Hi all, I'm new to this forum.
Posted on: Tue, 05/08/2008 - 14:50
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Hi all, I'm new to this forum.
Hi
My name is Steveb, I've been looking on this forum for a few months but haven't had the nerve to join & post anything.
I was diagnosed with NHL in March 06 & was in hospital in Rennes France which is where I have lived for the past five years since spliting with the wife, I spent four weeks in hospital & was haveing chemo for seven months, then two years on Retoximin,I have the last dose of that in October.
The doctors over here were very pleased with how I reacted to the treatment & I was back to work after eight months, but I feel worn out & very tired all the time, does anyone else feel like that? if so any advice or tips would be very welcome.
Also is there any other members liveing in or have been treated in France?
Steveb
hi steve, welcome to the site. although iam not familiar with your type of cancer there are lots on the site whom will be more than willing to help with any answers to your questions. only thing i can add iam undergoing chemo at the moment and that does make you tired. iam no expert but with all the treatment you have gone through it will take a while for your body to recover. take care love babs.
i may have cancer but iam not ill.
Yes, I have been feeling very tired since I finished my chemo. I did try working while I was on chemo, but the job didn't work out for other reasons than just commuting in heavy traffic.
I have felt for the past few weeks as though I was walking through quick drying concrete, and I have taken my daily walk for half an hour with perhaps one or two exceptions. At the 8 week point, I found myself last week walking easily in a place where I had been struggling to climb the embankment, but had no memory of doing it. I do still feel tired when I get back, and have to take my trainers off as they feel like lead weights.
I am told by a friend that it takes about 9 months to feel right, and another friend didn't get her energy back for 2 years. It is a curve, and you feel better all the time. It is only when you look back you realise that you had no energy.
I am going to try again to work in about a month, and expect to feel tired at first. I did work for several months when I had cancer, and didn't know it, and coped then, so I can cope now.
In case you have forgotten, work is much more tiring than being a layabout. I can remember getting back from work and being too tired to get out of the car, and I was well then.
Just rest as much as you can, and don't try too hard. Try and get a sleep in your lunch hour, even for 10 minutes can help. Expect to fall into bed straight after supper and be glad when you can do more.
If you can negotiate with your employers to do shorter hours for a short while, say 2-3 days a week, you might feel a bit less tired, or maybe leaving an hour early every day, or arriving an hour later. Whatever pattern suits you.
I think that being at work helps you to structure your life and you can measure your progress, but you don't have to knock yourself out. Of course, speaking personally, I need the money, and I expect you do too.
I woke up at 5 this morning properly, and have been OK all day barring a dip at around 2 pm.
All the best.
Ruth
Triumph and Disaster are imposters