I am so sorry this is going to be TMI but I am really struggling after my first chemo. I am having nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Now I always have had a dodgy tummy but this just takes the biscuit. I am barely eating cause I just feel so sick all the time. I tried taking the medicines as advised and they just came straight out again/I think are what triggered the diarrhoea. It got so bad that my on-call team referred me to the a&E and I am now in hospital with other things being checked up. No infection turns out I also lost quite a bit of weight already.
But I am just I worried I won’t ever feel better again even on the meds IV I feel like shit and can barely eat half a sandwich (maybe that’s NHS sandwiches though). Everyone always tells me just try and eat but I am just so scared and feel like a failure.
Anyone have any similar story that turned out alright? I felt fine on the steroids they gave me before so is that something to look into? I really need some positivity I am flagging. I am a young mum as well and being away from my baby/toddler for a day to be in hospital is awful!
@lmack95 Poor you You have all my sympathy and love. Its a miserable situation and one that seems never ending but all is not lost. It can and will improve.
I had 3x EC and 3x Docetaxel. After the first chemo I had some nausea but it was controlled with the regime of Odansetron and Metaclopramide when I needed it. To be fair this wasn’t often so I’m afraid I cant comment on your vomiting problem. My main problem was diarrhoea. Everything I ate or drank, including a sip of water, went straight through and was accompanied by really bad tummy cramps About 5 days after my first chemo I ended up in hospital on a drip. Like you I had no infection. If I didn’t eat or drink I was OK Anyway, it settled. I took loperamide and buscopan as needed and thought - I can’t do this 5 more times. I didn’t have to. It was never as bad again. Yes I had diarrhoea and cramps but not as bad.
My suggestions are -
Tell your oncology team in great detail what has happened before your next chemo. They won’t necessarily know you’ve been admitted. They may be able to jiggle your steroids dose and/or timing, change your anti sickness tablets etc. Make sure they take it seriously and tell them if what they suggest isn’t working. If you don’t tell them they don’t know.
Keep a record of all side effects, what you eat/drink and effects of that, medicines you take and if they’re effective, if you’re tired, weak, feel OK, etc… I ended up doing a spread sheet as it was easier to get everything down and meant I could look back at previous treatments. From this I discovered that if I ate before about 11 my tummy was worse. After 2pmish I could eat anything, any amount and it didn’t have any effect I was already lactose intolerant but some people do get it with chemo so look out for that, especially as you say you have a dodgy tummy anyway.
Don’t expect too much from yourself. The whole shitshow of breast cancer is a huge physical and mental hurdle to overcome. Chemotherapy affects every part of your body so with the first treatment it isn’t surprising your body thinks what the hell is going on!! I found I was OK for a couple of days, then felt crap and not doing much for about a week then OK for the last 8-10 days before my next 3 weekly treatment. I was lucky enough not to have small children, though we look after our grandaughter one day a week, aged 2 during chemo, and went on doing that. Make sure you ask for help with the child(ren) and don’t try and do everything yourself. You can’t and you shouldn’t.
Well done if you’ve got through my ramblings. You will be ok and it will get better as at least you will know what to expect next time and will have some control.
There is life after breast cancer and this time next year you will be emerging from it all.
Hello lovely, don’t you worry it’s going to get better. I had TNBC and finished treatment in September. I had weekly x12 paclitaxol (only managed x6) , x4 carbolplatin and then x4 EC. They would give me pre sickness meds to take before coming in for chemo it was 1 big pill akenzo I think? Then I would have buscapan and as soon as diarrhea started I was to take immodium which stopped and controlled it because it isn’t a bug or food that needs to come out. Some chemo would make me constipated but like my team said by 5th say will be back to normal. With the sickness I had cyclizine as I was use to that during pregnancy as I was really sick during pregnancy. That eventually stopped working so I was on metraclopramide and would take the stomach protector omeprazole daily. I was always on steriods after each big chemo session which also helped & made me very hungry I would mainly eat toast, all the things that helped through pregnancy, switched to jasmin tea too. I hope you feel better soon I’m a mum too my boy was 3 when I was diagnosed and I was 39 xx
Thank you so so much! I am the opposite I think I am okay for the morning, radish for lunch and terrible for dinner but I have had food anxiety for a long time anyway.
I’ll keep a record and make sure to talk to them!! Thank you for taking the time i am definitely looking forward to when this is all over x
Very difficult, make sure you take any help you can from friends & family. I didn’t miss a single swimming lesson and trust me I couldn’t drive I was completely fuzzy head but my dad stepped in and did all the bits I couldn’t. We took help wherever we could, and for me my boy was too young to understand without it having a profound effect so all he knew for a short time was mummy is tired. Xx
It’samazing how children react. We were concerned about how our grandaughter would react to me losing my hair. Well she didn’t seem to notice that one day grandma had a hat on, one day a wig and another day No hair at all. Once I asked if she wanted to try my wig on and she said no grandma hair!
I think what you’ve said shows that everyone is very individual in reactions to chemo and that there are tons of different treatments available!
I had terrible vomiting after my first cycle of EC. Had to phone the cancer support line and almost got taken into hospital. It finally stopped when I took an ondansetron then fell asleep with exhaustion allowing it to work! I was prescribed stuff to deal with side effects next time (omeprazole for acid reflux, Laxido for constipation) and the following cycles I just took a ondansetron about 3 hours after getting home which stopped the vomiting before it started. Found it did get easier as I went through. The 4 EC were the worst but even then I was mostly able to do normal activities aside from the few days following treatment (fortnightly).
turns out I also lost quite a bit of weight already.
You have all my sympathy and love. Its a miserable situation and one that seems never ending but all is not lost. It can and will improve.
About 5 days after my first chemo I ended up in hospital on a drip. Like you I had no infection. If I didn’t eat or drink I was OK 
Anyway, it settled. I took loperamide and buscopan as needed and thought - I can’t do this 5 more times. I didn’t have to. It was never as bad again. Yes I had diarrhoea and cramps but not as bad.
I was already lactose intolerant but some people do get it with chemo so look out for that, especially as you say you have a dodgy tummy anyway.