Hello,
I am starting EC Chemotherapy next week. I am trying to work out how much support I might need after it, I have two young daughters. (4 & 8) and the youngest is at home in the afternoons.
I know that everyone experiences it differently but I am just wondering if I need people on standby by for 5 days, a week … and if anyone has any thoughts on how to prepare xx
Thanks very much
Rx
Hi Rebecca
I had TC chemo, so slightly different from yours, but from reading other posts, there are similarities. The first week is the hardest, from days 2 to 8. I didn’t have the energy to do much at all that week. So I would say definitely organise some childcare. Also make sure you have everything you need in advance… food, medicines etc. Oh and get all the washing done! Trust me, you really won’t he bothered with that! I’m not saying you will feel ill, I’m just saying that you will need to take care of yourself and that you will need lots of rest.
Hope this helps. Might be worth joining the February thread so you can talk to others going through the same as you. Xx
Hi Rebecca
is your oncologist prescribing you Emend (aprepitant) and Neulasta from the outset? I took these and had minimal side effects, except really bad constipation. Make sure you have laxatives at home! You also need a good thermometer (preferably the type you put in your ear) to check your temperature.
It it will make you tired, especially for the first 3 or 4 days, so anything you can do to reduce chores would be wise. Do you have anyone who can help you with cleaning etc? Get in lots of nutritious but easy to prepare food (e.g. Baked beans on wholemeal toast). If you do have nausea, eating a plain snack (eg plain biscuits) usually helps. The steroids may make you hungrier than normal for the first few days. The steroids may also give you insomnia - I ended up watching lots of tv box sets on my iPad in the middle of the night.
Hopefully you will feel relatively normal after 2 or 3 days, but just take it easy as you will find you get worn out more easily than normal. I would say it feels a bit like being jet-lagged- you can function ok but everything is a bit more of an effort. I also noticed that I became more emotional at a certain point in my 3 week chemo cycle.
Overall it wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d feared. Hopefully you will also have an OK experience. Best wishes. Xx