working whilst on chemo
Hi anyone who is wondering about this-
Thought I'd post quickly on this topic, as I'd started asking about it a few months ago, before starting chemo. Anyhow, and we don't all have choices in this regard, I recognise, but I kept up my work- a bit. And it helped enormously.
I went on sick leave from my full time job as that involved too much travelling, but I kept up, sort of, my self employed practice. To be honest, my super-employee fronted for me, and did everything, but it kept me sane to try to work. I sort of followed her into meetings and pretended to understand what I was doing, and typed aimlessly a lot of the time, but other times I did make good and big decisions and presentations. I really felt much better for the sense of doing something worthwhile and not being a full-time invalid.
However, I did have help, I did have a choice, and I also slept and rested a lot.
There were days when I was in a chemo daze and towards the end my cognition and memory definitely deteriorated (that was a bit frightening), but its grand again now, seven weeks after final chemo. I was on the pretty aggressive TAC, which though horrid and not at all easy, was survived.
There you go, started rads and Tamoxifen this week. Waiting for menopause to kick in any day now.
Sincere good luck to everyone...
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Comments
hi there. good to hear that all went good for you. Well done working through it all and being so honest about it. I have great respect for people who do work getting the chemo cause it is not easy going. Being self employed is not easy but it is amazing the friends who help and come to support you. good luck with the rad. It is some feeling when it is all over. I nearly skipped out of the hospital but knew the children would not have been impressed LOL
Sunflower
I did 8 rounds of chemo between May and October and worked for much of it too. A lot of people thought I was mad as I get full pay either way but I enjoy my job and I felt it helped to keep things as 'normal' as possible - especially because your focus is on your job, not the cancer. I typically missed five days around the treatment, then went back in for 2 weeks till the next round. Luckily, like yourself, I have a good employer and they were really flexible. If I needed to go home early or come in late, they were fine about it. I am off work now, post surgery (2 wide local excisions and auxillary node clearance, awaiting results to see if masectomy needed and then will have radiotherapy) and am glad of the rest now. Everyone is different but the nurses said to me that staying to a normal routine really helps your recovery, and I found it got me through chemo.
hi there. good to hear that all went good for you. Well done working through it all and being so honest about it. I have great respect for people who do work getting the chemo cause it is not easy going. Being self employed is not easy but it is amazing the friends who help and come to support you. good luck with the rad. It is some feeling when it is all over. I nearly skipped out of the hospital but knew the children would not have been impressed LOL
Sunflower