gaylejones

I am so sorry to hear about your mom.

I am so sorry to hear about your dad. My mom looked into doing alternative therapy during her chemo and ended up going to some dietitians and holistic doctors that were not part of the cancer center she was receiving care from. She started to take some supplements during her treatment but had to stop because she was at high risk for blood clots and had to go on a blood thinner. It is important that if you do receive outside care to let the doctors know so that you avoid complications with medicines. However she took yoga during her treatment and is currently enjoying Reki and Massage. I think that this has helped her tremendously.

The radiation that my mom had to her neck and spine was harder then the chemo treatment. She ended up in the hospital from dehydration and pneumonia. The doctors did not do a good job on monitoring her. Make sure that you advocate to have your loved one put on liquids if they are not eating or drinking and have all there vital signs checked. I had asked if my moms reaction was normal and they said yes, so she ended getting extremely ill. Trust your instinks. But in a nutshell the doctors will tell you that there are no symptoms from radiation but this is not true.

Thank you so much for the kind introduction and your comments on the photo of my mom. It was actually taken this thanksgiving my mom had worked so hard that day to do her makeup and hair and celebrate with are family.

Hi Its been about a week from the time I posted the question about mood swings and cancer. I talked with hospice after I posted the question and found out that is most likely anger or depression linked to her late stage with the cancer. The nurse told me that often lung cancer patients will push loved ones away or become angry because even if it is on a subconscious level they can sense there bodies are shutting down. They also said it might be that the cancer has spread to different areas of the body like the brain. The nurse had confirmed that the her lung was almost silent and was almost filled completely with liquid. So she is most likely one more stage closer to death. This week she is doing much better but is still fixated on cleaning and fixing things in the house. I have seemed to figure a way out to work with her on these little tasks but It just seems like such a bad way to spend the last weeks or months of your life.

Hello my mom has been on hospice for about 3 weeks and started taking a very low dosage of morphine to help her sleep at night. She has been acting very strange some days with extreme, extreme mood swings. She says very strange things and gets extremely angry about doing things or what needs to be done around the house. I am thinking that it is the morphine or lack there of on the nights that she doesn't take it that is making her act out. Does anyone have experiences with such extreme anger and strange reactions. This is very hard for me to understand because I feel that I am almost loosing touch with her and can not seem to stop her rant.

I just wanted to thank everyone that posts on this site. I have been reading the caregiver posts for about 4 months and have found everyones words so comforting. My mom was diagnosed with NSCLC Nov. 2005. I feel so lucky that I have had over a year with her. She has currently stopped treatment and is with hospice. My sister and I are her primary caregivers so this site feels like an extended family helping me deal with my moms illness. Thank you