Hello everyone! Am new to this forum so this is my first post (have a couple of others I will post separately!)
I hope you can help with this.
I had my first chemotherapy treatment on 16 Jan (am doing 4 FEC and 4 Tax, every three weeks, so 1 down 7 to go) and I am worried about the effects on my brain. I have read a lot about “chemobrain” and how chemotherapy treatment affects memory, concentration and cognitive skills.
I run my own business (design and digital marketing agency) and do a lot of public speaking, teaching, writing, training, coming up with on the spot ideas, thinking on my feet, problem solving, etc. I really don’t want to lose my thinking, creativity, or intelligence.
I can cope with temporarily having this syndrome if I know it’s not long term. I have looked to see what supplements might help (fish oil, ginkgo biloba, etc) and haven’t found anything conclusive.
Does anyone else have experience with this? Is it temporary usually? Does exercise and nutrition help? I am using the cold caps (have had one session only so far, still have hair!) - could it be that this might also help (the brain being in the head and all - who knows!)
Please share your experiences and any tips you have. Thanks so much!
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Hi Kerenkie. Yes, chemobrain is real, but in my experience it’s temporary. (My husband might disagree but he’s not reading this!) I found I got a bit forgetful, but I think in large part that was because I felt a bit spaced by the chemo and felt tired and in need of frequent naps - or sleeping practice as we called it in our house. It was the sort of forgetfulness that you might get normally if you weren’t very interested in what you were being told. Also, I’m told I got a bit pernickety about small details of life, which is very unlike the normal me. The other noticeable thing was that I sometimes couldn’t think of a specific word, so I’d have to describe it ‘the round thing with a handle and a spout that you put the tea leaves in to brew it’ for example. That could be awkward if you were in mid lecture! But I continued to work part time from home at a job which, like yours, required me to operate at a pretty sharp intellectual level, and actually found no problem with that as it required concentration for short bursts. I finished chemo in August, and would say I’m about normal again now. Although I still blame chemobrain when it suits me to do so!