Dari and Chemo brain....

[Guest guest]

HI DARI,

so glad to hear from you !!! I am sad to know it has taken you so

long to get back on your feet, but glad to know you are bouncing

back. I wish you would have shared with the group or me, that is what

we/I are here for. Not just for the " good " times, but also the

hardship, the side effects and ALL the ups and downs of dealing with

cancer/treatment. To me you are being supportive just by keeping up

the fight and maintainig your " humor " in all of this.

Now about chemobrain. (This is my THIRD try to post to you...) Let me

tell you sister, you are so not the only one!!! I found myself the

other day being TOTALLY puzzled by my coffee machine, for the life of

me I could NOT remember what to do with it in order to get a cup of

coffee. How sad is that??? Not to mention looking inside the fridge

for cleaning supplies (nope, NEVER kept them there before) and

insisting that Neosporin is called Anbesol. Darn it, in my house it

is! Imagine my hubbys face when I cut myself and wanted Anbesol and

how dare he correct me, I knew what I was talking about. Dog gone it,

I worked in nursing for years....:-)))

So, that is one lingering side effect and just like all of us here, I

have more (numbness, tingling, bone pain and lately pericardial and

pleural effusion), but keeping the big picture in mind: it is doable.

As far as your lungs, what is your Onc saying? It's a good thing the

nodules were located NOW and while they are too small to do a biopsy,

at least you know they are there. (I know that statement most likely

did not sound right, but I hope you know what I am trying to say).

Could they be something else??? The water on my heart/lungs scared me

shi%#less, but my Onc assures me that it should resolve in a few

month...Maybe the nodules are a rare side effect?????

Now, to the subject of hubbies. If memory serves right, you have one

of those too, how is he doing? Mine is slowly learning to come to

gribs with reality. It was soooo hard for him not to be able to just

put a screwdriver here, a nail there and a nut everywhere to fix me.

Like me, he has adapted to living with the cancer and has learned to

take it one day at a time and has faced the mortality issue and has

come around to my way of thinking: We all will pass one day, but darn

it, I plan on being 90 years old and dancing my heart out when my

time comes. In the meantime I have a WHOLE LOT OF LIVING left to do

first !!!!!

Weightgain, right back at you. I stopped counting when it reached the

40 pound mark, so much more of me to love these days....and to think

I still have to take Tamoxifin for 5 years and it's my understanding

there can be weightgain, menopause and so many other wondful side

effects with it.... Hmmmmmm, seems like the chemo kicked me into

chemopause already...Glad to kow you started working out, you go girl!

As far as the " old self " , I don't think any of us ever get that

person back. I miss myself, but am so proud of the person I have

become !!! The insights, power, knowledge and inner strength I have

gained are indescribable....I wonder at times, if I ever would have

grown in this manner without the cancer...

You hang in there and keep in touch. Remember to take it one step at

a time, one day at a time and to put one foot in front of the other.

That is the only way to get were you are going.

Here is a big hug to make you feel better and to let you know I would

be happy to hear from you ANYTIME, even when you just want to WHINE!!!

((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

Caren in Kansas