Tired

dixchi
dixchi Member Posts: 431
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
I have had my second Folfox treatment post surgery and am really feeling tired already.
I have six more to go and hope I can make it. I am trying not to lie around too much;
that seems to make me even weaker but if I am up and working on stuff, I will suddenly
get weak in the legs, out of breath and my head gets swimmy. Then I will be ok for a
while. Didn't sleep well last night worrying about all the economy news and my own
financial situation in these rocky times and wondering if I could sell my house when I
want to or if I will exit the planet before I can get my act together; am sure this
doesn't help my energy level. It is a constant struggle to keep negative thoughts out
of my brain and stay positive and keep moving foward. And feeling bad from the chemo
just contributes to it. Probably some of you are feeling the same way; any suggestions
on keeping energy level going and best practices when energy level is flagging would
be helpful.

Comments

  • apache4
    apache4 Member Posts: 272 Member
    #2
    Treatments
    I don't know what stage your cancer is, but I started with Folfox and was tired after 1st treatment. It did get better after #3. I live alone and had to get things done for myself as I hate to ask for help. My bad! Anyway, I now have had chemo for two years and have to accept the low energy level. I, too, get dizzy and short of breath which makes it hard.
    What I do is to pace myself at all times. If I work outside, I time 15-20 minutes working and 1/2 hour inside sitting. Sometimes I feel like going longer, but that just makes it harder to recover. I also drink lots of water as I found a tendency to get dehydrated quickly and that would make me more tired. Another suggestion, is eating a little, frequently, as that keeps the tummy from being quesy. Most of all, just accept that it is out of your hands for now and the cause is the chemo. That was hard for me as I wanted to be superwoman. My best to you. You will work it out and be OK.
  • jenhopesprays
    jenhopesprays Member Posts: 128 Member
    #3
    Chick O' Dix,
    Chick O' Dix,

    Chin up love. All of my treatments were as you are describing with the added bonus of having to lay flat most the time. I remember one treatment when my husband came home and asked me how it was going and I was literally to tired to speak. He had to ask me yes or no questions to which I could mumble or nod my head.

    As far as the economy, global warming and your mere mortality: I think chemo makes you feel these things more. I know it did on me. Not much of a crier, you could count on my tears flowing at least once a treatment.

    Do you best to give yourself a big, fat break. You deserve it. Being a Cancer Warrior is a dang, tough business. Try to hang with friends and talk about "normal" stuff. Rent funny movies to cleanse the mind.

    Drink lots of water a few days before treatment and try to drink as much as you are able during treatment.

    So hang in Cancer Warrior girl.

    Big hugs,

    Jen
  • pamness
    pamness Member Posts: 524 Member
    #4
    Give yourself a big, big break
    I had a horrible time with chemo (folfox) - I was IIIA - surgery, folfox and radiation. I am currently 1 year 3 mos. ned. I didn't tolerate the chemo well at all, if you are just tired - rest - I was sick as a dog, most of the time. I had a hard time - just resting when I was tired and realizing that it was OK to be tired in the middle of day and it was OK to just rest,. I had never been a huge television junkie, but I am now - and certainly was then. Lie down, rest , find some TV you like, it"s OK. The economy will right itself without your help or mine. If this helps, I was an investment banker for 20 years and this is no surprise. It will be OK. If you just work on getting yourself better, the rest will work out. Meanwhile, relax, watch all the crap on TV you secretly felt guilty about. I willl sent yoy a list tomorrow of what I watched. Let me know what you think.


    Pam
  • Madre
    Madre Member Posts: 123
    #5
    You are not alone
    When I first started chemo I got infused on Wednesday, pump removed Friday and I slept Saturday and Sunday, maybe even Monday. My family knew and rallied around me. I usually just laid in the recliner in front of the TV and slept on and off. If I felt real bad I went to my bed (the family knew that meant leave me alone). I had relaxation music that put me in a tranquil place, pulled the shades. I used to work 2 jobs plus team mom for my son's football team. I have realized I am now the turtle and not the rabbit. i move at a slower pace, and quess what! Everyone is just fine without my input and I have more time to rest, and I don't feel guilty, I've earned it. When I'm done with chemo I can go back to the rat race if I want. Listen to your body and the only focus you should have is YOU. Don't worry about the things you cannot control. Good luck to you.
  • lfondots63
    lfondots63 Member Posts: 818 Member
    #6
    New Normal
    Hi,

    I remember those days where I could barely get out of bed. They are normal. You are NOT a super human and some days will be worse then others. Rest when your body tells you to. It is ok and you need it. Make sure you tell your onc about the difficulties too just so they take BP. I was on BP meds during chemo and found out my BP was going too low and that is why I was so dizzy some times and almost fainting. UGH. HUGS!!!

    Lisa F
  • apache4
    apache4 Member Posts: 272 Member
    #7
    You guys are great...
    I so appreciated the comments to this subject. Suddenly, I felt that it was OK to just lie in bed all day if needed. This, after two years, is something I wished I had realized sooner. I have had horrible sciatic pain the past few days and have been...in bed! My family always tells me that I am too hard on myself. I have to finally admit it is true :) Even with chemo, I would go to bed at night and review if the day had been "productive". Well, better to learn later then too late.
  • jams67
    jams67 Member Posts: 925 Member
    #8
    apache4 said:

    You guys are great...
    I so appreciated the comments to this subject. Suddenly, I felt that it was OK to just lie in bed all day if needed. This, after two years, is something I wished I had realized sooner. I have had horrible sciatic pain the past few days and have been...in bed! My family always tells me that I am too hard on myself. I have to finally admit it is true :) Even with chemo, I would go to bed at night and review if the day had been "productive". Well, better to learn later then too late.

    Sciatica
    Sorry you are feeling down. Just know that it is ok to complain.
    Hot baths help with sciatica, and as I'm sure you are aware stretching. I hope your next treatment goes better.
    Jo Ann
  • bigCrandy
    bigCrandy Member Posts: 75
    #9
    fatigue
    You might try Ensure or Boost nutritional drinks, that is if you can handle them cold. I know oxiliplatin causes a weird sensation to the mouth for the first few days. Also, see if you might be anemic, like low iron or hemoglobin. My oncologist put me on iron supplements and gave me shots to boost red blood cells. I guess they worked ok. I think eating foods with a lot of protein might help too. I don't want to scare you but I seemed to get really tired and fatigued, could not hardly get out of bed except to go to the bathroom. All I wanted to do was stay in bed and sleep. Lost some more weight that I didn't needed to do. That started around the 5th treatment and went through the 7th. After that, it gradually got better and better each remaining treatment. 8 to 12 went great, the last 2 was a breeze. Everyone is different and maybe yours will be sooner than later. Whatever you do, please don't ever give up! You gotta have faith and a positive attitude and good things will happen. Remember, you are not alone. Hang in there, love Randy PS Chemo is very strong medicine and it will be tough but it does work, try to be strong OK
  • dixchi
    dixchi Member Posts: 431
    #10
    Tired
    Thanks for the many words of support and suggestions. I have found that
    Boost puts out a fruit smoothie that is very good even not cold; the flavor
    is very pronounced and helps. Also I have recovered some from being tired;
    seems the last part of the 12 days in between treatments I am more energetic
    than immediately after treatment. Am able to work on clearing my house of
    20 years of stuff with a few breaks to sit down and rest. We will see if
    this stays the same as I get more treatments; if not, I will adjust accordingly.
    Working on the house project has helped to keep my mind focused and so some
    of negative thoughts are reduced but they can sure creep in fast at times. So
    hard to stop doing "what if this happens" and "what if that happens". A constant
    battle.
  • chynabear
    chynabear Member Posts: 481 Member
    #11
    Get some rest
    I remember being really tired for 2-3 days right after a treatment and then regaining energy until my next treatment. I tried to be a hero and keep up with my normal life determined not to allow the chemo to affect me in the beginning... but I learned real quick when I tried to tough it out and go shopping with my mom-in-law. I nearly passed out and realized that I just needed to sit down. I then would allow myself two full days to sleep as much as I needed to and then I would typically bounce back.

    If you are feeling less tired by trying to do more, then do it. Otherwise, you need to just rest when you need to. Your body has just been through a huge ordeal and now you are poisioning it with chemo which kills both the good cells and the bad. Don't be so hard on yourself for needing the rest.

    I remember having a hard time getting to sleep quite often when I was on chemo. I was nearly turned backwards with my schedule as I would sometimes not be able to sleep during the night and then sleep a lot the day after when I finally would fall asleep.
  • lisa42
    lisa42 Member Posts: 3,625 Member
    #12
    wheat grass
    Hi,

    I did find that wheat grass boosts 2-3 times a week really did help my energy level. I actually didn't take while I was on Folfox, but I discoverd it later while doing radiation/chemo combo (the chemo was Cisplatin). The radiation made me even more tired than the chemo had & it was about halfway through that I started trying the wheat grass.
    Make sure you DO give in & allow yourself naptime each day. Myself, my most sleepy time of day was about a 1/2 hr. before my kids were due to come home from school, so I tried to watch the clock & lie down about an hour earlier than that each day, so I'd hopefully be awake when the kids got home (some days I was, but some I wasn't).
    Like someone else, said, your fatigue level may fluctuate during your treatment. Don't try to be heroic- I relished in the fact that I no longer "had to feel guilty" to take a nap (as I always did if I napped during the day before cancer- but that was something I had always put upon myself.

    You WILL feel better again someday- remember, this is just temporary!!
    Lisa

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