Hi all need advise

[scattyfox]

Hi Stedie i too have a teenager and.was worried about this. I spoke to him and we agreed to cut my hair shorter in.stages. ive gone to a bob to a short funky cut and next week to a grade 2 crop. He was very honest and said he knows its selfish but didnt want people staring as its embarassing. i have bought some.soft beanie hats which i modelled and made him laugh. Also he thought a hair tatoo would be quite.cool when very short(pattrerns). Although i have tried to accomodate for his.feelings its important to.remember that this is about you and you have to do what is right for you. Headstrong is great with a specialised session showing you how to tie pretry scarves and wigsb hairpieces etc goodbluck with it all.x

[Janan8]

Hi Stedie, I finished chemo 8 x FecT in May last year, my children were 11, 7 & 3 at the time.  I found Mummy's lump good even for my 11 year old as it put it all in simple terms. I had my hair cut short just before chemo, then a friend shaved it off as soon as it started to go.  Of course it wasn't easy, however children do adjust much better than you think they will.  I kept in  close contact with the schools (we had 3 on the go) and my eldest found support talking to the school nurse. Also a local children's bereavement charity was a real support to my 7 year old. I didn't know until someone guided me to them that they had macmillan funding for support for families in our situation and it made a difference having someone trained to talk to my child, so it would be worth asking if there is something similar in your area and you might need to dig around to find out.  My 8 year old probably worried the most but didn't want to say anything to me in case she upset me. They helped her make a worry box which really seemed to help.  A book I found helpful was "When a Parent has cancer: a guide to caring for your children" which I got from Amazon.

Almost a year after chemo and my hair is growing back - curly and a different colour and they are all completely used to me as I am now and I think that for them, life is not the same as before but it's about as normal as it could be in the circumstances and I'm encouraged that my nearly 13 year old is exhibiting very typical teenage behaviour!!!

Good luck with the chemo - it is a long haul and I didn't find it easy but you can get through it and it feels really good to be out the other side! 

Jan

[msmcann]

Hi, Finding your bodies routine on chemo helps. For me, knew I would be laid up for the weekend immediately after my dose on a Wednesday, so made sure I never planned anything then and just took it easy and by the Monday was starting to feel human again. Also wore my Heather's Hair www.heathershair.co.uk more than my wig as have thin hair to start with so found the wig was too much. All the best for your treatment.

[rosie14]

Hi Stedie tell them the chemo is the medicine to make you better and that one of the side effects is that is makes your hair fall out. I find wearing a bandana around the house more comfortable even though there is only me and the dog during the day! I wouldn't want to get caught almost bald by a visitor!

[Stedie]

Hi thank you for he replies x they was to I had to have a
Macestomy but now have told them I having chemo and will be unwell sometimes and also bout my hair x the youngest is 11 and a girl x they all fine and understand I have to go through this to get better x thank you so
Much for your comments x

[kar235]

Hi Stedie,  I think the book sounds like a good idea. Do they know about your illness? I have found with younger children that once they know about it they tend to take it in their stride. I feel sure that once they know they will be able to do the same. Take care xx

[June_BCC]

Hello Stedie

Here is a link to the publication Mummy's Lump that Suzie68 mentioned.

http://www2.breastcancercare.org.uk/publications/diagnosed-breast-cancer/mummys-lump-bcc164

Best wishes

June, moderator

[Suzie68]

Hi stedie I had my 2nd round if fec last Wednesday everyone's side effects are different the most I've had is nausea and constipation and apart from feeling a bit tired I'm fine and still working full time apart from z couple of days sick after each chemo session. Have you told your children about your diagnoses? There is a bcc book called mummy's lump which you should be able to find by searching sorry I can't paste the link as typing on my phone. There is also an April 2014 chemo thread that you may want to join it visit where we all started around the same time and there's lots of hints and tips xx

[busyanne]

Hi stedie, I had chemo last year.  Children even teenagers cope better than adults with hair loss.  I always wore my wig when in public but in house never wore anything unless cold, so then used small cap which are cheap to buy.  The worst thing about chemo for me was losing all my body hair but in particular my eyelashes as I initially found it hard to resolve.  However I started to use the cheapest false eyelashes, not too long with no mascara.  No one seemed to notice.  I was fine with fec apart from the initial dose which made me feel quite sick, however medics were on the ball and prescribed me medication to deal with it.  It worked wonders.  The tac was pretty bad in that my taste buds were terrible and I found it hard to eat or drink but forced myself. Tended to east chicken soup and orange flavoured drinks but not fizzy.  The pains in my legs were painful but after I got used to it I used pain relief to deal with side affects.  Just keep telling yourself that you need to do this.  You will get through it.  Good luck.

[Stedie]

I start chemo within two weeks x I am choosing not to use cold cap and lose my hair which yeah that ok if gets me better x what I worried about is the effects on kids I had double macestomy and can hide this from them ( they teenagers by way ) but I can't hide the hair loss and wonder if any advise if anyone has kids and best way to deal with it x also if people could advise of the worse side effects I need to be ready for x