She's awake
Yes, yes I am...well, for the moment anyway. Have I mentioned that this treatment thing makes you sleep? If you ever have to go through this fascinating process, get some comfy jammies, invest in a sleep hat (bald heads get cold, people) and sleep when your body tells you to. Yes, it does make "real life" a bit of a challenge but it's only temporary and your body tells you what you need so do your best to listen. That's Andee's Treatment Tip of the Day.
Taste Buds
Mine are a mess! This is another one of those side effects I knew would come but what I expected is so very different from the reality. I haven't really had a metallic taste in my mouth or anything weird like that. Things don't taste dramatically different, I basically just taste things or I don't. It's almost as if the taste buds get a little numb or dull. I was complaining about a lack a flavor in food the other day and Bobby suggested that I try a dill pickle spear. At the time, I passed. Tonight, however, I gave it a try. AHA! I could taste that thing for sure. Holy cow. ha ha
My nurses told me not to eat a lot of things that I like because I will not like them when treatment is over. What's strange is that I've eaten things and they didn't taste bad at the time but I found that later, I had no desire for them. Weird, right? It didn't taste bad but the thought of eating it again was just not appealing. It hasn't happened with everything and I haven't figured out the pattern, if there is one. I can tell that you that rumors are true, chocolate is still good!
What is Chemo Brain, anyway?
Prior to my diagnosis, I wasn't really aware that this was a thing. There seems to be some debate among professionals as to whether this is solely a result of the treatment itself or a combination of treatment and stress, etc. Whatever it is, it seems pretty real to me. I've almost gotten a bit emotional on a couple of occasions because I've either forgotten what I was doing, or going to do, or I realized I'd said something silly.
So what is it? The Mayo Clinic site says this...
Chemo brain is a common term used by cancer survivors to describe thinking and memory problems that can occur after cancer treatment.Chemo brain can also be called chemo fog, chemotherapy-related cognitive impairment or cognitive dysfunction.
Though chemo brain is a widely used term, it's misleading. It's unlikely that chemotherapy is the sole cause of concentration and memory problems in cancer survivors.
- Despite the many questions, it's clear that the memory problems commonly called chemo brain can be a frustrating and debilitating side effect of cancer and its treatment. More study is needed to understand this condition.
It's just another one of the challenges presented in this journey. You just have to take a deep breath, be patient with yourself and remember that it's only temporary. A sense of humor certainly helps with this one.