Your supersonic steroids kicking in pinklille 
they had us all bouncing off the wall at all hours wheeee 
Shi xx
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Thatās right kicking in 10pm at night and keeping asleep in the morning 
On it for two weeks apparently cause they have to whin me off gently to avoid risk of adrenale failureā¦ But I feel I already have some of those symptoms which I shared w them. Iāll do as am told with this one not going to mess around w the dose xx
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Hi dear, I am so sorry you have such a hard time, your health is important and when you donāt feel well and have so many problems, become so frustrated and lonely is hard to go through all. EC attack my lungs from the first session, even I told them noone found the issue, I did so many tests and they tried to find what wrong with me, I had to suffer 9 weeks before they found a diagnosis for the side effects of EC and finally I end up in hospital a week, after they stopped my chemo, so I done 4 EC and one Taxol(Paclixatel) but oncologist explained me all 5 session will be enough, but if was my decision I would like to finish the last 3 Taxol, that I be sure I received the full treatment, but i trust my oncologist thatāsall I can do, so I had 5 weeks steroids and after that I started radiotherapy, 20 session, all went fine, small tolerate side effects, but nothing bad.
Talk with oncologist and find together a treatment suitable for you 
.
Is not fine to suffer, and you need support too, I am different and I like to be alone when I am sick, but I also tried to manage all around home and 3 children in school, but I donāt complain, I didnāt want help from noone. But if you feel lonely please ask for company.
Here on forum I believe I got lots of support and help and for me I said it is enough, you can spend more time to talk with someone or here always a girl is online.
Hopefully you will manage and you will be better.
I send you a big hug 
and more
Good luck with the treatment to all the girls and big hugs 
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Hi @Camy_Radika
I donāt mind being on my own when sick but I like to know I have support network and being a people person, I get my energy from people so it helps me chatting to my friends and planning meet ups so I have something to look forward to.
The bone pain is kicking in and I can feel this one is going to be violent. The more tired and battered I am the more it attacks me I feel. I felt good this morning and was planning a potential trip to garden centre but Iāve popped paracetamol and loratidine instead and will keep warm!!!
Speaking to breast consultant later today. Operation will be arranged for 3/4 weeks time 24th Feb or 2nd march. Mum will travel over then I will line up friends for help.
I need to ask about district nurse for potential dressing changes. GP practise didnāt want to touch the ones from the biopsy and I need to ask about whether or not it will one or two ops.
This forum has been amazing 
Planted some flowers in October to symbolise my rebirth and regrowth. They survived the winter, the squirrelās attacks and the frost!! Want to plant more for summer.
@annemanc how are you feeling couple of days post op? 
Xxx
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Sorry to hear you are having to go through so much. Itās a lot! Good to hear your mum will be coming over when you have your op. That will be a great help. My daughter came to stay with me and between her and her dad they were a great help.
I love how your seeds have survived and starting to grow! Definitely a good sign xx
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Ah lovely that your plants are growing @pinklilli3s 
Iām doing ok thanks, felt quite tired the last couple of days but nothing like the grimness/exhaustion of chemo. More of a straightforward being tired after an operation rather than the assault on everything that chemotherapy feels like.
Iāve had a very lazy day today and havenāt really left bed or the sofa! The main thing after lymph node surgery is not to lift heavy things and take care of your arm, so itās great your mum will be about for yours. My husband is being great in keeping an eye on me.
My main weird side effect is that part of my tongue is completely numb, the anaesthetist must have bruised it while I was being intubated. I called my breast care team who didnāt seem concerned and said to call my gp if it persists into next week. Xxxx
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Oh I hope this feeling on your tongue doesnāt last.
Breast surgeon is away on 24th Feb and theyāre now thinking of bringing op even more forward. I am worried I wouldnāt have recovered sufficiently or if so, just about. Chemo was 30th Jan, till 17th Feb thatās just over 2 weeks. Seems real close. Am asking the oncologist advice. Itās great they can fit me in, but I want to make sure am fit for it!!
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Good news you have a date but like you say you need to make sure you are well enough. I had my surgery first then chemo then radiotherapy. I needed to feel well after chemotherapy for the radiotherapy, originally it was 2 1/2 weeks to recover then because of temperature it was 4 weeks. Which I would say was good, especially after 12 weeks of chemo!
Youāve again got to do was is right for you. Maybe you could talk to the breast care now nurses for their advise 0808 800 6000, they may have a different view as theyāve spoken to many ladies from different hospitals and different circumstances. Fresh pair of eyes, so to speak, rather than your hospital/surgeons view.
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True. Very good advice.
I also discovered earlier that they will take bloods next week when I go for consultation w breast consultant. Only if bloods are ok will they go ahead. And I will make sure to ask to see them and know how I feel anyway. But as a result my poor mum canāt book anything until last minute!!
I was comfortable with 3/4. 2, 5 feels rushed if I am honest but often also sometimes am ok and ride so 
but itās not an operation!!
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Hi Annemanc, so brill you have your op out of the way. Well done! Sounds like youāre doing really well.
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Pinklili you have had a rough ride with chemo and you definitely know your body better than anyone. You are wise to listen to it.
Originally I was going to consider having 4 rather than 3 EC but the oncologist was very firm enough was enough. I tolerated paclixatel very well but EC was a different story. So many horrible side effects. Iām having to be referred to the cardiologist now too. You are lucky, however, to be having immunotherapy, I have TNBC but wasnāt offered it as we didnāt know about the cancerous lymph node until after surgery.
I wish you the very best of luck for your op too. We are all different and I dreaded the surgery more than everything elseā¦but then I had mastectomy as wellā¦
Good luck with all your decisions/timings etc
xxx
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@annemanc great to hear you are doing well after the surgery. I am hoping you can tell me that some of your chemo symptoms such as your taste are subsiding. But maybe you canāt tell due to the numb tongue. I hope it gets better soon. I am soooooooo sick of the never-ending side effects.
@pinklilli3s I hope you get your date for surgery soon. Mine is six weeks after my last chemo. Seems they arenāt in a rush in my neck of the woods. They said they normally aim for 4-6 weeks to give people time to recover from chemo. The macmillan nurse also said I am through the worst now. So i have taken that to mean the operation is not as bad as the chemo (but I have so far been lucky and the op is a lumpectomy, I appreciate that it would be a lot harder if it was a mastectomy). Fingers crossed. As usual there seem to be a lot of pre-appointments so they are keeping me busy!! I hope the chemo side effects recede soon. They really are the pits. It was the hardest thing I have ever gone through so I am thinking of you in the midst of it. Hoping the days pass soon and you start to feel you are coming out of the worst of it.
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Hi! I def felt lots better about 4 weeks post chemo, taste is pretty much back to normal. I had lumpectomy and sentinel lymph node surgery pre chemo, they are much easier to deal with than chemo (or they were for me). Def worth watching out for cording though as that is unpleasant, keep doing the exercises til they bore you silly.
The only thing Iād say about lumpectomy is prepare yourself that what you see when you take off bandages isnāt necessarily the end result cosmetically. Initially I was pretty happy with my scar as it looked smooth, no real change in size of boob, however after a few weeks the boob looked smaller and I had a dint. The reason for me was that initially the part where theyād taken out tumour filled w fluid, so it was only when that went down I saw final result. Iām fine with it now (the difference in size between both boobs not noticeable when wearing clothes) but I wish Iād known in advance that it might be possibility so I could prepare myself xxxx
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Thank you so much for sharing.thatās definitely the sort of thing you want to prepare yourself psychology for.
Hope the cording subsides eventually.
@frazzledmcsazza @daffodil1 and ladies
Op date is confirmed 17th Feb. Oncologist is confident I would have recovered. Theyāll do bloods next week to check HG and white cells. They can give transfusion and another gscsf injection (I said please no ) so up to my body to recover and behave and eat well and all now cause god no am not going through this bone pain again unless I have absolutely have too!!! EC has completely messed up my taste buds and tongue overall 
but I did also notice a slight improvement on week 4 so am hanging on to that
Immunotherapy wasnāt a choice and maybe cause am private they just give it?? But I was told they give it in NHS too might be worse enquirying.
RT will be a month later 18th march to 29th march. 10 sessions only instead 15.he thinks thatās enough.
Oncologist also thinks that it will be cancer removal plus sentinel lymph nodes. He doesnāt think theyāll pick up anything in the aux because MRI was clear. But Iāll make sure to get information from breast consultant.
My ex is picking up his stuff this weekend - had to message him 
not sure how long he was going to wait really?!
And I got my first doggy day booking woohoo very sweet couple, for a couple of days, perfect little small dog. Iāll share pictures when sheās at mine next week.
Think I got some some my mojo back a bit, even if blooming exhausted. Normally I have time to deal w chemo effects then bone pain but this time both hit me at same time and I was a shadow of myselfā¦never had both together that bad before.
Anyway, everything seems to be aligning finally and am moving forward 
little by little itās happening thank god. Big hugs
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Frazzled and Pinklili great you have dates for surgery now. Sounds like you are both keen to crack on with it now.
Pinklili the immunotherapy is only licensed for certain scenarios (NHS and private). The size of my initial lump meant I didnāt qualify. Annoyingly I would have qualified had we known in advance of surgery that it was in my lymph node too. But by the time we found out, Iād missed that boat.
How is everyoneās hair regrowth? Mine is grey and white and very patchy and fuzzy.
Also do any of you still look swollen? I think my face looks really different still ā¦
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@annemanc thank you for the extra information. Itās really helpful to know what to expect. Why oh why donāt the professionals warn us about this. As @pinklilli3s says it just helps to be mentally prepared.
@pinklilli3s glad you have got your dates now. Also good news about finalising things with your ex. I hope it goes as well as it can. Hard saying goodbye even when you know it is the right decision.
@daffodil1 I am still waiting to see some real regrowth. Have kept fuzzy peach fuzz all the way through but no sign yet of actual hair. Next week is week four so I am fingers crossed for better taste and a smidgen of hair. My face is very puffy, I have cramps in my hands and a twitchy eye and a load of fatigue. So far not a lot seems to have improved but I am clinging onto annemancās words of encouragement and hoping if i post next week i will be able to say some things are better.
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Hi @annemanc
Glad you are recovering well after your surgery.
Like you I had lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy before chemotherapy (although I was bilateral). I have a slightly wobbly scar and some indents. My scars are on the side so not too visible from the front. Obviously depending where your tumour is situated will depend on where you scar(s) will be.
Iāve completed my radiotherapy and you are warned that it can change the skin texture and breast shape aswell. My scars have become a bit more lumpy and itchy. I used some gel and creams from Radiaderm R1 & R2 which worked well. I will now be using Rosehip oil on the scar to try to help with the lumps. So be warned there could be more changes ahead, assuming you are having radiotherapy.
My surgeon did say there is a possibility for cosmetic improvements after all the treatment if needed.
@frazzledmcsazza i hope this information helps you as well. Sorry you are still suffering side effects from the chemotherapy, I finished 6 weeks ago and still have swollen ankles. Been told it can be weeks or months for it all to settle down. Our immune systems need to recover aswell, even though Iām on Herceptin which can also reduce my immune system but not as much as chemo. Since finishing radiotherapy 2 weeks ago Iāve had 1 Herceptin injection which was done by a private company at home, so Iāve been relived not to have so many hospital appointments. Saying that I have the Cardiologist next week and the Breast Care Nurse the week after.
Take care all
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My face really look different as still on steroids, decreasing dose, but i feel I look like Droopy the dog right now
Not sure how it works w immunotherapy tbh, mine was 2.1cm. how annoying you didnāt qualify, honestly not sure what and if it does long term, it seems fairly new, at least it gives some sort of peace of mind I guess, but is there ever such a thing.
@frazzledmcsazza
Iāve cold capped so have much thinning hair. Iāve lost the side and loads on top but can hide it. Itās very thin. Lost all my eyebrows, maybe one or 2 holding on (but had them microbladed so donāt care) and eye lashes completely gone but starting to regrow somehow despite this week chemo. Really grateful for that as thatās what bothered me the most, not esthetically, but practically, dry, sore eyes, blepharitis,ā¦
Iāve managed some cleaning and tidying this morning which whipped me out and had to have a long nap. Itās amazing how small tasks takes it out of you. I need to go food shopping. Dreading it but Iāve got no food and to find the courage to go out (masked!)
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Thanks for sharing, thatās interesting to know about the change in scars post RT, which I will also have.
Looks like youāre powering through though and itās amazing. Great word of encouragements from @annemanc indeed! I am hanging in to those too
Hope you all have a good weekend
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@pinklilli3s hope you have a restful evening and Sunday. If you canāt face the shops order a takeaway and book a food delivery. But if you do manage to make it shopping give yourself a massive pat on the back for determination and resilience.
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