Sleep

Doc_Hawk said:

Nappy time
Hey Helen,

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 you are entitled to ask your employer to make a reasonable accommodation for a nap time during your shift. Granted, it will be off the clock time, but it's better to miss 30 - 60 minutes than a whole day.

Hope this helps out and God Bless

Doc

No way! You rock Doc bc
No way! You rock Doc bc they have a no sleeping on the premises clause at my job but if the law says it, they follow it to the letter. I really need naps lately, not just a little.

thxmiker said:

Not sleeping was common for
Not sleeping was common for me. I would stay up for 36-48 hours at times. I was relaxing other then when I took my walks, and played with the dogs.

Then I would crash and sleep for 10 hours eat and go back to sleep. Soon after stopping chemo, my sleep went back to normal.

Best Always, mike

I haven't even started the
I haven't even started the chemo yet. If I feel this awful now, I don't want to know what it's going to be like.

steved said:

sleep
PErsonally I was a bad sleeper and the stressful phases of this journey have kep me awake. I always had restless legs as a cause of poor sleep and strangely they have improved since my relapse and I now sleep well. I do wonder if it is the chemo leaving my exhausted.

Drugs are good but aim to keep them short term. You lexapro (escitalopram) is an antidepressant and anti-anxiety treatment which is often useful but is not sedative so won't help you sleep unless the insomnia is just caused by depression/ anxiety. In your situation it is most likely just a symptom of your situation. Melatonin is worth trying and helps some people. Your reaction to ambien isn't that uncommon but was still a good thing to try. The lorazapam idea is one I would save till lower in the list as it is very addictive (more so than valium) but can be useful if short term and intermittently used. Promethazine is another tactic- it is an antihistamine that is quite sedative so not addictive.

Sleep hygeine is vital though- no day time naps and a regular routine. Lie ins only worsen insomnia so try to get up at the same regualr time including at weekends until your pattern returns. No using the bedroom for other things during the day- watching the tv/ resting etc (a bit of nookie okay but not napping after!) No caffeine after 4pm (including tea), last cigaratte before 8pm. If you can't sleep after 30-40 minutes- get up and do something calming eg hot milky drink, read etc. Don't lie in bed and toss and turn. Then go back to bed and try and again.

Sorry- am at work so am in psychiatrist mode. Better stop lecturing do some real work,

steve

Well steve, I followed all
Well steve, I followed all the sleeping rules tonight, no tv in my room tonight, the nookie will be for me to know;) Took synthroid, lexapro and melatonin. Nighty night and please let me sleep tight! Thanks for the advice.

Doc_Hawk said:

chemo and sleep
During infusion, I usually conk out pretty fast, just can't keep my eyes open. Then, by the time the drugs all wear off, my brain starts racing trying to process all of the things that it was grappling with all day. I had infusion yesterday and didn't get to sleep until 3:30 this morning. It's not even 10:30 at night here and I've been tired all day and don't know when I'll get to sleep tonight. But, hey ... we're all different. So, good luck and happy dreams!

Thanks. My job is making me
Thanks. My job is making me work during chemo. I only have 103 more days off until March so I have to save those for the surgeries. My coworkers have told me that we'll just let me sleep in the closet (which is a walk in) while no one is looking if I need to. 19 years on a job, you'd think they'd cut me a break. If my brain races at least I'll appear awake. I've had the brain racing thing several times now and I can't stop talking when it happens.

omrhill said:

Helen - have you tried
Helen - have you tried taking the synthroid in the a.m.? That's when I take mine. It probably doesn't make a difference, because it's a drug that builds to a level and stays there, but my thyroid doc specifically ssid to take it in the a.m.. Just a thought. I take ambien to help me sleep -- no funky dreams/sleep walking (although I've heard of those). I'll deal with the withdrawal from the ambien once other things are resolved. One issue at a time!

Good luck and good night!

Robin

Yes originally I took it in
Yes originally I took it in the AM but it woke me up at night which was unusual. Now I'm waking up in the night anyway so I guess it wouldn't matter. Melatonin = I woke up a few times last night becuase the cat was crying and then knocked right back out. Missed work because this morning I put my head back down and just woke up at 12:36 in the afternoon! The stuff does wonders. I just have to tweak it all now. Maybe switch the synthroid back to the AM and lower lexapro and melatonin. I can't tell you how good it feels to sleep so many hours. It was apparent in my voice, I called my husband and he instantly said heyyyy you sound like yourself, welcome back!

omrhill said:

Lots in common
I'm on Lexapro as well, and have cats that want to keep me awake. The Lexapro is not an issue -- I was on it before the big C ever showed up. I'm thankful now for its anti-anxiety properties. The cats, however, are a different story. They have now become indoor/outdoor cats (they're THRILLED) and spend the nights outside. If they're inside, if I close my bedroom door, they scratch until i let them in. If I open my door, they want to sleep on my head. Even Ambien can't help me sleep through that!!!

Glad you got some good rest. It's as important as anything else we do for ourselves.

Robin

lol I've woken up to a cat
lol I've woken up to a cat on my head many times. We leave all doors open at night as a rule if we want to sleep. He was crying this time because I ran out of dry food and gave him moist food which he doesn't prefer anymore. The nerve of me. I'm going out to get some more dry food for tonight. Whiskers tries to get outside all the time, we call it his escape from alcatraz and then he comes crying at the door like a maniac because we live by a cat lady and he doesn't know how to deal with other, more street-wise cats. I have to say the anti anxiety has really helped. I was having severe arm pain and crazy thoughts. All gone. Just have to learn to control the reaction to new tests and results. Live in the moment and not think so hard.

smokeyjoe said:

Do you have any clue when
Do you have any clue when you're going to start chemo?? You'll need some time off work for infusions, unless they're giving you oral meds. Infusion time will be a few hours every two weeks, and you may have a pump you wear for 48 hours after infusion. I missed work on infusion days, but I did go to work following day with the pump....found clothing that hid it and no one seemed to notice, then you have to arrange for disconnect time. My bottle would empty really fast so early morning was good for me. How your tummy will handle this no one can predict, it may take varying amounts of anti-diarrhea meds, that one you'll have to figure out.

I'm starting in July. I"m
I'm starting in July. I"m on the waiting list for Sloan for the medical and radiation oncologists to move up my end of June appts. I was reading up to figure out how it works to figure out how much time I'd need off and wondering if it was something I could do in the early evenings bc I am allowed to make up two hours in a week at work. So if say on Fridays (I bet that's the most requested day) I can head over at 4:00, then I wouldn't have to miss work or pay. Otherwise I'm going to use FMLA and just miss 1/2 a days pay. If it takes two days then I'd have to do a Thurs. I've been cutting back money to keep up so it just means more cutting back with the loss of pay. I was already on a budget as it is. I so hope it's oral meds. Of course I'm finding all these medications and test preps to be expensive. Double edged sword.

tommycat said:

Chiming in....
For me with the chemo, it wasn't the day after the chemo, it was about 2-3 days afterward when I REALLY hit the wall. I think the chemo was so buffered with the mag drip/anti-nausea meds/ativan/benydryl/and ??? that it carried me for a couple of days and then--wham.
I would get the big infusion on Wed. afternoons so by the time I really felt it, it was the weekend and I could sleep.
Btw, chemo was described to me as a mix of the flu and the worst hangover of your life. I can safely say that toward the end that that description was an understatement.
With that being said, you can plan for it and soften the blow as much as possible.
For me, ignorance is not bliss; it's more like a 2x4 hitting you from behind.
Knowledge is where the power's at.
Take good care and hang on...you can get through this.
Tommycat

Oh boy, I am a miserable
Oh boy, I am a miserable person with the flu. Nauseua is my worst nightmare. I'm going to have a blanket and pillow at work and one of the women from my group at work said she'd cover me.