Hello @Tulip29
Thank you so much for posting this. So good of you to be sharing information which shows us what we can all do to stay well.
I often incorporate sardines and oily fish into my diet. Hadn’t cottoned on to the fact that ones in oil not so good. Will make sure I get ones in water from now on.
I have found a list of foods that help us process oestrogen through our systems - mostly fruit and vegetables that are recommended as part of our diets. Do you think it would be a good idea to share it on here?
Now I’m off to have breakfast - sardines and eggs!
Xx
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Well @mun4o and @Frances55
the thread is is entitled no hormone therapy - support . Since you’re both on hormone therapy the thread doesn’t apply to you and I find it puzzling that you felt the need to contribute to it in the first place . I have always tried to support people who are struggling with side effects and informed them of options such as different brands / drugs / timing or dosage ( some of which I tried ) because I don’t want to influence anyone into stopping though I do feel I have to be candid about the fact that I’ve stopped it myself. I’m in a position of having had a cancer that rarely spreads outside of the breast and having been told by 1 consultant that if I didn’t get on with the hormone therapy it would be reasonable for me to stop I know I’m in a fairly u issue position and I generally make that clear as well.
There have been many threads on here where people have talked about stopping hormone therapy and none of them have been greeted with the level of hostility that has been demonstrated on this one. In what way is wimping out not considered an insult / offence @Frances55 ? Apologise all you like but it’s obviously what you think or you wouldn’t have used that phrase to begin with - its definitely an insult .
@mun4o I think you said there’s always Tamoxifen . Well - I was initially prescribed this despite being 56 at the time . On reading the leaflet I decided that after 2 retinal vein occlusions this was probably not the drug for me and at my Oncology appointment I said that I was afraid to take it. After a moment of checking she said " yes you should be A retinal vein occlusion. Is a thrombotic event and you shouldn’t be on Tamoxifen it isn’t suitable for you" .
@jayesse suggested starting some positive threads - this is a good idea and I’m glad you’re in agreement so maybe you could start one in praise of hormone therapy - call it whatever you like . Find statistics to support taking hormone therapy . Ask for contributions from people who have had no side effects or very few and from people who do have side effects but have managed them. Talk about how to manage them - what worked / didn’t work . Avoid sweeping generalisations like " side effects settle down in time " - true for some but not others and judgmental phrasing . Get your facts right about the medications and that not all of them will be suitable for everyone . Be those bigger people . I for one would leave a thread like that well alone so you wouldn’t have to deal with my viewpoint in the way that we have been bombarded by yours. You’ve asked about your opinions not being welcome - the main problem is with the way you have expressed them.
I don’t know if it occurred to you that over the last couple of days you may have undermined your own position . I’ve seen a level of hostility close -mindedness and in at least one case something close to hysteria and if I was still on hormone therapy and struggling with side effects or about to start it and was looking for a bit of encouragement after the way that you have both expressed yourselves here there’s no way I would have taken any advice from either of you .
This is my last contribution to this thread .
@jayesse you are welcome to send me a DM x
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@JoanneN
I have just tried to send you a DM but now can’t see it anywhere. I hope it gets through to you.
Xx
Hi @floss2 , Im so sorry to hear about the nausea. Thats really awful. Presume you have tried the usuals Ginger tea etc? Re bread question I do have a local bakery for sourdough. Tried making a starter and failed miserably. Just ended up with a black gooey mess! However, I do make my own wholemeal bread -500g wholemeal bread flour, 450ml warm water, 1 tsp dried yeast, I tsp salt. Often also add some ALDI mixed seeds and always top with sesame seeds. It works out abt 50p a loaf so easy on the pocket. Love Tulip x
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I think we’ve hit on a great idea for a brand new thread Tulip’s Tasty Tips perhaps? Or, more to my liking, Tasty Treats? What do you say @Tulip29 
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Great idea! Xx
OK @Tigress , Ill give you one to be going on with and then I really must get on! Every week I make a batch of vegetable soup which lasts me abt 6 or 7 days and which I have for lunch most days. I am retired but anyone at work could take in in a flask. Put abt a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a large pan plus a knob of butter. Then add lots of chopped up veggies. I go through the fridge and pick out leftovers like soft bendy carrots, broccoli and cauliflower stalks, parsley stalks (I never throw food away if I can help it), also add whatever else I have - usually chopped swede, chopped onion, celery, kale, greens, chopped brussels sprouts, garlic cloves, and a couple of cherry tomatoes. Stir everything together to coat with the oil. Saute on a very low heat to allow veggies to soften and release their flavours. Keep an eye and stir occasionally to prevent burning ( yes, ive learned the hard way!). Now add water to cover the veg together with a stock cube and/ or some vegetable bouillon powder, also ground black pepper and maybe a sprinkle of seaweed granules plus salt to taste (more can be added later if needed). Bring to boil then simmer on a low heat until veggies cooked. Say 30mins but can leave for longer. Turn off heat to cool a little. Can be eaten as is but I prefer to blend in liquidiser or with a stick blender. If turns out a bit thick it can be thinned by adding some more water or milk before reheating. If one has children or grandchildren thay can help with the chopping. The soup can also become a base for a stew by adding chick peas or chicken or dumplings. Forgot to mention, do wash veggies in some water with teaspoon of bicarb of soda first to remove any residual pesticides as we dont want to eat any of those! This is my general cram it all in healthy soup but one can also make ones own special ones ie mushroom, carrot and coriander, roasted sweet potato or squash and red pepper etc. Good nutrition will help to rebuild and strengthen our immune system. When hormone therapy is no longer in our toolbox to statistically lower our risk of recurrence there is still a lot we can do to help ourselves in other ways. Enjoy! Love Tulip x
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This is the list of foods that I found that can help to strengthen our immune system and also help process oestrogen and reduce it from our system. I am not suggesting that they are an alternative to hormone blockers for the people who are able to take them but for those of us who aren’t it is a good list for when we are being mindful of our diets. Most of the things on it are delicious anyway (although I have to admit that I don’t much like green tea but am trying to get used to it).
Xx
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Thank you @Tulip29 for taking the time to type that out. Alas I am the sort that thinks “h’m I should make home made soup”, goes out and buys a soup maker thingumy, accidentally chucks the instruction manual out with the box so puts it in a cupboard to gather dust and loses the electric cord anyway. So now I know you don’t need anything except the usual utensils, I will definitely give it ago (minus the swede) 
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Thanks ever so much @jayesse for this list. Oh dear yes! Green tea! The secret is not to use boiling water. (something else I learnt at Penny Brohn). I put tea bag in mug with cold water. Then add hot water below boiling point. Sometimes I also pop in a slice of lemon. It took me a while to get used to the taste but I find it ok now. N.b. i use decaffinated green tea later in day so as not to impact sleep. Love Tulip x
Hi all,
I hope you have a good Saturday and it’s sunny where you are.
As Alice has already mentioned there are some Community Guidelines to allow conversations flow and make sure that everyone feels welcome to share their experience. If some of your messages have ever been edited is because they broke one (or more) of the community guidelines.
I’d also like to remind you all that this is a safe environment to share your experience and/or advice. However, please keep in mind that everyone’s experience is not the same. I think all of us want to create a supportive and kind community for each other that we are proud to be part of and turn to when there are questions or in need of support.
Sending you our warmest wishes,
Zoe
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Just one word. Censorship.
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It will be a shame if you are driven underground. I’m in your boat, but wouldn’t be bothered to join a private group, I’m afraid.
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Indeed! I’m shocked rigid and will be off here for the foreseeable future.
All the best.
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Hello all, on both sides of the debate.
My primary reason for delaying hormone therapy for several months was fear of the “very rare side effects”. These are permanent disability (various, including losing one’s sight, the thought of which, to me, was terrifying), causing other cancers, cardiovascular events and even death.
In spite of this, I gave them a go for 10 months. The fact that I suffered the common side effects badly consolidated my decision to take the one risk of cancer recurrence, rather than the raft of other possibilities. It’s a roll of the dice, whatever we do.
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I think you know I meant I was not endorsing your attempt at censorship…
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Thank you @MistyK .
I am hopeful that the people who haven’t understood the purpose of my thread will now move on from it to creating, as suggested, a thread of their own where they can point out the benefits of AIs for them and can offer support to people who are able to tolerate them, have side effects they need help managing, need encouragement or want to give them a go but have questions that haven’t yet been answered. That way at least they can share their viewpoint in a positive and helpful way as it will be valuable and valid to a good many people.
I am not going to make this thread private as I had previously considered doing as that might make it difficult to access for people who need support with the fact that, for whatever reason, they are not taking the AIs as part of their treatment when it was initially presumed that they would. I genuinely set up the post to try and help other people like myself and it has been acknowledged by so many that there are a lot of us out there that need it, so I will continue to contribute to it and keep it public all the time that need exists. You will see that the AIs made me so low, in such a short time, that my mental health was at an all time low. I am more scared of recurrence now I’m not having them, even with a low percentage difference in recurrence risk between with and without AIs, and if this thread helps even just one person overcome their fears and live better then to me it will be worthwhile keeping it public for all to access.
I hope you are doing ok too.
Big hug xx
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This thread (and mine ‘Choosing cancer risk over medication risks’ - started yonks ago), are a valid and valuable counterbalance to all the pro-drug pressure from the tunnel-visioned medics I’ve met out there 
This year, my mind has been more preoccupied by ongoing dental dramas. And if I’d never taken hormone therapy, I’d never have had the (very long lasting) bone-altering bisphosphonates (given to counteract the osteoporosis effect of said hormone therapy), and I now wouldn’t be facing the risk of jaw osteonecrosis, should I have no option but to have one of my teeth extracted.
Just saying … 
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