Hi all,
I had my third radiotherapy session today and the radiographer asked if I tensed when the machine came on because I had moved while they were out of the room. I really wasn’t aware of moving but I was very aware of my breathing and my stomach going up and down. She said they took this into account.
I was trying really hard to stay still despite the discomfort in my treated arm and now I feel quite anxious about my next session. I asked if there were any other exercises I could do (apart from the post surgery ones)and she said not.
Has anyone else had a similar experience?
Ali X
No but they couldnt get me in position at all the first time after the planning session and I ended up a gibbering wreck.
Ali, all I can suggest is what I do on the rads table now…select a lovely image (mine is of floating in a small boat in the middle of a lake in perfect weather and I try to hear the water lapping and the birds singing) and shut your eyes and pretend you’re there…and so you might relax and not have to concentrate on NOT moving
Good luck. I have four rads to go now, Hooray!
Louise x
I worry about breathing!
I do the image thing as well, also I imagine I’m drunk and flopped like a dead weight - this helps when they need to position me and natural instinct is to move myself in the direction they’re going, which doesn’t help them.
I have now had 9 sessions and it does get easier
Hi Worthya,
I finished my rads yesterday but try as I might I always jumped when the machine came on! This was despite distration therapy etc. I ended up with a smile on my face as I felt such a loony!! The radiotherapists never said a word although I did tell them.
They were very good and didn’t start to position me until I had squirmed about and got myself comfortable. Then I went a dead weight so they could move me as needed.
I increased my exercises during rads and ended up very sore so I was stopped by the physio and only did light ones once a day. No problems since just sore in the node biopsy area.
Good luck.
I spoke to the radiographers about my concerns this morning and they were really helpful and said not to worry as they checked my position between every zap (my word not their’s). They also advised me to go to a relaxation session at the Macmillan centre so I’m going to do that on Tuesday.
Thanks so much for your comments - it’s really good to know I’m not on my own.
Ali X
I had 29 rads which finished at the end of April … my rads unit takes a picture every week and one week I noticed that they were taking them every day … I asked what the reason for this was and they said that the planning pics and the weekly pics weren’t matching up but nothing too drastic … I think we do tend to tense up when the machine starts to buzz, only natural. I resorted to the relaxation breathing technique that I was taught when I was pregnant.
Good luck with the rest of your rads, time flies and you will be finsihed before you know it.