My MIL didn't do the support groups either, though she had good friends from nursing school that I'm sure she leaned on.
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Medical Health
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 dmno29 |
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Posts: 6946 (07/01/09 3:49 PM) Cheeeeese Gromit! |
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FinnanHaddie |
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Posts: 11854 (07/01/09 4:00 PM) Fishy Cheese |
I didn't do any support groups either (although admittedly, support groups for ovarian cancer are much harder to come by than groups for breast cancer).
They just don't suit us quiet loners/possible serial killers.
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Miss Moppet |
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Posts: 34080 (07/01/09 4:10 PM) Reporter Cheese |
I wouldn't care about Mom's quiet loner/serial killer tendencies if she were leaning on her doctors for some of this info. Like, she says that the
medicine she must continue to take forever (I don't know what it is, but they give it to people who have had breast cancer) makes her really tired and
nauseated sometimes. I say, have you talked to Dr. Denduluri about that? "Oh, no, what can she tell me, I know this is just how it's going to
be."
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Kero11 |
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Posts: 6592 (07/01/09 5:10 PM) Choose Your Own Cheese |
My dad went to support groups, but he wouldn't call them support groups. He'd just call it his cancer group, and that they'd discuss where to get
supplies locally, tricks, etc. He never mentioned that they'd talk about getting through the day, but it was a support group that was held through the
hospital, and he even tried to drag my mom's mom to them sometimes, because he liked them so much. It was a language thing with him, I guess. Whatever. He
really did like it, and did get lots of tips from them about various things, so there's that. But he only went the first two times he was sick. When he got
sick the last time, he was too sick to go.
But my dad would often say that he felt that some things were just the way they were now, and that he had to accept them. I think he was just dealing with really crappy doctors locally, but he didn't have the strength to seek out better doctors, and my mom didn't have the time to drive him up to the Mayo anymore. Dad didn't want to be away from home that long. |
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FinnanHaddie |
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Posts: 11861 (07/02/09 10:48 AM) Fishy Cheese |
Miss Moppet wrote:I'm assuming she's on tamoxifen or femara. Your mom's reactions may be partly a generational thing (they never question doctors, anything doctors do, or anything doctors tell them to do) and partly depression. The answer to "Oh, no, what can she tell me, I know this is just how it's going to be" is "There are several different drugs they give women who've had breast cancer and if this one is making you feel like crap, she has other options. She can switch you to another drug, change the dosing schedule, or recommend foods, medicines, or something else you can do to alleviate the side effects. She can also check you for anemia or some other problem that may be causing the fatigue and nausea and not the drug. Just because you've had cancer it doesn't mean you need to spend the rest of your life feeling like crap. Your doctor can help you get back to feeling good again, but she can't do that if you're not willing to tell her when you feel lousy." Then box her ears; sometimes that helps. 
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Miss Moppet |
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Posts: 34088 (07/02/09 12:06 PM) Reporter Cheese |
Tamoxifen, that's it. I was blanking out on that yesterday.
Anyway, it is almost as if Mom is committed to spending the rest of her life feeling like crap, which drives me insane. But I can't tell her anything because she doesn't pay attention to me. I have asked her if I can accompany her on her next doctor's appointment, though. ETA: Actually, Femara, Mom says. I told her that I put all her business out in the street because she won't listen to me, and that my friend [your real name] who had ovarian cancer had some words to share with her. And then I read her your whole message verbatim. I think she is perhaps mad. I told her to take it up with you. She said she didn't want to talk now because she was watching Venus Williams at Wimbledon. I told her that Venus can't help her with
her nausea and fatigue!
Last Edited By: Miss Moppet
07/02/09 12:45 PM.
Edited 1 times.
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FinnanHaddie |
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Posts: 11865 (07/02/09 1:01 PM) Fishy Cheese |
Did you box her ears?
If Femara is making her feel like crap Arimidex, Tamoxifen, or Evista are other options. There may be others; this isn't my cancer, so I don't keep up with it as much as ovarian cancer (for which there are absolutely no new developments and the precious little research done on it all seems to be studies confirming the results of earlier studies; can we try something new, dammit?  ). I take Evista for osteoporosis but it's also FDA-approved for breast
cancer.
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kgoklahoma |
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Posts: 3024 (07/04/09 6:22 PM) Trekkie Cheese |
The charges so far for my colonoscopy - $2,135.50.
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Stellaluna69 |
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Posts: 5662 (07/05/09 1:08 AM) Choose Your Own Cheese |
What?! Jeez, for what they are doing, THEY should pay YOU.
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kgoklahoma |
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Posts: 3025 (07/05/09 12:24 PM) Trekkie Cheese |
Well, thankfully, I have really great insurance, so I haven't had to pay for anything (yet). The clinic had sent me a letter back in January when I was
going to get it done (ice storm prevented my cousin from coming to town to get me), and they said I would have to make a co-pay, but I didn't when I did
finally show up, and I don't think I'll have to.
It's a small price to pay to know there's nothing wrong in there. 
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FinnanHaddie |
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Posts: 11894 (07/05/09 7:41 PM) Fishy Cheese |
The onion slipped while I was chopping it and I gave myself a deep gash on my middle finger. Ouch!
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kers |
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Posts: 2100 (07/05/09 8:39 PM) Dude Cheese |
Two years ago, I had a badly abscessed tooth that got a root canal, but it was an excruciating few weeks because of the abscess. Now? The same stupid tooth
hurts again. I've had a root-canaled tooth crack before, and I had to get an implant, which is French for "big bucks." I hope this isn't the
same situation.
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FinnanHaddie |
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Posts: 11903 (07/06/09 11:31 AM) Fishy Cheese |
It could also be a failed root canal, which occasionally happens. It happened to one of mine, and I had to have an apicoectomy (they go in through the side
& cut out the decaying root tip, then sew you back up). Have you seen a dentist yet?
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kgoklahoma |
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Posts: 3026 (07/06/09 12:19 PM) Trekkie Cheese |
Hey, steg - remember your experience with the wrong end of the epipen? One of my friends here at work did the exact same thing this weekend
and spent several hours at the Urgent Care clinic.
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Judois |
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Posts: 8188 (07/06/09 12:27 PM) Faerie Cheese |
One hour in the dentist chair this morning to replace three fillings. The Novocaine is starting to wear off now and now I can feel the ache on that side from
the fillings. Ow. Waaaahhhhh.....
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kers |
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Posts: 2101 (07/06/09 12:50 PM) Dude Cheese |
ould also be a failed root canal, which occasionally happens. Yeah, my now-implant tooth had two failed root canals before it cracked and we gave up on it. In any case, I saw the endodontist this morning and the tooth looks good. He thinks I've been grinding during the day, when the mouth guard can't help me, so he put me on steroids short-term and I'm going to start wearing my mouth guard when I'm watching tv or reading. Yay, no new surgery! |
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everydayangel21 |
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Posts: 7233 (07/06/09 12:57 PM) Turtle Cheese |
Is your mouthguard the kind that just goes over one set of teeth or both sets, kers?
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stegasaurus |
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Posts: 5343 (07/06/09 1:31 PM) Züger alpkäse |
kgo, thanks -- that makes me feel like less of an idiot (at least not the single biggest idiot out there). Tell your friend s/he has my sympathies, and that it
really does get better the next day. But Ow.
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kers |
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Posts: 2102 (07/06/09 1:48 PM) Dude Cheese |
It goes over the bottom set of teeth. The tooth in question is on the bottom.
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dmno29 |
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Posts: 6956 (07/07/09 11:55 AM) Cheeeeese Gromit! |
After suffering with extreme pain and swelling in my wrists, fingers and now ankles and toes, I have been unofficially diagnosed with Lyme disease, one month
before we are moving a state that doesn't have Lyme disease. Figures. Blood results will be back Friday but he gave me a 10 day script of antibiotics
anyway because there has been such a high incidence of it this year. Judging by the amount of ticks we've had this year, which has been way more than in
past years, I'm not surprised. A good friend and another friend's father were also just diagnosed. I didn't have the rash and haven't had the
extreme fatigue that usually go with Lyme so we're hoping we caught it early enough for the antibiotics to wipe it out completely. I just want the pain to
go away before our cruise next week.
Oh and apparently antibiotics mixing with alcohol is not the bad thing I always thought it was, the doc said that's a myth he always tries to dispel. It can cause sun sensitivity but since our cruise is to Canada I don't have to worry as much, though I will still use sunscreen when we're outside for any length of time. |
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