Chemo treatment side affects.

Hi Sally Hopee5d40b glad you found us on here and I hope you’ll feel a little less alone, but I hear you, chemo is a strange time.

I found the taste and inability to eat to be quite tough.  This generally lasted the first 2 weeks of my 3 weekly cycle.  Pineapple, both fruit and juice was ok for me, I also ate a lot of cucumber and really bland crackers and bread.  I am sure others might have ideas too.

I blogged throughout my treatment, this one in particular might help you Chemo Tips Blog Link

And finally, don't forget the lovely folks at Macmillan are at the end of the phone, 8am to 8pm daily on 0800 808 0000 for a chat, a listening ear and some advice.  I found this very useful during my treatment.

Hope things improve soon, best wishes 

First one down  if they’ve given you anti nausea tablets definitely take them, I took mine as soon as I’d finished the steroids and that helped. I also took omeprazole (which you can get them to prescribe) and that helped a bit as did guzzling gaviscon. Nibbling on ritz crackers helped a bit too and eating a small amount regularly. I found citrus flavours and strong flavours like curries were more palatable. Getting outside for short walks also helped, as counterintuitive as that sounds. If you click on my name, you’ll see my story and some tips. The first one is always hard because you’ve no idea how you’re going to progress, I thought my goodness how much iller can I feel?!? Take each day as it comes, there’s always someone here to help x

Thank you for your response and tips. I also found that crackers help I will check about juice.  By the way do you know if ok to drink coffee? 

Yes it’s fine if you can stomach it (and you’re oncologist didn’t say to avoid it, I was on EC-T chemo and could) but in moderation as it can irritate your stomach. I think generally have a little of what you fancy and see if you can tolerate it  x

Hello Sally, The sickness did ease with me after a while but I found that ginger was a great help. Ginger biscuits and any herbal tea that included ginger.  I also agree with you about the change in our taste buds. The one thing that didn’t change was pineapple juice which luckily I love. Please be kind to yourself because you are at the start of your journey and it’s hard sometimes but so worthwhile. 

I forgot to add my nurses also told me to take the anti sickness pill before the nausea starts and that did help too.

I drank coffee, I don’t recall being told to avoid anything other than unprocessed cheese and raw meat/eggs etc - the same as if you were pregnant

Thank you. I am really trying to be strong i am normally so much in control and for the first time I feel helpless. Thank you for your reply knowing I am not alone really helps. I will get some stock up on the ginger.  

Hello. 
Well done you for getting through your first Chemo. Celebrate the little wins. 

I echo what everyone else has said. Ginger biscuits are meant to be good. Take the anti sickness medication that you were given. Eat little and often. 
I have been taking fruit smoothies. 

We have got this. Sending hugs. x

Hi Sally, lovely to see someone at the exact same stage as me, yes yes yes I feel exactly the same, had my first chemo last Friday, That night couldn't lay flat because the room was spinning so I had to build my pillow up on a slope. Saturday ok Sunday ok but a little indigestion. Monday the feeling of Acute morning sickness, like when I was pregnant. Omg at 53 I thought those days were gone. Hahaha. But if I thought of it like morning sickness it was less scary. Then Tuesday hit, the worst day. Omg. The indigestion was off the scale even my jaw and ears hurt. I ended up calling our cancer nurse team and got a prescription for Lansoprazole. But I wish I had been warned about it so I could have got some in sooner. But Tesco minestrone soup. Omg life saver with one slice of wholemeal bread. Yum yum. I feel better when I have eaten but not a big meal. I am sleeping for about 3 to 4 hours then getting up ( no point fighting it) I'm lucky as my kids are grown up and nocturnal so there is always someone to watch TV with and refresh my hot water bottle. Hahaha. Today ( one week in) I can feel my stomach is not right but I'm not ill. Another thing is my eyes seem more fuzzy. Like I'm finding my glasses irritating. And can't look at my phone for long, and if something moves fast on the TV it it gives me motion sickness. Strange. Wednesday morning at 7.30 am. I called my sister and just cried down the phone to her for a while because I was overwhelmed with all the different feelings it was throwing at me at once. It really helped and she thanked me for having the courage to reach out to her when I needed to. ( That was another learning curve for me too) . Anyway love hugs and support from me.