How to Cope

Hi again AMF and well done navigating across to this corner of the Macmillan Community.

I don’t have Hodgkin's Lymphoma but as I said in your post in the New to Community I have been on my Lymphoma journey for over 26 years first diagnosed way back in 1999 at 43……. when my first rare (8 in a million) ‘incurable’ but treatable slow growing Low-Grade Cutaneous T-Cell Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL) was found.

I eventually reached Stage 4a in late 2013 when a second, also rare (4 in a million) type of very aggressive High-Grade Peripheral T-Cell NHL was then presenting so although my Lymphoma ‘type’ is different I most definitely appreciate the challenges of this journey rather well……. having had over 750hrs of chemo, 45 radiotherapy zaps and 2 Allogenic (donor) Stem Cell Transplants (SCT) between Oct 2013 and Oct 2015.

In some way I can understand your anger….. it’s not a journey we would look to be navigating.

But your anger needs to be channeled in the right direction…… promoting you to continue to focus on getting through your remaining treatments and putting your HL to bed permanently.

You are concerned that you may push people you live away…… can you identify 3 triggers or reasons that you think this is happening?

Have these people been part of your support network or have they, like many people who have not had cancer, be natural, or nonplussed to your diagnosis and don’t know how to support you…… possible not stepping up to the mark that you may think they should?

If they have been supportive you need to take a big breath and look for steps you can take to channel this anger.

My family, wife, 2 daughters and other family and friends were my essential support foundations….. especially on Christmas Eve 2014 when I was told, after 6 months that my first SCT had failed…… I was angry, but Christmas Morning was a new day.

I am now 10.5 years out from my last treatment, I turned 70 back in Nov and my focus is on living life.

Apparently feeling angry is a side effect of my treatment. I am very irritable and while I have spoken to my oncology team, I am no further forward. Looking to see if anyone had had the same experience and what they did. 

Which one of the HL treatments are you having?….. this will help group members give you their first hand experiences.

Hello - I'm 81 now - diagnosed with HL in September 2019 - 2 years of chemo followed by 2 years of immunotherapy after a gap of about 5 months between treatments.

Not once feeling angry - fed up with the regime of being treated + reviews but never angry. Perhaps I was lucky? Have the staff told you that the anger will continue or fade as the treatment proceeds? Is there a cancer drop-in centre (Maggies) who can listen and offer support?

Seeing the next message from Mike- my chemo was ABVD although after a few sessions the "V" was dropped.

Good luck

Pete

I am having R-CHOP. 

Hi again AMF ….. that is highly unusual…… I have only ever seen R-CHOP used for Non Hodgkin’s Lymphomas…… I had 6 cycles of the stronger, more aggressive R-EPOCH….. 750hrs of chemo that are basically the same drugs for my two types of Non Hodgkin’s Lymphomas……. and did not suffer any anger issues.

I know that this is going to sound silly….. but are sure you have Hodgkin’s Lymphoma or do you have Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma?…… as they are rather different.

I have Nodular Lymphocyte Predominant Hodgkin Lymphoma. Apparently anger can be a side effect of the steroid treatment.