Breast Cancer Now Forum

Bella boo, I started using an electric shaver for my anc arm and it's been fine. Might be worth a try? I couldn't stand it for long so didn't wait too long before shaving it. Need to do it in front of a mirror though because I can't work out from sensation where I am shaving 😂 Good luck today Pookie. Sorry I missed you earlier!xx ... View more

Nellie, good luck for today. Glad it can go ahead. I feel the same not wanting any delays even though it seems a bit crazy to be wanting chemo!! But seen as we have to have it, we may as well get it over with as quickly as possible! And the leg shaving is annoying me too. My underarms are nicely fuzz free. Hurrah! But still had to shave my legs the other day for my summer dress. Wasn't impressed!! Lol xx ... View more

Hi Bookworm, just to say you are not alone in the wide awake club. I've been lying here since about 1. Also really suffering with the heat and feeling more nauseous than last time which I'm sure is because of how hot I am. Finally starting to cool down a bit but still wide awake. Looks like day 1 of the school holidays will be done on 3 hours sleep max!! Oh well, at least I can take my next lot of steroids in a few hours and hopefully that will keep me going for a while!! Hope you manage to sleep soon. And hope the patch works and sorts the nausea out for you xx ... View more

Hi Warcol, I'm sorry you are feeling deflated after your appointment. It's really good that you have had such a good response to chemo though, that has to go in your favour in terms of recurrence. I've had surgery first so there will be no way for them to tell how well I have responded to the chemo. Which bothers me. But nothing I can do about it. I'm waiting for brca testing too. I can't even begin to think about the possibilities after that. Just need to get through this stage first. I hope you can get some support from your mum and OH when they come to terms with things. Chris, I remember those feelings so well. How do you ever cope with this? But honestly, given time, things sort of change in your mind. Noone is positive all the time. I don't think that's possible. But slowly, the good days become more than the bad says. My worst days were between biopsy and diagnosis. And then waiting for results of ct and bone scan. After that they booked me in for surgery and I had something to work towards. After surgery I felt like a weight had been lifted. It was only as my post op appointment approached that I started to worry and think about things again. I've just had my second round of chemo today. So still a long way to go, but getting there. Like I say, some days the anxiety of it all still hits me. But most of the time I accept that it is a fruitless activity to worry about something I can do nothing more about than I am already doing. Hopefully once you get your treatment plan you will start to feel differently as you can see the way it is going to go. And until then, vent here all you want. We will listen and will most probably have shared all the exact same feelings xx ... View more

Good luck today Alex and Suze. I will be joining you for my second round. Keeping fingers crossed for few side effects for us all! Kath, welcome. I had surgery in May and started chemo end of June. Really and honestly, the waiting is the worst part. Try not to cross bridges until you come to them. It is so easy to worry about every possibility. But we are all here too listen on the days it just seems too much to handle. We will all get through this together. How's everyone else doing? The change in the weather has come at the wrong time for me, just as in needing to wear head coverings!! So after keeping a very short shave because of my sunburnt scalp, I got hubby to take the rest off last night so I can at least put sun cream on my head!! It's got a horrible rough stubble feel now, so I'm hoping what's left falls out quickly and I can be silky smooth instead 😂 😂 ... View more

Hi Macgirl, if you click on the name of the person, then on bio, you will have an option to send private message. This is how it works from my phone, not sure if it is different from a computer though. Hope that helps x ... View more

Hi Bel, thanks for the link. I'll get some in for when chemo is finished. Sounds great for something so easy to take! Anne (soscared), good luck with your op Friday. I agree, it's really not as bad as you expect. I was so worried I wouldn't be able to look after my children for ages afterwards, but I carried on with almost everything as normal. And some things needed a little thought but was manageable (pillows for feeding my then 10 week old). I have found so far, everything sounds scarier than it is. And it is because we prepare ourselves for the worst case scenarios, when in reality, most people have a much better experience than that. So lovely reading the positive posts. Gives real hope to people like me who are still in the middle of it all! xx ... View more

Morning ladies, hope everyone is feeling well today?? I'm on countdown to round 2 on Tuesday. Feeling ready for it. Just wishing it wasn't the same day school finishes for the summer!!! Nellie, I'm quite happy without a hat on around the house. Only wear one if my head gets chilly (which is does quite a bit with this weather!!). Hubby thinks it won't be long before I forget I have no hair and answer the door without putting a hat on 😁 Welcome Supti, try and focus on all the positive things people say on here. While you are waiting to start chemo it is so easy to focus on all the possible side effects and it can seem overwhelming. But the reality is, very very few people are unlucky enough to suffer with too many of them. And the onc team are really focussed on controlling as many as possible with med adjustment. We really shouldn't be having to put up with things like nausea or vomiting, so if you find it a problem speak to them. Oncewild is right, celebrate the fact you have clear nodes. The sooner it is diagnosed and treated, the better. So that's really good news for you. Try and focus as much on the positives as you can. There will always be days when that seems impossible, but keep them few and the good days plenty! xx ... View more

Hi J, welcome. The anticipation of what to expect is definitely the hardest part. It's so true that everyone has a different experience though. I didn't suffer with nausea at all from my first FEC. The meds they gave me kept that really under control. But if you do suffer then let them know. There are plenty of ladies who have suffered and had meds altered the next time and not had it at all. So it's always worth mentioning. Dianabrew, I'm sorry you didn't have a good night. I didn't sleep well the first few nights after chemo last time. Luckily got back to normal after about a week. Hoping you are feeling ok today. Nellie, my kids have been fine with the head shave. They keep feeling it at the moment (so do I!!) But I'm sure the novelty will wear off eventually and they will just think it's as boring as my normal hair!! Lol xx ... View more

Hi ladies, hope you are all getting on ok. How have things gone today Bev? Hope they put you at ease. Bells boo, yes I have done it. Have a GI Jane look going on at the moment as didn't take it all off because of the sunburn!! So kept a little bit of stubble for now. Feels really nice actually. Have a feeling I'll be rubbing my head constantly while it lasts. Lol. Hope you have adjusted to the no hair look Nellie? Mine feels lovely but I think it's going to take a while to get used to seeing it in the mirror! Hi fluffymittens, and welcome. I've had surgery before chemo, but the good thing doing it your way round is that you'll know the chemo has worked if the tumour shrinks. Hopefully that will be reassuring for you. xx ... View more

Hi AnnDaw, I asked my oncologist that question today. She said there is no way of knowing how well the chemo has worked as the tumour is already gone. They just work on the fact that the chemo works for a lot of people, so hopefully it will for us too. But only time will tell. Not quite the reassurance I was hoping for!!!xx ... View more

Oh Marina, your post makes me so sad. Please don't feel alone. I know it is not the same as having someone put their arms around you, but please know there are lots of people on here who will listen to you and offer support as you need it. I am still early days as only have my 2nd chemo next week, but if I can help in anyway please get in touch. Sending lots of love xxx and I'm sure you are just beautiful no matter what colour your hair is growing back!!xx ... View more

Hi ladies, hope everyone is having a good day! Bella boo, I haven't done the shave yet but with the amount that came out in the shower this morning I think tonight will have to be the night. Dreading it slightly because after burning my head at the beach on Tuesday, I'm worried the clippers are going to feel really sore!! Fingers crossed another day for it to recover a bit will help. I agree with the spotty/itchy feeling too. Can't decide if it's from the sunburn or the shedding!!! Nellie, the lorazepam is used for anxiety, but lots of drugs are used for multiple reasons so that's why it is being given as an anti emetic. Much like the dexamethasone is actually a steroid, but has been found to work really well to control sickness caused by chemo. Then if you go onto tax the steroids aren't needed for sickness, but are important to stop allergic reactions to the oil used to mix the drug. Does that make sense?? I know what I mean. Lol. T, let us know how your massage goes. I'd love reflexology, but so far have only booked myself onto the look good feel better course. I'm going to wait for anything else until after the school holidays as I feel really guilty leaving my parents with all 4 children while I get pampered!! Suze and Pookie, thank you for the lovely compliment, but I'm really not supermum!! Just trying to keep things as normal as possible for as long as possible. I'm really lucky and have great support from my parents who are both retired 😊 Wishing good days for us all. I'll report back later on how the shave went. We have the celebration evening in my son's school tonight so will see what's happening when we get back from that. Might be a late evening shave by the time we get them all sorted and into bed!! xx ... View more

Well I am now day 16 and the shedding has begun!! Lost quite a bit this morning in the shower, but only a few strands here and there since. Waiting for it to pick up pace now, and glad I charged the clippers ready for the big shave!!xx ... View more

Hi Pookie, my boys are 5 and almost 4 (twins) and I have a baby girl who is 4 months. I haven't read the mummy's lump book to them because I think they are too young for it. So we've told them bits in stages. First the surgery, then that I would be having special medicine. They know my hair will fall out, and that I might get too tired to do certain things all the time. But so far from cycle 1 I've been able to do all school runs and bed times, so not much has changed for them. I had a few days where I let my hubby get up with them in the morning so I could sleep longer as I wasn't sleeping well at night at all. But apart from that I've been able to do my usual things for them. This might well change as the cycles go on, and the summer holidays will be more of a struggle I'm sure. But the longer I can keep things normal, the better. So that's my plan! xx ... View more

Hi everyone, I've had a lovely day at the beach on the school trip with my boys so feeling nice. But exhausted!! Nellie, I still have no shedding. Not one hair. It's crazy, I've been expecting it to happen for days and still no signs. I know it can't be far away now and it's making me very twitchy!! Suze, welcome. It sounds like you and your hubby have been through an awful lot on the chemo front already. I can't imagine what that's been like. Fingers crossed you get through it with few side effects and taste buds intact. Mine have already disappeared and I'm only on cycle 1!! Pookie, check when you have your assessment, but as long as you cell counts are normal then they shouldn't need to delay chemo because you've been unwell. Might be a problem if you're still showing signs of infection though I guess?? Will try and catch up properly once all the littlies are in bed!!xx ... View more

AngeNut you look fab!! Crown of honour is a great way to think of it. I'm now day 14 so just waiting for the shedding to begin. Have the clippers at the ready for when it does!! Oncewild, I'm so sorry you had such a terrible first day. Sounds like a nightmare for you. You must he exhausted from the stress of it all!! Here's hoping you have an easy ride from here now. Sounds like you deserve it after ending up in hospital already. Hazel, I hope you feel better after the enema. Constipation is awful. I suffered with it the first few days, then had the opposite problem once I'd stopped all the meds!! Day 6 was definitely my worst day, and from there is has been a steady improvement back to normal. Will keep fingers crossed it is the same for you, and today is a better day 😃 I'm still feeling good. 2 is my boys have had a sickness bug over the weekend so they are home from school today. Hoping I'm far enough past the danger point now to not end up catching anything nasty. I'm always super clean anyway, but there's only so much you can hope for after catching sick with your bare hands 😷 😷 xx ... View more

Hi Oncewild, how are you feeling now? Hope you've been managing to sleep a bit and aren't feeling too grotty. AngeNut, another Welshie!! Lovely picture, I'd feel really confident too. You look fab 😄 I'm still waiting for the great shedding to start. Day 13 now so I know it's going to be any time now. Actually expected it a lot sooner because I have fine hair and that is meant to go earlier. Must have strengthened it up when I have the big pre chemo chop!! Hazel, sending hugs and hoping the side effects start to ease for you soon and you get your head back. The foggy brain feeling is hard going isn't it!! AJ, welcome. Try not to get too nervous, it's not been as bad for any of us as we were anticipating so take comfort in that. I felt really quite fine the first few days after FEC. Then days 5 and 6 were grotty, but improving again from day 7. Now, on day 12, I feel well enough that I spent yesterday having a massive sort out. Have so many bags for charity of clothes the kids have outgrown, house is tidied, ironing up to date etc etc. I went to bed last night feeling very accomplished!! Hope the weather is better for you ladies than it is here. So much for summer!!xx ... View more

That's not far from me Bev, I don't live far from Pencoed (RCT side, not Bridgend side though). How long have you been in Lincolnshire? I love how Welsh people always give cwtches, even when they don't live here any more!! Bella boo, that's crazy you have no recollection of your friend visiting!!! I wonder how many things the rest of us have forgotten happened but have never had a reason to realise it!! xx ... View more

Oh, and Bookworm it's very normal to feel washed out now. I definitely felt that way around day 4-7 and then would say things improved a lot quite quickly. Can't help with the temp though as mine has been fine whenever I've checked it.xx ... View more