Hi Diana,

I finished FEC-T for invasive Ductal carcinoma at the end of April, I'm 38 to say the diagnosis was a shock is an understatement.

When I saw the Chemo nurse she filled me with dread, I came home feeling so scared but it was ok. 
 

I did use the cold cap, I lost around 40 percent of my hair but managed to keep enough to look relatively normal. The cold cap was tough but it was worth it. it's a good idea if you can get a cold Cap fitting before you go for your appointment I went for my fitting when I had my blood test done before my first session of chemo. Have a chat with your team and make sure that you've booked the Cold Cap for your appointments, I took two paracetamol two hours before my treatment, you will need a cotton hairband to protect your forehead, I took with me a travel pillow that went around my neck it just seems to help with the cold. I used simple shampoo and hair conditioner and a wide tooth comb. when you go to hospital they will wet your hair thoroughly and put conditioner through it. The thing with the code cap is though that it makes your time at the hospital longer because you have to wait a certain amount of time after your treatment before you can take it off. All the information that you'll need will be on the Paxman website it's really helpful.

My hair actually started to grow back before my last docetaxel and when it did it was like my normal hair and thick, I did lose some on the top like a monk spot because the coldcap didn't fit that well.

When I had my meeting with the chemo nurse I came out of her office feeling completely overwhelmed by everything she had told me, she went through all the possible side-effects and they were all horrendous. What she didn't tell me was is that you don't get all the side-effects and I only felt rough for 7 to 10 days after my chemo and would have a few good days before my next one. The side effects are well managed by your team and there is often something you can take for every side-effects that you will experience. With the FEC it made me feel quite sick but I took plenty of sickness tablets that were prescribed and ones just in case, I ate little and often sometimes I would just eat rich tea biscuits and Weetabix but this would only be for the first seven days.

You need to drink plenty of water 4 pints per day for the first four days of chemo this flushes your system through, your team might also give you mouthwash I use this only for one week after my chemo, I also used children's toothpaste because my usual toothpaste was a bit too strong,. The first chemotherapy I kept a diary of my side-effects so that I could plan before my next one so I knew how I would feel on which days this would help me mentally because I knew what I had to do and what days.

The docetaxel was more jointy but again I was able to take paracetamol which would help with that. You must remember though that if you don't feel well you need to take your temperature before you take any painkillers because painkillers mask your temperature and it's very important that you know what your temperature is because  that's a sign of infection. You must listen to your body and if you're tired you must get into bed and if you don't feel well you must seek help from your team, don't sit at home and be worried that's what they are there for. I would ring them often and they would always reassure me that that was normal.

I had a pick line put in the top of my arm this is instead of a cannula!' it stays there for the time that you have your chemo so mine was there for six months, although it was a bit of a pain sometimes because you can't have a bath and you have to put a big plastic thing on your arm when you have a shower I found it a real help because I could see the nurse once a week when I had my pic line flushed, this was a lifeline because I could talk through with the nurse how I've been feeling and she would always keep an eye on me, this also meant I didn't have to have a cannula at each chemo.

Chemo is hard but is doable if you have a good support network around you it will be a breeze, if people offer the help take the help. You can do this it's a bump in the road it will soon be over then you can live the best life. Look after yourself and I'm here if you've got any questions, sorry for the long post I got a bit carried away.

Lots of love fellow warrior Sarah