I’ll say right from the off I don't have CFS altho I picked up some kind of virus (doctor’s description of it not mine) two years prior to diagnosis which had a long term effect on my energy levels and joints. 

The lumpectomy I found easy. My two sites were very small and close together so I have one fairly small scar, this has healed really well and I only have a white line now. My surgeon was brilliant, altho he was a bit surprised about a couple of the things I asked,about he was happy to go along with it. 

I found the radiotherapy very tiring, I worked thro most of it altho only half hours from about the mid point onwards. 

I took a month off work when radiotherapy was completed due the the fatigue that set in but not everyone is affected as badly. It is very much an individual thing. 

There is a thread on here called the good and the bad and there a lot of us breast cancer types on there, other people do pop by once in a while and everyone is welcome to chat as everyone is on the site. 

We talk about most things, life isn’t all about cancer for us, altho for those still in active treatment we are here to support as long as they need us to.  Between us, we can probably relate to whatever part of treatment you are currently undergoing. 

This is doable, don’t think for a minute you have to do it alone  

Thanks for the reply Rileyroo I will drop by and have a look x

Hi there lemondrizzle. . (My favourite cake  ;  ))  

I've not had fatigue syndrome either ... but I've had ten years or more of every sort of arthritis you can think of ... so even before cancer, I had limited energy and couldn't walk without pain ... 

And like rilleyroo, l found the op the easiest part ... I had a total mastectomy on the right .. and yes you do have to take things really easy, be prepaired to sleep a lot, and if you have lymph nodes taken out, your under arm will be very tender, with limited use .. and slowly day by day, build up ... 

Have you someone at home to take care of you .. if so let them help as much as poss ... if not phone McMillan and see if they can send someone to help for awile .. get everything in place ... ready meals are really good.. don't worry about housework, it'll wait ..take help from anyone ... even if it's just picking up groceries... I used to do that for people with cancer before I got it ...

So much depends on who's around you .. I had a grade 3 but it was low risk of spread, so didn't need chemo, and I wouldn't have radiotherapy because of my bones .. but I'm on tamoxifen for the foreseeable future

If you look on the good and bad, thread ... you'll see lots of our journeys there .. we cry, send vertual hugs, and yes even laugh too .. it's not all about cancer ... it's just we know all those feelings, and we all try to hold each other up... and we've all been where you are now.. and everyone is welcome ..

Me and Rilley have just passed our first year .. you can do this too ... sending you a big vertual hug .. 

Chrissie   xx

Thank you for the reply Chriss, 

I am a bit of a worrier at times so my mind is running away with me. I have had friends on Facebook say they are there for me if I need help but from past experience I have been let down too many times to believe what they say, only time will tell on that one. 

I'm using this weekend and next weekend to get stuff sorted before I'm not able to for a while. 

I will definitely pop in to the good and the bad and say hi at some point x

Hi Lemondrizzle,

I was diagnosed on 17th October 2016. In the few weeks before and after diagnosis, I got very ill, very quickly.

This included fatigue, which was exacerbated by chemo. Radiotherapy didn't appear to add to it but may have done and I've been fatigued ever since, worse some days than others.

There are days when it seems an enormous effort just to be alive. Or maybe 'awake' is a better word. I don't actually put any effort in, it just feels like that. No matter how much sleep I may get at night, from none to lots, and it's always disturbed, I fall asleep randomly throughout the day. No amount of sleep will find me refreshed.

I cope by not caring. Acceptance of the way things are from moment to moment. I'm fortunate in that I have a measure of cognitive impairment which renders me incapbale of worrying or pondering. I've never had a 'what if' or a 'why me' feeling or thought since diagnosis. Sorry, I realise that's not very helpful to you.

What it's given me though, is an appreciation of the benefits of not worrying, when I compare my story to that of most others.

I'm a firm advocate of anti-depressants. I take duloxetine, a magical pill for me, as it doesn't allow me to have a negative thought for more than a few seconds. Many people have a resistance to taking anti-depressants, my wife included but I can't understand why.

I don't suggest that they'll help with fatigue but they might help by letting you be not so concerned by it. Or indeed by any other worries. And they don't turn you into an emotionless zombie.

I've no idea if any of the above will be of help but I wish you all the best.

Best Regards

Taff

Hi there ... I'm just gonna send you a friend request .. it's up to you if you want to reply ... but then you'll know I'm there when you want a chat ... then you know you won't have to do this alone .. just press on my pic, it'll take you to my home page ... or just accept request and let me know ... we can be vertual buddies ... 

Take care  ... chrissie   

Hi,

I too suffer from Chronic Fatigue (9 years) and am just recovering from Tonsil cancer were i had a neck dissection and 30 sessions of Radiotherapy.

I like everyone else was very tired after RT but this passed within 1 to 2 months. I had suffered a lot from muscular and joint pain but was able to work, although i'd changed from being a Prison Officer to a desk based Civil Servant to help manage that.

I know CFS is different for us all so i hope your symptoms are not too bad. I've had a bit of a change in lifestyle and diet since, i am now more active than i have been in years and my aches and pains are not nearly as bad as they were before, strangely enough. There is light at the end of the tunnel !!

I hope everything goes as well as it can for you.

I've just read that fatigue and cognitive impairment, both of which I have, can be side-effects of sepsis, which I've also had.

Oddly, I've not had a 'good' day since I got sepsis.