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Medical Forum / Diseases and Disorders / Breast Cancer / July 2008femara: others here?
Others taking this? Anyone courageous enough to NOT TAKE IT, if all signs of BC are gone? Anyone courageous enough to take it a shorter time than recommended? I've been on it about seven months and I don't like it much. I seem to be at very low risk for recurrence but, cutting that risk by more than half is still...er....recommended. But in exchange....expense (very spendy med!), side effects..... > Others taking this? Anyone courageous enough to NOT TAKE IT, if all signs of > BC are gone? Anyone courageous enough to take it a shorter time than [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > still...er....recommended. But in exchange....expense (very spendy med!), > side effects..... Somewhere, I read that many women hate the side effects and discontinue the drug--I think the joint and muscle pain are really unpleasant. Check out breastcancer.org--maybe someone there wrote in. Judy thanks, I've seen some messages on the mayo clinic board. I already had pain because I have fibromyalgia and idiopathic neuropathy, so I can't really tell the difference! what I dislike is the total aging...skin, resilience, everything....dry eyes, sore throat, wrinkles (I didn't have them before!), and yes the joint pain. it's no fun! On Jun 18, 8:27 pm, "fortunata" <pacif...@gmail.com> wrote: > Others taking this? Anyone courageous enough to NOT TAKE IT, if all signs > of [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > still...er....recommended. But in exchange....expense (very spendy med!), > side effects..... Somewhere, I read that many women hate the side effects and discontinue the drug--I think the joint and muscle pain are really unpleasant. Check out breastcancer.org--maybe someone there wrote in. Judy > thanks, I've seen some messages on the mayo clinic board. I already had > pain because I have fibromyalgia and idiopathic neuropathy, so I can't > really tell the difference! what I dislike is the total aging...skin, > resilience, everything....dry eyes, sore throat, wrinkles (I didn't have > them before!), and yes the joint pain. it's no fun! -------------- You forgot to mention that it's murder on your sex life. It's an estrogen blocker, after all. Myself, I'm on Arimidex, but AFAIK the side effects are the same. I actually did stop taking it in the beginning and my oncologist went *ballistic* on me, she was like "This is a matter or life or death! You've *got* to take it!" So, I bit the bullet and took it. Three years so far, two more to go. (If I live.) Eva > > pain because I have fibromyalgia and idiopathic neuropathy, so I can't > > really tell the difference! what I dislike is the total aging...skin, [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > Eva Gals, one of the bright spots in my whole cancer experience is that my sex life is intact. Does Tamoxifen ruin that too? I'm already in menopause hell before starting this stuff. It's so hard that in order to save our lives we have to lose so much quality of life. Les On Jun 19, 9:10 pm, "Eva" <EvaDStructio...@NOverizon.net> wrote: > "fortunata" <pacif...@gmail.com> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Eva Gals, one of the bright spots in my whole cancer experience is that my sex life is intact. Does Tamoxifen ruin that too? I'm already in menopause hell before starting this stuff. It's so hard that in order to save our lives we have to lose so much quality of life. I've had Tamoxifen and Arimidex at different times, it's never affected my quality of life. But I do have an excess of oestrogen (at my age!)which has benefits. I do think thought that people have different responses to all sorts of medication. Mary >> Myself, I'm on Arimidex, but AFAIK the side effects are the same. I >> actually did stop taking it in the beginning and my oncologist went >> *ballistic* on me, she was like "This is a matter or life or death! >> You've >> *got* to take it!" So, I bit the bullet and took it. Three years so far, >> two more to go. (If I live.) I hope you do! but I always think, 20-40 years ago women had breasts removed, and they are still alive now. there were no adjuvant therapy options then. Isn't it true that recurrence is (as I mentioned above) 30%? So that means (in general) that most women will NOT have a recurrence, no matter what they do....sorta. kinda. I know statistics are not hard science; it's all about odds. My onc. said 1% per year, meaning 30% if I lived another 30 years. the med more than halves that risk, but it certainly doesn't eliminate it. What one wonders about is, how much do you improve your odds if you skip, say, one pill a week? or if you take a 'break" every two months and skip 4 days, or if you take it a year and then stop 3 months, or? and would the side effects abate or RECUR or..... sigh. oncologists might be principled, or they might want to please the medical companies, or who the heck knows. I don't want stroke, high cholesterol, endometrial cancer or...(I still remember the oncologist saying "Well, with endometrial cancer, we just do a hysterectomy" and he smiled, as if, piece o' cake! he's comparing it to the worst sorts of circumstances, but I'm comparing it to not wanting endless surgeries and invasions and horrors. ah well. >> Eva > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Mary > oncologists might be principled, or they might want to please the medical > companies, or who the heck knows. Well, one thing they have done is treat lots and lots of people with cancer, year in and year out... I don't know what you do for a living, but after 30 years of doing what I do, I have certainly learned a thing or two, and my clients benefit greatly from it. I'm not about to dismiss my oncologist's 20 + years of experience with breast cancer! I picked her because of it. She has seen women like myself die and others live. She is tough and competitive and does not like to lose. Any tricks, "gut feelings", or new drugs she has up her sleeve that will help put me in her survivors group, I want. Ixia Well, one thing they have done is treat lots and lots of people with cancer, year in and year out... I don't know what you do for a living, but after 30 years of doing what I do, I have certainly learned a thing or two, and my clients benefit greatly from it. Ditto. More than 30 years, unless you count interim retirement. there are good docs and bad, good police officers and bad, good wal-mart clerks and bad. I'm not about to dismiss my oncologist's 20 + years of experience with breast cancer! I picked her because of it. She has seen women like myself die and others live. She is tough and competitive and does not like to lose. Any tricks, "gut feelings", or new drugs she has up her sleeve that will help put me in her survivors group, I want. my surgeon doesn't like to lose either. she does like to cut. Ixia > >> Myself, I'm on Arimidex, but AFAIK the side effects are the same. I > >> actually did stop taking it in the beginning and my oncologist went [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > comparing it to not wanting endless surgeries and invasions and horrors. ah > well. Pumpkin, All I can say is, compared to this breast cancer siege, my cervical cancer hysterectomy was a piece of cake! No radiation, no chemo, instant recovery if done vaginally, 23 years later no worries. Of course it did cause a lot of menopause guesswork. Les > >> Eva > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > - Show quoted text - > Gals, one of the bright spots in my whole cancer experience is that my > sex life is intact. Does Tamoxifen ruin that too? I'm already in > menopause hell before starting this stuff. It's so hard that in order > to save our lives we have to lose so much quality of life. > > Les Tamoxifen didn't ruin ours. I guess the weight gain she got with it made her objectively less attractive, but that didn't have much impact on our established relationship. Sex still worked reasonably well until close to the end: I suppose you could say it was her death that ruined our sex life. Tim Jackson > > Gals, one of the bright spots in my whole cancer experience is that my > > sex life is intact. Does Tamoxifen ruin that too? I'm already in [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Tim Jackson I guess the only thing to do is try what the oncologist recommends and see what happens. I read somewhere that most women gain weight during breast cancer treatment. It's early days for me, but so far I've lost 8 pounds. Any more and I'll be too skinny, so I'm not too worried about weight gain. Also, isn't it true that there's estrogen in the fat I'm burning up? It's probably not a good time to lose weight. Tim, you and my husband are princes for not letting cancer blind you to a woman's charms. Condolences on your wife's death. Les ....I read somewhere that most women gain weight during breast cancer treatment. It's early days for me, but so far I've lost 8 pounds. Any more and I'll be too skinny, so I'm not too worried about weight gain. --------------- I gained 10 lbs. *after* I completed my treatment. I had been so awfully sick for so long that when I finally started to feel better, food tasted like heaven to me. I ended up 10 lbs. overweight and had to work very hard to get back to my "normal" weight! Eva > I read somewhere that most women gain weight during > breast cancer treatment. It's early days for me, but so far I've lost > 8 pounds. Any more and I'll be too skinny, so I'm not too worried > about weight gain. Also, isn't it true that there's estrogen in the > fat I'm burning up? It's probably not a good time to lose weight. I lost 10% of my body weight from the time I was diagnosed until chemo, operation and radiation was over. Not recommended, but I was unable to do anything about it. At this point I would like to keep the weight off, as women who gain weight are more likely to have their disease return and to die from the disease. My prognosis is not too good to begin with, so I'm motivated. Tamoxifen is making it very difficult not to gain, however. I'm really glad I was aware of the Tamoxifen - weight-gain connection ahead of time. It has allowed me to be vigilant at a vulnerable time. Exercise would help, but I find both Tamoxifen and Herceptin are hard on the joints, so I'm less active than I would like to be. Ixia On Jun 21, 11:09 am, downwinder <desertny...@cwo.com> wrote: ... Tamoxifen is making it very difficult not to gain, however. I'm really glad I was aware of the Tamoxifen - weight-gain connection ahead of time. It has allowed me to be vigilant at a vulnerable time. Exercise would help, but I find both Tamoxifen and Herceptin are hard on the joints, so I'm less active than I would like to be. Because of (neurological) pain I haven't been able to exercise - even gentle walking - for a long time. Last August I decided that I had to lose weight so began simply eating less. It's worked, I've lost two stones (28lbs) and counting - and now I can walk and stand for much longer than before. What I'm saying is that exercise isn't the only way top lose weight. I haven't been on a 'diet', just eat all my normal food but less of it. And I rarely feel hungry, oddly. Mary > Because of (neurological) pain I haven't been able to exercise - even gentle > walking - for a long time. Last August I decided that I had to lose weight > so began simply eating less. > > It's worked, I've lost two stones (28lbs) and counting - and now I can walk > and stand for much longer than before. That's great! Congratulations :-) > What I'm saying is that exercise isn't the only way top lose weight. I > haven't been on a 'diet', just eat all my normal food but less of it. Less is my method also, but a year ago I was pretty active, pre- menopausal and weighed 10% more. In order for this "new" me not to gain, I have to eat /quite a bit/ less than I did then. Less than expected. > And I rarely feel hungry, oddly. That's good. I'm not bothered by /physical/ hunger, but I must have eaten for social reasons, comfort, and so on, much more than I realized. Ixia On Jun 22, 4:57 am, "Mary Fisher" <mary.fis...@zetnet.co.uk> wrote: > Because of (neurological) pain I haven't been able to exercise - even > gentle [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > walk > and stand for much longer than before. That's great! Congratulations :-) > What I'm saying is that exercise isn't the only way top lose weight. I > haven't been on a 'diet', just eat all my normal food but less of it. Less is my method also, but a year ago I was pretty active, pre- menopausal and weighed 10% more. In order for this "new" me not to gain, I have to eat /quite a bit/ less than I did then. Less than expected. > And I rarely feel hungry, oddly. That's good. I'm not bothered by /physical/ hunger, but I must have eaten for social reasons, comfort, and so on, much more than I realized. I ate a lot because I love good food. Now, instead of having a slice of bread with lemon curd, one with bramble jelly, one with cheese, one with another cheese, one with hummous, one with just butter ... I just have one piece of bread with one mouthful of the toppings on each bite :-) But the lower my weight is I've noticed that the slower is the loss. Mary Ixia > I ate a lot because I love good food. Now, instead of having a slice of > bread with lemon curd, one with bramble jelly, one with cheese, one with > another cheese, one with hummous, one with just butter ... I just have one > piece of bread with one mouthful of the toppings on each bite :-) Great diet plan! ;-) > But the lower my weight is I've noticed that the slower is the loss. Yes, as your weight drops, so does your basal metabolic rate (BMR). It also drops with age. You can search for "BMR calculator" on google and do some calculations. Ixia On Jun 22, 3:15 pm, "Mary Fisher" <mary.fis...@zetnet.co.uk> wrote: > I ate a lot because I love good food. Now, instead of having a slice of > bread with lemon curd, one with bramble jelly, one with cheese, one with > another cheese, one with hummous, one with just butter ... I just have one > piece of bread with one mouthful of the toppings on each bite :-) Great diet plan! ;-) > But the lower my weight is I've noticed that the slower is the loss. Yes, as your weight drops, so does your basal metabolic rate (BMR). It also drops with age. You can search for "BMR calculator" on google and do some calculations. I dopn't need to do the calculations, I'm happy so far. If the weight loss stops at 10 1/2 stones by March 2010 (which even at a slowing rate it will) I'll be very happy. I'll be able to get into my wedding dress, which will be sprayed silver for our golden wedding party :-) Mary > I dopn't need to do the calculations, I'm happy so far. If the weight loss > stops at 10 1/2 stones by March 2010 (which even at a slowing rate it will) > I'll be very happy. I'll be able to get into my wedding dress, which will be > sprayed silver for our golden wedding party :-) Great! :-D Our 30th wedding anniversary was swallowed up by chemo last year. I think I'll plan something for the 31st. What color spray-paint I wonder ;-) Ixia On Jun 23, 12:22 pm, "Mary Fisher" <mary.fis...@zetnet.co.uk> wrote: > I dopn't need to do the calculations, I'm happy so far. If the weight loss > stops at 10 1/2 stones by March 2010 (which even at a slowing rate it [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > sprayed silver for our golden wedding party :-) > ^^^^^ Goodness knows why I said my frock will be sprayed silver - it will be gold of course! Great! :-D Our 30th wedding anniversary was swallowed up by chemo last year. I think I'll plan something for the 31st. What color spray-paint I wonder ;-) Oh, re-live the 30th and have pearl - very pretty! Mary my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me the week after we returned from our celebration trip! technically we were at 29 years 7 months and one week. silver and gold dresses! Lovely! Make them miniskirts! ;-) On Jun 23, 12:22 pm, "Mary Fisher" <mary.fis...@zetnet.co.uk> wrote: > I dopn't need to do the calculations, I'm happy so far. If the weight loss > stops at 10 1/2 stones by March 2010 (which even at a slowing rate it > will) > I'll be very happy. I'll be able to get into my wedding dress, which will > be > sprayed silver for our golden wedding party :-) Great! :-D Our 30th wedding anniversary was swallowed up by chemo last year. I think I'll plan something for the 31st. What color spray-paint I wonder ;-) Ixia > my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me the > week after we returned from our celebration trip! technically we were at > 29 years 7 months and one week. ------------- Did he dump you because he learned you had cancer? Eva > my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me the > week after we returned from our celebration trip! technically we were at > 29 years 7 months and one week. You're probably better off without him then :-( > silver and gold dresses! Lovely! Make them miniskirts! ;-) Um. With my knees? I only wear long sleeves except at home these days :-) I've dug out a low cut long frock I made in the 70s, I can get into it and notice that it shows my lumpectomy scar. Tough if it upsets anyone :-) Mary >> my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me the >> week after we returned from our celebration trip! technically we were at >> 29 years 7 months and one week. > > You're probably better off without him then :-( in what way? the deck needs repairing, the shower upstairs leaks, oh, and no unconditional love/support/anchor during life crises. oh, and paying the mortgage alone! oh wait, and waking up alone, without stomach hair and sweet manparts..... > I've dug out a low cut long frock I made in the 70s, I can get into it and > notice that it shows my lumpectomy scar. scars are fine! I am thinking I'll just go ahead and wear sports bras even with only one nipple to poke out. heck, I have a scar from a dog bite, a scar from a biopsy, and still strangers approach me to compliment me on my pins. why the hell, I'm not sure. we just have to keep rocking! > Tough if it upsets anyone :-) > > Mary >>> my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me >>> the week after we returned from our celebration trip! technically we [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > the mortgage alone! oh wait, and waking up alone, without stomach hair and > sweet manparts..... I think anyone's better off without a man who doesn't want her any more. There's usually someone else who can undertake those other roles, without the downsides. You could always do the practical things yourself - or live with them. My husband is wonderful and extremely practical, he can - and does - do anything I ask or he sees needs doing. But there's always something else on the list which we have to live with, currently holes in two bedroom ceilings, an overgrown tree, a falling-down shed. We also have a messy house because I spend too much time indulging myself. And that's the way we like it :-) Mary > I think anyone's better off without a man who doesn't want her any more. > > There's usually someone else who can undertake those other roles, without > the downsides. You could always do the practical things yourself - or live > with them. I think sarcasm doesn't always translate in email. >> I think anyone's better off without a man who doesn't want her any more. >> [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > I think sarcasm doesn't always translate in email. If you were being sarcastic and I didn't get it I apologise. If you thought I was was being sarcastic I apologise too, I wasn't. Mary > my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me the > week after we returned from our celebration trip! ouch.... That's a long time, lots of shared experiences, friends and so on. You have my sympathy. I hope you had/have some good friends to hang out with. Ixia > my 30th (nonmarried) anniversary was kind of ruined when he dumped me the > week after we returned from our celebration trip! ouch.... That's a long time, lots of shared experiences, friends and so on. no shared friends, but we pretty much raised each other, and we went through everything a couple can, and I mean that. He saved my life on more than one occasion. I think most people would say (and did) he was the perfect boyfriend. so I was lucky for a long long time, and so be it. people die, too. NO one would have stayed through what he stayed through, I don't think, all those years. his wife-to-be is very lucky! You have my sympathy. I hope you had/have some good friends to hang out with. I like strangers! I do have friends but I like strangers. They are so much more fun and interesting and appreciative. thanks for your sympathy. it's been seven years since he left. he's getting married next month. that is totally surreal. but we made this really unusual kid who is in several books already (before he was even 12) and is mighty exceptional. and so it goes. Ixia > > You > > have my sympathy. I hope you had/have some good friends to hang out > > with. > > I like strangers! People who don't like strangers probably stay clear of Usenet... > I do have friends but I like strangers. They are so much > more fun and interesting and appreciative. More so than your friends!? Perhaps you just need some new ones? :-D Some of mine certainly are fun, interesting and appreciative - some not so much, but they have other wonderful qualities. > thanks for your sympathy. it's > been seven years since he left. he's getting married next month. that is > totally surreal. Seven years is quite a while, but It must be very difficult for you that he is marrying someone else. After ties the knot might be a good time for you to re-calibrate and start building new, satisfying relationships. Imho ;-) > but we made this really unusual kid who is in several books > already (before he was even 12) and is mighty exceptional. Kids are the best, they make life sparkle:-) I have 2, and a little grand-child. I'm grateful for anything that gives me a chance of more time with them. Ixia People who don't like strangers probably stay clear of Usenet... yes, the web is a font of strangers, a lifeline! More so than your friends!? oh my yes. Perhaps you just need some new ones? :-D I delete and delete and delete them. Some of mine certainly are fun, interesting and appreciative - some not so much, but they have other wonderful qualities. my friends are great email support. indispensable. Seven years is quite a while, Seven years isn't much after 30, particularly when much of the seven years is crisis and triage. but It must be very difficult for you that he is marrying someone else. After ties the knot might be a good time for you to re-calibrate and start building new, satisfying relationships. as if one just snaps one's fingers and does that. like finding the perfect job. which I help people do. the best relationship is the one with one's self, and that's the one I don't have so much. I have sovereignty and resourcefulness and autonomy and outreach...but no self esteem. that I am working on, finally giving up all the dating dating dating. giving is better than getting. Kids are the best, they make life sparkle:-) I have 2, and a little grand-child. I'm grateful for anything that gives me a chance of more time with them. good for you! Ixia >> After [he] ties the knot might be a good >> time for you to re-calibrate and start building new, satisfying [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > working on, finally giving up all the dating dating dating. giving is better > than getting. As if! Once we are beyond the age where we expect to create more children, there is a lot less 'gravity' to bind a permanent relationship, the urges of our 20's and 30's are no longer a compelling force to compromise on everything else, even though the chemistry might still work. Sovereignty is very hard to give up. Just ask Robert Mugabe. :( Tim >>> After [he] ties the knot might be a good >>> time for you to re-calibrate and start building new, satisfying [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > 20's and 30's are no longer a compelling force to compromise on everything > else, even though the chemistry might still work. Not necessarily. I can honestly say that Spouse and I love each other as passionately and at least as deeply as we did forty eight years ago Creation of children was deliberately put a stop to after five, forty years ago. Since then the RRP has made things more complicated but the urges are still there. Over production of oestrogen has some advantages :-) > Sovereignty is very hard to give up. Just ask Robert Mugabe. :( Frankly I don't look forward to sovereignty :-( Mary my relationship wasn't about procreation; we were together 21 years before we had our sole spawn. We would still be together, I think, if we had never become parents. but...it happens. and for the record, I agree that relationships later in life can be wonderful and amazing....we had a good thing, and my parents were still happy when dad died at 48.... >>>> After [he] ties the knot might be a good >>>> time for you to re-calibrate and start building new, satisfying [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > > Mary > > Perhaps you just need some new ones? :-D > > I delete and delete and delete them. Ouch... remind me to stay clear of you, I wouldn't want to be deleted ;-) I don't even want to imagine how you do it... > Seven years is quite a while, > > Seven years isn't much after 30, It's still quite a while. We moved to the city where we live 9 years ago, the year our youngest left for college. When we arrived I had never set foot here before and knew no-one. Before moving here, we lived for 15 years elsewhere. I miss my life there, but it's over. That was then, this is now. By the time I became sick last year, I could tell by the response that I had become part of the fabric of the lives of neighbors, friends and colleagues here, and they have become the fabric of my daily life. It took a lot of effort over 8 years for that to happen. It has not happened for my husband, except at work, to a degree. I'm his "network", and our kids - but they don't live very close. > particularly when much of the seven years > is crisis and triage. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > as if one just snaps one's fingers and does that. In my experience, /starting/ is almost like snapping fingers, while the /building/ never ends. > like finding the perfect > job. which I help people do. the best relationship is the one with one's > self, The most important. If that one is not healthy, all the others will suffer. > and that's the one I don't have so much. I have sovereignty and > resourcefulness and autonomy and outreach...but no self esteem. that I am > working on, http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-19991101-000033.html > finally giving up all the dating dating dating. That's a wise choice, I think > giving is better than getting. Nothing wrong with a healthy balance in that area ;-) But, yes. Ixia Ouch... remind me to stay clear of you, would you like a postcard, a telegram, or? I wouldn't want to be deleted ;-) I don't even want to imagine how you do it... I just discontinue contact. > Seven years is quite a while, > > Seven years isn't much after 30, It's still quite a while. feels like a blink. to the parent of a dead child, it isn't much. It has not happened for my husband, except at work, to a degree. I'm his "network", and our kids - but they don't live very close. men don't develop close friends, as a general rule (just generalizing). my ex never had friends; my friends were his. Now he has the friends of his wife-to-be. he isn't close to his sibs either, and I have always been close to mine. they were his family before he left me, so he was really alone then. he doesn't know how to be alone, can't generate his own happiness (those are the words he used when he left; "I need someone else to generate it for me." sigh). for my part, I just.....uplift and advocate for others, and help others, and fumble along with myself. The world sees someone very different from the me I see, and my task now is to believe what they say. why not, the other way isn't working? http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-19991101-000033.html > finally giving up all the dating dating dating. That's a wise choice, I think > giving is better than getting. Nothing wrong with a healthy balance in that area ;-) But, yes. Ixia I lost 10% of my body weight from the time I was diagnosed until chemo, operation and radiation was over. Not recommended, but I was unable to do anything about it. At this point I would like to keep the weight off, as women who gain weight are more likely to have their disease return and to die from the disease. My prognosis is not too good to begin with, so I'm motivated. Tamoxifen is making it very difficult not to gain, however. I'm really glad I was aware of the Tamoxifen - weight-gain connection ahead of time. It has allowed me to be vigilant at a vulnerable time. Exercise would help, but I find both Tamoxifen and Herceptin are hard on the joints, so I'm less active than I would like to be. -------------- The best thing I did after my treatment, when I was just about half dead, was start to attend a beginners' yoga class. I'd always turned up my nose at yoga before, thought it was a bunch of "mystical claptrap," but it decreased my pain *markedly*. It made a *huge* difference in allowing me to get back some semblance of a life. I don't go to yoga classes any more because I am concentrating on my daily walk/jog to prevent osteoporosis and maintain my current weight, but I still do many of the stretches and breathing exercises whenever I have pain or stress (and sometimes just for the hell of it). I *highly* recommend yoga. The beginners' routines won't burn up the calories, but they will teach you how to relieve your pain so that you can progress to more intensive weight-loss exercises. Eva > breathing exercises whenever I have pain or stress (and sometimes just for > I *highly* recommend yoga. The beginners' routines won't > burn up the calories, but they will teach you how to relieve your pain so > that you can progress to more intensive weight-loss exercises. Thank you, I'll try it. Ixia Noga here. Noga noga noga! On Jun 22, 9:23 pm, "Eva" <EvaDStructio...@NOverizon.net> wrote: > breathing exercises whenever I have pain or stress (and sometimes just for > I *highly* recommend yoga. The beginners' routines won't > burn up the calories, but they will teach you how to relieve your pain so > that you can progress to more intensive weight-loss exercises. Thank you, I'll try it. Ixia aren't the post-menopausal ones recommended for only two years? I wonder how great the risk decrease is if you take it for just one, or for just two? Recurrence incidence is highest in the first two years so.....it's always checks and balances, risk against benefit. On Jun 19, 9:10 pm, "Eva" <EvaDStructio...@NOverizon.net> wrote: > "fortunata" <pacif...@gmail.com> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Eva Gals, one of the bright spots in my whole cancer experience is that my sex life is intact. Does Tamoxifen ruin that too? I'm already in menopause hell before starting this stuff. It's so hard that in order to save our lives we have to lose so much quality of life. Les > aren't the post-menopausal ones recommended for only two years? --------------- No, where did you get that idea? Arimidex and Femara are taken for the same 5 years. Eva maybe it was wishful thinking. I don't even want to be alive another week. >> aren't the post-menopausal ones recommended for only two years? > --------------- > No, where did you get that idea? Arimidex and Femara are taken for the > same 5 years. > > Eva > maybe it was wishful thinking. I don't even want to be alive another week. Dear pumpkin, you need to make an appointment with your oncologist asap - get a new oncologist if you don't trust your current one - and discuss what your options are. Find out what the benefits of your current hormone therapy is (what is your chance of relapse, and how does the therapy influence that). Are there other options you can try, that may have fewer, or other, more tolerable side effects? Are there medicines that can help you with the side effects you are experiencing. And so on. Let us know what happens. Skipping doses, the way you suggested somewhere, can make your hormone therapy less effective, while you still have to deal with the side effects. Ixia yeah I know, I cancelled my oncologist appointment last month because I had to see a doctor about different problems and really cancer is the least of my life-threatening worries at the moment. You're right, I know, I should meet with him but....all the questions you asked can be answered with anecdotal or on-line research..... thanks, though! it's the terrible depression (unrelated to cancer) that is the crushing anvil. On Jun 22, 10:21 pm, "pumpkin" <billowr...@att.net> wrote: > maybe it was wishful thinking. I don't even want to be alive another week. Dear pumpkin, you need to make an appointment with your oncologist asap - get a new oncologist if you don't trust your current one - and discuss what your options are. Find out what the benefits of your current hormone therapy is (what is your chance of relapse, and how does the therapy influence that). Are there other options you can try, that may have fewer, or other, more tolerable side effects? Are there medicines that can help you with the side effects you are experiencing. And so on. Let us know what happens. Skipping doses, the way you suggested somewhere, can make your hormone therapy less effective, while you still have to deal with the side effects. Ixia > You're right, I know, I should > meet with him but....all the questions you asked can be answered with > anecdotal or on-line research..... Look here: They can be answered in theory, but those "answers" have done nothing to solve or help your actual problems so far. You have nothing to lose and much to gain by making an appointment with your oncologist asap, and asking for help. Again, if you don't like, or don't trust your current one, find someone else. I picked a woman oncologist and a woman surgeon, both about my same age, thinking they would understand better than most. Both have a lot of experience, lots of connections I don't have, they read articles and go to conferences that are not available to me, and that are not online yet. Remember, a MD can order /any/ medicine they have a hunch might help - it /does not/ have to be recommended for the problems you have. Also, I have found that the nurses and nurse-practitioners in my oncologist's practice, and in the infusion center, to be real problem- solvers. If anything, they see even more patients than the doctors, and spend much more time with them. They solved a couple of really vexing symptoms for me during chemo, that my doctors indicated I would have to just live with. > thanks, though! it's the terrible depression (unrelated to cancer) that is > the crushing anvil Yes, and It would surprise me if the depression is not contributing to your problems. It's a great mimmic. And it's a lethal disease. It has lots and lots of treatment options, however, both medical and non medical. Start right away: Make the oncologists appointment, sign up for yoga, take up meditation :-) Ixia On Jun 24, 12:33 am, "pumpkin" <billowr...@att.net> wrote: > You're right, I know, I should > meet with him but....all the questions you asked can be answered with > anecdotal or on-line research..... Look here: They can be answered in theory, but those "answers" have done nothing to solve or help your actual problems so far. You have nothing to lose and much to gain by making an appointment with your oncologist asap, and asking for help. Again, if you don't like, or don't trust your current one, find someone else. I agree absolutely. Relying on internet or books is NOT good and won't satisfy you. > thanks, though! it's the terrible depression (unrelated to cancer) that is > the crushing anvil Yes, and It would surprise me if the depression is not contributing to your problems. It's a great mimmic. And it's a lethal disease. It has lots and lots of treatment options, however, both medical and non medical. Start right away: Make the oncologists appointment, sign up for yoga, take up meditation :-) Yes. Do as you're told :-)) Hugs Mary > I agree absolutely. Relying on internet or books is NOT good and won't > satisfy you. I don't want to be disputatious, but my experience has been quite the opposite. Doctors (by their own admission) are just people who have read certain books and had certain experiences. They can't know "everything." Talking to the parents of autistic children will teach you WAY more than talking to a pediatrician who might have seen a couple dozen of them (and didn't know what they were). I could list at least 20 instances in which physicians were "wrong" and Gray's Anatomy or the PDR was right. Before the Internet, I used Medline at the library, and POSTAL MAIL to people to get information. I'm a reporter/researcher, and no I am not "anti doctor" my sister is a surgeon, my nephew is a surgeon, I've had many doctors as clients; but my goodness, doctors are OVERWORKED and sometimes can't even remember which patient you WERE. I'd much rather interview 25 women who've had mastectomies than hear what the surgeon thinks about them. I know that I myself have helped people with various conditions because I can offer my own success/failures... even doctors are now on record as touting the Internet as a wonderful tool; some of them tell their patients to check webmd or go to the discussion groups....I think the BC onling forums are unbeLIEVABLY helpful, they are lifesavers! now you've got me thinking....doctors are craftsmen. tool users, in a good way, but tool users. they focus on what they "like" or know, as do we all. Some of them are insightful and empathic and brilliant; others are...well, anyway, I do the same with legal matters. i wouldn't simply trust an attorney, or even four attorneys. I'd go to findlaw and talk to lots of CLIENTS... sorry to get off track. pachinko brain. with this femara thing, the Internet is a gold mine of information. I got my scrip without even seeing the doc, his nurse just phoned it in. does he remember me? I'm sure not. Does it matter? not to me, not right now. thanks all. > I don't want to be disputatious, but my experience has been quite the > opposite. Doctors (by their own admission) are just people who have read [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > groups....I think the BC onling forums are unbeLIEVABLY helpful, they are > lifesavers! I strongly agree that the internet is an excellent source of medical information. I was blown away recently when my highly regarded primary care doctor made a statement that was totally at variance with everything I had researched prior to seeing him about an unusual symptom. While I don't pretend that I can diagnose and treat myself, I am alerted that he may not be the 'source of all wisdom' and that I may need to seek out more informed advice. After all, it is my body, my life, my quality of life that is at stake. I walked away from two doctors who were prescribing dosages that were far above what was recommended. In one case, the doctor wanted me to take 80 mgs of Lipitor. I refused because of information i had gleaned from the internet. I am now taking 20 mgs with satisfactory results. As a matter of fact, if I stayed with him I would have been taking medication for something or other every 5 minutes during the day! Another wanted to dose me with super high levels of a blood pressure medication, against all recommendations that I have read. I walked away from her and am doing fine on another medication. I had experiences with two oncologists - one who did everything by the book relying on generated computer programs for advice and another who individualized his patients and was not afraid to veer from cookbook diagnosis and treatment. The latter spared me from a lot of unnecessary tests and side effects. So if nothing else, research on the internet can arm you to assess the quality of your doctor's advice and alert you to his/her competence and spare you a lot of trouble. MMH >So if nothing else, research on the internet > can arm you to assess the quality of your > doctor's advice and alert you to his/her > competence and spare you a lot of trouble. >MMH I totally agree! I have had so many of my ego-challenged doctors actually tell me in a loud voice "STAY OFF THE INTERNET!!". However, I am not so much interested in what their PDR tells them about medications but more interested in reading about what reactions other humans have had to these RXs and dosages. I have a "mantra" with meds. I refuse to try anything "I" have already researched unless it is in the smallest dose available. I can always work my way up to a larger dose. My doctors may not always "like" me but they have to respect the fact that I take responsibility for my healthcare. I left one gyn after just one visit because his ego was bigger than his hands and he felt that any person who would question their doctor's treatment must be paranoid. I told him "he" was definitely "not" getting my approval and I never returned to him. Bea "NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE" what she said. >> I don't want to be disputatious, but my experience has been quite the >> opposite. Doctors (by their own admission) are just people who have read [quoted text clipped - 33 lines] > > MMH another reason I don't depend only on the expertise of physicians: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/06/26/eveningnews/main4213269.shtml > On Jun 24, 12:33 am, "pumpkin" <billowr...@att.net> wrote: >> [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > > Mary " Start right away: Make the oncologists appointment, sign up for yoga, take up meditation :-) LOL! I've actually been paid money for my essays about why I don't do yoga (Noga, Noga!) and why I can't meditate ;-) and I have a female surgeon for ALL of my biopsies and mastect....nationally known one. I wouldn't use her again. heck, wouldn't use the male one either. I do like my PCP though and she has ovaries. when I read the no yoga essay at Barnes and Noble it killed! but it didn't fly at the vegan cafe/grocery, LOL, but I love those guys.... I'll probably see a gynecologist next....or what, psychiatrist? Psychologist? finally got the optometrist out of the way, and did the colonoscopy today (YAY, and NO anesthesia or meds or sedation, yippee)....depression is such a problem one can't even pick up the newspapers on the living room floor, let alone call a therapist, particularly when one is a phonophobe (as am I)....but I still do volunteer work obsessively, manage to take care of my kid, save my clients' lives (or so they say) and...exercise 6-7 days a week. Never mind that inside the shell is rotgut.... thank you so much for wanting to help, and for caring. I'm so exhausted that many things take huge effort, but of course no one can tell that from the outside. Ixia > " > LOL! I've actually been paid money for my essays about why I don't do yoga > (Noga, Noga!) ----------- Yeah, I used to think I was too cool to do yoga too. But yoga *helped* me. I have less pain because of yoga. This is much more important than maintaining my Too Cool image. Eva I am not at all cool (dancing hip-hop disqualifies me); I flunked yoga, self-hypnosis, biofeedback, and a range of other things. some of us aren't made to yoga; we relax by moving.....I'm glad it helped you though! >> " >> LOL! I've actually been paid money for my essays about why I don't do [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Eva |
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