Not an exciting topic by any means but I will use this blog every now and then to share what it’s like going through the cancer experience like I have. One thing I’m still trying to manage is the chemo fatigue.
This isn’t fatigue that you can just sleep off or that a little more coffee will fix. This is full blown exhaustion. Like you suddenly hit a wall tired.
I have been able to do more and more and some days I feel fine and can push through without feeling too tired, but other days it hits and I’m exhausted and wiped out. Sometimes it will hit randomly.
Yesterday I was doing a lot in the morning and then in the early afternoon the dreaded fatigue hit. I had to lie down and rest. I took over an hour nap and still felt tired. I eventually managed to get up and muster the energy to take 3 of the kids to National Night Out. The fatigue is unpredictable and annoying.
I know it’s just temporary. Just like the hair loss was temporary. Just like the limitations from surgery are temporary. And eventually this fatigue will hopefully go away.
The mistake I make is I expect to return to normal quicker than it’s actually happening. Once chemo was over I thought my energy would come back right away and it’s getting better but I’m still very tired and worn out. I am doing the same thing with recovery from the mastectomy. Just because it’s normal healing time, it doesn’t mean I’m able to move or lift as much as used to. It takes time and I may not be where I want to be.
I’m not going to bounce right back like I want to. I had half of my chemo, then a baby, then the second round of chemo two weeks after delivery, then a double mastectomy and then got Covid two weeks after the surgery. It’s been a lot over the past nine months and what is typical recovery from chemo and a mastectomy may take a little longer because of all I’ve been through. And I also have five kids ages 7 and under…there’s little time to rest even with a sitter.
But it’s just temporary. I know I kept telling myself this when I was losing my hair and it’s what I will tell myself with the fatigue. It’s not easy but it will get better. It may be exhausting but I’m here. And this year is all about survival even if it comes with a lot of fatigue.
#pregnantwithcancer #breastcancerbattle #chemofatigue bilateralmastecomy #onetoughmother #chemo #chemotherapy
