chemo, children and crowds.

mariam_11_09

I am doing AC - had 2 out of 4. I have a 10 year old daughter and am finding it difficult as well as forget that I need to stay away from kids and crowds, in case I pick up something. As soon as I feel better after chemo I am back into the swing of things forgetting that I am on chemo. I guess I am trying so hard to make sure that my daughter has a pretty normal life despite me being on chemo but maybe I need a reality check so as not to jeopordise my health. My oncologist's nurse told me not to even pet our rabbit (hard to do because he is such a love bunny).

I am curious to know what you all think and how you all handle/d it.

MyTurnNow

It's challenging to say the
It's challenging to say the least and especially when you have a small child. I didn't have any children living in my home but I do have a grandchild who just turned 1. I was cautious and stayed home a lot, especially the first week after chemo. I did get the nuelasta shot after chemo but my white blood count did drop for at least the first week. I continued to work throughout chemo but also made sure I washed my hands very frequently. I think you have to continue to live but should also limit your interaction with outside people. Luckily, chemo treatment is normally completed within 3 months and life can get back to some normalcy. My onc told me that my immune system would continue to be compromised for up to a year. I have been for blood work several times since my treatments were completed in 10/09 and my counts were all in the normal range. Good luck and just know that this is a temporary situation.

dyaneb123

MyTurnNow said:

It's challenging to say the
It's challenging to say the least and especially when you have a small child. I didn't have any children living in my home but I do have a grandchild who just turned 1. I was cautious and stayed home a lot, especially the first week after chemo. I did get the nuelasta shot after chemo but my white blood count did drop for at least the first week. I continued to work throughout chemo but also made sure I washed my hands very frequently. I think you have to continue to live but should also limit your interaction with outside people. Luckily, chemo treatment is normally completed within 3 months and life can get back to some normalcy. My onc told me that my immune system would continue to be compromised for up to a year. I have been for blood work several times since my treatments were completed in 10/09 and my counts were all in the normal range. Good luck and just know that this is a temporary situation.

You know, I went back to
You know, I went back to teaching during the last 2 months of my chemo, and talk about germs! But I think it's important to live as normally as possible during treatment and I never got sick from the kids....but you have to get your nuelasta shot to keep those white blood cells up... good luck
Dee

Kat11

dyaneb123 said:

You know, I went back to
You know, I went back to teaching during the last 2 months of my chemo, and talk about germs! But I think it's important to live as normally as possible during treatment and I never got sick from the kids....but you have to get your nuelasta shot to keep those white blood cells up... good luck
Dee

When in dought wear a mask.
When in dought wear a mask. If your daughter is sick you can wear a mask or she could to. My grandkids had a lot of fun with the masks. You can not stay away from all germs, they just don't want you to be around anyone sick. I used a lot of germ x. I carried germ x with me all the time. I did fine through chemo and still enjoyed my grandkids.

e_hope

children
I am a mother of 3... so I know how you feel about wanting to keep life normal.

My children last summer when I went through chemo where 6, 4, and 2. So there was no such thing as staying away from the kids.. I just made sure I got plenty of rest. I would take a nap almost everyday. My kids where great with that, and thought it was funny.. and I had days that i barely got out of bed b/c of exhaustion.. When I felt good on my off weeks of chemo (mostly when i was on the taxotere every 3 week schedule) we would go camping and hiking and everything i could to keep the kids mind off of mommy being sick. I had low blood counts but nothing critical. I too felt like I had to give my children some type of normalcy. I have no regrets for any choices I made...

I listened to my body.

Now, what I did not do during chemo was work.. I work in a nursing home was a nurse on a rehab floor, where i would knowing be in contact with many super bugs.. So we made a family choice.. which did deplete our savings.. for me to stay home 7 months.. I did return 1 day a week halfway through radiation and worked that schedule for another 2 1/2 months.. then had 3 weeks off for my exchange surgery and returned back full time in Jan (which totaled a little over of 10 months)

My other reason to not work was to have those good days spent with my children...

My advice... not to fear.. listen to your body and just make sure you use common sense and WASH YOUR HANDS... a mask really is not going to help you with your own family because by the time they are showing symptoms.. you have all ready been exposed! I would stay away from friends and family if they were ill... as for pets, I don't know we only have fish and my hubby would take care of the tank. I would listen to your oncologist advice on that..

best of luck to you

Ritzy

dyaneb123 said:

You know, I went back to
You know, I went back to teaching during the last 2 months of my chemo, and talk about germs! But I think it's important to live as normally as possible during treatment and I never got sick from the kids....but you have to get your nuelasta shot to keep those white blood cells up... good luck
Dee

I am sure it is hard, but,
I am sure it is hard, but, you do have to be careful while you are on chemo. But, as Dee said, you also have to live as normally as you can. Just be cautious!

Sue