Hello I still find out especially after the Holidays that I still get tired very easy and worn out

hounddog
hounddog Member Posts: 115
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
After the Hollidays I find out that I still get worn out very easy . I break down and cry very easy also because I'm tired is that normal .Right now I feel like my throat is trying to get sore and it is. My last Chemo Treatment was June the 10th of 2003 and I shouldn't be tired .Why am I so tired? It is not fair to any one that I get tired so easy and break down and cry .
Marilyn

Comments

  • scorpiox55
    scorpiox55 Member Posts: 18 Member
    Hi Marilyn, I cry alot also. I had a bad day yesterday and got myself so worked up that I was a complete wreck! I called my husband at work crying and I know that upsets him. I told him that I wanted a test that I read about called an amas test. Antimalignant antibody serum test or something. They say that it can detect cancer cells 18 months before the standard tests can. I am my own worst enemy here. I can convince myself that the worst is coming. My daughters friend's grandmother just passed away last weekend from bc and that got to me. I hear about someone passing and I get so depressed. You are not alone! We just need to channel this energy somewhere else! JoAnne
  • hummingbyrd
    hummingbyrd Member Posts: 950 Member
    Two suggestions ladies:
    Ask your docs about an antidepressant, I take Wellbutrin, non-addicting and works WONDERFULLY!
    Secondly, come visit me at
    Conquering Cancer Through Christ it's www.urcctc.com
    Depression makes you tired, being tired makes you depressed, gotta break the cycle somewhere!
    God bless and lots of ((((HUGS)))) hummer
  • vac
    vac Member Posts: 97
    i just had a stem cel transplant. they told me i would not have my energy back. i went to disney world 4 weeks afterward. i ask my doctor if she gave me the rite drugs. when i was in the hospital i felt letargic, but i think i was bored i feel great i have my energy i want to go back to work. i hope this is a normal feeling. my doctor knew i was going to do great because i have a great positive attitude. i need to get on with my life i don't have time to get sick
  • hummingbyrd
    hummingbyrd Member Posts: 950 Member
    vac said:

    i just had a stem cel transplant. they told me i would not have my energy back. i went to disney world 4 weeks afterward. i ask my doctor if she gave me the rite drugs. when i was in the hospital i felt letargic, but i think i was bored i feel great i have my energy i want to go back to work. i hope this is a normal feeling. my doctor knew i was going to do great because i have a great positive attitude. i need to get on with my life i don't have time to get sick

    Vac, I think someone slipped you a mickey ! LOL
    Hey, maybe at Disney World? (giggle/giggle) ;-)
    Seriously, glad to hear you're doing so great, now get your perky self to bed. LOL Just teasing.
    (((HUGS))) hummb
  • SweetSue
    SweetSue Member Posts: 217
    I completed A/C , JUly,2003. I am still tired;if I know I'm going out for the evening, I try to take a nap. I've been very positive, but CHristmastime was emotional. Like, it finally hit me.....I have a chronic disease.
    Prayer and helping others keeps me sane.
    You're not alone ........many of us are going through the same emotional highs and lows.
    Take care,
    Sue
  • bpcbrinks
    bpcbrinks Member Posts: 31
    Hey Hounddog,
    My last treatment was in 2001 and I still get tired. The fact is chemo wrecks your body. When I get tired and depressed (and I take Effexor, mainly for hot flashes) I give myself a mental health day. I don't do dishes, or cook, or clean the house (I'm a stay at home mom--who is never at home -- LOL) and curl up on the couch with my son and watch TV and eat Oreos or any other comfort food. I call my husband at work and tell that I am not cooking or cleaning and if he wants to eat he will pick up something for dinner on his way home. Sometimes that prompts him to take me out to dinner. But the point is, I give myself a break. Sometimes it lasts only a day, sometimes a week. But I believe that it is your body and mind's way and telling you that you need a break. Life will go on if you don't do the dishes!!

    When I try to do too much, that is when I have will have a break down. It has taken my 2 yrs to realize that and now I try to give myself a break before I have a breakdown. If you are physically well rested, it is easier to handle the emotional roller coaster.

    As far as it not being fair to anyone that you are tired, IT NOT FAIR TO YOU THAT YOU HAVE BREAST CANCER!! and hopefully your loved ones will realize that and help you out.

    Wishing you lots and hugs and Oreos
    bpcbrinks
  • DJC
    DJC Member Posts: 52
    Hi Marilyn - like you and everyone else who has responded to your post, I, too, have encountered huge mood swings since I was diagnosed and treated with chemo this past year. And looking like a human tennis ball and being thrown into premature menopause certainly hasn't helped my frame of mind much either. I started seeing a therapist this past month and tell you what, there is nothing more freeing emotionally than to sit and to be able to talk about nobody or nothing but yourself and your own well being, unencumbered by the guilt we women naturally manifest when talking about ourselves, for an entire hour.

    Please know that you are not alone in this regard and from what I hear and have read, more often than not we get to feeling better and stronger when we recognize and seek out help to lift our spirits - sometimes through therapy and/or the support of our loved ones, friends and sisters in this fight - and sometimes with the assistance of prescription drugs (I'm taking Buspar, myself) - or a combination of both types of assistance - but recognizing a need for support is the first step for all of us. Good luck on seeking out help if you decide to go that way. And I sincerely hope you feel better soon. Donna
  • DeeNY711
    DeeNY711 Member Posts: 476 Member
    My last chemo was in August, and I also still have difficulty managing fatigue. If you think back to the years before it "hit the fan" you will probably recall that the holiday season has always been followed by a period of bone weary fatigue. Be patient with yourself. You've been through a lot. It is simply not yet possible for you to do everything the way you used to do it. That day will come, though.
    Love,
    Denise
  • hummingbyrd
    hummingbyrd Member Posts: 950 Member
    bpcbrinks said:

    Hey Hounddog,
    My last treatment was in 2001 and I still get tired. The fact is chemo wrecks your body. When I get tired and depressed (and I take Effexor, mainly for hot flashes) I give myself a mental health day. I don't do dishes, or cook, or clean the house (I'm a stay at home mom--who is never at home -- LOL) and curl up on the couch with my son and watch TV and eat Oreos or any other comfort food. I call my husband at work and tell that I am not cooking or cleaning and if he wants to eat he will pick up something for dinner on his way home. Sometimes that prompts him to take me out to dinner. But the point is, I give myself a break. Sometimes it lasts only a day, sometimes a week. But I believe that it is your body and mind's way and telling you that you need a break. Life will go on if you don't do the dishes!!

    When I try to do too much, that is when I have will have a break down. It has taken my 2 yrs to realize that and now I try to give myself a break before I have a breakdown. If you are physically well rested, it is easier to handle the emotional roller coaster.

    As far as it not being fair to anyone that you are tired, IT NOT FAIR TO YOU THAT YOU HAVE BREAST CANCER!! and hopefully your loved ones will realize that and help you out.

    Wishing you lots and hugs and Oreos
    bpcbrinks

    Hey brinks, I like your answer, "Oreo Days". See this stuff has a way of educating you, like it or not! (((HUGS))) hummer
  • hummingbyrd
    hummingbyrd Member Posts: 950 Member
    bpcbrinks said:

    Hey Hounddog,
    My last treatment was in 2001 and I still get tired. The fact is chemo wrecks your body. When I get tired and depressed (and I take Effexor, mainly for hot flashes) I give myself a mental health day. I don't do dishes, or cook, or clean the house (I'm a stay at home mom--who is never at home -- LOL) and curl up on the couch with my son and watch TV and eat Oreos or any other comfort food. I call my husband at work and tell that I am not cooking or cleaning and if he wants to eat he will pick up something for dinner on his way home. Sometimes that prompts him to take me out to dinner. But the point is, I give myself a break. Sometimes it lasts only a day, sometimes a week. But I believe that it is your body and mind's way and telling you that you need a break. Life will go on if you don't do the dishes!!

    When I try to do too much, that is when I have will have a break down. It has taken my 2 yrs to realize that and now I try to give myself a break before I have a breakdown. If you are physically well rested, it is easier to handle the emotional roller coaster.

    As far as it not being fair to anyone that you are tired, IT NOT FAIR TO YOU THAT YOU HAVE BREAST CANCER!! and hopefully your loved ones will realize that and help you out.

    Wishing you lots and hugs and Oreos
    bpcbrinks

    Hey brinks, I like your answer, "Oreo Days". See this stuff has a way of educating you, like it or not! (((HUGS))) hummer
  • live42day
    live42day Member Posts: 64
    It takes a while for your body to recover from chemo. My oncologist said it could take 2 years. It will be 2 yrs this March, and I still have times when I am just wiped out, but they are fewer and farther apart. As for mood swings, I found that writing my thoughts down in a journal really was therapy. When I was mad or upset, I just put my feelings in my journal and it made me feel so much better. It doesn't cost anything either. Just give yourself time to recover and don't rush it.
    Janet
  • ksayler
    ksayler Member Posts: 6
    Marilyn,
    My last chemo was a year ago and fter all the treatment (surgery, radiation, chemo) was over I felt tired for months. I still feel that I need more sleep than I used to. But I also find that my mind drifts to last year and sometimes I break down and cry, also. I think we do move on, but it is hard to forget all that we have been through. I believe it leaves us very different than we were before. We have been told we have cancer, have faced the fear, waited for biopsy reports, recovered from surgery, gone through treatment, suffered indignities beyond belief (no hair, scarred bodies, early menopause, feeling sick from chemo, etc., etc...need I go on?), and we have survived. I know I am forever changed physically and emotionally. I think it is so normal to just cry sometimes because of the overwhelming burden of it all. Kudos to all of us.....I have never felt stronger emotionally, even though my tears might make it look otherwise. I think your tears are normal and prove how strong YOU have been. Heaven forbid we should ever forget how strong we ALL have proven we are. Good luck, Kathy
  • jake10
    jake10 Member Posts: 202
    I didn't even have chemo and I suffered with fatigue for a year. Two surgeries and a prolonged healing process as well as the emotional turmoil of having cancer and then the effects of Arimidex. boy it was tough. But it's now been a year and 2 months and my wound is healed and I feel great. Give yourself a break, you deserve it. Antidepressants might also be another good idea. I take Zoloft, but did prior to diagnosis as well, just increased the dose. Good Luck Love, Beth