My update-lasting side effects and new issues
Glad you all found your way to this great board but of course sorry for the reason...
I finished chemo in September and rads in November. Since then, I have been dealing with Neuropathy to the point that I have seen a Neuorlogist and spent weeks in occupational therapy. I also lost my job in December due to the Neuropathy.
The numbness has mostly gone but the joint pain is with me every day. The therapist taught me ways to deal with it.
My new issue is dizziness. With this comes heart palpitations and weakness. Sometimes I feel like I may pass out. I have been feeling this for over a week now and finally went to the doctor yesterday. I will be going to a Cardioligist as my Dr thinks it may be due to some sort of heart damage from the chemo. She also noted that it could be Vertigo but didn't want to take any chances. Anyone had anything like this?
So I will be seeing the Cardioligist on the 13th. I also go for my mammogram on the 9th and it will be a year ago that I had the mammo that found my cancer on that date.
Comments
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Elm,
It is good to hear from
Elm,
It is good to hear from you but sorry for all the side effects. Glad that you are checking in because I (and I am sure others) always wonder what is going on with our sisters who haven't posted in awhile. I will say a prayer that vertigo is the verdict. I understand the job loss as both Den and I lost our jobs. Good thoughts beaming your way for your mammo and let us know when you hear NED.
Stef0 -
Hugs to you!fauxma said:Elm,
It is good to hear from
Elm,
It is good to hear from you but sorry for all the side effects. Glad that you are checking in because I (and I am sure others) always wonder what is going on with our sisters who haven't posted in awhile. I will say a prayer that vertigo is the verdict. I understand the job loss as both Den and I lost our jobs. Good thoughts beaming your way for your mammo and let us know when you hear NED.
Stef
Saying prayers for you Elm. Be sure and let us know how you are doing.
Lex♥0 -
Sorry about all of your sideKat11 said:Elm
I suffer with Veritgo from time to time. There is not to much you can do about it. Stress can bring this on. I hope all works out for you. Keep us posted.
Sorry about all of your side effects. Praying you find relief quickly and soon.0 -
Hi, Elm!
Good to find you here! Though I am sorry for the difficulties you're experiencing.
I'll be hoping your appointment on the 13th will go well for you, friend. Hoping for the best possible outcome, nothing too serious. Ditto for your milestone "one year since" mammo on the 9th.
You're only four months out from completion of all active/invasive treatment. That's not a whole lot of time. Time is still on your side. Continue to take good care, be good to yourself.
Keep us posted.
Kind regards, Susan0 -
Nice to see you back Elm.Christmas Girl said:Hi, Elm!
Good to find you here! Though I am sorry for the difficulties you're experiencing.
I'll be hoping your appointment on the 13th will go well for you, friend. Hoping for the best possible outcome, nothing too serious. Ditto for your milestone "one year since" mammo on the 9th.
You're only four months out from completion of all active/invasive treatment. That's not a whole lot of time. Time is still on your side. Continue to take good care, be good to yourself.
Keep us posted.
Kind regards, Susan
Nice to see you back Elm. Sorry that it is for these reasons. Hoping that everything works out well for you.
Sue
0 -
Sorry that you are havingRitzy said:Nice to see you back Elm.
Nice to see you back Elm. Sorry that it is for these reasons. Hoping that everything works out well for you.
Sue
Sorry that you are having these difficulties. Praying for you and sending you positive thoughts!0 -
pelvic ultrasound today
My gyn. told me that I shouldn't have any bleeding, but I did, so went and had the ultrasound this morning. The tech told me that because I am on Tamoxifen I need one every year. (yuck!) My onc had told me the chemo would force me into menopause and I though that at my age (48) it wouldn't reverse. I have been having hot flashes and no periods since last summer! Now I'm wondering if it was just a period and I am back to "normal" or is it a sign of uterine cancer? And if it is a peroid then will I have to have them plus hot flashes now?Oh well...Gotta wait for those results...
I have only been on Tamoxifen since December. I wish my gyn would just reccommend a full hysterectomy no matter what the outcome of the ultrasound. I don't need any of that equipment anyway, and the way I look at it, having it there is a hazard to my health!
Has anyone experienced this?0 -
Just want to say that I hopeelm3544 said:pelvic ultrasound today
My gyn. told me that I shouldn't have any bleeding, but I did, so went and had the ultrasound this morning. The tech told me that because I am on Tamoxifen I need one every year. (yuck!) My onc had told me the chemo would force me into menopause and I though that at my age (48) it wouldn't reverse. I have been having hot flashes and no periods since last summer! Now I'm wondering if it was just a period and I am back to "normal" or is it a sign of uterine cancer? And if it is a peroid then will I have to have them plus hot flashes now?Oh well...Gotta wait for those results...
I have only been on Tamoxifen since December. I wish my gyn would just reccommend a full hysterectomy no matter what the outcome of the ultrasound. I don't need any of that equipment anyway, and the way I look at it, having it there is a hazard to my health!
Has anyone experienced this?
Just want to say that I hope your test turns out normal. Let us know Elm.
Hugs, Leeza0 -
Dizziness etc.
I've experienced the dizziness and feeling as though I would pass out, too. This has been going on for 1 1/2 years out of therapy. My pcp said that it has been known to happen to chemo patients; sometimes lasting 2-3 years; sometimes lifelong. I'm hoping I fall into the 1st category.
Good luck to you.
btw I'm a newbie.
hosana70 -
Sending you prayers and goodelm3544 said:pelvic ultrasound today
My gyn. told me that I shouldn't have any bleeding, but I did, so went and had the ultrasound this morning. The tech told me that because I am on Tamoxifen I need one every year. (yuck!) My onc had told me the chemo would force me into menopause and I though that at my age (48) it wouldn't reverse. I have been having hot flashes and no periods since last summer! Now I'm wondering if it was just a period and I am back to "normal" or is it a sign of uterine cancer? And if it is a peroid then will I have to have them plus hot flashes now?Oh well...Gotta wait for those results...
I have only been on Tamoxifen since December. I wish my gyn would just reccommend a full hysterectomy no matter what the outcome of the ultrasound. I don't need any of that equipment anyway, and the way I look at it, having it there is a hazard to my health!
Has anyone experienced this?
Sending you prayers and good thoughts that your results will be clean!0 -
welcome hosana7hosana7 said:Dizziness etc.
I've experienced the dizziness and feeling as though I would pass out, too. This has been going on for 1 1/2 years out of therapy. My pcp said that it has been known to happen to chemo patients; sometimes lasting 2-3 years; sometimes lifelong. I'm hoping I fall into the 1st category.
Good luck to you.
btw I'm a newbie.
hosana7
Thanks for letting me know. I hadn't heard anything like that before. I hope it passes soon for you!0 -
further update
I had a pelvic and intravaginal ultrasound because my Gyn said my uterus walls were too thick. I also began to bleed, which was a concern. Today I will be having a uterine biopsy.
Went to the cardiologist yesterday and EKG was good, BP was good. Dr is sending me for a stress test, another EKG and an ultrasound of my neck. I will also wear a heart monitor for 24 hours next week. She said it is possible that my heart has weakened from chemo, rads or the cancer itself. My heart rate is low which concerned her.
Still haven't received mammo results but have found a new lump which is real tender and the skin is red. Hoping its fluid or something.
Thanks for the support. I will post more as I learn more.0 -
Dizzy Gals
Hello Elm,
Sounds like things are moving along fairly swiftly which is always a good thing. I have been a dizzy gal most of my life (mostly like during long car rides and such) however after all the chemo's in increased a lot! At one point it was so bad I could not be a passenger in a car for longer than 20 min. without feeling ill and I walked into things quite often. I too had the heart palps which for me turned out to be nothing. Back to the dizziness, I have been told some types of chemo mess with the tiny hairs we have in our inner ear that aide in our balance and hearing, once damaged they do not repair themselves. Some days are not too bad with the dizzy issues others can be worse. What has helped for me was going to physical therapy where they teach you tricks to help you better deal with dizziness and better control it when it begins to happen. If it turns out your heart is in tip top shape you may want to ask your onco about physical therapy. Let us know how it goes.
♥ RE ♥0 -
Hi ElmRE said:Dizzy Gals
Hello Elm,
Sounds like things are moving along fairly swiftly which is always a good thing. I have been a dizzy gal most of my life (mostly like during long car rides and such) however after all the chemo's in increased a lot! At one point it was so bad I could not be a passenger in a car for longer than 20 min. without feeling ill and I walked into things quite often. I too had the heart palps which for me turned out to be nothing. Back to the dizziness, I have been told some types of chemo mess with the tiny hairs we have in our inner ear that aide in our balance and hearing, once damaged they do not repair themselves. Some days are not too bad with the dizzy issues others can be worse. What has helped for me was going to physical therapy where they teach you tricks to help you better deal with dizziness and better control it when it begins to happen. If it turns out your heart is in tip top shape you may want to ask your onco about physical therapy. Let us know how it goes.
♥ RE ♥
Welcome back. Sorry for your problems. I can relate to your situation very closely since during last fall went exactly trough similar path :EKG, heart stress test, pelvic and vaginal ultrasound, uterine biopsy. I am wishing you to have the best possible outcome from all of your tests. If you are concern about lumps talk to you breast surgeon. The fact that you have not heard from Mammogram because they are not suspicious of anything.
Good luck and keep us posted,
New Flower0 -
I had to have a uterineelm3544 said:further update
I had a pelvic and intravaginal ultrasound because my Gyn said my uterus walls were too thick. I also began to bleed, which was a concern. Today I will be having a uterine biopsy.
Went to the cardiologist yesterday and EKG was good, BP was good. Dr is sending me for a stress test, another EKG and an ultrasound of my neck. I will also wear a heart monitor for 24 hours next week. She said it is possible that my heart has weakened from chemo, rads or the cancer itself. My heart rate is low which concerned her.
Still haven't received mammo results but have found a new lump which is real tender and the skin is red. Hoping its fluid or something.
Thanks for the support. I will post more as I learn more.
I had to have a uterine biopsy because of spotting. She didn't find anything and so scheduled me for a hysteroscopy (just looking in with a camera) and D&C. Turned out I had polyps. Hope yours is not a concern also.0 -
Very interesting I just had
Very interesting I just had this start last week and thought it was vertigo, too. It only was around about three days and passed. I just so happen to mention it to a friend of mine that has severe ear issues (menieres possibly) and she told me she read a lot about chemo patients (her mom is a bc survivor) and BPPV. Google it together and you'll find some interesting stuff. There are crystals in your ears that need to stay in a certain spot and a lot of things can make the crystals move...for instance cytotoxic drugs. From what I understand from my friend the crystals, if not in the right place, can be fixed and put back where ther belong.....EASILY! Nothing invasive. I think she was telling me there is some machine that spins you around and gets the crystals back where they go. Anyway, just thought I'd share!0 -
Job Lossfauxma said:Elm,
It is good to hear from
Elm,
It is good to hear from you but sorry for all the side effects. Glad that you are checking in because I (and I am sure others) always wonder what is going on with our sisters who haven't posted in awhile. I will say a prayer that vertigo is the verdict. I understand the job loss as both Den and I lost our jobs. Good thoughts beaming your way for your mammo and let us know when you hear NED.
Stef
Hi Faux,
I noticed both you and Elm talking about job losses due to side effects. Have you seen this to be a "normal" happening? I have never really had a normal job, as before my DX, i had back surgery, which took up a good year and before that I was in the Music Business as an Artist. My bnad was signed to Warner Brothers Records for a while, where I was lead singer/frontperson and 1/2 of the songwriting team, then when we got dropped, I was starting off in Nashville (came from LA) to get into the songwriting side of the business, but now I am 36, living with my parents through all of that, starting with the back surgery, and am considered too old to go back on stage, which I couldn't anyway due to the physical condition, and this was very hard for me to take. But now, I am going to have to get a "normal job", and I am terrified. Even though I know what I want to do, I am scared of the Chemo Brain, which a month after finishing chemo is worse than ever, but also on Topomax, which makes you lose about 80,000 words and grammatic abilities a day. lol..you have to. I don't want to be on disability the rest of my life, as it doesn't even cover enough for me to live on my own, and I am single.
So to sum up this long, jumbled message, do you, in your personal journey through this, find a good amount of people being fired or not hired due to side effects?
Thanks for listening,
Jillyu0 -
I am praying for goodelm3544 said:further update
I had a pelvic and intravaginal ultrasound because my Gyn said my uterus walls were too thick. I also began to bleed, which was a concern. Today I will be having a uterine biopsy.
Went to the cardiologist yesterday and EKG was good, BP was good. Dr is sending me for a stress test, another EKG and an ultrasound of my neck. I will also wear a heart monitor for 24 hours next week. She said it is possible that my heart has weakened from chemo, rads or the cancer itself. My heart rate is low which concerned her.
Still haven't received mammo results but have found a new lump which is real tender and the skin is red. Hoping its fluid or something.
Thanks for the support. I will post more as I learn more.
I am praying for good results for you Elm!0 -
yes to the heart
yes to the heart palpitation. a therapist recom a natural heart enzyme called CoQ10. much to my surprised it actually works. the palpitations are better but the dizziness, well i think it is here to stay.0
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