wendyd

Hi Wendy,

This is the hardest time for you - waiting for pathology results post-surgery is the hardest part - but once you have them, everything moves very quickly. I was surprised how little pain there was after surgery, and initial Endone and then Panadol kept it under control. (Make sure you have a little cushion to tuck under your arm at night - it really helps.)

To answer your question, I found the chemo treatments surprisingly manageable - maybe because of the drugs I was given. My drugs were Taxol and Carboplaten, every week for 12 weeks. The anti-nausea meds before and after really worked, and I found that green tea with fresh ginger slices plus an arrowroot biscuit when I woke up also really worked - a tip I was given by girls on this site. The only real side effect was tingly toes and feet at night, and calcium stopped this almost immediately - either supplements or milk worked for me.

It is now 12 months since diagnosis and I feel healthy again - actually last treatment/last surgery was in October last year. I am walking every day, my hair has grown back thick (and curly) and the oncologist has just promoted me to a 6 month check-up. There is some fatigue and I have learned to pace myself, as we all do.

The main thing is - the whole thing is 'do-able' - just take it one day at a time, and put one foot in front of the other until it is all finished. Don't look too far ahead. All the very best for April 2nd. Stay in touch.

Michelle x