SIDE EFFECTS

SIDE EFFECTS

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, this is probably the most anticipated and most dreaded part of this blog. This is what every cancer patient fears, thinks about, and associates most with their disease and with chemotherapy.

The side effects.

What could they be?

What am I going to get?

Will they be manageable?

And so on and so forth. 

There are basics that everybody who receives chemo deals with, and some pertain to certain drugs more than others. Some side effects come on right away, and some can be delayed, almost a week after treatment. It's all dictated by everyone's body, and everybody reacts differently, but it is usually consistent with each person. Once you know what you're dealing with after the first treatment, you can prepare for the rest of them. I (once again) will try my best to list them all, but please feel free to reach out and add what you'd like to see OR if you have any tips to the ones already listed! 

LET'S. DO. THIS.

Exhaustion

You will be tired. Obviously. I'm listing this one because you need sleep.

I repeat, you need to sleep.

And not just your standard eight hours. You have to realize that your body is being put through a lot right now. It's basically under attack. If you're exhausted, let yourself sleep. There were days were I slept sixteen hours; I woke up in the morning, didn't eat until lunch time, and was back in bed by the mid afternoon. It sucks that all you have the energy for is sleeping, but sleeping is where the body heals itself, so let yourself be Sleeping Beauty. You're beautiful.

Dry Mouth

There were times during my chemo infusion where my mouth was like this:

Yes, that is the Sahara Desert. Yes, I am overdramatic. But you get the idea. 

Hydration is the best solution for this. If your mouth is constantly wet, it can't be dry, right? Little candies can be good to suck on as well, if you wanna change it up a bit. 

Mouth Sores

If dry mouth wasn't annoying enough, I can step it up a notch a talk about mouth sores. Personally, these were my version of hell, the vane of my existence. I would get them in the mouth all the way down into my throat, making it difficult to eat, drink, swallow, and even breathe sometimes. Awful. However, there are multiple ways to make it easier; they generally last three to seven days.

• Glutamine: anything containing glutamine is going to help. I can't explain the medical reasoning behind it, but it does.
• "Magic Mouthwash": I wish I knew the ingredients to them, but it's literally what it sounds like. There's multiple versions, some you swish and spit, some you swallow, and they can really change the game. Just make sure you're not allergic to any of the ingredients!
• Ice: Chewing on ice during infusions helps limit the mouth sores by limiting the blood flow to the mouth and therefore limiting the poison flow to the mouth. If your infusions are super long, I recommend chewing on ice when you start to feel a little scratchy in the mouth. It's slow to come, which helps you prepare. 
• What to Eat: Milkshakes are very good because they are cold and give a nice numbing sensation, and you can add protein powder to them to make sure you get enough nutrients; the important thing is that you stay strong since eating and drinking are difficult to do with mouth sores. Frozen popsicles also work, and most have fruit in them! Broths are also soothing and good for the body. 

Nausea

Nausea is probably the most stereotypical chemotherapy side effect, and the one people fear the most. I'm sorry, but I am going to be real:

You will get sick.

It's hard, but the sooner you make peace with that, the easier it will be to deal with it. 

The go to medication for nausea is Zofran. I'm pretty sure everyone uses it at some point during their treatments. There's also other medications in case Zofran isn't effective, such as Compazine, Olanzopine, Ativan, and Decadrone. Just to name a few. 

I know some people hate taking pills, and while that isn't completely unavoidable, there are other more natural combatants against nausea. 

• Bubbly Water/Soda: Always good for settling the stomach, 7UP has a strong reputation for helping. 
• Ginger: Ginger also is very helpful! I got, like, a million bags of ginger chews before treatment. 

• Plain Foods: You always need food in your system, which I know can be hard when you drink water and throw up. Plain foods, like pasta, toast, saltine crackers, and quesadillas were my go-to's because they didn't have strong tastes and I could keep them down. That, and I am just a carb freaked. Carb obsessed. Whatever you wanna call it. 

It's always good to keep water on you or even a little bit of mouthwash in case you get sick. Chances are you will be at home or the hospital, but it's better to be safe than sorry.

Soreness/Pain

During this journey, your back and joints are gonna feel it. You're going to be very tired and any movement on some days is going to be so much. That, and generally you will receive white blood cell injections (my bet is Zarxio or Neulasta, but I'm also a broke college student so please don't challenge me), which helps your spleen kick in but also can mean pain in your lower back. 

• Rest: Well, duh. But I have to say it because I know some people won't rest until they're told. Give yourself a break, boo. 
• Heat: Heating pads or a rice bag you can toss into the microwave is very very nice for relieving tension. Warm baths and showers are also nice decompressors for both the body and mind.

I wouldn't pass up a massage or back rub from a friend, either.

Skin Irritation

If you have a Port or a PICC line, then you may face issues with skin irritation. With all of the cleaning and bandaging and needles in and out, it is a heavy toll on the skin. Aloe Vera is the best solution for this, if you are allowed to have stuff like that around the area. With PICCs, there isn't much you can do, but if you're having a problem with skin irritation, I would ask what cleaning solution they use. The standard is Chlorhexidine, which some people can be allergic to. Surprise, I was one of those people. They switched me to another cleaning solution, Betadine, and I didn't have a problem again. They use Betadine around my port now, too. That, and they have skin bandaging that can be used for sensitive skin in case that is causing problems, too.

(yes, I had a PICC line and now I have a Port. Best of both worlds, I guess. NOT.)

Sleep/Sleep Troubles

I still face these problems. Yes, I talked about exhaustion earlier, but this is a little different. Chemotherapy can cause vivid dreams, sleep paralysis, and insomnia. All suck pretty bad. Yes, they have medications for insomnia, but the other two you kind of have to stick through. Some natural ways to promote sleep, however, are:

• Essential Oils: They have such nice healing powers. I recommend Deep Blue, Lavender, and Serenity. They helped me calm down and never made me feel nauseous.
• Sleep Meditation: There are millions of videos to listen to as you fall asleep. I used them before I even knew I had cancer and began treatment. Just make sure your phone is plugged in! 
• Soft Music: I made a playlist with songs that had soft beats to listen to when I had trouble going back to sleep. They were usually songs that talked about peace and love, which (I think) promoted better dreams. 

Constipation/Diarrhea

Yeah, I know, sounds gross but it happens. It's real. The goal is to have a Bowel Movement (BM) at least once a day while on treatment, and if something isn't normal, tell your doctor or nurse. They know the course of action that can help you. Don't be afraid or feel awkward to talk about it! 

Your oncologist will discuss what side effects you need to pay attention to during treatment, but if you feel that there should be more on here, I'd be happy to add it!

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY

Of course, there are always things you have to look out for.

Regarding fevers:
If you have a temperature of 100.5 for an hour or 101 at all, go to the Emergency Room. 

I AM NOT KIDDING. GO TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM.

If you have significant bruising or problems with nose bleeds, call your doctor. It can be a sign of low platelets, and you may need a transfusion. Open wounds have a high risk of infections, even higher than usual.

In other words, listen to your body. 

LIIIIISTTEEEENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN. 

Fun fact: I am actually Beyonce. Thank you.