All this is a new experience for me, not just being diagnosed with Invasive Breast Cancer but speaking on a forum or web page which is not what I am used to. I don’t even use facebook. I am scheduled for a right side mastectomy next friday (2nd) with the likelihood of chemo and radio therapy to follow. I have lots a support around me but still feel so alone and not sure if I can really deal with this or not. I am trying to deal one day at a time and one process at a time. The information available is just causing overload at the moment. Any help or suggestions!
Welcome to the forums. I am sure some of the other members will soon be along to offer some support.
Please remember that you can also phone our helpline for information and support or just a listening ear. They are open from 9-5 Monday to Friday and 9-2 on Saturdays. The number is 0808 800 6000
HI Ddee, welcome to the forums, sorry you have had to join us but we are a friendly lot, lots of good advice from those who know just how your feeling. I have had my chemo ,having a mastectomy on 6th sept, then radiotherapy after. These forums have made a huge difference to me and the lovely ladies on here have been ‘holding’ my hand through the rough times, and made me smile with the humour on here.Your in the worst place at the moment but it does get easier, keep your chin up and if you have any questions just ask, some one will always be there for you. Your not alone.
Jean xx
Hi ddee, so sorry u had to join our club. I was only diagnosed on 22nd June this year so i am still on the rollercoaster ride. U will be able to deal with it, it’s not easy & it feels very surreal at first but ur doing the right thing by just taking one day at a time. Ur right in what u say, there is information overload when ur first diagnosed but i I found the only way i could deal with things was by looking to the next step in the treatment & not to look too far ahead.
I think u’ll find lots of help & support on here, it’s full of info & the helpline is available to talk to if u need it. Any questions, niggles or worries, just post on here & someone will have the answer.
I’ve just had my surgery & am waiting to start chemo next month & this site is invaluable for info.
I do hope ur surgery goes well, let us know how u get on, take care x
Hi thank you for your comment. Just knowing there are ladies out there who do really know what you are going through is a great help. I am determined to keep as positive as possible but think I will need these messages to keep me going.
Hi from me
and sorry you’re joining the club. Would just say don’t every be afraid to ask questions here, you’ll be certain to get any info you need.
My problem at the beginning was I was too afraid to ask questions as I was terrified I wouldn’t like the answers, so it was very much drip drip for me. Lots of the terms I’d never heard before totally freaked me out. GP said ‘estrogen positive’ and I near collapsed, turns out it is kind of a good thing.
Just be good to yourself, and take time to come to grips with it. I thought life as I knew it had ended, but alas - I’m back at work 9 months later and planning my next holiday.
In my case the first few months were the worst, and lots others say it gets better once you know what’s happening and get your head around it.
Sorry you have to join us but you will find lots of help and support on here, I had right side mastectomy 14 years ago ( I now have left problem but that’s life) I went on to have chemo etc and after that I got married and had 2 beautiful children, it’s a scary fight someone said a rollercoaster ride and that sums it up …so hold on close your eyes if you need to and lean on us, don’t be afraid to scream and as you get the treatment plan sorted you will find it gets less scary and one day theride will come to an end… and you will have made lots of new cyber friends…count me in!!!
Jeanette x
hi ddee, i too dont do facebook ar anything like but joining this group has been a real lifeline lovely people who will support you all the way and we all get where we are coming from,and going through treatments etc, love and hugs xxx
hi, welcome to the club. i am not having the same treatment as you, but the whole finding out and dealing with breast cancer is similar for us all. No matter how much support you have from family and freinds they cannot really know what its like. If your anything like me it is on your mind 24/7. all the possibilities and ramifications go round and round in your head. Its as if you are walking round with a tape recorder on loop whispering in your ear or at times shouting so loud you cannot think of anything else. you smile at everyone and do the normal daily things and people say how well you are coping, but its not real.
My husband did his best but when i raised something yet again I saw his eyes glaze over. That is why this forum is so good. Late at night when he is asleep I lie in bed with my laptop going over the posts. Just reading them, answering or asking questions (some very silly ones at times). At the initial stages it kept me sane. I feel as if I know some of the regular posters well. Some have a wicked sense of humour.
Its been easier for me because there has been no chemo. And i found a few weeks ago I was actually forgetting about it for hours at a time and feeling normal again. And i do not spend every spare minute on here anymore. But I still need to pop back on a couple of times a day to see what is going on.
I hope you find it as usefull. You need every bit of help you can get to see you through this.
I can well imagine your position at the moment - I had a mastectomy at the end of May, am half way through chemo and then have radiotherapy. You are dealing with it in the best way - which is one step at a time - there is a lot of good support and information on here - stick to sites like this and don’t use google to trawl for info. Ask any question that comes in to your head and someone will have an answer for you - you really are not alone in this.
Hi ddee,
Welcome from me too
I was diagnosed in late Jan this year. Rudely behaved lump (grade 3 = fast growing). Since then I’ve had 6 mths of chemotherapy, which has been an experience but it’s worked really well…and now I’ve got surgery and radiotherapy ahead of me (and herceptin drug). Lots of lovely people here.
The first days and weeks were, for me and a good number of others, the absolute worst. The shock and fear takes a while to process. So does the ton of info. Don’t Google - there’s such rubbish out there.
Treatment these days is bloomin good, generally speaking, and most people have a very good chance of long term success.
Hope we can all help a bit
Ann x
Thankyou ladies for all your support. Already it has been so helpful. All the bits of information and tips. Also knowing there are people out there who REALLY do understand what you are going through at every stage and I hope I will be able to return the support you are giving to me.
hi …i to have just been diagnosed with invasive breast cancer…that was 4 weeks ago and i had my first wack of chemo this thursday and so far feel fine…im having 6 bouts of chemo till december then a masectomy in january…having my kids around me has kept me going…its the quiet times that get me worrying…i have found laughing and basically taking the pee out of the situation is getting me through…even though i know it is very serious…if ya know what i mean…anyway thats my lil ramble you all seem lovely people and i look forward to having a natter…xx
Hi Tracy, sorry you’ve had to join too. I know what u mean about laughing about the situation. I do that a lot at work as i know some people feel awkward talking about it in case they upset me. I have been very open with what’s happening & think it makes it easier for them & me. Hope the chemo goes ok for u, i’ve already had my ops & should be starting chemo next month. There are threads specifically for people starting chemo in certain months so u may find it helpful to look at the august one. Oh & we do natter,lol, quite a lot!!x
Hi ddee,
Iam new to this forum to,I have been looking in since i was diagnosed 9th of may.I have had mastectomy of my right breast.Loosing your breast is not easy but you do cope.I now have my falsie and to be honest looks fantastic.m&s post surgery bras are lovely and are a good price.Iam having chemo now and go for my second FEC on thursday.After being first diagnosed i was in such a horrible place,sheer panic and so frightened.I still get days like that,mostly at night,but it does get better.Just wanted to say good luck on the 2nd.Tigerpig x
Hi Ladies How is everyone. I had my op on the 2nd Sept a right MX. Generally it went well.I was originally first on the list but then they mislaid my pre med papers so I had to wait until last so didn’t go to theatre until 2pm. The wait was agony. Still the op went well with no complications for the actual surgery but I did have reaction to the anaesthetic and had very low blood pressure which kept me in hospital until weds 7th. I had two drains fitted which didn’t come out until the weds. The pain was managed well and I was and am more uncomfortable than in pain. It is so good to be home. I am having to take it very slowly due to my BP still being low. Next appointment is the 15th for the results of the pathology to determine the extent of chemo and radiotherapy needed so it is just one day at a time. thankyou to all of you for your support it has really helped. Ddee
Within the space of 6 weeks I have been diagnosed with breast cancer following a routine mammogram (I am 62), had the cancer removed last Tuesday at a day surgery unit. Physically I am fine, but emotionally I am never far from tears. Is this normal? See the consultant on 15th for results. My family have been brilliant but feel very alone as I have been widowed for many years.
It can all happen so quickly can’t it? One minute your getting on with your day to day buisness, and the next thing you life is a whirl of appointments, tests results and you dont know what is coming along to hit you next.
But the worst of it is nearly over, once you get the results of your biopsy and treatment plan in place you will feel a bit more grounded.
yes its completely normal to cry, rant and rave, creep in a dream world of denial, rant and rave at the injustice of it all, or any other out of character behaivior. they are all normal, we all seem to be wire to cope in different ways.
it is good that you have a supportive family,and I am sad to hear of your husband. But even people still with their partners can still feel alone. No matter how supportive people are, unless they thave been through it themselves, they cannot realy understand.
I hope you can get some comfort from this site now that you have found it. Do come back on and post questions or express your worries. And come back and tell us the results of your op.
