Hi Patsy,
I went through 6 months of chemo for ovarian cancer and also had my last chemo treatment mid June of 2011. It is now April, 2012 and I still have chemo brain, along with continued nausea, off balance, numb fingers and exhaustion- I was also an excellent multi tasker and managed a high stressed commercial financial institution.
I recently went back to work to try it out but I am only working 2 mornings a week and am totally exhausted when I get home. I find I don't finish anything I am working on, my concentration level is 0, my attention span is 0 and I get distracted easily and start working on something completely different than what I started.
Chemo brain is a reality but it does not seem to be accepted in the real world. My GP said he had never even heard of it & I think my workplace is skeptical.
I have been seeing a CancerCare social worker to keep me on track and I am being monitored, but again - she says it takes alot of time post chemo and some never get it back completely.
I realized we have to be thankful for what we have and right now I am cancer free - so - I will take that for being the most important thing in my life. My family (husband & daughter) joke about how many times I say and ask the same things over again, and how many lists I lose in a day-but I am here and I will keep entertaining them with my forgetfulness and simple minded comments; maybe I was too serious before!
Chin up, enjoy life and laugh even if it is sometimes at your expense.
Hi There,
I have had chemo for breast cancer some 11 years ago. I did work and
found to have some brain fog then. I'm now going through Chemotherapy
for Hep C. I'm older and wonder if that was part of the problem. I have
a talk to others about my age before this treatment who said they have
moments.... as senior moments. What I did find out this time... which is
extremely helpful with brain fog is drinking water. Try to drink at least 8
16oz. water everyday. Not only does it seem to really get that mind workin....
it makes your skin look really great.
Good Luck... Hope this helps you
This is very interesting because I don't remember posting the above post.
After reading it again... I want to clarify that I DIDN'T have brain fog when
I went through chemotherapy for Breast Cancer.
Hi Patsy3033,
I thought I was the only one! Since I finished Chemo in January of 2013 my memory has not returned to normal. I also find that I get confused easily, my sense of balance is not what it was and I find it really hard to concentrate. I forget the simplest things such as the names for things, and I often find myself groping about for the right word for something half way through a sentence. I haven't mentioned it to any health care professionals, because I thought they'd be sceptical (I don't know why I thought that), and I didn't want to seem like a hypochondriac. My family are really (can't remember the word - I mean they make allowances), and when I first read about Chemo brain, I assumed the effects would wear off after I finished Chemo. It hasn't. But I can only hope it'll improve with time. Incidentally, I drink lots of water, and always have done, but I can't say that it's had any noticeable effect on my brain fog :-(
In response to what carolyn663 said about numb fingers, I too get numb fingers, they swell up overnight - but not on my surgery side (so it's not Lymphoedema), but on my Chemo side. I assume it's down to vascular insufficiency from the Chemo damage. I've searched online for answers, but can't find anything relating to just swollen hands/fingers and Chemo damage. Again, I haven't mentioned it to my doctors because in the great scheme of things it seems like a minor issue. I just hope these things will improve with time. Good luck Patsy3033.
Your issues are included in the side effects of chemotherapy. Such side effects of chemotherapy are hair loss, nausea, vomiting, short term memory loss, itching, etc.