problems is that we get to enjoy the same things over and over again. My husband tells me that in my case it's insights. I get all fired up and tell him, "You, know, I just realized...XYZ." only to be told that I already realized that last week or yesterday. It's just as good for me the 2nd (or 10th) time around. Poor Jim, he has to put up with the reruns.

Mizsissy- I saw that your post was 5 hours ago and thought, "Is she in Europe? Japan? Or is she up in the middle of the night." Sorry the back pain is still there. Hope you get your 12 hours. Also- I'm with you on the de-cluttering. I've been doing the Flylady thing. Learned about it somewhere on these boards. It was just what I needed.

On the sleep note. I wish I could get 12 hours. I went to bed at 9:30 which is not early enough for me. Got to sleep fine but was up with the chickens as usual, actually up before the chickens- literally- we have 6 and I let them out of their coop when I took the dogs out in the near dark. I'll try to get a nap again today and aim to get to bed at 8:30 tonight.

On the diet and exercise front- We got a wood delivery around dinnertime last night. Our wood guy brought 3 of his kids, 4,6,  and 7 and he, the kids, Jim and I had the wood unloaded and stacked in about 45 minutes. Definitely a workout! The kids were adorable and really competent- they were very enthusiastic about the job. Tom- the wood guy- said he'd fueled them up with Cracker Jacks on the ride over.

I have renewed my commitment to doing WW core and using the Beck Diet Solution (not a diet but the skills to diet/change eating behavior successfully-possibly I've mentioned this 10 times). I've found that the BDS makes a huge difference in my ability to stay on track. Also, because it involves planning meals ahead, I found when I was really doing it that it also 1) saved money and 2) helped keep the fridge more orderly.

I need to plan some meals and get out shopping today. We have another snowstorm coming tonight and I may be snowed in tomorrow out here in the woods. Got to go and get busy.

Puppy Hope this morning finds you feeling better. Allyson

Puppy!!!  Great to hear from you.  We've been worried...knew by now things had eased up and you were probably much better, but it's much better to get it straight from the horse's mouth!!!  Don't know if you wanted to lose three pounds.  Was hoping a similar  "loss" was true for cigarettes...are you still smoking?

Allyson, it is such a pleasure to have you here and to find your cheerful posts in the morning.  I gather you live on a farm in Connecticut?!  Tell us more about it.  You have your own chickens!!!  Were you able to post your stats?

Raye, Casey, all...Chemo brain is for real.  My chemo brain (& perhaps stress level) was so bad I actually got lost on my way over to the Oncology Center and was a half hour late for my post-chemo appointment with a Social Worker.  Showed her some of my pre- and post-chemo artwork, and she took a good look and said, "Yes, you do have chemo brain."  But you should think of it as a new starting point from where you can go forward.  It was actually a relief for me to hear this.  I decided to go back to the drawing boards and simply focus on my drawing skills, and to my happy surprise I found that what I had lost in chemo was actually somewhat of an asset in learning to draw again..!!!  I was more adventurous, bold, intuitive.

Simplifying..just for the h*ll of it, I went around the house today and counted up all the closets, drawers, cabinets, and bookcases I have to maintain.  111 on the first floor, 87 on the second floor!!!  And I didn't even count the basement where there's a lot more.  That's a LOT of organization to deal with.  I think it's TOO Much.   Didn't go to church this AM cause of my back (which is a lot better tho) and the desire to get some of this organization DONE.  Better get going!!

XXXOOO Miz 

Lot's of weight loss progress here this weekend! Obviously this group is doing something right. As of this morning I am down another .5lb This is not much but I've been losing slowly for almost a year now and it does add up. I am sore and tired from the wood moving stength workout yesterday so took it easy today.

Mizsissy- Glad you've enjoyed the posts and my cyber companionship- same here- to all of you. We do live in rural CT but don't quite live on a farm, although we are working on moving things more in that direction. We got the chickens the year before last in order to have our own organic free-range eggs. Other than Gus and Wendy, the dogs, and Isabella, the cat, there are no other animals (unless you count mice and the occasional giant snake in the basement). We raise some vegetables in the summer but last year was pretty limited with the distraction of the breast cancer interruption. Hopefully this year will be different. We heat with wood- haven't had the furnace on at all this year except in it's water heating capacity. This house belonged to my grandparents and I semi-grew up here- left the area when I was 14 and came back 3 years ago when Jim and I bought the house. It is an old farmhouse- nothing fancy and nothing updated in YEARS, so there are always projects that are going on or should be. We're starting to get back on track now that the bc treatment has come to an end.

Re: the stat posting. Nope. Tried and couldn't do it. It's no big deal. If I lose weight I'll just write a post saying that I did.

I am super impressed with organizing ambitions and the counting project-that is a lot to deal with. Hope the back is better.

Jasmine (I think- I'm getting confused re: names). The one soda does seem like an improvement. Is your goal to have none?

Puppy Glad you survived the sore throat. Hope it's helped the quit. How's that going?

Allyson

Hello to all and to all a good night...

Just tiptoeing in here before going to bed to take and look and see who's here.

Jazz..Congratulations on your weight loss!!! and that's also terrific about the walking, but I am not surprised your shins hurt.  Walking affects me that way too; walking actually is more bothersome to my bones than running.  There are two stretching exercises that you can do before and after walking to help with this.  (1) To help the shins, stretch your calves from the back.  Take one step forward and push the heel down on the leg behind; hold for 30 seconds or more, then alternate.  Another way to do this is stand on the stairs and lean forward until you feel that stretch.  Hold for 30 seconds or 1 minute (both at once).

(2) Here is a great exercise to straighten out your back after walking, and I don't know if I can describe this.  Lie on your back and cross your legs, left over right.  Then grab your right knee with both hands and pull your legs to your chest until you can feel a stretch in you back and hips.  Hold for one minute.  This is great for your hips and spine.  Then reverse leg position to do the other side.

Getting down to one soda is a big improvement.  Maybe you could move to sparkling water.  One of my favorite drinks is a lime rickey...sparkling water, a squeeze of lime and sweetener of choice...Or maybe you could start drinking gatorade; it has lots of electrolyte and is good for you. 

Allyson, your old fashioned farmstead in CT sounds very idyllic.  I used to live just north of you in rural Mass, up around Amherst.  Loved it and miss it terribly!!!  Also really miss being close to the East Coast.

Puppy,  I'm doing your treatment with the olive oil and baking soda paste, hoping to lighten my highlights a little; the stylist over toned them.  My hair is in great shape considering all its been through in the past month.

Whew..spent the hole day cleaning out drawers and moving things around.  Looking forward to the time when we can downsize to a smaller house and many fewer things. Didn't run as planned...too busy, but I feel like I've been losing a little, though I haven't weighed...maybe tomorrow.   My back is back together now after many massages and the flexeril...

Miz 

Miz- I bet you miss it! That area is great. Luckily I get up there pretty often. My daughter and her husband both did undergrad at UMass Amherst- now live in Williamsburg- before that lived in Sunderland and Leveritt. I love them all. We are right on the MA border and it's beautiful and rural but we don't have that Pioneer Valley culture (except at our house ).

Jasmine I don't find the giving up soda goal or the difficulty achieving it one bit silly (and I've quit cigarettes, alcohol, and garlic - all of which I liked very much at one time!). What is making it hard for you to give up that 1 per day? My experience is that the solution depends on what the specifics are for you. Have you lost weight just by the cut back on soda and walking, or are you doing something else besides?

I do Weight Watchers core (with some minor adjustments so I have lost weight very slowly but steadily), plus use The Beck Diet Solution which has helped me develop the skills needed to stay on track with any diet. What approaches do you spa ladies use? Raye I think you mentioned Jenny Craig?

Dottie I've certainly made my contribution to the reading load! I always seem to have a lot to say these days. Re: the sleep. I am trying to take Tina and Miz's excellent advice about naps and getting more sleep at night but it's not going that well. Often I can't sleep enough despite being tired- wonder if it's the Femara, the Lexapro, or heat waves during the night, or all of the above.

So- today- I'm snowed in this morning, wondering if work will be on for this afternoon or not. I am getting ready to do some cooking - minestrone soup and maybe a cranberry bread. Also decluttering/cleaning with help from the flylady. I washed the kitchen woodwork last night- 15 minutes and can't believe the improvement.

Wishing all you spa women the best- I just don't have the focus to get everyone all in one post. Allyson

Hi, shaper-uppers,  I need some suggestions.

What do you keep on hand in the fridge and in the pantry for when you are just starving between meals?  I love bread-y things mostly and hate fruits and veggies.  Of course, I know I should be concentrating on the latter.  What do you suggest?  I already have cheeses, hard boiled eggs and olives for munching.

Tina