Mum about to start chemo, how can I help?

[angelicjen]

My lovely mum has just been diagnosed with follicular lymphoma and is going to have 6 months of chemo. It's such a shock. She's always been the one who looks after us and we all really want to make sure we support and help her through this as best we can. But where to start? Any tips for things to do, buy, make, say?
One of her main worries is not being able to go out much. Any ideas of safe places to go?
I am 32 weeks pregnant with her first grandchild so I hope he'll be a good distraction for her.

[Psipssina]

I am so sorry to hear this. No real advice but I wanted to bump this for you x

[myneighbourtotoro2]

I'm so sorry to hear your news . No real advice but I saw these empathy cards and thought they were great
emilymcdowell.com/collections/empathy-cards

[Indantherene]

Not sure what you mean by safe places, or why you feel she can't go out?

All chemo is different and all patients react differently. I worked all the way through mine except for the days I was actively having treatment and one or two days I was horribly sick each cycle.

She may get tired quickly and I found my concentration levels were zero.

Food is a big problem during chemo. Nothing tastes right and sometimes you get mouth sores. I found the chemo cookery club too late for me, but have tried some of their food and it is wonderful.

[whatisforteamum]

Hi sorry about your Mum .We been there twice with mum and twice with dad.Once you are past the shock i hope you can be of support.My sis did Mum a chemo hamper with all types of lip salve hand cream and a headscarf and things she researched on the internet.Boiled sweets to suck too and a shuffle thing with mums fav tunes to listen to as chemo was over 7 hrs.Mum made Dad really spicy food while he was on chemo which surprised me but she said his taste buds were shot to bits so he needed the added flavours!.Everyone is different and you may have to play it by ear.Everyone i know though swears by ice lollies to suck on after chemo or frozen pineapple,Good luck to your Mum and i hope she has minimal side effects.(a shawl or thin blanket can be handy as some pple feel could after chemo).

[angelicjen]

Thanks so much for your kind replies.
Indantherene, she's been told not to go to public or busy places in case of picking up an infection, but I don't want her going stir crazy. It sounds like you handled it brilliantly - I hope you're out the other side and well. The cookery club recipes look great thanks.

[tribpot]

If she might have quite a few people who want to show they're thinking about her, an Amazon wishlist is a great way for them to be able to get her something she'll definitely enjoy.

Have you looked at the Macmillan website?

When she feels well enough I would get her out into the countryside where there aren't too many people, but I bet you will be able to pick up tips from other people in treatment at the same time, as well as the staff.

I had a thread here five years ago when my step-dad was diagnosed with a rare cancer. He had chemo and radiotherapy and is right as rain, just back from a 3 week holiday in South East Asia. It is an incredibly frightening time and you have all my sympathy. Keep posting here too, you will get lots of support.

[lessthanBeau]

one tip I would give is if you've been out somewhere busy keep an eye on her for infection, any slight temperature or feeling off between chemo cycles, get advice right away, my DM had 2 during a 4 month treatment both ended up with her hospitalised, mum just thought it was chemo crap but came on a couple of days after an evening out and a trip to asda. just be mindful of where she's been and you can usually nip these in the bud with antibiotics early on.

sore mouth is quite bad corsodyl mouthwash is good, lots of full fat luxury ice cream is also recommended, my DM is a compulsive cleaner so we had to make sure we kept the house clean and didn't let her clean the toilet .
good luck to your mum and you