Hi Erika, I have been watching your videos and am now on my 7th day of radiation. I remember you fast forwarded your treatment to 3 weeks if memory serves me right. Mine is 6 weeks but I hope to avoid the burning you got toward the end . I wondered if that might have possibly been because of the fast track you took. Did you have any nausea, lightheadedness, fatigue in addition to your skin issues? Or was it primarily physical skin changes? I know we are all different and your skin looks fair as is mine so just following up on how you felt post radiation. I want to go back to work but I think fatigue may affect me a couple weeks post treatment. I am older than you so I suppose age plays a role in stamina as well. Also, did your thyroid get affected? They run thru this list of collateral damage from these treatments so I am monitoring all of them! Thanks for any feedback.:)
@@cindycall4985 I was fortunate that I didn't have any other symptoms - no nausea, lightheadedness and literally no fatigue during or after. No thyroid issues either. I worked out the entire time, which I think helped. I also prioritized sleep, ate well, etc. So yes, all of my effects were physical. The skin was only sore a few days even though it looked much worse. My issues with radiation were more related to the delayed side effects (radiation fibrosis). All the best with the rest of your treatment.
Thank you for this. I’m 10 years out from all treatments and tonight is the first time I’ve heard the term “radiation fibrosis” - and I did all of my treatment at Vanderbilt. I don’t know how many times I’ve described for the doctor that it feels like I wear a shoulder holster under my skin because it is so tight. I am so disappointed in the medical community. I know I should be thankful to just have my life but not one of them seemed to care about the quality of my life. So so disappointed and if I had one thing I wish I had not done, it’s radiation.
I get it! I didn’t know anything about this either. It’s interesting that a lot more information is passed down about lymphedema but not much (or not at all) is discussed about cording and radiation fibrosis, which are both really common. Even though I have the majority of the radiation fibrosis symptoms that you can get, I still would’ve done radiation given the upside of a lower recurrence rate. Either way, it’s hard to know at the time what to do. Here’s my radiation fibrosis playlist for strategies to address this side effect - ua-cam.com/play/PLALVgJH_QhhiBu-YSGlOfhQvdYgMuWWOU.html&si=B3wCL5on30zW9H44
You wouldn't want to do any of the hands-on treatment during radiation but I would do the exercises. The skin changes peak after you're done radiation so if you have any open skin it may be uncomfortable to do some of the movements for this short time. I was able to workout throughout but see what works for you.
Self-massage was one of the things that helped me the most with radiation fibrosis - ua-cam.com/video/3ZBNcYBddqI/v-deo.html
Hi Erika, I have been watching your videos and am now on my 7th day of radiation. I remember you fast forwarded your treatment to 3 weeks if memory serves me right. Mine is 6 weeks but I hope to avoid the burning you got toward the end . I wondered if that might have possibly been because of the fast track you took. Did you have any nausea, lightheadedness, fatigue in addition to your skin issues? Or was it primarily physical skin changes? I know we are all different and your skin looks fair as is mine so just following up on how you felt post radiation. I want to go back to work but I think fatigue may affect me a couple weeks post treatment. I am older than you so I suppose age plays a role in stamina as well. Also, did your thyroid get affected? They run thru this list of collateral damage from these treatments so I am monitoring all of them! Thanks for any feedback.:)
@@cindycall4985 I was fortunate that I didn't have any other symptoms - no nausea, lightheadedness and literally no fatigue during or after. No thyroid issues either. I worked out the entire time, which I think helped. I also prioritized sleep, ate well, etc. So yes, all of my effects were physical. The skin was only sore a few days even though it looked much worse. My issues with radiation were more related to the delayed side effects (radiation fibrosis). All the best with the rest of your treatment.
So grateful for all your videos!!!!
You’re welcome! I’m glad they’re helping. They’re exactly what I would have wanted when I was going through treatment!
Thank you for this. I’m 10 years out from all treatments and tonight is the first time I’ve heard the term “radiation fibrosis” - and I did all of my treatment at Vanderbilt. I don’t know how many times I’ve described for the doctor that it feels like I wear a shoulder holster under my skin because it is so tight. I am so disappointed in the medical community. I know I should be thankful to just have my life but not one of them seemed to care about the quality of my life. So so disappointed and if I had one thing I wish I had not done, it’s radiation.
I get it! I didn’t know anything about this either. It’s interesting that a lot more information is passed down about lymphedema but not much (or not at all) is discussed about cording and radiation fibrosis, which are both really common. Even though I have the majority of the radiation fibrosis symptoms that you can get, I still would’ve done radiation given the upside of a lower recurrence rate. Either way, it’s hard to know at the time what to do. Here’s my radiation fibrosis playlist for strategies to address this side effect - ua-cam.com/play/PLALVgJH_QhhiBu-YSGlOfhQvdYgMuWWOU.html&si=B3wCL5on30zW9H44
Still unable to lift my arm
It sounds like time to start treatment, if you haven’t already. There’s only so much that we can do on our own!
I feel lot of pain in operated arm and area
Lots of resources on the channel to help - check out the rehab exercises first.
Is it ok to start these exercises during radiation or should it be done once complete with all of my sessions?
You wouldn't want to do any of the hands-on treatment during radiation but I would do the exercises. The skin changes peak after you're done radiation so if you have any open skin it may be uncomfortable to do some of the movements for this short time. I was able to workout throughout but see what works for you.
I feel total mastectomy without skin preserving is not worth
?