The Great Cancer Recovery part 5

[Topofthecliffs]

Amazingly we have now filled four threads and are ready to start again. How time flies when you are being purposeful! Come and join in.

You may have finished active treatment for cancer, be in remission or NED. You want to look forward not dwell on the past. You know you ought to be eating well, exercising more and picking up the threads of your old life. Join us and share the ups and downs of recovery. We understand!
Here are some resources we found helpful:
The Mountain Lion
https://www.cancerpal.co.uk/post/what-it-s-really-like-to-receive-a-cancer-diagnosis
Peter Harvey on Psychology of recovery:
https://workingwithcancer.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/After-the-treatment-finishes-then-what.pdf
Resources from Penny Brohn:
https://pennybrohn.org.uk/our-approach/resources/
Breast Cancer Now Moving Forward:
https://breastcancernow.org/information-support/support-you/moving-forward
Get your Oomph Back with Carolyn Garritt
http://www.oomph.london/home.html
Charity providing treats for cancer patients:
https://somethingtolookforwardto.org.uk/
Exercise is good for you:
^https://www.webmd.com/cancer/features/exercise-cancer-patients^
Any more suggestions? Post them below

(There is a thread for those suspected to have cancer, or newly diagnosed and facing treatment, and also a thread for those with Stage IV cancer who want to talk to others in the same boat, and you are welcome on any or all of these)

@SummerCycling Very well done on the weight loss and your diet sounds very healthy.

I've signed up to walk 30 miles in September for Cancer Research. I did a Cancer Research trial after CAR-T therapy which is aimed at improving the effectiveness and reducing the risk of relapse, so I want to give something back. I need to do more exercise and it will give me extra motivation. At the moment I can walk a mile, very slowly, but it's exhausting, so I hope I make it.

@Ohjoyohbliss walking is an excellent way to rebuild fitness. After my hip replacement I started walking on crutches and am now walking better than I have in years. You have made me think that would be a good substitute for cycling while I sort out my lady bits. I have realised that what I have is an old fashioned hernia into my groin! Lots of male cyclists get them and of course I have something a bit rare. I shall go to France next week with my friends then get the ball rolling on my return to have a scan and get things confirmed. I think it might explain the abdominal gripes I have as well, hopefully.
Today is my birthday so I am enjoying lots of nice messages and cards from lovely people. After an allotment session we are going out for a late lunch so I am getting going now.
Enjoy the bank holiday folks

@MrsSPenguinz Thanks!

@Topofthecliffs Thanks! Fun to hear I'm inspiring 😊I'm so glad I found the app it helps so much. It turns out my fibre intake was far lower that I'd thought: I eat plenty of fruit and veg, also seeds, but that isn't enough I've learned, unless quite of lot of that is lentils. Also sugar, it's given me a much better understanding of how much there is generally, and especially in food like kefir and yoghurt. I also learned Cheddar has practically zero sugar, which again, I hadn't known. Incredible how much sugar one apple has for example; of course other people might already realise but I hadn't done.

It does take some time to input the info but I couldn't do without it now. I certainly feel it's optimising my diet and the speed of weight loss is right for me too at 1.5 to 2kg per month. You can choose how fast you want to lose weight and it will give a guideline how many calories to set as your daily max. It then shows the stats for one day, one week and four weeks.

I've never done 'supported' diets before, I mean like joining a slimming club or app. I was interested in the new jabs, but didn't really want to start yet another medication (the ones I am on are all for medical conditions requiring prescribed medicines). I don't have what people refer to as 'food noise' but have been known to comfort eat. Plus with the jabs, it seems that once you start, when do you stop? I wouldn't have qualified on the NHS and I didn't want to risk any side effects. I do understand why certain other people do go on them, obviously. I'm so happy I'm managing it the natural way and really hope I can lose enough to wear my pre cancer clothes. I estimate about another 4-5kg for that.

I hope you find out what's causing your stomach ache and swelling, that it's nothing scary and is possible to get rid of.

@Ohjoyohbliss Thanks!

Good luck with the walk. I remember how I was on chemo - the amount of exercise I managed some days was getting from my bed to the sofa, and I had to rebuild it up from that. I did it very gradually and even now I do think if I hadn't been through all those chemos and targeted therapies I'd be up to more exercise (I mean more in one day) than I am. But I absolutely love sports and the sports club is one of the main things in my life.

Over how long a period are the 30 miles supposed to be? That is a LOT of walking. Do you have a physio to guide you how to build it up at a rate that is right for you? I hope it goes well.

@Zoopet Lovely news about your DD and DS! Good luck in France, I hope you have a great holiday.

Happy Birthday @Topofthecliffs Have a lovely birthday lunch and enjoy France. Every birthday feels like an achievement now. Sounds sensible to swap the cycling for something else until it heals.

Sounds like you are making excellent progress on the diet @SummerCycling

Wow @Ohjoyohbliss 30 miles is impressive to be doing, hope its manageable and you can get some nice walks. I love going round botanical gardens.

We are working on the downstairs bathroom and small room next to it which we will make into a laundry room as well as the garden. We have finally started to get rain so the lawn is turning back to green though now has a few silkie head sized holes in as it weakened but they aren't that big so should resolve easily. Also silkies stay in when its wet as they aren't supposed to get wet. We have cleared, cleaned and sorted through everything that was in small room and cleaned the walls and floor and now painting it. Then we will tackle the lino floor as we want to change it to tiles. Plan is to then move washing machine and drier from the downstairs bathroom which is DSs bathroom now. Then we paint in downstairs bathroom and after shed arrives we take up lino, get tiling done and a bath put in for DS. It should make things nicer for DS and improve the house.

DH has worked on his classic car this morning, will have Sunday roast then will do some gardening, mainly clearing leaves / apples and also we had a few things from the small room which need cutting up outside we can do. Also means DS will take a bath as he does that when we garden.

@SummerCycling
Over how long a period are the 30 miles supposed to be? That is a LOT of walking. Do you have a physio to guide you how to build it up at a rate that is right for you? I hope it goes well.

It's 30 miles in the 30 days of September, so an average of a mile a day. Feels doable, weather permitting. No, I don't have any expert guidance but I used to do a lot of walking and I still enjoy it, it just exhausts me now.

The "regular" walk I used to do from home is three miles but I haven't managed that yet. I've got plans for a few short, easy walks I can do and I'm going to turn on Strava every time I leave the house, even if I'm just going to my friend's a few doors away, so it will all add up.

@Ohjoyohbliss Yes, I can completely imagine it exhausts you now. It's a wonderful thing to do and I hope it goes well. When did you finish (if you've finished) your cancer treatment?

The short answer is that my last major treatment was in late March but the consultant did say "people underestimate the extent and duration of fatigue from this treatment" and I'm the living proof of that.

The long story:
I had chemo-immunotherapy Aug-Dec last year, was very sick with it so couldn't eat much and got neutropaenic sepsis, which nearly finished me off. Ended up needing a wheelchair or wheely frame to go anywhere as I had lost all muscle tone.

It didn't clear all the cancer so I had radiotherapy in Feb-Mar and CAR-T cell therapy in late March followed by a drug trial aimed at boosting the CAR-T and reducing the risk of relapse. That ended in the middle of June. Scan early July showed NED.

I'm now having monthly IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulins) to shore up my immune system. Next month I will start getting childhood vaccinations all over again.

@Ohjoyohbliss It's all actually very recent then. I'm sorry to hear you had sepsis and were so unwell on top of everything else.

How great about NED in July!

It's amazing you're walking so much already considering all of that 💪🏆

Went to a spa day the day before yesterday and had a lovely day with swimming, 2 classes, a facial for DH, hands for me including hot stones, outdoor spa and indoor spa and roast dinner and dessert for lunch. I have ordered some bulbs as it will be time to plant bulbs soon.

DH and I fixed the lights in the kitchen which were flickering and replaced the spotlights. We also have removed the lino in the small room, painted it once and added filler and thrown out the lino. I cleaned the kitchen and the floors. Now about to have a Chinese takeaway. Had plumber round for a quote and getting electrician round for a quote as we will need new plumbing and electrics for moving washing machine and drier and adding a wash basin.

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

The spa day sounds wonderful @MrsSPenguinz

Once you've finished doing up your lovely house and garden, I think you need to invite us all over 😃😂

How's the walking going so far @Ohjoyohbliss ?

My exercise hasn't been going to plan because I've been ill the last two weeks. I haven't overeaten but gained a kg. I suppose from just sitting around.

Your birthday is at such a great time of year @Topofthecliffs

Thanks @SummerCycling when I was a child I hated it as everybody was on holiday and I never had anybody around to have a proper party with. I think my DM was a bit hopeless about organising anything!
I hope you are feeling better now. It is frustrating when you are trying to be consistent with fitness and life puts obstacles in your path. Illness, injury, or family upsets, all throw you off track.
I am taking things easy to avoid provoking the hernia but I managed a weekend of super wife behaviour. I cleaned the house, did the laundry and shopping, baked a cake and potted some plants. I also changed the gearbox oil on a Volvo diesel engine which made me laugh. Not really grandmother behaviour!
I have found a brilliant new way of decluttering. I decided I wanted to get rid of 50 percent of my possessions to make space, and the technique is to line up the objects, let's say ten old jumpers, and decide which five are my favourites. The least loved five go straight out. For some reason it is different to going through a whole drawer deciding whether to keep or chuck. I have thrown out old shoes, kitchen equipment, bottles of vinegar, tea towels and all sorts in the last few days painlessly! Now I need to teach DH this radical new method as it is his stuff that is ruining my house! At least all my clothes are now put away and there is space in the cupboards. It needn't be 50 percent, it could just be 10 or 20 or 30 percent but the principle is working for me. I will start on books and pictures when I get back from France next weekend.

And I am home! Four days of lovely sunny cycling round the Cote de Granite Rose and back on the ferry. There were the usual club fallouts but I managed about 150 miles without breaking and had some lovely meals. Now catching up on laundry and family.
How is everyone?

Please can I butt in?
I have recently had a lung resection for cancer (adenocarcinoma in a 2cm tumour and coincidentally a second more malignant tumour was discovered hidden behind). I’m now being monitored 6 monthly for 5 years. I have been told that, because I have multiple nodules in both lungs, more cancerous changes will happen and be acted upon accordingly.
I’m obviously lucky in that these tumours have been removed but I feel like I have a sword of Damocles hanging over me. Is this normal? I’m still quite breathless 6 weeks postoperative, I understand that that will improve.
Apologies if wrong place to ask, I haven’t found much on MN about lung cancer (and the MacMillan website scared me silly!)

Thanks @SummerCycling Hope you are fully recovered now. It would be lovely to have everyone over when we are finished though we have some way to go yet.

Glad you had a lovely time cycling @Topofthecliffs

So sorry you've been told more cancerous changes will happen @Tiddlywinks63 and very normal for that to make you feel on edge. Hope the breathing will improve, I had breast cancer and the breathing definitely improved after treatment finished with that and now back to normal but don't know much about lung cancer.

Just been working on house and garden here - garden have planted some bulbs, cleared leaves and from silkies and its pretty done for year apart from once a week maintenance of mainly leaves / silkies. We've had electrician round for a quote, been deep cleaning DSs bathroom, removed the old lino in it, put a rug down as temporary flooring. Laundry room have removed lino cleaned all walls / floors etc done filler and first coat of paint. Am researching jacuzzi baths as think DS would love one. Ordered the worktop for laundry room and did the diagram with the radius corner and they are making it. The electrician did point out our boiler in the bathroom has a plug so been looking into solutions. Also we realised walls weren't even in laundry room (old houses!) but I have found a solution which hopefully works.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend.

Here at last are my bantams.
The black with white flecks is a cuckoo pekin called Lily and the other 2 are millefleur bantams.(Millie and Fleur.)
They are very entertaining!
My allotment buddy is looking after them this week as I will be in France.

Love your chickens @Zoopet Enjoy France.

Oh @Zoopet I have chicken envy now! I am doing lots of travelling currently but maybe if I settle down a bit I could have chickens again. I did love the fresh eggs and their utter chickeniness! I will have to give it some thought.
All well here now the bike is clean and the laundry and shopping is done.
I managed to wind up a man on our trip who is my friends partner. He is a patronising sexist arsehole and I called him out when he was belittling my friend. He had a sulk for four days then shouted at my poor DH telling him he should control me 😂 I think it is hilarious but am a bit worried for my friend. She needs to leave him but she is blind to how horrible he is.