One of the difficult parts of cancer is not the cancer itself, it’s coping with the dreaded side effects of chemotherapy. My doctors and nurses have been pretty spot on with their predictions of what to expect. My first round of chemotherapy in January was 2 different chemo drugs for 7 days reduced 50%. My second round was maintenance chemo so just 1 drug was used for 3 days. A lot of my side effects were worse because of the shape I was in when I arrived. Here is a list of all the crazy side effects I experienced during my initial hospital stay.
Memory loss– There are about 3-4 days at the beginning of treatment I do not remember at all, probably a good thing since I was in the ICU. Now I have short term memory loss some days.
Nightmares- Terrible dreams where I would wake up sweating & short of breath.
Body aches/Bone pain- Every single inch of my body hurt. If someone had a broken back I’m sure that’s what it would feel like. Worst pain I have ever felt. My bones felt sore like my entire body was bruised.
Blood clot- Blood clot around my lung developed at week 2-3. The pain was so sharp. I could not lay down flat for weeks because of the pain. I had to sleep sitting up. I couldn’t take a deep breath for days. I’m now prescribed Fragmin injections to be taken every day, in my leg, to prevent future clotting.
Weight/Appetite loss- I lost almost 25lbs. I had a lot of muscle before & now it’s all gone. I needed a Physiotherapist to help me walk again, I was so weak. My appetite wasn’t so good either. The hospital food doesn’t help that.
Nausea/Vomiting- Everything made me sick. The smell of my food tray, the blankets, the smell of the hospital. I vomited non-stop for weeks. I would wake myself up from naps & get sick. The middle of the night was the worst.
Diarrhea/Constipation- Had a combination of both. Diarrhea at first for a few weeks, then the opposite from all the pain meds.
Withdrawal- From pain meds. Once they stopped giving me them my body suffered physically. I had the shakes, my mouth was so sore it felt like my teeth were going to fall out. I couldn’t focus & I had blurred vision.
Hair loss- I shaved my head before it all fell out. My eyebrows & eyelashes thinned out. All of my body hair stopped growing. Still to this day it’s very light & thin.
Tiredness- I slept a lot at first. I had to take 3-4 hours naps in the middle of the day because I just couldn’t stay awake. Even now at home I feel fatigued easily & don’t have as much energy as I used to.
Nosebleeds- Had them a few times. Not a lot of blood but they would last a long time.
Reaction to platelets- I had a reaction to platelets I was given. Within 10 minutes I started to get red spots all over my hands, arms & face. My lips and throat swelled up and I couldn’t breath.
Skin changes- Very sensitive. The skin on the tips of my fingers & toes peeled off. My face was very clear though, not one blemish. My body did swell up pretty bad right after. My face was very puffy from all the fluids I was given.
Heartburn- Really bad at night. Hard to lay flat on my back. Not triggered by certain foods, just comes out of nowhere.
Eye infection- My eyes were super sensitive to light. I woke up one morning & couldn’t open my eyes for hours. I had to wear sunglasses inside. My eyes burned when I tried to open them.
Infertility- My periods have completely stopped. Treatment for Leukemia almost always makes a woman go into premature ovarian failure.
One Day At A Time 