Did your period come back after chemo? If so, when?
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@melclarity - it’s all part of the journey isn’t it. I was vegan before chemo but my body started craving meat and soft drink so I’m letting it have what it wants at the moment. I put on 5-6 kgs in the first 3 cycles but thankfully no more in between the 3rd and 4th. I’m hoping some of it is fluid. Once I steer feeling better I’ll get back into my diet but may add fish as my vitamin b had been low and I’m hoping to start yoga again in the next couple of weeks - can’t wait to start running again and normally I’m on my feet all day at work. I have had high blood pressure for a few years, had every test under the sun and my specialist couldn’t figure it out - he said I was “just weird”. Bloody cancer is a clever little thing isn’t it - still manage to produce what it needs. In the end though being alive with a couple of extra pounds is a better alternative for me than being a thin corpse.2
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@Kiwi Angel I was about the same, I didnt put on anymore than 6kg through chemo but it never came off and has slowly crept up from there. I had to learn to walk again I was so ill and lost all muscle mass, I can walk a fair way now but after 40mins my toes are numb and ache, I can't run at all its too painful. Ohhh I laughed at your last comment, how true!!!!
I figure that too, who cares!!! xx 1 -
The other reason I'm suss is that I've had fewer hot flushes in the last few days. Does that sense, is it logical?0
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Can't help with your question @kmakm as I officially hit the one year no period mark in January (one month after diagnosis). But right through last year, and the 6 months before that when I had a couple of periods, my body often gave weird signals as if something was happening but then didn't. As it turns out, according to the onc, there must have still been a small amount of oestregen begin produced by my ovaries this year as he reckons that's what was causing the hot flushes and night sweats on AC.0
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My hot flushes started immediately after 1st infusion of chemo and were fast and furious. I still get them somedays worse than others uuugh. Kate the hot flushes can die right down to barely nothing then back up to 100 lol. You can ask your Oncologist about it, the biggest thing I still get is the mood/emotional swing big time very odd! but no period and strangely Ive always felt since not getting a period since chemo that I am thicker around the waist. It is so true what they say about menopause you do put on weight and is so difficult to shift. I never had problems with weight prior to treatment, but chemo and menopause are chronic!0
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Hey @Kiwi Angel,
Like you said lovely, it's just the next step and another one of those things nobody knows until you start. Hopefully you have no issues. My libido was fine as well all through chemo and up to about 8 weeks on the HT.
Tamoxifen seems to leave my system pretty quickly though, so if it sux too much it is pretty much reversible and you could try something else. As far as how long it stays in your system depends on how long you are on it, your body chemistry, metabolism another one of those non definitive answers.
I am week 10 back on after my last break. I can feel the anxiety coming back, something I have never suffered in my life. My memory is clapping out again and I'm starting to not be able to string a sentence together. Add in a glass of wine and I'm flat out remembering my own name LOL. It has taken longer this time around to kick in though.
My onc says my symptoms are severe and not common....interesting considering it takes under a minute on forums to find people having the same issues.
Seriously though, don't stress too much until you try it. You might be perfectly fine.
Anyhoo, on a plus side. (I know I've gone a bit off topic sorry) Each time I go off it something seems to get a little better and I can handle it for longer. Aiming for 14 weeks on this time instead of 12.
On a plus side. I have dropped 8kgs for no apparent reason other than the Tamoxifen and it has halved my cholesterol level. I spoke with another lady the other day who said her periods came back unexpectedly after two years at 55.
Who knows what your body can come up with.
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@kezmusc it’s sux your get the anxiety w d fog from it - funny how u get weight loss and better cholesterol. It obviously really tries to latch on to your brain chemistry and then tries to give u a silver lining elsewhere. This whole BC thing certainly makes us tough as resilient!! My oncologist even said if she googles tamoxifen she finds it the most hated drug in the forums but personally finds it a better option than the others. Time will tell for me I suppose. Xoxox1
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Tamoxifen is generally used for pre menopausal women, and the likes of Arimidex and Aromasin is for post. They are different medications, but I actually found Tamoxifen of the lesser evil than the others. Everyone reacts differently that's for sure....gee never heard of losing 8kg though on it, I wish that were a side effect of Aromasin lol uuugh! It really is dependant on your age, where you are in regards to menopause and specifically your personal diagnosis as to what medication is best. It is interesting as I found most symptoms described are what I had as a result of chemo moreso than the medication. x0
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I really only had chemo brain through AC. By the time I finished taxol it was gone and no sign during rads or the three weeks up to starting the Tamox. It's definitely it because it goes away when I go off it. So does the anxiety. I copped blurred vision the first time around on it as well but thank fully that seems to have sorted itself out.
Yes, my onc says it is the lesser of two evils as well and considering the issues with this one I probably would do worse on the Zoladex/AI combination. There are a number of studies being done on the effects of Tamoxifen on the brain and central nervous system now finally. So I guess it's not such a minority complaining about these things.
@Kiwi Angel I am happy with the silver lining I guess. Something good has to come out of it. LOL
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@kezmusc this journey certainly teaches us to find the silver lining in anything we can get our hands on. My biggest worry is getting depression on the medication as I have had issues with contraceptive pills in the past screwing me up. Bloody hormones!!0
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@Kiwi Angel The amount of pills I am now taking, in my early 50s, horrifies me. The thought of adding more, to counterract the side effects of some of the others... Garrgh! If the Letrozole gives me the blues, will I have up the anti-depressant dose?! I don't want to be on those for too long. I'm pretty fed up with all this BC shit right now. Bloody expensive too.0
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@kmakm I know what u mean. I hate taking pills - I’m pretty excited that I have stopped the dex and will stop all their other pills I have been taking for chemo in the next couple of days - dulcolax, antihistamines, nexium, anti nausea, pain relief.0
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@Kiwi Angel Relish it.0
