Should I eat before chemo session?

Sher43009 said:

Food
I ate lunch while getting my chemo. I felt better if I had something in my stomach. I ate a lot of frozen juice bars, rice, and chicken. All the high protein, high calorie foods in small portions. My first chemo was the worst then they got better. Just keep drinking. I know how nervous you are. A survivor buddy of mine gave me this visualization...she drank 64oz. of water while getting chemo and she kept thinking of a waterfall--chemo and water going in, and then being flushed out. I couldn't dring that much but usually managed a bottle of water. Keep taking your anti nausea meds even if you don't feel nausea.

Good luck and let us know how you're doing.
Sher

TraciInLA said:

Keep something in your stomach
Of course it's understandable that you're feeling nervous about starting chemo, but try to remember that, for most people, the actual chemo infusion itself is really uneventful. Also, along with your chemo drugs, they'll pump you full of anti-nausea meds as well.

The oncology nurses at my center urged me to eat a little something before coming, and to bring snacks with me, so that the drugs weren't hitting me on an empty stomach. I usually had yogurt or toast, something light, before going in, and always brought a cooler with me with fruit, light sandwiches, cookies, and water. You can't drink enough water before, during, and after chemo, so definitely bring some with you.

One small thing I learned: Do you have a port? I didn't, so the IV was in my hand, making me kind of one-handed through the whole thing. So I always brought food to eat that didn't require utensils. If you have a port, so your hands will be free, you can also bring single-serving cups of yogurt, cottage cheese, pudding, Jell-o -- I lived on all of those for a couple of days after each chemo, as they were easy to just grab out of the fridge, easy on my stomach, and the yogurt and cottage cheese gave me some protein.

Hope that helps!

Traci

TraciInLA said:

Linda brings up a good point
Infusion centers vary widely in how they're set up and what they offer: Some cancer centers offer private chemo suites, your own television, snacks and drinks brought right to you, boxed lunches -- others are less swanky.

I had chemo in my doctor's office, and, while they did everything they could to make us all feel comfortable and taken care of, there were no amenities at all -- one communal room for everyone, no television or snacks. Each time I did chemo, I looked like I was going camping, as I showed up at my doctor's office with a cooler, blanket, duffel bag with my magazines and games, etc.

If you have time during the day, you might stop by the infusion center one day before your appointment and just ask to peek in, get the lay of the land -- what do you have to bring, what do they already have there for you? I got a little mini-tour before my first chemo, and it helped me feel more comfortable on my first day.

Traci