Hi Bluedragon, that happened to me just before I was to have fec 2, so they put it back a week til tomorrow hopefully!!. When you start this thing you just wont to get it over asap done you. It just seems that we have to worry about having the chemo & worry if we cant!!! i never gave my wbc a thought before I started treatment now its all I think about so that the treatment can be over & I can get back to normal. Hope everyone who is having chemo this week sail through it Lesley xx
HI ladies
I’m nearly at the end of my chemo sessions 6 x FEC-T (last one next Monday horrah) and just wanted to pass on some of my experiences of hair loss. This was a BIG thing for me. At my diagnosis it was the first thing I thought of and dreaded … in hindsight it’s actually been quite a minor thing for me!? I left it as long as I could before it fell out - 21 days - and when I got sooo mad because it was falling out in my coffee and in a chocolate cake I’d made, I thought that’s it so I washed it and it all fell out in one go. I couldn’t face shaving my head and I was left with a few wispy bits (see confused.com advert) and I cut these very short. Can you believe it but I felt relieved! One more thing to tick off this cancer lark and put behind me.
I have got a lovely wig and wear this when I’m out but in the house I prefer my hat from surburban turban - bit pricey but very comfy and gives me some ‘height’. I find the bandanas look like I’m going to paint the ceiling (my mum always wore one when she was painting the house!). Although my wig looks very natural (I work in a secondary school and not one teenager has noticed I’m wearing it - amazing!) I wear it mostly because I have 2 image-conscious teenage daughters, but I think if they weren’t bothered I would wear my turban hat all the time. Now that was something I wouldn’t have even contemplated a few months ago.
I still have some eyebrows and eyelashes, but use brow-zings from Benefit to define them a bit more. I can recommend the Look Good Feel Better workshop. Book early though as places go really quickly. Loads of lovely freebies!
I’m quite excited about my hair growing back and seeing what it will be like.
Hope this helps a bit as you face the hair loss challenge together!
All the very best
Rachel.x
Just got back from hospital can’t have chemo tomorrow, WBC to low, next week now. At least I can celebrate my silver wedding ann at a restaurant not feeling sick in bed, not what I had planned supposed to be in Maderia for holiday of lifetime, but better than not celebrating it. They said might have to have belly injections, hubby volunteered to do them. Might make that his anniversary pressie. Good luck the rest of you this week
Love Ruth xxx
Hi Ladies
well 13 days after my 1st fec my hair is starting to come out iam now panicing abit which i didnt think i would do as i know it would happen its really sh*t having bc
best wishes hope everyone is feeling ok
maxine xxx
Hi everyone and sorry for my lost post yesterday. I’ll try to be brief tonight !
Blue dragon, so sorry your second FEC had to be postpone, enjoy your anniversary meal.
Jo C, glad everyone is loving your haircut. It was a good discovery for me to find out I look better with shorter hair and will stick to short hair after the treatment, although not as short as it is now.
Pinkrose, your post brought a smile to my face tonight, it’s a lovely post.
As I dreaded I got some bad news today at my oncologist appt. I had been told that my cancer was 2cm but they now told me that from MRI it’s 5.1 cm and there is a second cancer next to it (same breast) measuring about 1cm. They’ve known it for two weeks but I didn’t see a doctor until today. It was a big shock because the fact that it sounded still quite small had been a big source of comfort to me. Also he didn’t say much about the effectiveness of the chemo so far, he was very cautious, but I have to accept that I’ve done only one just 2 and 1/2 weeks ago so they don’t want to say much. I’ve decided not to tell everyone these news, it’s bad enough as it is for people without knowing all the details. My parents and husband know of course.
Hair started to fall out last night but slowly for now so I still look normal. I was told it should fall out quickly. Anyway, today’s bad news put the hair loss into perspective a bit.
Now just waiting for the results of the blood test to know whether I’ll go ahead on Friday but oncologist was happy with my SE being not too bad I think.
Barbwill I am so sorry to hear your news. I will keep sending you positive vibes so your FEC2 can go ahead on Friday.
I have hit the anger stage at the moment, am feeling ok and the se’s from AC 1 have pretty much gone now but am very angry with everything particularly fluffy pink breast cancer adverts that seem to be everywhere at the moment. I am going to punch one of the big posters in Tesco soon so if you hear of a woman shedding hair losing it in Tesco and running round punching and karate kicking breast cancer posters - that will be me. Sorry.
Hello Barbwill, Donna P, CM hi to everyone, not been on for a few days and just trying to catch up…Wow thank u Barbwill what a lovely thing to say about my profile picture, whats your dog’s name, my Zeyna really is my medicine, you are all right this bc is s**t! My hair is moulting now, lucky its so thick that still cant tell at the moment, but i know that the day will come, very soon will have to go for it, but the thought of being bald, but got no choice…
Donna I so hope you find the confidence to go out, Choccie Muffin is right, the LGFB is fabulous I do hope u consider going on it - the goody bag is brilliant and I needed some new cosmetics but this blooming bc even effects that, the cost of everything,and we do deserve a treat, and its great to socialise in person with other ladies who feel just as you do, and they will give you courage and support…
I have not worn my wig yet, but some people say i may when my hair has gone, i am wearing a bandana to practice having things on my head, usually just a riding hat, so getting used to it…
Next FEC is Friday hope the wbc stays up, hope u are all feeling good today, sun was shining, spring is coming and every day its a day nearer to the end of the treatment, so glad we all have each other on here and Donna I really do hope some of one of us can help u to go outside, please feel free to pm anytime if i can help, help on here i have found invaluable, lots of love everyone, Shar xxx
Barbwill I’m so sorry to hear your news, sending a big hug to you and yours! It seems a relentless journey we are travelling on at times. I think we all need to give ourselves some TLC. Xxx
Barbwill, so sorry to hear your news, sometime its 2 steps forward & 1 back, but you will beat this, we all will.Im really scared at the mo, fec 2 tomorrow, & even through I now know what to expect, I feel more scared than the first. Will the se be worse, will my wbc go low again, will I end up in hospital with temp again, god I fed up with this. Need injections this time as well, had them in hospital & not looking forward to that.My children seem to think I should be sailing through all the treatment & dont phone me much, they dont seem to wont to know how Im getting on, perhaps its their way of coping. Well will try to sleep tonight but not really expecting to:( Lesley xx
Hi Crazylesley, good luck with your fec2, is it this week… I had FEC1 11 March, was sick few days then fine, just tired, and was gonna go to work end last week, but my wbc was low and temp was up, had go hosp 3 days running for injections, it had gone to 0.1 then 0.2 then 1.7, was odd cos didnt feel ill and was hard to comprehend how serious it was and important for me to drop everything and travel the 28 miles to Shrewsbury!! they nearly kept me in as temp was 37.5 but they let me wait to see if went down as was hot in there and was wearing bandana to get used to it before hair falls out… My fec2 is this Friday, so will i get given injections as a matter of course this time cos low last time… goodluck to you anyway hope all goes well xxxxxx
Barbwill would like to send my love and positive thoughts to u too re your news from onc today, hope all goes well for you and that you continue with limited se’s and glad u are here to get the tlc u need from everyone on here, love from Shar xx
Hi all
This really sucks, doesn’t it.
BW, what a dreadful shock for you. With luck and some potent poisons your 5.1 should shrink nicely during chemo, and that will be an added assurance to you that you’ll see some proof that the chemo is doing things. Even if it doesn’t, they’ll be able to see it’s not doing the trick and they can try other stuff, there are all sorts of different treatments they can throw at us. The things they can do for cancer just keep improving all the time.
This is quick tonight. I have pre-chemo tomorrow and really should be asleep by now, but I want to catch up as I’ve been out most of today. GP this morning, x-ray for sore foot, dog walk (foot wasn’t broken - I said it wasn’t!), doc’s appointment for daughter, half an hour on the sofa, committee meeting, then two glasses of a very tasty Rioja, but only so it wouldn’t go off.
There are TOO MANY people having FEC2 postponed for low WBC. They’d better be behaving themselves for me, or I’ll be VERY CROSS with them! pre-chemo tomorrow first thing with chemo scheduled for Thursday, fingers crossed.
Love and hugs to all, bald or furry,
CM
x
Silvershar Thanks for the best weshes. I feel strange today. Wont to have the fec2 but dont at the same time!! I slept not too bad last night which surprised me. Like you my temp hit 37.5, but kept going up, but I felt fine in my self, & like you was going to go back to work. I had to stay in hospital for 3 days on iv antibiotics til temp down & wbc up!!. Im goig to be having the injections now, but Im lucky my hospital is Wrexham whic
h is only 5mins away, so that makees a difference.The sun is not shining today, hope that is not an omen:) Lesley xx
Fell to pieces just at the flipping blood test today. I feel so pathetic today and just want to have a duvet day. Sod it, that’s what I’m going to do.
Can i just ask - not started chemo yet but due to in two weeks - How often do you take your temperature in a day? I think I would be so scared of it creeping up without me knowing that i would end up with the thermometer permanently stuck in my ear. Melx
Choccie muffin - quite right. Claim a woman’s right to duvet days. Tomorrow is another day.
Beardie - I only take my temperature when i feel a bit dodgy. I managed to sling the first one on the flooor at its first outing so had to buy a second one. If i took my temp every day I’d be on my 75th thermometer by now and would have less spendoes for essentials like plain chocolate and mangoes.
Have to admit I have only taken my temperature twice in a week and now feel guilty!
Edited to add I hope you have taken your duvet day Choccie Muffin - everyone deserves one sometimes.
I don’t know what to do with the information the temperature gives me in any case. I took mine earlier today (2 different thermometers) and it was 35.4. Another time I’ve taken it and it was 37.2. I can only assume that it’s normal for temperature to go up and down like a yoyo.
I stick the thermometer in my mouth under my tongue rather than in my ear as I was told you shouldn’t put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear. (Though I do dry them with cotton buds after a shower.)
I bought a digital thermometer and stick it in my ear. I don’t think it’s reliable though as it gives different readings within minutes. Am trying to get over my paranioa about temperature but it’s not easy. Take it when I wake up and before I go to sleep.
Was advised not to take paractemol if your temp is high as brings temperature down and therefore masks the reading.
Enjoy your duvet day CM!
I haven’t found taking my temperature in my mouth reliable, I never got the same result twice, and they were always on the low side, so could mask a fever. And I’m with CM on never sticking anything sharper than my elbow in my ear.
As for the other oft-mentioned orifice (the most accurate and reliable method, supposedly) call me anal if you like, but no, really, I just couldn’t.
So I just pop it in my, erm… lady thang. It’s as reliable and accurate as a botty temperature, and a damn site easier to wash the thermometer afterwards. I always get a 36.6, or near as dammit, so I know my baseline, and it’s easy to see if I veer too far away from it.
Obviously, you need to be using a digital thermometer here though ladies.