Hi All,
Stella- did manage the ‘coffee’- I had some water, a banana and some ibuprophen! But the company was lovely- although one of the group had not heard about my diagnosis and promptly burst into tears. That apart though I am desperate to keep up my ‘normal’ life (do we all think we still have one of those; crazy what becomes the norm). I know that will become harder, as it is always is to be upbeat when you are not feeling great physically…
Will def get the LGFB info. I too am an eyebrow pencil virgin!
It is our 15th wedding anniversary today!
Tracey
Hi Tracey,
Happy Anniversary.
Well done for managing the coffee morning, I could not have done it last Friday, so well done!!
Julie
X
Hi everyone,
Tracey - Happy wedding anniversary for today and well done for making your coffee morning i’m with Julie…i could’t of done it!
I’ve just had my bloods done for TAC 2 tomorrow so fingers crossed it will go ahead time seemed slow at first but can’t believe i’m on No 2 tomorrow, still holding onto my hair!
Shell x
hi Shell,
Good luck with your chemo tomorrow.
I am just beginning to feel human again after 1st chemo last week, so am going to make the most of the next 2 weeks.
Julie
X
Good luck for tomorrow Shell. Hope you get some sleep afterwards,
Tracey x
Thankyou!
Julie- I had one bad week then 2 weeks of feeling completely back to normal which was really good but back to it i’m drinking loads of water and eating a mango !
Tracey- Should get some sleep as hubby takes the day off on ‘Chemo’ day and boys seem to look after themselves! and my German shepherd will just join in on the sleeping !
shell x
Hi all
I had my PICC line fitted yesterday followed by FEC4. I was really nervous about having the line put in but it was much easier than I’d imagined, only took about 20 minutes and most of that was taken up with giving me the local anaesthetic and putting the dressing on afterwards. I reckon putting in the line took about 5 minutes at the most. It was such a relief not to have more needles stuck in me when I had the chemo! I don’t have any sense of having anything ‘alien’ inside me - just the awareness of having a funny plastic tube sticking out of my arm but they cover that with a dressing to keep it from dangling around!
So, feeling much happier now that’s done.
Shell, hope your chemo has gone OK today.
And Lilac, hope yours was OK on Wednesday. You are one day ahead of me now!
Ali, I love your cat! I seem to have got part-ownership of a neighbour’s cat who comes to visit me every day at the moment - he is great company and very therapeutic!
Love to all,
Amanda
He is gorgeous isn’t he and getting fed far too much now I am home all day. We are competing for who can put the greatest percentage weight gain on by xmas. I have a secret weapon though, he is gaining extra weight with the hair growth of his winter coat where as all that hair loss has got to be worth a pound or two!
Naff day yesterday as ended up in hospital having antibiotics via iv but luckily temp went down enough to be allowed home later, just loads of tablets to take. Really scary how with our battered immune systems I went from feeling fine to feeling ill so quickly.
A good weekend to all
Ali.
x
Hi Ali - Hope you’re feeling better now. Your cat is lovely. Just got 2 kittens a few weeks ago. Probably not good from an infection point of view but they are so entertaining and affectionate and have really lifted our minds.
Ear thing is interesting-I’ve noticed my hearing is not as good so I must try cleaning them out with the shower. I’ve also noticed that my nose runs a lot and when I blow it, the sides of my nose stick together - must be lack of nose hair. Funny how you don’t realise what all these hairs do til you lose them.
Amanda - FEC 4 down, 2 to go. I keep telling myself that as I’m feeling v nauseous this time. The end is in sight!
Lilac x
Feeling much better today except the meds are causing me to run to the bathroom which is a change from the normal constipation. Just worked out that won’t finish these meds until tuesday pm, day of FEC5. I can only hope that with one causing the digestive system to stand still and the other into overdrive I might end up with normal!
Hi everyone,
Glad everyones sessions went ahead this week it keeps it on schedule, only had TAC 2 yesterday but side effects seem better this time although its only the day after ! not too nauseous but been drinking a lot more water and i got out of bed and got dressed too!
Well i’ve done it my hubby shaved my hair off last night when we got back from hospital i couldn’t stand the mess anymore should of done it sooner, had a No1 then a shower and the rest cam e out so now have none - bit chilly but like you all say its quite good fun working out which hat to put on, although have to say my boys weren’t too impressed i was a bit worried about showing them - one of them was ok and stroked it but the other asked if i could put my wig on! so i did which made it a bit more normal for him.
Amanda you must feel better now you have your PICC in we just managed to get a vein yesterday with the help of a hot wheat bag for 10 mins !
Happy weekend!
Shell x
Hi everyone,
I spoke too soon when I said I was starting to feel human again last week!!!
I saw my Oncologist on Wednesday night and he was concerned that I had had a migraine since having chemno the week before, so he prescribed some medication, which I had a bad reaction to and ended up being raced to a hospital in London. They also found out that the chemo had been too strong for me so my bloods had gone too low - it is going to be reduced by 20% next time.I came aout of hospital at last today, but with chronic toothache so it looks like its a visit to the dentist tomorrow!!!
Shell - You are very brave getting your head shaved especially as its suddenly turned cold.
Hope everyone is getting on ok with treatment.
Julie
X
Hi Julie,
Oh poor you, you must feel like you have been through the wringer. It can just seem like one thing after another can’t it? Better to have had the dose lowered now though, than after they had done another. How are you feeling now? The sickness must have been horrible with a migraine and the treatment.
Shell - am feeling on borrowed time with the hair! My head is sore - I know it sounds perverse, but I just want it to go, and get it over with. For all my bravado, I know it will be a bit traumatic.
On a different line- is anyone having up- front chemo like me, and if so, have you noticed any change in your lump since chemo started?
All the best,
Tracey
Hi Tracey
I’m having chemo up front. I’ve had 4xFEC so far. I had an ultrasound scan last week to check progress and they said it is definately responding to treatment. So much so that it was hard to find on scan and I have had a clip put in so they can locate the area when I have sugery.
It only seems to have changed in the last few weeks because before I could still feel the lump and I didn’t think it was shrinking at all.
So hang in there. Don’t worry about it too much. I don’t know how far you are with your treatment but they should check about half way through to see if it is responding.
Good Luck
Debs
x
Hi Debs,
Thanks for that. Just had one FEC so far. Two more, then the dreaded ‘T,’ x3. I had just had different stories from my consultant, breast care nurse etc. I did tell myself I would not start anxiously prodding at it though. (My other 'rule, ’ for myself is not to flick through the Internet, other than here, for statistics, outcomes etc etc! )I am having a full mastectomy and clearance in any case, but it would be nice to know that any wayward cells that are trying to shoot off are being zapped! I guess that at least having chemo up front you have some idea if it is working effectively, whereas, having it after, you do not have such a definitive yes or no. These hospital app’s are so tricky aren’t they? I find that I go away sometimes and worry about one particular remark or comment. When you are so used to being ‘in control’ it can be difficult to let go!
How have you found your 4 sessions? Do you have another 2 or 4 to go?
Tracey
Hi ladies,
I went to see the onc on Wed and he said my white cells were not high enough (from Tues test). Had to go back early Thursday for another test and they had risen enough so they went ahead with FEC2. I find I can only manage to lie with my eyes shut the first couple of days, then not too bad but head feels a bit woozy and I find it difficult to concentrate on mental tasks.
Also son is in such severe depression we are having to nurture him through the day - OH is wonderful with him.
On the hair front, gradually stated coming out day 12 after first FEC, now virtually all my head hair gone, but not really any other hair. I’m not minding the hair thing really. Funny how your children have different reactions Beeboo.
LiF you must love getting away to your house in Roscoff. Hope all goes well with your FEC this week.
Glad you managed your day out with friends Tracey.
Julie , sorry to hear of your troubles, hope all goes more smoothly next time.
Here’s to minimal side effects for us all. Stella
Things are looking up. Had tooth taken out yesterday, headaches have now gone, so other than feeling a bit tired and aching I feel almost normal again!
Julie
X
Tracey I have another 2xFEC to go. The last 4 haven’t been too bad considering some of the really nasty things a lot of others have been through but each one definately takes a bit more out of you each time. I just feel like I’ve got a massive hangover for a couple of days and then it passes. Tiredness gets a bit worse the more you have but I’ve managed to keep working and haven’t had that much time off so its all good.
Hope you don’t suffer too much with side effects either.
Debs
x
Hi everyone
Hope we’re all doing OK and surviving the gales and storms - definitely a day for hibernating. I need to go out later on and am getting a bit worried about keeping my wig on in this wind!
I’m a week on from FEC 4 and I think I’m doing a bit better with this cycle than previous ones. No real nausea to speak of, just a bit queasy now and again, and the energy levels aren’t too bad. I’ve heard the tiredness can be cumulative but maybe the body gets more used to the drugs as time goes on. I realise that I was also worrying a lot about the state of my veins which I’m not doing now I have my friend the PICC line! If any of you in the early stages get offered one I would say definitely have one.
Buzzy, I must say I like your look - nice red hair and woolly hat, really suits you.
Love and positive thoughts to all,
Amanda
Hi All
Well had FEC5 on tuesday and spent the morning in bed as was so tired. Woke up to find my cat in bed with me, forgot to put the heating back on so she obviously decided that the bestest and warmest place on a day like today was next to me. Usually the tiredness doesn’t hit until day 4 or 5 so has come a day earlier but am feeling much better this afternoon. Tiredness lifted alot earlier with 4 as well so perhaps it hits earlier with each one but we get over it quicker. Less indigestion and so far digestive still seems to be moving and without the help of senna, yeah!
Juilanne - I also had trouble with veins so had a picc line put in before number 3 and found this much better.
Buzzy - sorry to say eyelashes and eye brows half gone now. Eyebrows look really strange as I seem to be losing them from the outside in. Chemo hangover gone earlier this time but was worse.
Rusty - hope number 5 went ok and that any se’s are mild and you recover quickly
Juro - hope you’re recovering from having the tooth taken out, rather you than me. I have a wisdom tooth the dentist wants to take out but I’m too much of a coward to let her but if I had then the gum trouble I had last week wouldn’t have happened.
Dancing girl - hope you get over FEC2 se’s soon and that as your son sees that you are not going to be ill every day it helps him cope as well.
HUGE hugs and postive vibes to all
Ali
x