**tamoxifen the 13th**

[MaryAnnSingleton]

here we are- anticipating halloween

KK, heck.....

Oh no! must have x-posted Kurri. What a horrible decision to have to make, but I'd say you were right. I hope she'll let you cuddle her. Maybe a glass of wine might help? x

Thanks all, she has just woffled up a mini bonio, and has been having lots of fuss made of her - she's got both front legs bandaged where she had her blood tests, poor wee soul.

She obligingly did a wee on the floor at the vet's, so they tested it and she doesn't have diabetes. I've got to take another urine sample in tomorrow - not quite sure how I'll do that.

They're worried about her drinking so much, - I think she said that makes the heart problem worse or something (got a bit confused), and her urine is very dilute. They're also testing for something called Cushing's disease, which elderly dogs get apparently.

She's such a little thing to have so much going on. But she's made herself a nest in the ironing basket, and seems quite happy at the moment

Oh dear KK don't know what to say so sending hugs.

Didn't make it to acocks green. Too tired to bother after too many callers here. Went for a swim at the new Tudor Grange Pool instead and hope that will do the trick and I will sleep tonight. Have got some giant chocolate buttons, they will have to do.

I'm not sure how Mum has taken it, she has so many of her own problems and is in pain she is not obviously distressed... I feel like the roles are reversed and I am mothering her. Gave her a shower this morning. Shouldn't have lifted her, but managed to slide her across to shower chair then afterwards left it to the carers to finish dressing her and hoist her to her chair. I always find it really hard to leave her so I expect I will be in bits tomorrow :(

Hugs to kks doggy , enjoy the laundry basket puppy .

Oh jane , that must be really tough for you . And just what you really don't need right now (selfish thought of me I know , but you do need to concentrate on yourself now) . Do you live near each other ?
I don't have all these complications , its just my sister and I on my side of the family .

Dinner eaten (indian) , 2 glasses of wine drunk (now feeling v sleepy) , 2 episodes of Modern Family watched , now watching DCI Banks . Have read all the books in the series (Peter Robinson is the author if anyone fancies them) .
Perfect Friday evening .

Oh dear KK, so sorry to hear about your little doggy. You will instinctively know when the time is right. So sad though.

Amber, great news about clear margins. Yayyyyy!!!!!

Pink, my softie is an awful fit and, as my bras seem to be all different sizes I am forever taking the stuffing out or adding some more. I'll be glad to get my silicone one. But first I need to get properly measured up. A supplier visits to the breast unit once a month to do a proper measurement so I will make an appointment when she next comes.

Jane, sorry to hear about your worries for your dear mum.

Topsy, we're watching DCI Banks too. Quite enjoying it, not as 'dark' as some tv thrillers/detective programmes.

I've managed to do a full week at school - with the help of the occasional afternoon snooze. Thank goodness it's Friday though.

I've got a date for my first radiotherapy - next Tuesday at 2pm. I mentioned my seroma but the radiotherapy lady just said go along and she will assess whether or not they can go ahead or whether it will need to be drained. I wonder if they will give me ABs immediately after draining 'just in case' I get another infection?

Looking forward to a lovely Italian meal out with our oldest friends tomorrow night(3 couples). I've known the ladies since we went to school together aged 10 - should be a fab night.

kurri.. bless your little pooch,you will know when the time is right.just take it each day as it comes and spoil her rotten.ive had my heart broken a few times over animals so i know how your feeling right now.

amber..this is the cheap hoover i bought for upstairs direct.tesco.com/q/R.210-8307.aspx.

topsy...you might find the hospital will still go ahead with your chemo as once my chemo fell on a bank holiday monday and i still had to go in.

janemacer...you sound like you have alot on your plate,but at least now your mum knows.

figgy...it so annoying i feel your pain,i have to wait for radiotheraphy to finish before i get measured for mine.

managed to get a bit of shopping done today even though i was running late,bought 3 more vest tops from marks and spencers this time a size smaller heres hoping it stops the gaping.

also nipped into primark and bought my 15 year dd and bought her a cow babygrow all in one type thing as pjs,wow she was thrilled and even took herself bed early to read.she said they was so comfy and i should get some to,can you imagine lol.

by the way amber you can read the reviews

topsy- agree with smee- see if you can change the dates for all those reasons-solidarity and children being home.
jane - so hard when parents get old and ill- very tough on you,especially right now
figgy hope rads can go ahead,am sure they'll decide on what's best,meanwhile have a fab time tomorrow night !
KK So so sorry about poor little dog's problems- it's heartbreaking- as long as she is comfortable now you will know when it's right to do something-I do know that from several dear cats and dogs

Hi all, lots going on with you all!

Just a quick question, but if you are starving, but cant face eating, what do you force yourself to eat.

I am really hungry, but keep being sick (no particular reason) and cant face food but know I have to eat something.

Your lovely advice would really be appreciated.

Thank you

Iamseeingstars, eek re the being sick. Ginger biscuits worked for me. Some say mashed potato or plain Rich Tea type biscuits help. But docs can help with antisickness stuff I hope?

Pink, thanks!

How's everyone today?
?

aw iamseeingstars- poor love - I would think bland stuff that won't provoke nausea - horrid for you.
Morning all- might go out today-think the weather will be nice.

stars - is it chemo sickness ? If it is , phone the hospital . They can give you stuff for that .
Anything else , then it's back to nursery food I think . Scrambled eggs , toast etc . Little and often is the trick . Don't overload your poor tummy .
And if it continues , you should go see your GP . The last thing you need right now is to get ill .

Hello all, sorry to see what people have been going through.Kurri I am so sorry, my dog has been such a help to me during difficult times, it must be hideous for you. MAS you should definately mention treatment my sister is a dentist and she says that BC treatment can cause dental issues. Going to watch Pompey play today, just hope they win!

definitely, sorry

Morning all. Anyone fancy a , the kettle's on.

Stars, I remember when I was feeling really sick from chemo and couldn't face food, I really enjoyed ice lollies, especially the fruit smoothie ones - it was a combination of the ice-coldness and the fruit flavours. The mango one was delicious, as was the pineapple one. They really helped me. The other thing was dry toast. I hope you find something that helps.

Pink, I love the M&S vest tops. I've got a couple with a lacey top bit and elasticated straps. They're nice and tight which I love - I wear one to bed under my nightie because it keeps my remaining boob from sagging (think huge norkage here) and they're nice during the day if I don't want to wear a bra for the same reason. I just tie a nice scarf round my neck to it's not so obvious I'm 'going mono'.

Off to the library soon with DS2 then need to spend some time doing housey stuff before getting ready for our meal out tonight.

Sigh
The remaining eyebrows went walk about this morning .
Have tried a patch up job with an eye pencil , but really don't think it looks the greatest .
I am just not good at this make up malarkey !

Am trying to figure out what looks better .
No eyebrows - look like an alien !
Or draw them in and look like a drag queen

Thank you for all your kind comments about my dog. She is cheerful this morning - has had some breakfast, and tried to steal a cup of tea that I put down on the coffee table! We've been told no long walks, but she loves her walk, so I just have to find some short routes so she can get a bit of fresh air.

Stars, - I was told that ginger tea/lemon tea/peppermint tea can help settle your stomach, if you could get the sickness under control, you might have a bit more appetite. How about things like stewed apple (or apple puree),toast with a scrap of marmite or jam, rice is fairly bland or rice pudding, eggs. Go for small amounts as often as you can, - then you don't feel daunted by a big plate of food.

Also a possibility, if you can't face anything, is those 'build up' type drinks, you can get them in the chemist, either in the form of milkshakes or fruit drinks. (You might be able to get them on prescription) They've got about 400 cals in each drink, so you know you are actually getting some nutrition, and you can sip them a little at a time.

jane - sorry to hear about your mum, it is very tough, when our parents become infirm, it sounds as if you have a lot to cope with.

I like the M and S vest tops too Pink . I saw a new kind in there the other day - like a kind of sleeveless t-shirt shape, but the bit from the boobs up is made of some kind of sheer material, it looked as if it might work with certain outfits. I am still pondering it, but if I get one, I'll report back
Hopefully you and Figgy will find when you get your silicone breast, it will gape less, - the weight holds it in place.

have a lovely meal tonight Figgy

topsy, - I found that the eyebrow colour you get in a little palette (looks like powder eyeshadow) and you apply with a little shaped sponge tipped thing, gave a more subtle effect than a pencil. They showed me that at the LGFB session, - is yours coming up soon? - you will get some good make up to experiment with

How is everything with you ILGC, - how is your DD after her chemo? - hope she didn't feel too ill with it.

Love to all, waving to MAS, holding out mug to amber

thanks ILGC for dental info ! That's a useful sister to have !
Hope everyone is ok today - short trips out sounds good for little hound KK.
M&S do lovely Valencia orange juice lollies-they are very refreshing and might be tempting iamseeingstars

MAS, I'm not sure you need to mention BC to dentist - you definitely should if you go through chemo, as that can cause gum problems, but unless they're giving you drugs which might contradict the Tamoxifen I can't see why you need to unless you want to iyswim.

JM, must be so hard to have your mum like that. Old age is so impossibly hard. Is she mostly happy, or is she very aware of what's happening to her?

earth, I was sick a lot on chemo and found you have to time eating - small snacks and often seem to work better than a large meal. Eat every hour whether you feel like it or not and drink water regularly too. Bread with the teeniest sliver of butter and cornflakes with cold milk were all I ate at some points. Not at all sure why those! Topsy's right though, talk to the team and see if they can sort it with drugs. I was unlucky in that the drugs they gave me I reacted to, but apparently they'd never seen that before. Definitely worth trying everything they can do.

Figgy, you did well getting through the week. I'm surprised you're not collapsed on the sofa. Have fun tonight.

ILGC, how you? Going to watch footie sounds life affirming. Hope your dd's on the up again after first chemo. When's her next round?

Topsy, the eyebrow things a sod and a half. Cold enough for beanie hats? Does your wig have a fringe? Both those help!

Kurri, hope your poor little dog's comfortable today. Been meaning to ask, but what happened with your mother's horrible neighbour?

Nowt much to tell here. Been re-arranging DS's bedroom - it's extraordinarily eccentric now as a pose to only mildly so.. ! Off out in a bit to meet some friends. Nice things on a sunny day. Waving to all and wishing you similar.

When our dog was unwell, we used to walk her locally and take a large sheet with us. If she got tired, we could loop it under her belly and support her weight that way. Something similar might work for a tired hound at your end of things.

Eyebrows...I ended up pencilling in pretend ones but it never did look right . Sort of growing back now, but unevenly

Been doing the gardening! Oh joy!!! I love being able to do things again...

sorry, those anti-sickness thoughts were for stars, not earth.

Topsy, re eyebrows - I lost all of mine quite quickly and one of the BC nurses suggested a Boots eyebrow pencil that comes with a pencil at one end and a stiff little brush at the other. I put the pencil on at an angle so it doesn't come out as individual lines - more a smudge, then brush it with the brush which seems to make it look a bit more real. In fact, a few friends thought I'd managed to retain my eyebrows till I mentioned they were drawn/smudged on.

It's been a gorgeous afternoon here but I've been out all afternoon and need a lie-down now before I venture out this evening.

smee -you're right- I looked it up,only chemo has effects on mouth,so I won't need to tell him.
We had a lovely afternoon at The Vyne- just turning autumnal with the trees,lots of apples and walnuts and pumpkins. We had a cup of Earl Grey and shared a slice of coffee cake (ds had his own pot of darjeeling and chocolate cake)

DD is doing really well, it was like a party at her bedside with all her friends dropping in during breaks. She is out tonight on a pub crawl, golf!?!?

BTW MAS my sister says that it is essential that patients tell them if they have had any critical illness/on any drugs because it does affect care. She said that it effects how she organises treatments and one of the most difficult things about being a dentist is the fact that patients fail to inform them about key issues.

My late husband was a GP and he and she often discussed this, both feeling that NHS dentists should have access to medical notes.