Hi
i hope everyone is doing as well as possible
I completed neo adjuvant chemo about 10 days ago , 4 EC followed by 12 Paclitaxel, hopefully having surgery in November
I am struggling with fatigue mainly , complete exhaustion and I wondered what your experiences were and if this is normal ? How long before you started feeling a bit better ?
thank you
xx
Hi Loobyloop
I take my hat off to you! That is one hefty scheme schedule. I had 3 and 9 and I was like a zombie! Fatigue is an odd thing and, like all side effects, we all respond differently, Personally, it was months before I felt that I, rather than the fatigue, was winning but I did have 15 radiotherapy sessions too. Your body has taken a huge toll and chemo fatigue is like no other kind of fatigue.
The important thing is to listen to your body. You’re awaiting surgery so there’s still quite a way to go and that will add to the psychological fatigue. But this isn’t a competition and you must set your own expectations according to how you are feeling, not according to what others expect of you. Some people may bounce back in weeks, some may take months. If you start feeling angry or ashamed at yourself or frustrated by your ‘weakness’, you’ll just feel even worse.
It may help if you set yourself small targets. Some days, just getting out of those pjs is enough, other days you may manage short walks or a burst of work around the house. If that immediately knocks you back, that’s fatigue, not failure. Go with it. As time progresses, so will your body. And if you do have to spend a lot of time flopped under the duvet, it’s still possible to do leg stretches, glute lifts, hand squeezes, anything to keep those muscles working. It may just be 2 or 3 stints at a time but they all add up.
I hope your surgery goes well and you enjoy a complete recovery xx