**Tamoxigang heading towards hearts and valentines - thread 47**

[BetsyBoop]

roses are red
violets are blue
sugar is sweet
but cakes are better

foofoo thanks, I will look into ensure drinks, can't say Iv heard of them.

greeneyedcat sounds like you had a rough time, but good to hear you felt better reasonably quickly,
DF has slept for most of today! The good thing is that's he is retired so there is no pressure to go to work. Luckily he has had no soreness on his skin yet, just internal. I'm hoping he doesn't get all the side effects, poor thing. Hopefully the drs tomorrow can recommend painkillers to help with the sore throat. Thanks for replying, it's been a great help

pickle that's not very good of the school, of course the poor soul is going to play up, he's 9 fgs, he isn't going to be able to vent his feelings verbally is he it's not surprising he is 'playing up' outside.
TBH it sounds like he's doing really well, especially playing in the concert, bless him,
I hope the school get back to you in a positive manner, do they have a welfare officer? She/he should be trained to deal with these situations.
Good luck

Yay, I'm finished chemo!!!!
Rads will start in 9th April, I will have 33 sessions including boosters. They will try schedule rads during school hours so I can continue to do school run and taxi god hobbies.

malt good luck for tomorrow.

pickle welcome home!!

Hooray for the end of your chemo, mom! Good luck with the rads.

Pickle, your ds is doing brilliantly if he's keeping up in his lessons and even managing the solo. Utter failure of imagination and common empathy for the school to react in ths way. And, as you say, it just isn't any good expecting children to share this huge and difficult stuff as they seem to expect, and then somehow blaming them when they don't. Grr. Idiots.

greeneyed mums are wonderful arnt they. My Mum comes over and does the ironing and helps me out financially and she will be 80 next ,
Month.

Did a quick middle of the night trip to A&E as rash had got worse and lips felt odd. Dr had told me to go straight there if that happened. Great hospital and docs, whisked me straight in. I am ok, got some different tablets to try. Reassured after very thorough examination. Still bloody itchy though

Morning all

foofoo sorry to hear of your A&E trip, but glad you now have different tablets! I hope the itching stops soon xx

Mom yayyyyyyyy on having your last Chemo! Hope you are doing something nice to celebrate!

I'm heading off to hospital now overnight bag packed, just in case! Although I am hoping all will go well with the biopsy and I will be back home by this afternoon! she says hopefully

really didn't realise it was your biopsy today, hope t all goes ok.

And hip hip hooray tomom for last chemo

Just a quickie from me as I'm off to work only for the morning on phased return, thanks for the good wishes

Really fingers crossed all goes well do let us know won't you

Foo foo sorry to hear of your hospital trip

pickle I crossed post with you last night. Your poor DS, I would meet with school and request support for him, especially next time you are in hospital.

really best of luck today. Fingers crossed for you!

foofoo sorry to hear about your A&E trip but good to know they responded quickly.

malt enjoy your morning.

really hope you don't need the overnight bag.

Mom it must be a great feeling to be at the end of chemo.

I sent an email to ds's teacher saying what I want him to do to ensure that ds is not put in a position where he ends up getting into scraps with other pupils and lashing out. I've suggested ds spends his break times either helping in the library (which he loves), having somewhere he can go to read quietly and being able to do music practice. I hope that my requests are implemented.

I will be collecting ds from school today and even with a load of make up I look very different to before I went into hospital. Maybe seeing how I look now will help them understand a bit more what life is like for ds. Before I went into hospital everyone said how well I looked and how they couldn't believe there was anything wrong with me!

Hope everyone has a good day. I'm looking forward to my first day at home and hoping I remember to take all my meds without someone telling me to

Hello all, seems to be an eventful week for this merry crew.
foofoo hope the new tablets sort you out! you will probably feel better just for the reassurance of a good once over.
malt hope your first morning back was enjoyable! not too tiring and that everybody made you feel special.
really good luck today! sounds like it is your turn for some good news.
mom yeh!
pickle dealing with how our DC are coping is one of the hardest things isn't it? My DD2 tends to bottle things up a and had a melt down at school on Monday. To be fair the school have been pretty good and DD1, not renowned for being obviously fond of her little sister stepped up to the plate and sorted her out.
Just got my lymph node biopsy results, as expected these were positive, but thanks to speaking to you lot, although not the best news, I know it isn't the end if the world either, so thanks for all your reassurances on that. I did ask the question about when I would be allowed to swim during the treatment, I got the rather blunt reply of not at all which has put paid to my plan of actually having the time to use the local health club for the first time in years!

Hi Bigger Buns - sorry for your results but really glad you're taking everyone's support to heart. With regard to the bmx questions, i'm sleeping on a wedge pillow (got it from amazon, 20 quid. Really uncomfortablly hard but i put a couple of other pillows on it and find the angle helps, it's more sore trying to lie flat). Having said that I've only needed to take my bigger pain killers 4 or 5 times since Sat, and none in the past 24 hours so although it's uncomfortable it's not painful, just sore. Am on ibuprofen and para now, hope that's reassuring.
Also work wise - the physio was very certain it should be 6 weeks off at least. Not allowed to do much on the computer before then. I'm trying to defer work now until end of easter hols which will be 7 weeks since op.
if you live anywhere near london you're welcome to my wedge when i'm done wiith it.

Hello harriet am down in Cornwall but thanks for the tips and good to hear you are already off the painkillers. Did you have a total node clearance as well? Was shown the drains today - not exactly subtle are they?

Had a lovely morning in school, lots of hugs, had a few funny looks from some children as I look so different now. But they were pleased to see me.Im sure tomorrow they'll just see me as me again. Great to be back and to have something new to focus on rather than cancer

Bigger buns sorry to hear that but it'll be ok what is next in your treatment sorry I can't remember where everyone is up to!

Pickle you sound like you're handling the school situation really well, unlike them !

Hope really is ok

Foo foo how are you ? Hey that could be the start of a poem :)

malt glad it went well. It must be a relief to get the first day over with. I can't imagine what it must be like to go back to work after 9 months off with something like this. The nice thing about children is they don't judge and they just accept you as you are.

Before I took sick leave I'd planned to work in between in patient treatment. Now I'm home after the first lot that thought seems utter madness so I'm looking at a similar length of time out.

Thanks pickle it's almost surreal going back after all this time. Feels strange that they've all been getting on with everyday life and I've been in this weird other world. Sounds like a good idea for you to have some time out

Just popping in to see if there's any news from Really.....am hoping you're ok.

Malt - hurrah for first day back at work. The kids probably won't give you a second glance next time you're in, I find the little ones are very accepting of things changing, they just get on with it.

Biggerbuns I had 1/3 positive nodes when I had my sentinel nodes removed. I then had the rest of the nodes out and fortunately these were all clear. There are plenty of us on here whose nodes weren't clear. As a result of spread to my node I had a CT and bone scan to check for spread elsewhere - you may get offered the same. I have to say, having those scans and waiting for subsequent results was terrifying, but then at least you get the full picture and can be treated accordingly.

Well I now have one more rad session to go! Can't believe I'm nearly at the end of this episode in my life. I want to thank all you beautiful ladies for holding my hand so many times when I've had wobbles. You really are my most reliable source of advice, support and information, more so in some cases than any Drs I've seen. So big to you all

pickle hope you on ok at DS school. I have sometimes felt it useful to not look chipper and have make up on. Having chemo hair (or lack of I) can work to your advantage sometimes. I have never been whisked through A&E as quickly as I was last night.

foofoo I assume you have one of those chemo cards you have to carry everywhere? I was discharged with one and it seems to be a fast pass through A&E which I hope I don't need. Did you manage to sort out your itchy meds today?

I will take your advice next time and particularly if I have to attend any meetings at school about ds's behaviour. As it was I was glad I'd made an effort if only to give myself some courage. Lots of people pleased to see me and the only one who didn't bother to ask how I am was the head of pastoral care. We had a quick chat instigated by me and she really doesn't seem to understand how worried ds was that I would go into hospital and not come out alive.

Ds took great delight in telling everyone that under my hat I was practically bald

Hi all

I'm home. Sore and a bit tearful (not sure why) but glad I didn't have to stay in. Doc said results should be back by Tuesday next week! MORE WAITING!

Thanks for all the support xx

Really it's not surprising you're tearful I'm sure we'd all be the same. Sorry you have to wait longer I hope you get some sleep tonight

Thanks malt

Glad your first day back went well. I knew it would. Children are perfect for bringing you back to the reality of 'normal' life! I'm so glad I have been able to work, pretty much throughout the whole time. It's definitely helped me

Hello to everyone. I hope you all had a not-too-terrible day and felt well as can be and well treated by others Overwhelming day for me, medically. Sorry to crash and run but I've one question I'm hoping someone may know the answer to; can a low grade sarcoma 'change/ turn' into a high grade one? Consultant said mine would've.

Pickle, pastoral care isn't v pastoral, clearly. What a joke. Bless the innocence of children, wonder and weird pride. Love them!

Really, I'm not surprised that you're teary. Largely relief of not staying in?

Goodness I hope someone is able to answer your question, if not could you call your consultant's secretary to get an answer from him?

My Hickman line is playing up so the district nurse came out today to check it and told me what to look for in case of infection.