chemo woes

cheryltaco

Ok, I'm on my 3rd day of chemo. The first time around it didn't really seem to effect me much, but this time I'm not doing so well! They have me on anti nausea meds but my tummy is still doing flip flops. Someone told me ginger helps, has anyone tried it?

Also the Oxiaplatum is really making it hard to stay hydrated as I get a type of metallic shock when I try to drink anything. With the weather cooling, even the room temp water is too cold!

offutt9

Hi!!!! I have been there and done that... The ginger does work, however my doctor said it did not mix with my chemo, so please be sure to ask your doctor first. I have tried it and it works but its considered herbal and we have to watch those while on chemo.(or so my doctor says...) The metallic taste is awful!! I always drank out of a glass container instead of plastic or aluminum. It helped somewhat. But I found myselt not thirsty much of the time and had to make myself drink. I wish you all the best with your chemo...I have been taking it for over 4 years. Different kinds... They all have a different effect on me. I will keep you in my prayers and I know it will get better with time. In Gods Love....Barbara

offutt9

Hi!!!! I have been there and done that... The ginger does work, however my doctor said it did not mix with my chemo, so please be sure to ask your doctor first. I have tried it and it works but its considered herbal and we have to watch those while on chemo.(or so my doctor says...) The metallic taste is awful!! I always drank out of a glass container instead of plastic or aluminum. It helped somewhat. But I found myselt not thirsty much of the time and had to make myself drink. I wish you all the best with your chemo...I have been taking it for over 4 years. Different kinds... They all have a different effect on me. I will keep you in my prayers and I know it will get better with time. In Gods Love....Barbara

Limey

ahhhhh that Oxilaplatum is fun stuff. I remember going to dinner with gloves on so i could drink my NO ICE water. Ginger does help, I am told that accupuncture has great effects also. I am going to try that next week.
from the chemical side, I used a drug called emmend. took one the day of treatment then one on day two and three.
that seemed to help.
I have heard the flavored water is easier to digest, i never did it due to the sugar or aftificial sweetners. I did use water with lime and stevia in it. that helped me allot.
best of luck. hang in there.
Mark.

jams67

Your trouble sounds familiar. Try using a straw so that you don't have to touch the glass. I think I drink more liquid when using a straw also. Good luck on finding a solution.
Jo Ann

scouty

Oxil is a very wicked drug for sure but it can be effective for a short term!!!!! Ginger worked well for me for several months. I agree with Barbara about asking your doc, mine was fine with it and the chemo nurses all quized me about it so they could share it with others. The health food stores have hard like candies of it that I would pop in between meals to hold everything at bay.

I also found scratching the skin of a lemon and sniffing it gave me instant relieve for months.

I drank over a gallon of water the day before, during and after chemo and forced myself to eat complex carbohydrates the morning of, on, and just after the treatments. I think the logic behind this is diluting the chemo in the tummy as much as possible so it gets digested with lots of other "stuff" . Complex carbs cuz they can be made pretty bland and won't upset your tummy just from smelling them and it takes a while to digest them without stressing the liver too much. I lived off spag sauces on brown rice spagetti noodles, grits, and oatmeal. I make my own salsa every summer and can it and had that on everything I could think of. I love tomatoes and their lycopene. I've heard from some that liked potato dishes too but I have a hard time with a potato with no sour cream, butter, and cheese (heh heh).

I found that if I started feeling nauseous then there wasn't much I could do about other then sleeping it off (in a dark quiet room worked well for me), so I worked to prevent it as long as I could.

I was actually given free gifts from the maker of Oxilaplatin and they were a scarf, hat, and gloves that wouldn't stick to things in the freezer (how's that!!!). I ended up with a few pairs of the gloves after begging and kept one pair beside my fridge and in each car. I had to wear them to shop for groceries, even in the summer. Yes, people stared at me but I didn't care. I was in the fight of my life for my life.

I kept that same mindset when it came to eating even with that damn metallic taste. You HAVE to force yourself. Find something you can eat and pig out on it. Eat heavily the day of your treatment. What you can tolerate may change over time so try to be patient and experiment. I threw away many a thing before I found something I could tolerate.

I went thru my treatment living by myself so that made it easier for me. You need to explain this to your caregiver if you have one so they don't get their feelings hurt after making you a special meal.

I hope some of this helps you.

Lisa P.

kmygil

Oh joy! Rapture! Sure. Oxaliplatin is so two-faced. You take it because it's going to do you good, but sometimes you feel like it's killing you in the process. I had an unbearably foul taste in my mouth which got worse as chemo progressed, and I had to force myself to take teeny tiny sips of warm water during the day. Room temperature was too cold for me, too. Also, I found that Earl Grey tea went down easier than anything else. For some reason I craved "Good 'n' Plenty" licorice, but when I tried to eat it it tasted nasty. I ended up nutritionally compromised and dehydrated because there was nothing I could take in without severe nausea. So. Ask for an extra bag of hydration when you have your chemo. If you are going home with a pump, ask for another bag when you get it removed on the 3rd day.

Check to see if the chemo has suppressed your immune response and you have contracted thrush (a yeast infection in your mouth). This turned out to be the biggest cause of the foul taste, and you can be treated for that.

As for the nausea, the best one for me was the Emend--expensive, but effective. The others I tried were very short-lived and completely useless halfway through the treatments. The flip-flops seem always to be there, but sometimes it's exactly that--flip flops, and not real nausea.

Do try to keep up with your hydration and nutrition as best you can. Your return to "normal" will be quicker and less tedious post chemo.

Hugs,
Kirsten

sladich

I not only did the premeds with Oxal but I also took Emend (see Mark's message above). On the day I was unplugged, I took decadron and ativan (anti-anxiety pill) which worked wonders on the nausea. Took this combo 3X a day for 4 days. Still to this day, I find that the antivan (now it's xanax) settles my stomach. Best of luck.

Debbie