the 16th ***TAMOXIFEN***thread

[MaryAnnSingleton]

...here we go again

at Amber. Glad you're home safe and the daily appointments will whizz by am sure.

MAS, so hard to be a mum. You must want to wade in there and sit in every lesson. Can just imagine how mortified your lovely ds would be if you did that.

Henry Hoover drinking a pint ! Great news about DS though. Must be a relief. Hope he's proud of himself.

Kurri, I'm thinking of running too, though the thinking bit's as far as I've got.

Am going to ask DS what and why, but I doubt he would deliberately mix electricity and water. It will have been something else he was doing nearby which got out of hand. He does tend to get a bit carried away..

amberlight I find that story of your consultant quite life affirming! It being a mathematical problem/solution. Digital gadget are all very well but it's good to be able to fall back on the old fashioned rule. That is why he is the consultant!

x-posted Cat. Wait until Monday, I guess they'll tell you more on timescale then. Would you enjoy going back to work?? If it's a good distraction, you might as well. At least it will keep your mind off things.

Hi Cat64 - read your message about you having lumpectomy 4 weeks ago. Have you been seen since by anyone, local surgery, had dressing removed etc?

cat64 - So it seems that there is quite a bit of variation in the service, sorry you have so much longer to wait, and waiting is the hard bit. You're nearly there. It is a lot to keep track of and plan life around possible appointments. As Smee suggested, would contacting work be a good idea, with the possibility of going back for the meantime?

Back home now. Busy morning , no lunch yet and the dds will be home from school soon!
Kk - my running is very tongue in cheek, jog a bit, walk a bit, jog a bit and sprint down to the platform. Drag myself onto the train and get my breath back and it is only a few hundred yards! I normally cycle and swim because of the excess weight I am carrying.

Smee - well done at sorting out your electrics. I'm just about keing the paranoia in check at the mo.

Amber - glad your rads planning is over. I am not stressing about deodorant now, though I was at first. You can use roll on on the other side but as it is cold weather you are not going to get that sweaty anyway. I'm just washing with the simple soap and noone has complained of the smell yet...

at the idea of people having to pop one of those maths kits in a tin in their handbag when they go to rads.

I'm always a bit but also when I ask a consultant a question like ' can I take these two drugs in combination' and they goggle the answer on their computer!

amber - I'm glad you've got your planning done though and are all marked up. To be honest I don't completely remember about the deodorant question, I guess its to avoid anything that might cause probs with your skin. I probably just stank for a few weeks, knowing me

Smee - do you think if we think about it hard enough (and visualize of course) it counts as exercise?

cat - it is confusing, especially as where your hospital is seems to play a part in the time it all takes. I had a few longish waits. IIRC, the surgeon told me what treatment I'd be having, then I saw the onc. just before I started it (chemo in my case) so you might find that once they've made a decision it moves a bit quicker.

In my hospital they decide on what treatment people have at a meeting of all the specialists (Oncs. surgeons, BCNs etc.) and the meetings are once a week, so if your results aren't ready yo have to wait another week etc etc. to be discussed. All adds to the time, but because these depts, like radiology are up and running everyday, once its planned you don't usually have too wait to long.

I'm going to a talk at the hospital tonight about reconstruction surgery, by the recon. nurse. So hopefully will find out a bit more about it all. They like you to go to this recon. group for a bit here before you commit to surgery. Luckily I know someone who goes so will have someone to sit with.

Off to phone mum and find out how dad is doing.

Revising that last comment, because tbh I could not have contemplated anything before I got my results yesterday, just hang on in there until Monday and we'ill take it from there.

million cross posts - talking to dh about registering epa for dh's 98 y o grandmother. Wave to cat64. If work are ok with you being off and you can afford it, make the most of it and build your strength up for when you start rads. Depends a lot on how stressful your job is I suppose, but I'm not feeling guilty about having time off yet...

Cat, that's why this thread is handy - allows us to think ahead for what's next. Take very warm clothing for bottom half of you. They did let me have the gown over me from time to time but it's all air conditioning so nothing they can do to make it a bit warmer really. They were all very nice and very practical and cheerful, which helped with the vulnerability feelings too. Guess they see boobs/chests of varying shapes and features all day every day 5 days a week 365 days a year, so for them it's totally natural.

I meant to say jane, I'm glad your auntie is improving, - it's great she is getting a little mobility back, its a slow process, but sounds as if she's going in the right direction

They could adjust the air conditionning! Though wait, weren't we discussing the lack of deodorant a minute ago - maybe this is related. Not that cold at my hosp though.

Thanks kk. How is your Dad? Any news on somewhere closer to your Mum for him?

Just read back a little way to refresh my memory. On the subject of deoderant/antiperspirants I have given up using my usual heavy duty 48 hr stuff, (I shower every 24 hrs) I am using a crystal rock product which seems to be working and will last for ages.

Great story amber

But in answer to the question about deodorant - yes, I'm afraid you just have to pong. At least it is winter and you shouldn't be too sweaty. IN truth, it didn't seem much of an issue for me but then I work form home with a DH with no sense of smell.

Have just phoned mum. Dad seems to have a good appetite, he hasn't been alloted a place yet, so no news on that.

He's seeing a speech therapist, who's trying to help with the swallowing problems, and a physiotherapist - although that doesn't seem to make much difference, - no improvement in his legs.
He has unscrewed lots of bolt things from his chair and hospital bed that he can reach from where he's sitting, and insists he's going to take them to bits, so he's being a troublemaker as usual

But will he be able to put them together again? :) Maybe they should give him some meccano to keep his hands busy away from hospital equipment...

oh bless him kk
Definitely no deo. on the radiotherapy side,this was ok - just wash with simple soap..I did spritz myself with some fab non-alcohol Dior cologne which smells of summery seasidey sun lotion- not on my skin- just walked through a mist of it because I wanted to feel fresh - the radiotherapists actually told me how nice I smelled one day
Dh has gone to the osteopath so looks as though I'm taking ds to piano (thought I might be able to gt on with work and he'd go) still, he's getting some nice thing from M&S for supper afterwards.

It would be very naughty amber - don't risk it

I was allowed aluminium free deodorant. I asked and the dept gave me a list. I still use the one they told me was okay.

Glad your dad's keeping busy in his usual rebellious fashion, Kurri. How bad is his speech then? Can he still talk to your mother okay?

• we can virtually run together. I feel fitter already. Seriously though, it's the price of trainers that puts me off. I know that's feeble, but I only own some converse and they're no good, especially for someone with a dodgy back. My brother runs a lot and says proper trainers are essential, but apparently you have to spend over £50.

What's wrong with DH's back, MAS? Hope nothing serious. M&S tea sound mmm..

I have DS about the water / plug, but he reckons it must have been me or the cat.

forgot an 'asked' in that last sentence.

I bet it was the cat Smee - pesky beasts!

Dad can be understood by family, the staff are finding it hard to understand him. (His speech wasn't great before the stroke, - it had got very hesitant and stuttery - he'd get stuck on words), but I think the speech therapist is working on his swallowing reflex, because at the moment he's having to have special thickening stuff in his drinks, and pureed food, because he's choking on it and that could set off pneumonia.

I wondered about the cost of trainers too, - it seems a waste to invest if I can't get past the garden gate without collapsing But actually I don't think I'd know where to start, I know nothing about sporty things.

Hope the osteo helps DH MAS.