Still extremely sleepy - Normal?

r2424243
r2424243 Member Posts: 51
in Colorectal Cancer #1
My dads onc took him off of the Oxyplatin he was on and started him on a less toxic chemo about 2 weeks ago. He had a severe allergic reactions after his 8th treatment on the oxyplatin. For the past 2 weeks or so he is falling asleep constantly. He falls asleep drinking coffee, having a conversation, even smoking ( I know he shouldnt be smoking). Drs have no ideas. They cant even offer a direction to turn. Any suggestions????? He is getting so frustrated. It seems to always be something. during the past 4 months he had continuous hiccups for like 4 days, constipation problems, diareaa problems, lip sores, vomitting without notice, constant tummy pain, sereve, now this. I greatly appreciate any advice!

Comments

  • CherylHutch
    CherylHutch Member Posts: 1,375 Member
    #2
    Side Affects
    All of these are common side affects, R2. It is unusual that one person will get ALL of them and all of them to, what sounds like, a pretty severe degree. The Oxy is one of the main culprits, especially since he's had some pretty severe allergy reactions to it. It is also very normal for a lot of folk to stop taking the oxy after the 7th or 8th treatment. I think I made it to 9 but should possibly have stopped at 7 or 8 because of the severe neuropathy and nerve damage I got from the knees down. Hiccups are also normal... so as frustrating as these all are, the consolation is they are normal side affects. Now, I'm not sure if there is any kind of medication to stop hiccups... BUT, for the nausea, diarrhea, constipation, lip sores, and tummy pain... there are meds for all of these and his oncologist should be on top of this. Give the onc's office a call and tell them that whatever meds he's on are not working and it's time to get ones that do.

    Good luck with this!

    Cheryl
  • GaryinUK
    GaryinUK Member Posts: 62
    #3
    Might help
    Haloperadol, I think that is how it is spelt relieved Hiccups in my partner, during each of the chemo courses he has had, there is also the trick of pressing just below the adams apple, in the notch whilst sipping water and holding your breath, takes about 30secs to work and very often did.

    For the stomach, try Ginger, no not Ginger the dancer, my partner had bad nausea, and then yesterday we stried Ginger Jelly Bears, like jelly babies, but all Ginger, bought from a health food shop and WOW, settled the stomach immediately.

    Peppermint Tea is also very soothing on the stomach.

    Hope one of them work for you

    Gary
  • Lori-S
    Lori-S Member Posts: 1,277 Member
    #4
    hi r2
    yes, eventhough he is off the oxi ... the 5fu that he is still on will cause extreme fatigue. It is normal for him to be sleepy. he has to listen to his body and rest when it says to rest so that it can help fight the cancer and recover from the chemo.

    I believe you got advice for the other ailments ... please be sure that he is safe and not falling alseep with a lit cigarette.
  • r2424243
    r2424243 Member Posts: 51
    #5
    GaryinUK said:

    Might help
    Haloperadol, I think that is how it is spelt relieved Hiccups in my partner, during each of the chemo courses he has had, there is also the trick of pressing just below the adams apple, in the notch whilst sipping water and holding your breath, takes about 30secs to work and very often did.

    For the stomach, try Ginger, no not Ginger the dancer, my partner had bad nausea, and then yesterday we stried Ginger Jelly Bears, like jelly babies, but all Ginger, bought from a health food shop and WOW, settled the stomach immediately.

    Peppermint Tea is also very soothing on the stomach.

    Hope one of them work for you

    Gary

    Thanks again everyone.
    Everytime we hit a bump in the road I turn to you guys and always get great advice.
  • mmikesell
    mmikesell Member Posts: 8
    #6
    Sounds Familiar...
    I became allergic to the Oxy on my 7th treatment and went into anaphylactic shock locked in the bathroom in the chemo lab. I finished my 12 chemo treatments in February, but loaded on benadryl and sleeping through a lot of it. I was very sleepy the rest of the time too. Come to find out that my blood sugar (not diabetic, but very sensitive to sugars) had dropped for most of the 6 months in chemo to levels so low, I would just fall asleep. kind of a double edged sword for me. I found that a time released benadryl would greatly help my stomach pain. It dawned on me one day talking to someone with food allergies. They described my tummy pain. This helped a lot. Also, someone told me at the beginning of chemo that if I got a non-alcoholic mouth wash and used it 4 or 5 times a day, it kept the mouth sores away. and it did. I hope you find the info that helps your Dad. God bless you both! And thanks for being there for him.
  • maglets
    maglets Member Posts: 2,576 Member
    #7
    mmikesell said:

    Sounds Familiar...
    I became allergic to the Oxy on my 7th treatment and went into anaphylactic shock locked in the bathroom in the chemo lab. I finished my 12 chemo treatments in February, but loaded on benadryl and sleeping through a lot of it. I was very sleepy the rest of the time too. Come to find out that my blood sugar (not diabetic, but very sensitive to sugars) had dropped for most of the 6 months in chemo to levels so low, I would just fall asleep. kind of a double edged sword for me. I found that a time released benadryl would greatly help my stomach pain. It dawned on me one day talking to someone with food allergies. They described my tummy pain. This helped a lot. Also, someone told me at the beginning of chemo that if I got a non-alcoholic mouth wash and used it 4 or 5 times a day, it kept the mouth sores away. and it did. I hope you find the info that helps your Dad. God bless you both! And thanks for being there for him.

    oxy
    oh I feel so badly for your dad

    oxy is a a very very difficult drug....considering he did so much of it ....i would not be surprised by anything....some days on oxy I thought.....

    if I could just lift my head and turn it to the left....but even that seemed too much

    so sorry no advice.....just sayin.....it is tough and probably not that unusual

    very best wishes and a hug

    mags

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