I was diagnosed with Stage 2 Breast Cancer and completed chemo 1 year ago. I have suffered from the time of treatment, ongoing fatigue of various degrees every day. Most days I am fatigued and need to lie down to rest. I also suffer from body aches and pains in my body. I have been unable to return to work even on a part time basis. This is effecting my quality of life and I often feel frustrated. Is there anyone else who still suffers side effects long after chemo has been completed? I am grateful that I am in remission but I wonder if my body will ever improve.

It has taken me 4 years to come out the other side. I still have side effects but they are manageable. Best thing you can do is keep on trying to exercise as that also helps with the depression of not being able to do certain things. I have adapted. <3

@Sabran65 i think most of us have carry over side effects from our treatment I finished full on treatment in July 2017. The chemo surgery and radiation. And on the hormone blocker till oncologist decides i can stop Not sure which one has knocked the stuffing out of me but your not alone In the don’t have the same energy as pre bc I have improved a bit since change in tablets. Asked my Oncologist once and her answer was that what i went through aged my body 10years at least I’m sure someone on here will be able to help with suggestions as what might help. Main one seams to be exercise which has helped for me. Don’t do much but every little bit seems to help.

You are right @Blossom1961, it is extremely difficult continuing with natural therapies after BC. I have osteoporosis due to Letrozole and although I haven’t started taking any medication for it I know I will have to start sooner or later. The bone broth that I take and the exercises that I do may not improve the osteoporosis.Whatever the effects I still feel thankful for all these treatments that have helped us with this disease.Take care and hopefully your heartburn resolves soon. Hopefully 2021 will be kinder to us all.

Good quality chocolate works well too. My coffee snobbery extends to my chocolates.

Hi @Sabran65, it can take a long time to recover from bc treatments and sometimes we are left with permanent issues.Radiation left me with lung scarring,Tamoxifen left me with a fatty liver and the mastectomy left me with constant discomfort across my chest.The fatigue and brain fog from chemo can take up to 2yrs to improve(I’ve read) I didn’t have the full course so I recovered in 3mths.It can be so frustrating waiting to get’yourself’ back but I found it helpful to focus on what I COULD do and not what I couldn’t do.

Long term chemo side effects

cranky_granny
Member
6 years ago
@Sabran65
i think most of us have carry over side effects from our treatment I finished full on treatment in July 2017. The chemo surgery and radiation. And on the hormone blocker till oncologist decides i can stop
Not sure which one has knocked the stuffing out of me but your not alone
In the don’t have the same energy as pre bc I have improved a bit since change in tablets.
Asked my Oncologist once and her answer was that what i went through aged my body 10years at least
I’m sure someone on here will be able to help with suggestions as what might help. Main one seams to be exercise which has helped for me. Don’t do much but every little bit seems to help.
Brenda5
Member
6 years ago
It has taken me 4 years to come out the other side. I still have side effects but they are manageable. Best thing you can do is keep on trying to exercise as that also helps with the depression of not being able to do certain things. I have adapted. <3
Sabran65
Member
6 years ago
Thank you for your insights. I used to be so much more active as well as work full time and now I am like an old lady. It does depress me at times. I hope it will improve ♥️
Blossom1961
Member
5 years ago
I didn't want to start a new discussion so thought I would use someone else'. I have heartburn issues since the commencement of chemo. I finished all treatment over a year ago and slowly took myself off the heartburn tablets over six months. However I have since had heartburn and ongoing back issues and put myself back on to the heartburn tablets. Back problems have eased considerably as that tightness is no longer around my torso. Three days after resuming the omeprozale, I started having depression attacks out of the blue much like I had during treatment. I decided to see if there was a link. Yep, not common, but heartburn tablets can cause depression. So, pain or depression? Neither option sounds appealing.
June1952
Member
5 years ago
Many years ago we were told to have the "xxxx mints" (Woolies etc.) for heartburn and they are better than any of the drugs like Nexium. Worth a go. Sort of like the old-fashioned nurses' trick of giving patients a mint liquid.
Blossom1961
Member
5 years ago
Thanks June but none of the natural things are working. Peppermint, ginger, anise, caraway,coriander, fennel. Herbal teas - heaps of different ones. Special diet. Lots of water. Slow eating and small bites. Nothing spicy. Breathing exercises. Less stress. More rest. More activity, less activity.
June1952
Member
5 years ago
.... and a cake or two to keep the spirits up ?
Blossom1961
Member
5 years ago
Good quality chocolate works well too. My coffee snobbery extends to my chocolates.
PV123
Member
5 years ago
Hi @Blossom1961

I used to have a lot of indigestion and heartburn a few years back. I saw a specialist, had an endoscopy but nothing came up. Because of the heartburn, I had a lot of trouble sleeping. The specialist recommended taking Nexium and sleeping tablets. I also tried sleeping with my head raised but that was really hard. Basically nothing worked for long.

A friend of mine suggested drinking diluted apple cider vinegar, I asked my GP if I could do that but she said she doesn’t believe in any natural treatments.

Anyway I started taking a small amount of diluted apple cider vinegar once a day out of desperation. I feel my reflux and indigestion have greatly improved with that. I also drink warm water with lemon and honey every morning. Have you had an endoscopy to check the insides?

https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/diet/apple-cider-vinegar-nutrition-facts-health-benefits-risks-more/
TonyaM
Member
5 years ago
Hi @Sabran65, it can take a long time to recover from bc treatments and sometimes we are left with permanent issues.Radiation left me with lung scarring,Tamoxifen left me with a fatty liver and the mastectomy left me with constant discomfort across my chest.
The fatigue and brain fog from chemo can take up to 2yrs to improve(I’ve read) I didn’t have the full course so I recovered in 3mths.It can be so frustrating waiting to get’yourself’ back but I found it helpful to focus on what I COULD do and not what I couldn’t do.